Page 24 of Mortal Blood
Whatever Ling thought was cut off by the door swinging inwards, silencing her midsentence. Given that this wastechnicallya public library for the entire student body, it wasn’t wholly surprising that someone else was coming here. Except it kind of was, because the Darkveil students didn’t seem to be much of a studious bunch. Then again, I’d seen the end of year results for most of our year last semester, and some of them really could stand to study more. I wasn’t the only one who’d come perilously close to failing…which was the least of my problems right now.
Because one very pissed off looking, dark, brooding Dracula wannabe had just stalked into the room, shoving the door shut behind him with more force than necessary.
“Thought I’d find you here,” he grunted, and then his eyes snapped to Ling. “Get out. This is between me and her.”
“Hey!” I shoved my chair back and stood up, still a good half-dozen inches shorter than him, but that wasn’t about to stop me glaring at him across the table. “You don’t get to talk to her like that.”
“I’m a prince, sweetness. I can do whatever the fuck I want.”
“Not around me, you can’t.”
“It’s fine,” Ling murmured.
“No, it’s not,” I said, planting one hand on my hip. “You’re my friend, and he’s being an asshole.”
“Really, it’s okay,” she said. “I’ll leave.”
“What are you even doing here?” he asked, staring at her from beneath a furrowed brow.
“This is apubliclibrary,” I snapped. “She’s got as much right to be here as anyone else.”
“That’s not what I—” He shook his head. “Forget it. We need to talk.”
“I’ll see you later,” Ling murmured, and slipped out, leaving us alone together. Just great.
“Fine. So talk.”
“I need your blood.”
“Oh, I thought you didn’t want anything to do with me and my tainted blood.”
“Need, not want, sweetness. I’m addicted.” He looked like the word pained him, and I might have felt some sympathy if he wasn’t being a complete dickhead about the whole thing.
“I told you. That’s not my fault.”
“So you said. Repeatedly.”
“Then try getting it through your thick skull!”
He was behind me before I could blink, tangling my hair in his hand and tugging my head back until his lips were by my ear.
“You might want to be careful who you insult, sweetness.”
“Why should I care?” I demanded through gritted teeth. I struggled to get loose for a brief moment before giving up. We both knew he was stronger than me, and I wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction of watching me lose to him.
Except that meant accepting being just inches from him, and all the things I’d felt for him last year—all the things he’d mademe feel—lurked just beneath the surface of my skin.
“Don’t fight it,” he murmured in my ear, and I didn’t know if he meant his taking my blood, or the way my body felt about him doing it. “Our deal still stands, and I will take what I am due.”
His lips touched my throat and sent a spark of anticipation through me. Dammit. I ground my teeth together and ignored the smoldering in the pit of my stomach.
“Just get it over with,” I told him through gritted teeth, “and then fuck off.”
“Interesting time to be talking about fucking,” he said, his free hand snaking round to catch my chin and tilt it back a fraction. My lips parted in a silent gasp, and my heart hammered as the image of the two of us together slipped through my mind, and—and I buried that thought, because fuck Thaden. Or more to the point, Iwasn’tgoing to fuck Thaden.
“Take what you want,” I spat at him, “and get back to your ownkind.”
His body tensed behind me.
