Page 61 of Dante's Circle Reborn

“No zombies that I know of. However, you never know what other secrets are out there.” He paused. “Caly, pet, you gave me far too much. I will be forever in your debt for saving my life, but I need to give you blood.”

Her eyes widened, and she pushed at him. She was so weak that she couldn’t do much. He wanted to curse himself for what he had done, but there was no going back. Not now.

“It won’t turn you. Vampires, just like every other paranormal out there, are born, not made.” He paused. “Well, the lightning-struck seven might be a little different, but you are not one of them. You will not turn into a mer-vampire.” He paused. “Those do not exist, at least that I know of.”

“I can’t drink blood.”

“It will replenish you. It’s the only way. You’re dying, Caly,” he ground out, his fangs extending and his claws curling. “Because of me. Let me save you.”

“At what cost?” she asked. It was as if she could see right through him.

“It’s the first part of the mating bond,” he whispered. The truth lay heavy between them. “If I do this, there’s no going back. But if I don’t, you’re going to die, Caly.Because of me.” He slid his hands through her hair, her body cold to his touch, her gaze unfocused. Her heartbeat was slowing, and he knew she didn’t have much time left. But he wouldn’t take this choice from her. The first part of the mating bond would cement their fates together far quicker than he had ever imagined. But he wouldn’t take her choice from her. He couldn’t, not after what she had already been through, and given who he was.

“I don’t want to die,” she whispered, her voice so faint that he barely heard it.

It wasn’t the declaration of love a true mating should have. It wasn’t a mating call at all. But it was permission.

And so, he slid his fangs into his own wrist and cut deep. His body was already back to full strength, even past it with the potency of Caly’s blood in his veins.

She was dying because she’d tried to save him, and he would never forgive himself. He put his bloody wrist to her mouth, and her eyes closed, her body limp in his arms.

He didn’t have much time. He forced blood down her throat before she greedily latched on, sucking. His blood wasn’t just pure, it was an elixir of sorts, one that would send her over the edge into bliss if they weren’t careful. And it would send them into their mating, the urge too strong for either of them to deny or prolong. But he would wait for as long as it took. To keep his people safe, and to give Caly a choice. He was already taking one decision from her. He wouldn’t do it again.

Misha moved so Caly was in his lap, her head resting on his thigh. He willed his cock not to harden any further.

The act of blood sharing between mates was an intimate one, something that nearly always led to sex and even procreation.

For those vampires who were lucky enough to find their mates, they didn’t need to drink from a human or another paranormal. They need only drink from their mate—even if they were another vampire. That was how close the bond was. You were each other’s life force, life mate, everything. You were each other’s life itself.

And as the bond started to solidify between them, slowly at first, winding between their souls, he swallowed hard at the intimacy.

Because he didn’t know her. He didn’t know who this person was. But she would be irrevocably changed, bonded with him until the end of their days, be they long or short.

She moaned, arching her back as she drank more, and he licked his lips, knowing she needed a little bit more to be healthy, but he couldn’t let her take too much. Not because it would hurt him, but because it would send them both over the edge into an abyss neither of them was truly ready for. At least, he hoped there would be no pain, no confusion—only bliss.

He didn’t know, he didn’t know anything. His long life of being a warrior for his people, the secret keeper, a leader, all amounted to nothing with this woman in his arms.

He pulled her away gently and licked his wound closed before wiping her lips with his thumb.

Her eyes widened, and she blinked quickly as she swallowed hard.

He slid his hands over her shoulders, checking for any more wounds, ensuring that she was safe.

He had almost killed her, and now he was hers.

“What…what happened?”

“The bond between us has started,” he whispered.

“What does that mean?”

“It means whatever we need it to mean.” He swallowed hard. “But the mating urge between us? It’s not going to die down anytime soon.”

He let out a breath and did his best not to adjust himself in his pants. He wanted to be inside her, needed to, and there was no controlling it.

She squirmed in his hold and shook her head. “Why am I feeling like this?

“We can stop, we can walk away from each other right now.”

---