Page 46 of Tempting the Dhampir

“Oh, come on. Most women enjoy a good spanking. I’ve been dreaming of one but haven’t had a man—or male—brave enough to give me exactly what I crave.”

Praying for the elevator to hurry up so I can remove the enticing morsel of temptation from my sight before I give her a rightful spanking, I dare ask, “And what ‘exactly’ do you crave?”

“Nothing much. Just someone who can take charge, manhandle me, disrespect me a bit, spank me if I misbehave…”

A groan reverberates deep in my chest. I know she can hear it, and I’m sure she knows how much her words are affecting me.

Keeping my eyes closed, I thank the fates for placing this woman in my life. Her sexual preferences match mine perfectly. My hands curl into fists so I don’t grab her and ravish her in front of an elevator.

And like the fates have heard my plea, the elevator dings with its arrival. I step inside first and quickly move to the back corner. Sadie follows and stands in the opposite corner closest to the door. Silent. She places her keycard against the panel that will allow the elevator to reach our floor.

I can’t talk to her right now because my control is hanging on by a thread. I’m wound too tightly to even make a sound.

Only the quiet whirring of the machines as we ascend, and my labored breathing, are to be heard. The changing numbers of the floors on the elevator screen act as a countdown to the inevitable.

The silence stretches around us. Thick. Palpable with desire.

I need Sadie.

Tonight.

Now.

With a ping, the doors to our floor slide open.

Chapter twenty-five

Sadie

The tension between Everett and me has been building since the island. Every day it gets stronger and stronger. With the addition of the little wager we have going on, someone is bound to snap soon. We’re both riding the edge. But who will cave first?

I’ve been in a near-constant state of arousal since I met him. My attraction to him grows with every interaction. With Everett’s wealth, insanely good looks, and magnetic personality, he feels so far out of my league. That he even reciprocates an iota of what I feel for him blows my mind.

I’m aware of our mutual attraction, our explosive chemistry, but once we fuck, it’ll probably be out of his system, and then he’ll move on. They all usually do.

I’m not kidding myself into thinking Everett would want me in a more serious way, no matter how charming he’s been so far. My heart needs to stay safe behind the walls I’ve built because if I allow Everett in, I don’t think I’d recover if he gets bored with me.

Most men find me a little “too much.” I don’t purposefully try to be, but I’ve been told I speak my mind a little too boldly, dress a little too provocatively, make jokes that are a little too crass. According to them, I’m there for a fun time, not a long time.

Despite not needing a male, I sometimes think it would be nice to be wanted for longer than the “fun” season. If I need to dim my sparkle to fit that mold, I might have to eventually do that. Maybe that’s why I’m in Vegas—one last glitterfest.

I’ll treat my stay in the city of sin as my final hurrah. I’ll enjoy my sequined life fully, live as loudly and boldly as I want. When I have to leave here, I’ll leave my sequins behind too. I’ll conform.

Seems like a fair trade for steady companionship, maybe even one day a family.

But for the time being, I’ll enjoy being unapologetically me. Dress in the most glittery outfits I own. Make the crass jokes. Drop my inhibitions. If Everett is keen to play, then I’m all in for as long as I’m here.

When the elevator doors slide open, I exit first, strutting down the long hallway to our suite. I glance back to see if Everett’s coming, but he’s not even looking up or acknowledging me. He’s frozen to the corner of the cab, barely breathing, his gaze fixed on the ceiling.

Giving him the space I think he needs, I unlock the door and prop it open for him. I don’t bother to turn on the lights as I head into the living room and drop down on the ornate oversized armchair to take my shoes off, then pad over to the floor-to-ceiling windows to admire the view. It’s so unbelievably beautiful that I could stare at it forever.

“Sadie.” My name is a plea.

I turn slowly. Everett is bracing himself in the doorway, his knuckles white from the pressure of his straining grip on both sides of the doorjamb.

Hanging his head between his shoulders, he looks to the floor when he speaks. “I might look like a man, but make no mistake, I am a monster. My senses are far keener than mere animals. So while you stand there, trying to appear as if you’re not as affected as me, I can smell your cunt dripping with the need to know what I can do to it. Once your brain catches up with your needy cunt, just let me know, and I can show you what it’s like to be ravaged by a dhampir.”

I’m getting wetter with every word that comes out of his mouth. My thong is so soaked that my arousal is starting to drip down my inner thigh, over the tattoo I share with Everett. My heart rate picks up, a mirror to the throbbing pulse in my clit.

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