Page 105 of Blood Mosaic

“I think I want to go back to my room,” she said. “Can we eat there?”

“Are you inviting me to your room?” Oleg’s cock was already hard.

Tatyana had drunk too much alcohol for Oleg to enjoy his initial plan for the night, but he wasn’t ready to take his leave, especially when the bartender was still watching her and trying to pretend he wasn’t.

“Uh…” She shook her head. “I don’t— Yes.” She whispered, “I don’t want everyone looking at me while I’m eating dinner, and when I’m with you, I can feel their eyes.”

His eyes turned and swept across the room, immediately noticing that most of the vampires in the roomwerewatching them.

“Fine.” He slipped out of the booth and held out his hand. “We’ll eat in your room.”

“No, but then everyone will think we’re going to have sex.” She glanced nervously around the club. “They’re going to think that, aren’t they?”

“They think that anyway.”

Her cheeks were flaming red, and now Oleg wanted to get her out of the club because she smelled like an amuse-bouche to every vampire around them.

“Come.” He tugged her out of the booth. “We’re leaving.”

“Oleg—”

“No.” He pulled her close and bent down to whisper in her ear again. “You will not argue with me in public. Ever. If you know what is good for you, you will not argue with me in public.” His fire was dancing right on the edge, and he couldsense his amnis roused by even the suggestion of challenge from the woman. “Don’t make me use amnis to silence you, because I will.”

He saw her mind doing very quick calculations despite the haze of alcohol. “Okay.”

“Good.” He walked with her from the club, her hand grasped firmly in his. “Please deliver our meal to Miss Vorona’s suite,” he told the hostess.

“Of course, Mr. Sokolov. I’ll take care of it.”

Oleg walked down the stairs and bypassed the elevator.

“It’s five floors down,” Tatyana protested.

“Do you want to be stuck in an elevator for the next few hours after I’ve shorted out the control panel?”

She followed him into the stairwell. “Are you saying that you walk up fifteen flights of stairs every time you come up here?”

“It’s not difficult, Tatyana.” He was tempted to throw her over his shoulder and walk faster, but he didn’t know how precarious her belly was. “How are you feeling?”

“More sober now that I’m walking down five flights.” She took a deep breath. The stairwell was open at the landings, and the night air was bracing. “I’m not sure what just happened back there. Why are you angry?”

“I’m not angry.” Oleg was annoyed, but like Tatyana, he wasn’t sure why.

You know why.

The bartender making her laugh. Her delight with no shadows. He wanted her to laugh like that, smile like that. At him. Only at him.

“You are angry.” She squinted. “I wasn’t doing anything.”

“I’m not angry.” He turned and swept her up in his arms. “You’re walking too slowly.”

She was light as a feather as he carried her, and the scent of her blood and body set his fangs on edge.

“Close your eyes.”

“What?”

“I’m going to walk at vampire speed.”

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