Page 14 of An Acquired Taste

“My name’s Dominic,” the dark-haired vampire says. “I saw Viktoria feeding on you. You like it, don’t you? You had that look.” He moves closer, as close as he can without touching me. “I bet you haven’t been fed on by multiple people at once,” he says with a dangerous smile. “I bet you’d like it even more. And we’re good at sharing.” His gaze flicks to the quiet blond man—Dante, he called him—who is watching me intently.

Part of me thrills at the sense of being so obviouslydesired, even if it’s just for my blood. But I can’t stop thinking about Benjamin’s warnings… and the sight of that man crumpled on the ground. Are these the vampires who did that?

“I think I should wait for my chaperone,” I say in a small voice.

Dominic chuckles, the sound low and dangerous. “You’re no fun,” he says. He doesn’t reach for me, but he and his friend are still blocking my exit.

All I can do is wait for Benjamin—but can he protect me? He’s a single vampire without a court, and judging from the skull earring and moth tattoo, these two belong to Solomon.The secret keepers. The most dangerous of the courts.

I try to remember what Benjamin told me about vampire weaknesses. Sunlight, silver, and decapitation. Nothing that will help me right now. I’m only armed with my manners. Benjamin insisted they would help keep me safe, which was a lot easier to believe in the glitz and shimmer of the ballroom.

“Please let me pass,” I say.

A beat. Nothing happens. And then—

“You heard her.”

Both vampires’ spines stiffen. Their heads whip away in the direction of the mansion. I can’t see anything in the darkness of the hedge maze that way, but their eyes widen.

A moment later, another vampire steps into the light, and my mortal eyes find him, too.

He’s tall with broad shoulders and a lean build, thick dark hair styled neatly. The tuxedo he wears is all black. His eyes are so dark, they look black as well, like two pools of darkness in his pale face. And what a face… even among the vampires he would stand out, with cheekbones like a marble statue and a shadow of facial hair perfectly accentuating his sharp jawline. He isshockingly, timelessly handsome, and the intensity of his gaze only heightens the effect he has on me.

“Lord Sebastian,” Dominic says, his voice formal now, all the playfulness gone. “I didn’t know you were attending tonight’s ball.”

“What do you want?” asks Dante. His voice is sharp, bordering on threatening. His shoulders are tense and his eyes narrowed, like he sees the man as a threat. But what could possibly threaten a vampire? Apairof vampires, nonetheless?

This “Lord Sebastian” comes to a stop about a yard away from me. He does not look at the man at my side, or the one who seems on the verge of ripping his throat out. Instead, he looks at me, standing frozen, a deer surrounded by wolves.

“I would like to claim the last spot on your blood card,” Sebastian says.

Chapter Eight

Dominic and Dante are tense, muscles coiled, as though they’re expecting a fight. But Sebastian walks over with his hands in his pockets and his posture relaxed, as if he hasn’t a care in the world. To my shock, the two others peel away as he approaches, retreating with a haste that almost feels like fear. They exchange glances, but Sebastian is not even looking at them. His arresting gaze is locked on mine. He stops a couple of feet ahead of me and holds out his hand palm up.

“May I?” he asks.

I reach for where my blood card should be before realizing Dominic still has it.

“I, um, he…” I mutter, glancing over at where the duo is looking on unhappily.

Sebastian follows my gaze, and his expression sharpens. When he speaks again, I catch a glimpse of fangs catching the moonlight. “The lady’s blood card,” he demands.

There’s a swollen moment of silence. Then Dominic steps forward, jaw clenched, and holds out the fan to Sebastian, getting only close enough that the other vampire could reach out and take it.

But Sebastian doesn’t move. “It doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to her,” he says.

My breath hitches. Dominic’s lip curls. For a moment, I swear there’s going to be violence. But then Dominic turns to me, steps forward, and holds the blood card out to me instead. “Here,” he mutters.

I swallow hard and take it. “Thank you.”

Glaring daggers at Sebastian, the two vampires step back into the night they appeared from. Sebastian watches them go before turning to me. His posture is ramrod straight, his bearing solemn. Most vampires seem to be masquerading as the nobility they claim to be, but with Sebastian, I can see it. He seems, every inch of him, a king among peasants.

He looks at me expectantly. I stare back for a moment before I remember that he asked me a question. He wants permission to sign my blood card and claim my final spot for the night. I should wait for Benjamin… but I can’t deny that I’m intrigued by this man, and I feel safer around him than I did with the other two vampires. I peel my clenched hand off my blood card and offer it to him.

His cold fingers brush against mine, and I suppress a gasp as electricity zips through my veins.

But instead of signing the card, he only scrutinizes it. “Where is your chaperone?”

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