Page 19 of V for Vindictive

Sungho’s eyes strayed over to me again, and it was a look that unsettled me more than I would ever admit. I couldn’t decipher what it was or why he couldn’t keep his eyes off of me, but I did my best to ignore it. Because after this mission, it was very unlikely our paths would cross again.

“We’ll be at the greatest advantage during the daytime, and since sundown is quickly approaching, it’s better to start tomorrow after some rest.”

Sungho nodded his agreement, and without another word, disappeared. Still, the unsettling way his eyes roamed over me stayed with me long after he was gone.

I shook away the uncomfortable feeling and followed Sloan and Kris back to the car.

Chapter 7

Sword and Shield

Instead of the usual hotel or motel, Kris had the good sense to rent a temporary house in the area. Because she said it was the least she could do for a girl uprooted from life and forced to live in a cave for over two weeks was to offer a comfortable place to stay.

So, I got my own room.

It was a necessary barrier after everything Sloan and I had done when we were alone together. In a house together, it’d be hard enough. Sharing a room would’ve been torture.

Kris explained that she’d be out of the house the first night gathering more intel, and so I needed as many doors between us as I could manage.

I was issued a phone, a standard high-security laptop, and given the necessary weaponry and armor to take on a mission this complex. But at least what we were up against seemed like coming home after being out in nothing but wilderness. Crazy to think I was thankful to fight vampires, but I was.

Unfortunately, taking down a coven with only the four of us would take some careful planning. Covens could have anywhere from a few to an entire society in terms of numbers. Every Hunter was taught to err on the side of caution in these cases. Though, after discovering the strength andjust crazy shit I could do, I doubted any vampire, young or old, would pose much of a challenge to Sloan or I.

But again, caution was always encouraged.

First, we needed to determine how many vampires there really were. Then we’d figure out the best way to wipe out their numbers—either by attacking while they were forced to stay out of the light, or ensuring they had no place to return at dawn.

Seeing how everyone evil-inclined and their sister were after me, I suspected that all the precautions stemmed from that more than what we may find out with the coven. Who knew what other beasties waited in the shadows for their chance to take a shot at me? Regardless of what awaited me when I stepped out that front door, I was thankful for the distraction.

Sloan was already fast at work planning our next move, and everything that occurred before with Eros and between the two of us faded away to duty.

Thank fucking Buddha.

Teasing back dark hair, which fell forward in a manner far too gorgeous to be natural, Sloan swiped from one image to the next on the tablet he was holding. His jaw worked before our eyes met. “Hungry?”

For a second, I worried I might be drooling because the man was truly delicious to look at, and it likely showed on my face. But I quickly discovered he only meant to suggest I hadn’t consumed blood in a week or two. I’d nearly forgotten myself, that I was the same thing I hunted.

Sloan touched my knee, smiling, and rose from his seat. He retrieved a blood bag and used a special warmer to heat it up. Then he poured it into two separate mugs before returning to the sofa we’d spent the morning on. The Brit motioned for me to come closer and sit next to him.Unfortunately, I hesitated long enough to get a smirk out of him, and then he drew my noncompliant self over to the sofa and painted our sides against each other.

And just like that, my heart lost its rhythm. The work I’d put into forgetting about his heat, his smell, the way his lips perfectly melded over mine, the way our bodies fit seamlessly together was lost in the instant his warm flesh met mine.

I didn’t need to look over to know that Sloan easily saw through my weak charade. Mostly because I struggled to temper my body’s reactions to the incubus’s mere presence. I could practically feel his amused smile from where I sat. Running away wasn’t an option, so I opted for pretending to be engrossed in my blood-filled cup.

No matter how often I drank the thick liquid that sometimes tasted sweet, sometimes savory, I’d never get used to it.

“You know, at some point you’ll need to look at me,” Sloan teased, and I outright groaned in response. His happy laughter hit my ears a second later, and it took everything not to whine for him to have mercy on my poor overworked heart. “I must admit, your reactions tickle an urge inside of me I was never aware I harbored,” he admitted in a soft whisper, as though he worried we’d be overheard.

Great. Just great. I’d basically encouraged Sloan’s inner sadist into existence.

The air between us was highly charged with something I’d rather not acknowledge; the same way it was the night I climbed onto his lap and let him have his wicked way with me. The hair on my body rose to attention, and it was the first sign that I needed to find a way to escape.

But how? Kris was out for the day, and the two of us were very much alone now. Feigning exhaustion wouldn’t work because of who Sloan was. He’d see through any poor excuse I gave him. It was in moments like these where it really sucked to have such clever men around me.

I couldn’t get away with shit!

Of course there was always the alternative. Give in. Touch him and lose myself in his gorgeous body.Ugh.And I wanted to. It was all I thought about these days. I didn’t owe Phillip anything. What we had was never exclusive, only distracted fun. So why shouldn’t I? Besides, we’d already done it. What was one more time—or five? Seven? Well, we could figure out an exact number later.

Says the nymphomaniac.

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