Page 1 of Vampire Sins
I have found my fourth… and he’s going to bring out the worst in me
Sonya
Venice.Of all the places that I’d wind up when shit hit the fan, the romantic city of gondolas and gelatos was definitely not what I’d pictured. It was also the last place on Earth I’d imagine I’d find my fourth.
The runes surrounding my navel pulsated with the need to complete the circle. Four souls. Four pieces of my destiny. Four men who could control my heart and my future and stop my nightmares from coming true.
My fingers curled into fists as I fought the idea for the first time. I’d been so enraptured by Luke, by Jet and Nate, that I hadn’t realized I’d been falling into a trap. The last piece of my soul stared down at me from atop a roof—a vampire, no less. He exuded confidence, arrogance, and danger in ways that made my skin crawl and my heart quicken. What kind of destiny paired me with such dangerous men?
The vampire with glowing red eyes watched and waited with an annoyingly pleased look on his face. I broke eye contact as I stared up at the sheet of jagged rock that made up the ancient building. “I can come down,” he offered, his voice carrying on the humid breeze.
Glancing down the street, Luke whispered in the shadows, blending amongst sleepy strangers. As promised, he was waiting for me by a quiet coffee shop instead of running to my aid like some kind of Prince Charming. I wasn’t a damsel. I didn’t need help. He knew that, but seeing him looking out for me anyway made my heart twist with delight.
He ventured a bit closer, revealing the beautiful, sharp angles of his face crested by moonlight. The way his brows knit together said he wasn’t too happy about allowing me to face danger alone, though. If he saw what had gotten my attention, I’d never hear the end of it—no matter if the man looking down at me was one of my fourth or not.
Ignoring the vampire’s offer, I grabbed one of the stones jutting out of the uneven wall and hauled myself up. There was no way I’d agree to meet this guy on the street. Anyone who saw him would know he wasn’t human and our conversation would be cut short, so I dug my fingers into a crevice in the gritty rock and climbed.
He offered a sleek, pale hand when I reached the top and I glared at him, choosing to skid my knees against the unforgiving stone instead of accepting his help.
He huffed a laugh. “Stubborn one, aren’t you?”
Growling and wiping away the stinging pebbles, I snapped my teeth. I figured a vampire might take that as an insult. “You’re the one parading around in the open with those eyes of yours like you’re not a creature of the night. The hell you trying to do?” I eased closer and tried to ignore the intoxicating musk of maleness that wafted from him. “Supernaturals are supposed to keep their presence hidden from humans.”
He grinned, flashing very real fangs that made my insides curl. “Says a succubus who just scaled a wall.”
Rolling my eyes, I glanced down the way I’d come. I’d thought it a short distance with some jutting rocks to give me purchase, but now I saw that we were three stories up and the side of the building glistened slick in the moonlight.
Okay, so maybe that had been showing off a bit.
I flinched as he ran a finger across my collarbone without warning. “I sensed the Blood Stone when you arrived, but I don’t see it on you.” His fingers dipped lower towards the curve of my cleavage and I slapped his hand away. He gave me a husky chuckle. “The magic isinsideof you; how intriguing.”
“I’m so glad I amuse you,” I drawled. “How about you tell me who the fuck you are?”
He grinned, his fangs catching the moonlight and making me suck in a breath. “I can tell you’re not accustomed to vampires.” He cocked his head. “Am I the first one you’ve met?”
Snarling, I snapped a finger in his face and red electricity zapped around my skin. His eyes widened at my magic. “I’m the one asking questions here. Tell me who you are and what you want or this is going to get ugly.” I knew why I had been brought here. My magic wanted me to complete the magic that pulsated in my runes, but I wasn’t going to make it easy on him. If he wanted to be my fourth, he was going to have to earn it.
A dangerous glint flashed in his gaze, giving me just enough warning that he was up to something before he up and vanished into thin air. I gasped when his hot breath puffed on the back of my neck. I whirled to find him leering down at me, his red eyes glowing with excitement. “My name is Xavier,” he whispered, his voice caressing me in ways that felt like a violation. “And whether you want to accept it or not, you’re most certainly my mate.”
Before I could reply at his audacity, a rock beamed him right in the temple. Velvet red blood splotched across his forehead and he snarled, facing the ground where the projectile had come from.
“Get away from her, fang-face,” Luke growled.
Sigh.My angel knight in shining armor… or rather, tattered bits of a shirt that had survived the portal. The silver moonlight illuminated the cut lines of his chest that seemed to serve no other purpose than to reveal how ripped he was.
“Luke? The fuck you doing?” I whisper-yelled, trying to ignore how turned on I was by his protectiveness.
Xavier ran his finger down the trail of blood and drew it into his mouth, making sure to look at me as he licked. “Who’s your charming friend?”
“My boyfriend,” I answered without thinking, then my neck went hot with a flush as Luke laughed.
The most handsome smile I’d ever seen spread slowly across his face. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m her boyfriend, and even if I share her, it’s not with the likes of you.”
I recognized the challenge in his statement. If he could feel Xavier exuding with the power of my fourth like I could, then he was going to challenge Xavier into earning me. The vampire couldn’t just walk into my life and win a place in my bed… unless he kept licking his finger like that. He really needed to stop it.
Raising an eyebrow at me, Xavier finally lowered his hand. “Well, it seems I’ve gotten off on the wrong foot. Why don’t we go to my place and have some wine?”
Glaring, I said, “I don’t do wine.”
