Regardless, there was a strange feeling that coursed through her body as she watched him look at her.
Aurelia was not unfamiliar with boys and men and their desires. While she had never done anything explicit, she had snuck into her older sister’s room at night and borrowed her forbidden books she wrapped up in paper so no one knew what she was really reading. Aurelia was certain Augusta knew what she was doing, but Augusta never mentioned anything, and Aurelia continued to do it, even now.
The books were detailed enough that Aurelia had a clear picture of what to expect from a man on her wedding night. She did not know why her body burned with desire, reading about things she had yet to experience, wicked things innocent women like her should not be privy to. But she could not help it.
The way he was looking at her now reminded her of how the men in her fantastical stories looked at their women, like they were claiming them with their eyes. Simultaneously, there was a sense of compassion there. On Thyos, it flickered like a candle before it went out completely. But Aurelia was certain she had seen it, certain he had felt it even for the briefest of seconds.
She cleared her throat and nodded her head almost meekly. Her eyes went to the ripped strap of her gown, the jagged tears and the dirt that had found its way on the pristine white clothes—a gown that should be treated with the utmost respect.
There was also his blood on it. Thyos’s.
It was completely ruined. She could not return home like this. Her golden hair was pulled from its braid, surrounding her in messy tangles. She was certain she looked like a mess.
“I take it you do not have a dress?” she asked.
It was a long shot, but she could hope.
“I do, actually. One that might fit you.”
Aurelia pressed her lips together and nodded as he went to the closet to pull out. She wanted to ask him why he would have a dress but did not want to bring up the past. Whoever it belonged to before her was long gone. She wasn’t sure how she felt about wearing someone else’s attire, but she could not choose her dress if she needed it.
And she desperately needed one.
Her family would no doubt be able to scent something strange on her but perhaps she could mask that with her scent of fear.
Thyos pulled an off-white gown from his closet and held it out to her to study. It was a similar style as her ruined one, though the material was not as fine and probably cost little to nothing. Her sisters would immediately notice the cheap material, that it was not as glorious or as significant.
But in that moment, Aurelia did not care. It was a gift from a vampire, and as cheap as it was, she would cherish it. She took the dress from his hands and beamed at him.
“It’s lovely,” she told him sincerely, locking eyes with him. “Are you certain it is all right if I take it? I can repay you for it.”
“First the couch and now the dress.” There was a sardonic curve of his lips. “You seem to be in my debt, witch. What shall I take from you if you cannot repay me what you owe?” He smiled, flashing his fangs at her, and she swallowed.
Her eyes widened, but she managed to look him in the eyes as she replied, “What is it you require in order to trust my word?”
There was part of her that knew he was intimidating her on purpose, that he was trying to scare her in order to get a reaction. She could not help but give him what he wanted; she was certain he could detect her racing heartbeat because there was a part of her that was still scared of him. He was a vampire, a Berkano, and there was no reason for him to go out of his way for her unless he had something lecherous up his sleeve.
She heard him sigh through his nose. “I will not take anything from you,” he told her. For some strange reason, he seemed deflated. “I am not that monster. A monster, certainly, but not that one.”
“I know,” she said. There was still a glimmer of fear in her eyes, but her tone was almost casual as though she was talking to a fellow witch rather than a vampire.
“You know?” he asked doubtfully. “What do you know about me?”
“That you’re Berkano,” she said, locking eyes with him. “And that you used to kill witches. Before the Rift.”
“And?” he asked, taking a step toward her. Aurelia could not help herself and took a step back. She did not know if this action surprised Thyos or if it amused him. Either way, he took another step forward, and she took another step back, like a dance, until her back hit the wall behind her. From the corner of the eye, she made an educated guess that she was in the kitchen, but considering how small the flat was, she could be in the living room for all she knew.
“And,” Aurelia said slowly, pressing into the wall and feeling how solid it was beneath her palms. She wished she knew an incantation that would let her fall through the walls and away from the intense stare he was currently giving her, harsh but not unkind. Curious seemed to fit. “And I still get the sense that you are good. Deep down, beyond all of what you were, I think that you are good. I think good is what you are.”
Thyos scrunched his face up in disbelief and cocked his head to the side. “You are a very foolish witch,” he told her, leaning his head down so his forehead nearly grazed hers. “If I wanted to, I could reach out and slit your throat with my fingernail.”
“Yes,” she agreed, her voice shaking only slightly. She did not think he would actually do it, but the fact that he had the ability to do such a thing was there. And the ability that she should have—a way to protect herself—was not something she had any control over. “I do realize that. But I don’t think you will.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Well,” she said. “Like you said, because if you wanted to, I’d already be dead. And honestly? I think you’re a good person. Vampire. Whatever you consider yourself. I think you’re good. And maybe you put up this wall where you show people you don’t care. And I get that. I don’t think you do care about most things. But that doesn’t make you any less good.”
Thyos pressed his lips together and looked down at her with intense blue eyes. “You know I killed your kind without question,” he said.
“I also know you were banished from the Berkano clan because you refused to kill a child,” she whispered. She did not want to look at him, did not want to get swept away in those eyes, but she could not help herself. “That makes you good.”
“And all my other nefarious deeds?” he questioned.
“I cannot redeem you of your sins,” Aurelia told him. “That is between you and, well, I don’t know if you believe in a god or whatever. But I do know I won’t judge you for your past.”
He furrowed his brow and pushed away from her, as though he suddenly needed the space.
“You need to leave,” he told her abruptly, taking another step back.
Though the space gave Aurelia a chance to breathe once more, she could not help but feel slightly disappointed.
“I need to feed and—”
“I’ve never seen a vampire feed before,” she murmured, placing the tip of her finger to her chin. “Would it be all right if I came with you? Or is that a rude question to ask? I’m not privy to what’s acceptable and what isn’t. I’ve always wanted to learn, you know? I love learning. Especially about the different factions that I’m not a part of.”
Before Aurelia could do anything else, Thyos leaned over and placed his finger over her lips, silencing her.
Chapter 8
“You are not coming with me to feed,” he said, his brow wrinkling. “I’m not quite certain why you would even think to ask me such an asinine question.”
“I’ve never been to a brothel before,” she began, but Thyos cut her off.
“Do you think for one second that the vampires would let you leave alive?” he asked, sliding on a black leather jacket from his closet and giving her a cool gaze.
“I am a witch,” Aurelia pointed out. There was a surprising element of arrogance to her tone, although considering how affluent her parents were and how sheltered s
he was proving herself to be, it was not completely unwarranted. “My blood will kill them before they swallow a single drop.”
“If your powers haven’t manifested, how do you know your blood will protect you?” Thyos asked, arching a cool brow. “Perhaps I should taste you and find out for myself?”
Aurelia swallowed. “I—I don’t know if that’s the best idea,” she said. “I’m not—what I mean to say is—”
“Rest, witch,” Thyos said. “I would never do anything without your consent. I am no monster.”
Aurelia’s eyes flickered around the small room. “Just lonely,” she muttered, nearly under her breath.
“Perhaps,” he said, tilting his head. “I could try a drop if your blood. Even if it is poison, it will simply stun me, not kill me. This way, you’ll know for certain if your blood can protect you from other vampires.”
Thyos had no idea why he was suggesting this. He stayed away from humans he might socialize with and preferred brothels for their anonymity and the fact that he did not have to worry about anyone desiring some form of relationship with him afterward. He understood the hormones that permeated human bodies and polluted their minds with false fantasies. He did not want to waste his energy on erasing their memories. He would not be able to do such a thing with Aurelia in the first place.
But the more he thought about it, the more he wanted to try. The scent of her blood had filled the cool night when he’d stumbled upon her, injured and dying. There was always a special scent to witches’ blood, one he was certain even witches knew nothing about. There was a purity to it, something that felt that it was almost too good to be true.
But hers was… tainted with something. Something magnetizing. Something that made him clamor to taste it himself. He wondered if that was something on purpose, to draw vampires in so when they tasted the tempting poison, they died with a smile on their lips.
Thyos was smart enough to know better. He had been around long before the Rift, and since vampirism was not cured, he expected to be around a lot later. Unless, of course, he died in a battle.
But he had a strong urge to risk dying right now just to try a drop of her blood. It was reckless, but he did not care.
This is your overindulgent hunger, a quiet voice pointed out. If you had fed when you were supposed to, you would have left the witch to her fate. Your hunger is making you sentimental. Human.
The last word was said with a sneer.
Even so, he could not get the desire to try her out of his head.
“You would feed on me?”
Thyos’s ears pricked at the tone in the witch’s voice. She did not completely balk at the idea the way she had when it came to drinking from him. Instead, she almost seemed… intrigued by the thought.
He swallowed. This was idiotic. He knew better than this. This gods-damned witch had him under her spell, and she did not even realize it. Perhaps this was just a huge ploy set up by the emperor to rid the world of him for once and for all. Sending an innocent witch to be his downfall.
How poetic.
Except he knew Paletyn would not risk losing his greatest warrior. Having a Berkano in the arena, slaughtering other vampires for sport, brought in money. Too much money to count.
“Do you intend to kill me, Thyos?” she asked him. Her voice was not accusing. It was strangely intrigued, as if she yearned to learn more about his mind and all that he was thinking.
And feeling.
He could not remember how to feel.
That had been beaten out of him at a young age.
“If I wanted to kill you, you would already be dead,” he pointed out.
She did not seem afraid of his answer. At least, her pupils did not dilate the way they would have if she was frightened. He could not hear her heartbeat quicken, and he could not feel her cast a protective spell around her body.
She trusted him not to touch her unless she told him it was all right.
The silly fool.
How completely human. To trust him. To trust anyone.
“All right.”
Her voice was soft. An angel’s breath on the devil’s skin, giving him goosebumps up and down his arms.
“What?” he asked, not daring to believe it. But hoping, hoping…
When was the last time Thyos had hoped for anything?
He could not remember.
This witch was making him feel things he had never felt before, things he was not used to feeling at all.
“I said all right,” she repeated, looking him in the eye. “Would it be easier if you bit my neck? Or do you want my wrist?”
“The neck,” he managed to get out. He slowly walked over to her.
“Only take a drop,” she told him, her voice shaking slightly. He almost smiled at how adorable she was.
Adorable.
A word he never used.
What was she doing to him? What kind of spell had she cast on him?
Thyos bristled at the thought. This girl hadn’t even been able to cast a cleansing spell for his wound once the battle was over. The look on her face had been genuine horror, and the way her face had filled with blood was genuine embarrassment. It had also told him that she had lots of blood just waiting for someone to rip into her and feed on her.
He swallowed.
Here she was, offering him a drop of her blood, trusting him to not take more than just that. There was a good chance he would be shocked, perhaps paralyzed, because she was a witch. But there was something inside of him that wanted to take that chance.
He had heard stories, of course, that one drop was enough to turn even the sanest vampires to lunacy, filling them with bloodlust to the point where they killed themselves by devouring the blood. The witch survived, but the vampire perished almost immediately.
He could understand why. Just the thought of testing her blood…
He clenched his jaw, trying to control himself. He did not need to devour her body, just her blood. Just a little bit.
“All right,” he managed to get out, his voice raw. He shifted in his seat and used his hand to slowly brush her hair over her shoulder. It used to be braided up, but stray strands of hair had slipped through because of her attack. He could feel her tense, hear her heart beat start to pound against her chest cavity – but not in fear, in anticipation.
As if she could want something like this. Like him. Tasting her. Something no one had ever done before.
He did not know why, but his own heart pounded in his chest. It was similar to how he’d felt during his first fuck, which was silly because all he was doing was tasting this witch’s blood. There was nothing romantic, nothing sexual, about what he was doing –
He was a bad liar.
Of course, there was.
Feeding was an intimate experience. Feeding was either paid for or taken. Rarely was it given. And yet, here she was, giving this to him. All in the name of science. To ensure that her blood protected her against vampires.
Vampires like himself.
He felt his fangs extract without him commanding them to. He rarely, if ever, reacted based on instinct rather than rational thought.
He wanted this. Badly.
The strain in his groin told him he wanted this in more ways than one.
There was nothing more intimate than feeding and fucking simultaneously for a vampire. With that came a bond between the two participants, something Thyos always intended to avoid. Although there was a small part of him that wondered what it felt like, to fuck and to feed. He did not consider himself a romantic, but it was something he thought about trying one day, when he found someone he was willing to experience it with.
It definitely wasn’t going to be a witch, one probably inexperienced, barely touched if touched at all.
Yet the thought of her being so corruptible, so terribly innocent, made his cock tighten in his pants. He did not think she noticed, since her eyes were already closed and waiting. He could practically feel her heartbeat as though it was his, as thou
gh it beat inside of him.
Slowly, so slowly, he slid his fangs into her flesh. She gasped at the sensation, but he knew the pain would soon be masked by endorphins, and she would feel pleasure in a manner of seconds. He was careful not to slip too far into her and get a rush of blood instead of a single drop. Instead, he waited patiently. He knew he would get it eventually and that waiting for it would be worth it.
And it was.
Just a drop hit his right fang, and there was a breath when he paused to see what kind of effect it would have on his body, if any. Somehow, his hands had come up to rest on Aurelia’s shoulders, almost as though they were two lovers embracing.
She tasted of fire and ice and rainbows and four leaf clovers. She tasted like freshly cut grass and the ocean on an overcast day. She tasted like sunflowers in the summer and a patch of pumpkins in October. She tasted like everything he could fall in love with and nothing he wanted to part from. Like the moon and the sun and all the stars in the sky.
He could not help himself as he tugged just a little bit, getting a little bit more of her blood than he should have.
Thyos had never been addicted to anything before. Pussy and power were both fun and exhilarating, but he did not need them in order to survive. He could probably give them up, if he really wanted to.
But now that he’d had Aurelia’s blood…
He yanked away from her, immediately wiping the blood that had dribbled onto his chin from his face. He would not allow someone to have such power over him. Especially not a witch.
He watched her wince at the rough treatment of her skin and, with awed fascination, noticed that her bite marks did not close, did not heal themselves as he expected them to.
Odd. And yet, satisfying.
He needed to get away from her, needed to be able to breathe without her sucking all the air from him.
“I will walk you to West Babylon,” he told her, his voice coming out uncharacteristically throaty. He did not understand why she was causing him to do these things that had at one point been unthinkable. “And then I must feed.” His eyes clashed with hers. “Without you.”
Poisonous Temptation: Division 2 (The Berkano Vampire Collection) Page 5