Page 16 of Fallen Heirs

“I already asked you to help me with something and you refused.”

“That was far too dangerous. This isn’t.” He raised an eyebrow. “Or, is it?”

“Why would it be dangerous? It’s just hunting here on the grounds, just picking up a new skill, something to keep me busy during this unfortunate break from the Academy.”

“So you’re going to kill a bunch of woodland creatures? You? The person who hates anybody suffering?”

Not anybody. Constantine was excluded from that.

“There won’t be any killing.”

“You do know what happens when a vampire completes their hunt and pounces on their prey, yes?”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re being impossible.”

“And you’re being evasive.”

“Is this an interrogation?”

“Does it need to be?”

I sauntered toward him and got right up in his space. “Maybe I’d like to experience an interrogation at your hands.”

His eyes sparked and I saw his strain not to reach out and rise to the sexual intensity coming off me. “Let your dirty mind continue fantasizing about that.”

“Just fantasizing?” I teased, sliding my hands down his chest. “That’s a shame.”

“Careful, little angel.”

“Why?” I whispered at his ear as my hand reached his cock.

His very hard cock.

“Too intense for you?”

He snatched my hand and jerked it up between us. “No. You’re so determined to put an end to this conversation that you’ve resorted to trying to manipulate me. In a very favorable way for me, yes, but still.”

I jolted as his words hit home.

“Oh my God,” I breathed, jerking back from him. “I’m sorry. I just—”

“It’s all right. You’re going through a great deal. Mistakes like this are to be expected.” He smiled sweetly. “And you get a free pass.” He made me tense as he added, “Forthis.”

I frowned.

“Alena, if this is truly just a hobby you wanted to take up to keep yourself busy and to help Xavier at the same time, keeping him from gravitating toward the bottle, then more power to you.Butif I find out it’s more than that, a path to use to hunt a certain someone else, know that it won’t end well. And Iwillstop you.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to scream at him that I was powerful enough to bring about Constantine’s demise, that I was powerful enough to do a whole lot of things, that I wouldn’t accept being shoved onto the sidelines instead.

But that would only escalate things in a very bad way.

It would only have him digging his heels in.

And it would definitely reveal my true intent with the hunting.

So, instead, I told him calmly, “I understand.”

He stared at me, a whole lot of suspicion all over him clear as day.

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