Page 38 of Bite
Thirteen
Iswear I’ve never seen Ozzy move so fast. One second he’s a purring lump in the chair, and the next he’s on his feet, black fur bristling. His ears flatten, his tail puffs out, and he hisses at James so fiercely that it should be terrifying– except it isn’t.
It’s actually kind of adorable.
I’ve never heard him hiss before, but it comes out high-pitched and squeaky, more like an angry tea kettle than a predator. I stifle a laugh, gaze flicking between the two of them– vampire and kitten, locked in a standoff.
“The contract said I could bring anything to make me more comfortable,” I point out, watching the way James’ jaw ticks, eyes narrowing as they stay fixed on my tiny, hissing menace.
“Not if it’s at the expense of my own comfort,” he grumbles.
I roll my eyes. “What do you have against cats?” I scoff.
“They can’t be trusted,” he replies, lip curling in distaste. “One minute they’re purring like they want affection, the next they’re sinking their claws in you.”
I can’t help but smirk at the irony. “The same could be said for vampires. Substituting fangs for claws, of course.”
He doesn’t seem remotely amused by the comparison, still frowning in Ozzy’s direction.
I carefully close the book on my lap and set it aside, fingers lingering on the cracked leather cover for a beat before I rise to my feet with a heavy sigh. “Fine,” I say, tone deliberately casual. “I guess we’ll go, then.”
James’ sharp gaze snaps to mine, lips twisting in a scowl. “No. Just the animal.Youstay.”
I cross my arms over my chest, holding my ground with a defiant lift of my chin. “We’re a package deal. He stays, or I go.”
The silence between us is instant and heavy, like a storm rolling in. He regards me with one elegant brow raised, as though weighing whether I really mean it.
His gaze doesn’t linger on my face for long. My pulse picks up speed as it slowly drifts down my body, tracing every curve with unnerving precision. The soft sweater dress I pulled from the closet suddenly feels much thinner under that stare, the hem scandalously high even though it really isn’t. His attention pauses at my bare thighs above my knee-high socks, lingering there longer than necessary while I struggle not to fidget beneath the weight of his attention.
Then, almost as an afterthought, his eyes flick back to my kitten.
Ozzy lets out another fierce hiss before darting off the armchair and underneath a table, claws flicking faintly against the wood as he vanishes into the shadows.
James huffs a breath, the sound edged with disdain. “Charming.”
“Non-negotiable,” I say, planting a hand on my hip.
He squeezes his eyes closed, running a hand through his pale blond hair and exhaling through clenched teeth like he’s trying to wrestle his temper into submission. When his eyes pop open again, frosty blue pins me in place, intense and unyielding. “Fine,” he grits out. “The beast can stay.”
I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding, the knot in my chest loosening.
“Now,” he drawls, arching a brow as he advances a step closer. “What aboutmynon-negotiables?”
I squint back at him suspiciously. “Such as?”
His lips curl into a slow smirk, gaze turning wicked as it slides down my figure again. “I need to feed.”
The words thrum through me like a struck chord. My throat instantly goes dry, but I straighten my spine and force my chin up, brushing my hair over one shoulder to expose my neck in offering.
He doesn’t pounce like I expect him to. Instead, he starts toward me with deliberate slowness, each step measured, a predator stalking prey. When he stops directly in front of me, my pulse spikes so hard it’s almost embarrassing, chin tilting upward to hold his gaze.
He lifts a hand, the pad of his thumb grazing over the pulse point in my throat. I suppress a shiver at the intimacy of it, heart pounding in a chaotic rhythm.
“I think I’d prefer a different vein this time,” he murmurs.
My breath hitches, mind racing to decode the meaning behind his words.
James takes my hand, his skin cool against mine. The fingers of his other hand ghost over the inside of my wrist, then glide up to the soft bend in my elbow, as if on the hunt for where to bite.
