Page 27 of Wicked Flavors

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Worthwhile

Ambrosius

There was a disturbing amount of pleasure when Ambrosius revealed himself to humans. A glimpse of the beast that lay under a vessel of weak human flesh, but it was fun all the same. Watching Gwendolyn’s lovely, exhausted face react to the horror of him made Ambrosius absolutely giddy.

Just as quickly as he revealed his eyes, Ambrosius flicked his fingers across them again. Allowing them to settle into a more acceptable appearance, by human standards. He lowered his hand onto the other, pressing down on the cane as he waited for her to process what she had seen. Or, more accurately, what he hadallowedher to see.

Gwendolyn continued to stare, wide eyed and mouth agape. Rather than cut in as he was prone to do, Ambrosius found himself staring past her parted lips, to the dark cavern inside.His curiosity was like an itch below his skin, one he wanted to tear until his blood soaked the wood floors with it. Ambrosius could feelsomething,but he couldn’t be completely certain it had taken root. No, if he wanted confirmation, he would need to prompt her to—

Her lips were moving, and Ambrosius realized he had shut the connection to his ears without noticing.

“… wasn’t just a dream…”

“Dream?” he prompted with a quirk of his eyebrow.

Gwendolyn went rigid. Her dark lashes blinked rapidly beneath the brim of her hat as her eyes darted across the floor. Embarrassment, if Ambrosius wasn’t mistaken. It was easier to tell when he was watching humans versus when he was just sensing them.

“I—” her face scrunched up as if she smelled something rotten. “That’s none of your business.”

Ambrosius stared long enough she eventually squirmed. Enticing in its own right, though it had been centuries since he had hunted a human. He briefly entertained what she would look like running across the sand. Would she dive into the ocean to get away from him? Others certainly had, but he found it strange that the thought came to him at all. He was hardly starving now that the global population had exploded over the last century alone.

What silly thoughts,he mused with a half-smile.

“I…” Gwendolyn swallowed. “What was that?”

“What?”

“That … thateyething.”

“Oh, liked that, did you?” he winked with the aforementioned eye.

“I—stop it!” she scolded, all but stomping her foot with her disdain. “Stop—stopflirting with meand tell me what’s going on!”

He had to give her some credit. Ambrosius had seen humans collapse at the sight of him, but Gwendolyn appeared to take it rather well. He supposed she could have been in shock, or maybe whatever she had witnessed with the doll had shaken her foundation of her world. Perhaps her constitution wasn’t as weak as he initially thought. Still, Ambrosius was a creature of chaos at his core, and the temptation to goad her was sodelicious.

“Gwendolyn,mybittersweet, if I were flirting with you, you would know it,” Ambrosius teased with a soft tap to her nose with his pointer finger.

Her mouth snapped closed faster than a tiger shark, and her eyes narrowed into a proper glare beneath the brim of her hat. Ambrosius was tickled as he saw her raise her arm, displaying her open palm to him. How strongly would she slap him? He wondered if she really would as excitement ignited in his chest.

“Explain,” she hissed. “Or I swear to god—”

“Oh, please,” Ambrosius rolled his eyes. “The last thing this place needs isgod.”

“Ambrosius!” Gwendolyn snapped.

Oh.Oh,that shouldn’t have felt as good as it did. The sound of his name on her lips—surely it had to be the result of their connection. As much as he wanted to continue wreaking havoc on her, he supposed he should get back to business. If he didn’t, the Antiquarium would surely get upset.

“All right, all right. Don’t get yourpanties—”

The harsh contact of her palm hitting smartly against his cheek echoed inside the antique store. Gwendolyn had hit him without restraint, and hard enough that she shook her hand after the fact, a small hiss of pain escaping her mouth. Ambrosius felt only a minor sting, but if he had been human? He wasn’t sure, but he knew he’d been properly caught off guard, and that wasexciting.

“Don’t youevermention my panties again or I swear on my‘aumakua,I’ll slap you till you bleed,” Gwendolyn all but growled.

?Aumakua.

That was a word he hadn’t heard in a very long time.

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