Page 11 of His Mate By Vengeance

“That was a death spell. I can smell the earth magic from here. The witches are involved,” Angelo said before he coulddo anything else stupid, like feed Vin some more or make him take another nap.

“Or someone’s framing them as well,” Marco said, already reaching for his phone to call his contacts. “The guns they used to attack here came from stock stolen from one of our warehouses a week ago and we’ve got banned weapons even we don’t trade in turning up on the streets. Someone’s coming at us hard and trying to weaken us by starting a war between the families. We can’t afford the distraction. You two chase down Vin’s mark and see if it gives us another lead. I’ll take care of the politics.”

Their city, New Trinity, was more commonly known by the supernatural community as the City of Demons for its three crime families—the Lunetti mafia shifter pack, named for their Alpha’s family, who controlled the illegal weapons trade; the Cruor Coven of vampires who trafficked humans behind the cover of their white-collar mobster medical conglomerate C.C. Pharmaceuticals that sourced the blood bags they needed to feed undetected by humans; and the witch’s Elemental Mayhem Motorcycle Club that dealt in drugs and magical protection. The families were alike, but totally different from the crime families of humans, whom they’d long since displaced from the city.

A war was far more dangerous when it played out between immortals with strength and abilities like the shifters and vampires, or even mortal humans with magic like the witches. The fact they all had to keep to the Global Accord to hide themselves from the normal human population added another layer of complexity. It meant the rulers of the crime families had to meet regularly and cooperate far more than they might otherwise. Angelo didn’t envy Marco the tightrope he walked every day with the other species. This situation with someone trying to spark conflict was a disaster waiting to happen.

Angelo bowed his head and clasped Marco’s hand in farewell as his Alpha went to leave. A wicked smile crossed his Alpha’s face as he pulled away and Angelo realised why a moment later when he stopped by Vin on the way out, kissing him on the cheek. It was all he could do to hold his growl in.

“You’re losing your touch, Corvin. Fuck him already so he can get it out of his system and focus on his damn job. I’ll leave some guards on the perimeter tonight so you can both get some … rest,” Marco said.

Angelo’s jaw literally dropped at Marco’s words. He was so shocked he barely acknowledged the packmate who came inside to sling the dead body over her shoulder and follow their Alpha out. Since when did Marco try to get him to sleep with a damn leech?

“Is that open mouth an invitation? You’re a little tall, Angel. I’m gonna need you down on your knees if you want me to make use of it,” Vin said, stepping in close to him with a grin and booping his nose.

The vampire was fucking insane and had zero sense of self-preservation. Angelo snapped his lengthening fangs at the offending finger and shouldn’t have been surprised when Vin let him catch it between his teeth. He bit down hard enough to draw blood and it only made the crazy vampire’s smile wider as Vin’s groan filled the room.

Leaning in close, Vin whispered in his ear, his breath ghosting across Angelo’s skin and sending tingles straight down to his achingly hard cock. “You want to make me bleed, Angel? Go ahead. I love blood,” he said before closing his own fangs down on Angelo’s earlobe not quite hard enough to break the skin.

Fuck.He wasn’t doing this. Not with a vampire. Not with an assassin.

Shoving Vin away, he cursed himself when the smallerman stumbled backwards onto the bed, momentum making his body bounce enticingly onto the mattress. He could see the ridge of the vampire’s erection straining at his sweatpants as Vin let out another of his contagious, full-body laughs that begged him to join in.

“You’re injured. You need to rest,” Angelo growled, trying and failing to make himself turn away.

Vin rose onto his elbows to watch him. “So, youdocare. Come join me. You look like you’d make a great pillow.”

“Why do you turn everything into a fucking come-on?” Angelo asked.

It surprised him when Vin’s expression turned almost sweet. “Usually, I’d just be doing it to make you vulnerable so I could use you, but you’re different. I actuallywantyou. It’s very disconcerting.”

Angelo rolled his eyes. “Well, you can keep wanting. It’s never going to happen.”

Vin smirked, “Sure, Angel. Whatever you say.”

Angelo huffed an exasperated breath and ignored the smugness emanating from his wolf in response to Vin’s words. “We willnotbe fucking.”

Vin nodded calmly. “Not today, maybe. But I’ll change your mind.”

“With your creepy ability to charm the pants off anyone?” Angelo snapped, wishing he didn’t sound so jealous.

“I’d never use my power on you like that, Angel. It’d take all the fun out of it.”

“I don’t do fun,” Angelo snapped, wondering why he was even still entertaining this conversation.

“Don’t worry. I’ll teach you. It’ll be our little secret. You can take all that rage out on my ass and when you’re all fucked out, I’ll wrap you up in my arms and tease you until you’re dripping smiles all over the bed to match your cum dripping out of?—”

Angelo lunged forward and crushed his hand to Vin’s mouth to stop him talking. Squeezing his eyes shut tight, he fought for control as the vampire’s words wrapped around him like a hand gripped tight around his cock. Pushing away the unwelcome feelings, he channelled some of Vin’s sassiness into his response, even though he knew it would fall flat. Anything to break the sensual spell Vin was weaving between them.

“I bet you say that to all the boys. Did you say that to Marco before you fucked him?”

Silence stretched between them as Angelo removed his hand and stepped away from the bed before risking opening his eyes. He didn’t know what he expected to see, but it wasn’t the bemused expression Vin was wearing.

“No, Angel. I don’t think I’ve ever told someone I’d make them smile. If it’s any consolation, it’s probably weirding me out more than you.”

“I doubt it. Whatever. You’ve known me one fucking day. And stop calling me Angel. My name’s Angelo.”

“You hate my kind. You hate me. And yet still you protected me. You would kill a man for touching me. You made sure I had the blood I needed to heal. You are a halo of light in the darkness, Angel, and I will remind you of that every time I speak your name because you carry darkness with you everywhere you go.”

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