Page 37 of Royal Bite
Of course, the human almost had her. Hegna ran a hand along her face, feeling more like herself. The mating bond was slowly enveloping her, but she refused to fall into its grasp. She decided when she would mate and to whom.
“What did I say?” Stormey’s strained voice broke through the silence. She sat up, confusion in her eyes. The winding of the window coverings kicked in, providing a distraction. Hegna was unsure what time it was. With it being wintertime, the sun rose much later, allowing them to have longer nights.
Hegna slid to the edge of the bed and pulled back the drape.
“I refuse to fall for this.” She motioned between her and Stormey. She stood from the bed and turned, taking in Stormey. She bit back growl. A pleased sensation rose in her chest. Stormey looked well-fucked. Her hair was a mess, and her eyes were slightly dazed.
“What do you mean?” Stormey asked. “Am I missing something? We had one hell of a night—”
“That will not happen again,” Hegna snapped. She inhaled and immediately regretted it. The scent of Stormey’s slickness between her thighs filled Hegna’s nostrils. She had to put some distance between them. She balled up her fists to keep from reaching for Stormey.
Azura Michaels.
That was who she needed to concentrate on. She would kill this wolf alpha. The lycans were top priority. She had to protect the vampires and the humans who lived in her territory. The future of their kind and eradicating the lycans were the center of her attention.
Falling in love and sealing a mating bond was not what she wanted.
Her life was going just fine without the stress of having a mate.
“What do you mean? I’m your mate.”
Stormey’s eyes were wide. Fat tears balanced on the edges of her eyelids, but Hegna hardened her heart. Stormey crawled to the edge of the bed. Hegna backed up.
“Was it me asking for your bite? We don’t have to do it now. We can get to know each other. Spend time together.”
“No.” Hegna shook her head, ignoring Stormey’s gasp. She knew what she had to do. She would have the human relocated to one of the other wings in the castle, putting as much room between them as possible. “Get your clothes and go.”
“But, Hegna—”
“I said, go!” she roared.
Stormey scrambled from the bed and rushed over to rug in front of the fireplace and gathered her belongings. Hegna spun around and went into the bathroom. A crack appeared in her hardened heart at the sound of Stormey’s sniffling. Hegna walked over to the double sinks and rested her hands on the counter. She stared at herself, and she, too, had the look of someone who had been royally fucked.
Her nipples were sore, as was her clit from Stormey’s attention. She closed her eyes and tried to block out their night. She would resist the urge to rush after Stormey and bring her back.
Hegna had an agenda, and it didn’t include a mate. She would ensure Stormey was well taken care of, but she would not be completing a bond.
A single bite wouldn’t have sealed them together, but Hegna wasn’t sure how she would react once her fangs were in Stormey’s neck.
Her ears picked up the faint sound of her quarter’s door opening and closing.
The ache behind her eyes reappeared. Hegna cursed and pushed off the counter and headed over to her shower. She would need more blood soon. As soon as she was done bathing, she’d call down to the kitchen.
She flipped the water on, waiting for it to heat up.
The image of Stormey’s large tears in her eyes had her stomach clenching.
She drew up to her full height, refusing to fall for the tears. Hegna walked into the shower, allowing the hot water to soak her skin.
Yes, she had an agenda, and she would follow it.
“I think this is enough for today,” Cici said. She stood next to Stormey who was wiping down one of the tables in the dining hall for the castle’s employees.
Stormey looked over at her and offered her a small smile.
“What are you talking about?” She straightened to her full height and put her cloth in the little bucket with hot soapy water in it. Stormey had thrown herself into everything she could become involved in. Since the night she’d been sent away from Hegna’s room, she had wanted to keep herself busy.
A pain spread in Stormey’s chest at the memory of the cold rejection of her vampire. She had thrown her robe on and left the lingerie on the floor. She wouldn’t need it. The walk back to her room had been awkward. She’d held her head high, not saying a word to Jasper, and went into her room. Once inside, she’d fallen onto her bed with sobs racking her body.
