Page 21 of Dark Desire
I ran after him, barefoot, embarrassingly puffing out of my ass because I was so unfit, but nothing was going to stop me from chasing him down. Not even my pathetic lungs. I had no idea what I'd say when I finally caught up with him but fuck it. That was my attitude from now on, wasn't it? Maybe I'd just be bold and outrightly ask him if he wants to come back to my place for some wild sex. Oh, wait, I’m currently homeless. His place then.
As I turned down the narrow alleyway, his rippling back muscles disappeared around the last corner, and I swore. Those long, muscular legs were so fast! Running, I stood on a shard of glass from a broken bottle, and I started hopping and cursing profusely. I stopped only to pull out the shard, but I didn’t have time to worry about the blood gushing from my foot. The things I would do for one last good fuck were both amusing and tragic. He better not be a two-pump chump or I’d be furious.
Coming out of the alleyway, I spotted him crossing the road, still only with a towel hanging low around his waist in bloody December and strolled through the garden gate of a familiar cottage. I paused, frowning deeply. With his back to me, he pulled out a key from his rucksack and let himself into Beryl Dorestone's cottage. What the hell?
Well, that wasn’t ideal. I let out a deep breath and tried to tame my wild hair that had bounced all over the place in the wind. Okay. Just knock on the door. He was bound to answer. He had literally just walked inside.
As I walked up the pathway, feeling slightly unhinged, shoeless and injured, I realised I wasn’t exactly putting my bestself forward but…fuck it. I stopped at the ivy-covered front door, briefly closed my eyes, adjusted my jumper, and swept my curls out of my face.
I rang the doorbell.
Please don’t be Beryl. Please don’t be Beryl.
The door opened.
Chapter Nine
Standing on the bottom step of her staircase, with my back pressed against the wall so I remained out of sight, I watched with a smirk as Beryl whipped open the door with a vicious scowl, causing more wrinkles than usual to appear on her face.
“Oh, uh. Hello, Beryl,” Darcelle’s husky voice was laced with disappointment and panic. I lifted my chin, gazing up at the ceiling to stop any amused noises from escaping my lips.
“What do you want?” Beryl snapped.
“I, er, is there a, er, man in there with you? Staying with you, I mean?” She was flustered, and I was loving every second of it.
I followed the witch the moment she left Evie’s this morning and waited outside while she went into the doctor’s surgery. Even though I couldn’t see her, I could hear her heartbeat through the brick wall, tracking her every move until she entered the doctor’s office. Her heart was irregular when she was alone with that man, and after overhearing their conversation, I understood why. He liked her, and it made her uncomfortable. I tried not to care. It wasn’t my problem how others made her feel. I should be ecstatic that someone was making her day even moremiserable but... I didn’t fucking like it. The witch’s heart was mine. No one else was allowed to make it race, whether out of fear, disgust or desire. It didn’t matter. It was off limits. Darcelle Knightsbridge was off limits to everyone but me. Yes, I was using others to get to her, but if someone was messing with her and it wasn’t because of me, that put me in a violent mood.
It took a lot to walk away and continue to follow her to the coast instead of tearing off that man’s hands for touching her, gouging out his eyes for leering at her, and forcing him to swallow his tongue for making her uncomfortable. But I managed it. Just. And my plan to mess with her was back on track. I let her see me. I let her follow me. I led her straight to Beryl’s. I knew she wouldn’t be able to resist the invisible pull of attraction the soulmate bond created, even if she wasn’t aware of it herself. She'd managed to distract me with it last night, but now it was her turn to feel its effects. I wanted her desperate for me. And clearly, it was already working.
“Why would I tell you that? Will he be your next victim? I know what you did!” Beryl grabbed her broom and vigorously swept the floor, aiming it towards Darcelle's feet. I heard an ‘ow’ and some movement as the witch stepped back. The scent of the most alluring, rich blood wafted through my nostrils, and my eyes instantly turned red. Fuck. Some part of her was bleeding. My cock sprang to life and my fangs snapped down. I pulled my lips over them to hide my appearance from Beryl. Luckily, she was too preoccupied with trying to sweep Darcelle away to notice.
“Ow! Okay, I get it! You hate me, but what exactly do you think I’ve done, Beryl?”
“You murdered Betty!”
“Betty? The cow? Really?”
“You can’t fool me, witch! You and your sacrifices and crystals and no shoes! The sooner you leave my village, the better.”
“Okay, Beryl. But can I please speak to the man in your house? You know, he’s this tall, this stacked, the size of a Viking with long red hair? I know you know who I’m talking about. I literally just saw him walk in here.”
“You stay away from Zachary, you man-eating witch.”
“Zachary?” she repeated, impressively undeterred by the hostile little woman in front of her. She raised her voice and shouted, “Zachary!”
I growled because the sound of her shouting another man’s name made me furious. Which was bloody stupid. Stupid fucking mate bond.
“Oh no, you don’t! Shoo! Be gone, witch!” Beryl grabbed her spray bottle, which she used to water the flowers outside, and started spritzing it in Darcelle’s face.
“Bloody hell! Beryl! Water? What do you think is going to happen? That I’ll melt?”
“Worth a go! Now bugger off and never come to my door again unless you want me to call the police.” Beryl slammed the door shut just in time for me to control my bloodlust, retract my fangs, and change my eye colour back to green.
“There. I got rid of her for you, Zachary. That woman is trouble, stay away from her,” Beryl said, wagging her finger at me before heading to the kitchen.
I inhaled a deep breath, trying to rid myself of the urge to go after the witch. The plan was to make her desperate for me. Not the other way around. My fangs were tingling and my cock was pulsing an angry beat beneath the towel. I stormed up the stairs, charging into the bathroom and grabbed my dick with a growl. It took about ten rage-filled strokes and the memory of her lips wrapped around my cock last night to explode. Yet, it wasn’t enough. My desire for her was relentless. My thirst for her blood was all-consuming. And I was struggling to control myself fromfinding her right that minute, fucking her senseless and then drinking her dry.
‘That sounds like a brilliant plan,’Ambroz hissed in my mind, adding his own needs to my slipping control.‘Fuck her, drink her, claim her soul, and eat her heart.’
