Page 20 of Vampire Savage

Something warm washes through me at the smile he gives me, and I have to swallow before I can answer. “Yes, I was. It was the last project I worked directly on before I was promoted to my senior director role. I’m rather proud of it.”

He steps closer than is appropriate and I can’t bring myself to step away. A warm light is in his eyes, the same one he’d had when he told me how proud I should be of my accomplishments. He’s almost as close as we were in the hallways and my sex pulses, arousal hitting me hard.

“You should be,” he says, his voice thick and low, his eyes taking me in. It’s like he’s trying to strip me bare, to take me apart layer by layer until he sees the very essence of me. My heart flutters in my throat and my breaths grow shallow as he holds me there with his gaze alone. In spite of all my layers, I feel utterly naked. His eyes linger on my lips, long enough I end up rolling my lower lip in a fraction, wondering if he is about to kiss me. Do I want him to kiss me? Then he meets my gaze again, and instead of pride in his eyes, there’s no mistaking the desire burning there. “As I said—” I hold my breath as he raises a hand to capture an errant curl and rub it between two fingers, “—you’re a good girl.”

I sway, more aroused by him touching a single curl of hair than any of my previous lovers ever. When he releases the curl and drags his knuckle under my jaw, I sink into him enough I have to catch myself, my hands coming to grip his waist. I’m still completely hypnotized by his gentle words and caresses. He tilts my chin up with his knuckle.

“Do you want him?” His voice is hard, his brow narrowed.

I blink rapidly, confused by who he means. “Who?” I ask, my voice hoarse and dry.

“Your fiancé.”

Oh. Right. I’m engaged. I shake my head slowly, my eyes never leaving his. “It’s an agreement between him and my father,” I explain, and I can’t prevent the bitterness from slipping into the words. “I never even thought of him as a friend. Technically, we’re engaged, but I can’t think of us as in a relationship.”

Lan’s thumb comes up to hover over my lip and a wanton part of me wants to suck it into my throat and see if I can make him feel as good as he made me. The world around us has once again disappeared, narrowing down until even the fortune of ancient relics surrounding us are nothing more than pieces of paper, clay, and trinkets with gems. It’s as if this vampire can order reality to change, that he’s powerful enough to command the very air I breathe.

“You know, when I was your age, a formal agreement between a father and the groom was enough.”

That pulls a smile from me. “It’s a good thing this is the modern world then,” I whisper.

He huffs out a quiet snort of amusement, and it’s ridiculous how happy it makes me to have made him laugh, even the smallest amount. He angles his head and begins to close the distance between our lips, watching me through half-lidded eyes.

I jerk. “Wait,” I protest and he halts immediately, a shuttered look in his eyes.

Landon doesn’t pull away, but he doesn’t push any further. He’s perfectly still, waiting for an explanation. My stomach flips as nerves make my spine tingle and my cheeks flush. I gather my courage though, because I can’t deny that I want this. That I want him.

“Not like this,” I say, looking between his eyes, and gripping his suit jacket tight. “When you kiss me, I want you to be you. Not you disguised as a human.”

The gallery is silent, not even the white noise of the display cases can penetrate the space around us. Even my pounding heart is drowned out by his gaze, his presence next to me all-consuming. Logically, I know that he’s a vampire, that to him I’m a small, weak thing he can easily destroy. It wasn’t so long ago that violence between humans and those like him was rife. But this close to him, our only connection being his thumb and index finger on my chin and my hands on his sides, I feel safe. Protected from the world in a sense I haven’t felt since my father grew distant.

The heat returns to his eyes even as he retreats. Even though I’m the one who asked him to stop, disappointment sinks into me. He lets go of my chin, but steps forward as he wraps his arm around me, his fingers sliding into my hair at the base of my skull, grabbing hard enough to make his claim but not enough to hurt. Arousal washes through me as he crushes me to him, and I let my hands fall away from him even though I’m still off-balance on my four-inch heels. His other hand clamps onto my hip, his thumb pressing into the hollow of the bone there and sending firebolts directly to my sex.

Landon leans forward, moving my head to the side until his lips are aligned with my ear. When his cool breath brushes along my skin, goosebumps rush over my arms and legs and my eyes close. His touch is possessive and demanding and hotter than it has any right to be.

“I already knew that every piece in your father’s possession is authentic,” he whispers, as if divulging a secret.

My eyes fly open and I try to turn to look at him but he doesn’t let me, his hold of my hair keeping me firmly in place. I strain to see him through the corner of my eyes. From this angle and our positions, I can see his hair and that’s about it.

“You’re wondering why I requested a personal inspection,” he continues, speaking as if he can read my mind. “It’s because I wanted to make sure you’d see me again. I know men like your father. I see how he treats you. I knew he’d order you to be the one to meet me here.” He turns his head, pulling a gasp from me as he brushes a sharp point along my throat. The gasp is followed by a whimper as I realize it was his fang, and I’m hardly breathing as I wait for his next words.

“I know that night made you nervous, that it makes you question if you should even be in the same room as me let alone let me slide my fingers into your cunt.” He presses his fang against my throat again, holding me tight and I can’t help but think of the Hades and Persephone statue. I’m as aroused as I was in the hallway, more maybe. I’m melting into him and I don’t even want to fight it. I want the opposite in fact. I want to bare my throat to him and let him take from me as he pleases, so long as he keeps looking at me the way he does.

“Now I’ve tempted you back into my arms, Little Bird,” he speaks against my skin, his lips moving against me. I’ve never been this close to orgasm with so little stimulation. “And what do you tell me? You want me, the vampire, to be the one to take you apart. To bring you pleasure. Is that right?”

I nod and he pulls his mouth away from my neck, tutting me.

“Use your words, Little Bird.”

Wetting my lips, it takes two attempts before I can answer and even then, I’m not sure if he can hear me. “Yes. Please, yes.”

He raises his head until he’s able to press his cheek against mine. “Good girl,” he purrs into my ear and my legs turn to jelly. My panties are embarrassingly soaked, my core clenching. I shift my thighs, seeking any relief. I’m so close that one touch from him will send me over the edge.

“Please,” I breathe out, even quieter than a whisper.

He pulls away, releasing me, and I have to throw my arms out to avoid toppling over. I watch him, mouth open in surprise, and stupidly horny. His hands are in both pockets as he steps out of reach.

“Have you heard of Lush, Little Bird?” Landon asks and I nod, but when he still waits, I answer aloud. He nods once. “Good. If you want to continue this, be there tonight at eleven. Go to the front and tell Daniel that you’re Little Bird.”

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