Page 36 of Dark Desire
Suddenly, the pub door swung open with an angry screech that echoed through the bar. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to see who had just stormed in, causing quite a scene. The silence was deafening as all eyes were fixed on a tangle of untamed black curls. She marched up to the bar. I pressed my lips together to hold back a laugh at how insane she looked. Her honey eyes, wide and fierce, scanned the faces of the locals, searching with furious intent until they landed on me.
She visibly stilled. Her eyes narrowed. Rage screwed up her dainty, perfect features and made her look even more alluring. I slowly lowered my glass back to the table as she stomped over to me, ignoring the curious glances from everyone else.
“You!” she shouted, pointing her finger directly at me.
I turned to look over my shoulder with exaggerated slowness before turning back to her and placing my hand on my chest. “Me?”
“Yes, you! You did this! Do you just get off on being this much of a wanker?”
I could feel the beady eyes of every human in the pub, enthralled by the dramatic scene. I tilted my head to the side, feigning confusion. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?”
“Don’t play dumb with me, Zachary. Or whoever the fuck you are. I know you set me up and if you think I will let you get away with it, you have no idea who you are messing with. I’m giving you one last chance to leave this village right now.”
I leaned forward, resting my elbow on the table as I picked up my pint with my other hand. I stared up at her with a sly grin as her nostrils flared. “I still have a full pint. So I think I’ll stay. This place is growing on me.”
Her hands balled into fists around the strap of her bag and she inhaled deeply, barely able to contain the fury within. She rippled with it. And I fucking loved it. This was who I had been waiting to meet. The real her. The dangerous, vicious witch that she had hidden under that perfectly sweet and charming exterior. She had them all fooled. But not me. I knew what was in there.
She slammed her hand down on the table between us and leaned in close to my face. She was clearly trying to banish me with her glare alone. It was quite endearing in a ‘she’s completely insane’ sort of way.
“I don’t know what you are trying to achieve here, messing with these people’s lives, but I won’t stand for it. Either leave this village and everyone in it alone, asshole, or meet me at the church in one hour. If you fucking dare,” she hissed lowly.
She spun around and stormed out of the pub just as abruptly as she had entered. Everyone turned to stare at me, and I set my pint glass down while cracking my knuckles with a smirk.
“So, does anyone know if she’s single?” I joked. The pub goers burst out laughing and returned to their drinks.
I subtly pushed at my groin to eliminate the raging hard-on that woman’s feisty attitude had given me. I wasn’t sure what turned me on more: her fear or her fury. Or maybe it was just her full stop. The fucking mate bond that wanted to remind me every time I was within one hundred feet of the woman that she was meant to be mine.
I drank my beer leisurely, but inside, I was thrumming with eager energy and excitement. This was what I had been waiting for. She finally reached her breaking point and showed her truecolours. Fuck waiting an hour for it and giving her a chance to plan whatever she thought would be able to rid her of me. I lasted a full ten minutes before I left the pub and made my way to her church.
Checking I still had Leif’s crystal in my pocket, I pushed open the iron gate and made my way cautiously up the pathway, hyper-vigilant and aware in case she was about to send any surprises my way. She had access to her magic now, so I shouldn’t underestimate her. I narrowed my eyes when I reached the front door and found it slightly ajar. It was an invitation. But one I wasn’t stupid enough to accept. I could feel the thickness of her magic in the air, seeping through the crack. I chuckled before leaping from my feet to the roof of the porch and then clawed my way up the wall to the roof using my vampire speed. In seconds, I had smashed my body through one of the upstairs windows feet first, sending shards of glass across the wooden floorboards as I landed in a crouched position.
“What the fuck!” she screamed, racing towards me. A magic ball was expelled from her hand and I dodged it, zooming up to her and grabbing her by the throat. I smashed her body into the wall and hissed in her face.
“Is that all you’ve got, witch? Pathetic.”
Her hand slammed into the side of my face and she muttered a Latin phrase which caused a deadly electric shock to rip through every nerve in my body. She escaped my grip, racing up the stairs when I stumbled backwards and fell against the wall, roaring at the feel of electrical currents trying to burn my blood.
It only took me a few seconds to recover. I zoomed up the stairs after her, catching up to her instantly and wrapping one hand around her waist and the other locked on her throat. I tugged her violently back into my chest. Her feet dangled, kicking as she struggled to get free.
“You planted the book here last night, didn’t you?” she growled as I tried to ignore her delicious scent and the softness of her hair against my face. “You left me tied up so I’d miss my meeting with the police. And you dug up the fae and forced Beryl to report it? You’ve been fucking with me for days.”
“I didn’t have to force Beryl to do anything. She was more than willing to help.”
“Why? You’re here to kill me. Why are you going out of your way to make my last few days a living hell?”
“Because you make my life a living hell,” I growled against her ear. She gasped at the deep vibrations of my voice and then stilled when she felt my cock against her ass.
“So you got me arrested for those crimes?” she spat with annoyance.
I chuckled darkly. “No. I got you caught for those crimes. Stop acting innocent, little witch. You don’t think you deserved to be locked up? You killed that fae. You buried him in that grave. You stole that book. I just made sure you didn’t get away with them.”
“You really hate me, don’t you?” she sneered as my grip tightened on her throat. “Well, guess what dickhead? After the stunts you pulled last night and today, the feelings are mutual.”
Flying vases and mirrors suddenly flew through the air, smashing into my back and head. I growled as she twisted in my hold and slammed her hand into my chest with a bolt of magic that sent me hurtling through the bedroom wall. Crashing down on the cold, hard floor in a pile of wooden slats and wallpaper, I was back on my feet in an instant, zooming straight for her as she attempted to race out of the room. Grabbing her around the waist, I threw her into her chest of drawers, forcing her against them as she attacked me with her sharp nails, scratching and clawing at every inch of me she could get her hands on as she screamed with frustration.
In our struggle, she ripped my top in half, exposing the leather holster I had tied around my torso with Ilaria’s silver dagger attached. I grabbed her wrists when she reached for the handle and forced them behind her back aggressively, causing her to yelp when she realised I’d break her arms if she fought any more. Her panting breaths caressed my face as the position forced her chest to press against mine and her face to tilt up. The anger and defiance in her eyes sparked an unusual feeling of pride to fill my chest. My heart pounded erratically in our moment of stillness.
“You might want to kill me,” she groaned, pressing herself harder against my body and grinding her hips into mine. I hissed at the pressure it put on my rock-hard cock. “But you want to fuck me more. Don’t you, asshole?”
