Page 2 of Midwinter Night's Prince

Once Velvet was done with the last of hischashubits, the cat expertly leaped on her shoulder, balancing himself with elegance.At six months old, Velvet was supposed to look like a youngster, not quite an adult cat, but he still had the demeanor, attitude, and size of a tiny weeks-old kitten, though thankfully he was finally litter trained. Keeping her stuff cat pee-free had been a bitch during the first few weeks of travel.Blair would have asked Alexius Helsing to look at Velvet had she still been in Oldcrest, in order to understand why he wasn't growing. In an effort to save the kitten months ago, he'd used plenty of science and magic—something must have hindered the cat's development. She needed to know if it was reversible. Velvet was healthy—she had him checked by many vets, over many months—but he wasn't growing.

She wasn’t. In Oldcrest. She’d left her home in the summer, and she couldn’t afford to contact any of her friends. Not if she wanted them safe.Safe from the man whose soul she carried.

She got up, thanking the old man again as guilt twisted her insides.

He waved off her pleasantries, turning his attention to the wooden bench he wanted to load on his cart again.With his focus on the task at hand, he didn’t see the witch’s eyes brighten, to match the silver of a bright moonlight. He didn’t see her face twist in distaste as she focused on him, both of her hands rising in the air.

And seconds later, he forgot she was ever there.

Because Blair no longer existed.

2

DANCING WITH EVIL

The beauty of megalomaniacs was that they always believed they were the best, the cleverest, and that no one could possibly outwit them. Seth Stormhale understood that like almost no one else could. After all, he was deeply, passionately, unconditionally in love with himself. He didn’t even pretend to make any apologies about it. Why wouldn’t he adore the man in the mirror? If he didn’t, no one else would. Prey weren’t designed to love their predators.

Aveka Primerius loved herself, to an extent even Seth could have admired. They understood each other, he and she. Two lone wolves, detested and fears by those who should have cared for them. If Aveka had been less of a psychopath, they would have made quite the pair.

Her character served him well. She truly believed herself to be on top of the situation.And he liked her that way. Gullible. Malleable.

“Oh, right there,” she begged as his thumb brushed the nub of her sensitive flesh, curving against his touch.

Seth rolled his eyes. She should know by now. Telling him what she needed was the best way to ensure she wouldn’t get it.

He drew his hand away from her pussy, moving it to her slender waist.

Aveka was pleasing enough to look at. She was short and toned by her strict training regimen—as well as fucking the pretty boys she surrounded herself with, no doubt—but her curves were still generous, in a way that had gone out of fashion some centuries ago. He could objectively appreciate her beauty. He could even appreciate her wickedness. What he didn’t appreciate was being forced to serve as her slave—in and out of the bedroom.

Seth considered himself positively ruthless. He had few boundaries, and all of them were flexible depending on the situation. Yet in his thirty-six years, he'd never forced himself on anyone, male or female. The entire notion repelled him. Seducing an enemy into his bed? Absolutely. He liked that kind of mind trick. But Seth would never have used his position of power to force someone into his bed. Aveka realized he had no desire to fuck her, but she demanded it. Well, he could technically have fought against her commends, but Seth liked to pick and choose his battles.

He might thrash against the confines of his bounds, fight tooth and nail to maintain a semblance of freedom, but in the end, he wasn't free. He was her creature. For now.

Seth had had to make himself useful; he fetched rare poisons, stole precious items and otherwise obeyed his master like a well trained dog, because he didn’t want her to decide to kill him. There was only one job he delayed and botched.

Fuck.

How the hell had he let that snake get a bite of him? Him! If his father ever heard of this, he'd be in deeper shit than he already was.

Gripping the bitch's waist tighter than she liked, he pressed her down on his semi-hard shaft, his mouth closing in on her neck. He had to give it to her: her blood tasted sickeningly delightful. Thick with magic, it was pure, unpolluted.She was born before the stench of industry, and he could tell. He felt himself grow stiff, aroused not only by her blood but also by the fact that he had her by the throat.

Too bad he couldn't rip it out and be done with this nonsense. Aveka had been shrewd enough to order him to never bring any harm to her. However he liked to play with her words, there was no possible interpretation that might have made biting through an artery sound like something harmless. Still, he frequently daydreamed about it.

Aveka tightened on top of him as his hips worked in and out of her. She moaned in pleasure, begging for more, harder, faster.He hated that she was enjoying this—enjoying him.

Seth closed his eyes, blocking out the fragrance of her sweat, the sound of her voice, and the feel of her body on top of his. He let himself think of someone else entirely. Another witch. Dark nails. Ridiculous, wavy hair colored at the tips. She was a strong, defiant woman who enjoyed nothing more than fighting him at every opportunity, but in his mind, she was on her knees, a gag of silk on her mouth, wearing cuffs around her wrists. At his mercy.

His.

A smirk curved on his lips as he came inside Aveka, fast. Shit, he hadn’t even lasted a minute this time. Another man would have been embarrassed. He was proud of himself.Seth purposely sucked at fucking the bitch every time she demanded a tumble. Maybe she’d get the hint eventually.

Aveka laughed, her high pitch as cringeworthy as nails on a chalkboard. "You never last with me. I think you like being buried deep inside me," she purred, sultry as ever.

Seth sighed as he pushed up from the witch's silky bed. Of course, she took his purposeful lack of stamina as a compliment to her skills. There was no end to her egocentricity.

"Was there any other reason you requested my presence,Your Highness?" He pronounced the last two words with all the contempt he could infuse, treating her like the joke she was.

The Seven original vampiric families were considered royalty among their peers, but their titles were mostly honorific. They had no land to lord over. Some vampires pledged to their name in exchange for favor or protection, like the slayers at Seth’s service, but they had no political authority.

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