Page 8 of The Vampire Kingpin
“Why not? What are you gonna do to me?”
I cupped her throat and pressed her up against the bricks. “Anything I want, little thief. And you’ll let me, is that clear?”
She swallowed, the muscles of her neck moving beneath my fingers. The heavy beating of her heart sparked an answering rush in my own veins.
Her gaze dropped, unable to hold mine, but she gamely fought on. “Then I might as well run.”
I gave her throat a light squeeze. “Try it.”
But I couldn’t help admiring her spunkiness. I couldn’t think of another dhampir except for the three Kral brothers—and they were high-ranking dominants—who wouldn’t have caved in by now.
“Look,” I said, stroking my thumb over the soft skin beneath her jaw. “Maybe we can work something out.”
“Like what?” she asked warily.
“How about you return that dagger you stole along with an extra ten grand for inconveniencing me, and we’ll call it even?”
I was pretty sure she didn’t have that kind of cash—as far as I could tell, Grimclaw kept her like some kind of fucking Cinderella, paying her only a minimal wage—but at least she couldn’t accuse me of not giving her a chance.
And yeah, I was being a prick, but if she were anyone else, she’d already be in her final grave.
“Ten grand?” Lark’s jaw dropped. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“So you don’t have it?”
“Of course not.” Her chest heaved. “I don’t even have a thousand. Grimclaw takes everything I—” She bit her lip and shook her head.
“So he was the one who put you up to stealing my dagger?”
She briefly closed her eyes. “Yeah.”
I grunted. Grimclaw must’ve realized Lark would never agree to be my thrall in return for his debt, so he’d come up with this steal-from-Spider scheme instead, knowing I’d catch her.
Too bad for Lark, but that didn’t mean I was letting her walk. Like I’d said, I hadn’t gotten where I was by playing nice.
I traced my fingers up her narrow ribcage, drawing a circle around her nipples with the pads of my thumbs. She dragged in a breath. Her hands came to my chest, her blunt-cut nails digging into my pecs. Her lids drifted down, and beneath the dress’s big white collar, the honeyed skin of her throat rippled in a hard swallow.
My mouth watered and my fangs tingled, eager to sink into her pulsing vein, my erection straining painfully against my leather jeans. The blood craving rose in me, fighting to be let loose, to plunge both my fangs and my dick into her.
“Lark,” I rasped.
“Mm?” she asked dreamily.
“Look at me.”
Her lids lifted, but slowly, as if they were weighted. She blinked at me, then recoiled and knocked my hands from her tits. “Get off me.”
With a growl, I grabbed her wrists, twisting her arms behind her back. “Let’s get one thing straight. You’re not the one in charge here, understand?”
Her witchy eyes flashed, gold and brown lights sparking like fireworks in the green. “So what about working things out? Or was that just a lie?”
“You said you don’t have that kinda cash.”
“I don’t. But I can get it for you. I just need time.”
“You sound like your cousin now.”
She rolled her lips in. “Please, Spider.”
