Page 49 of The Dark War

Studying him, I came back into the room, putting my hand over Taliyah’s knee, sitting thigh to thigh with her. She gave a grateful smile as I kissed her cheek. “He’ll do it,” I linked her. The slight smile grew wider as she relayed the message to Duke Mortus.

I didn’t trust the fucker. The gleam in his eye, the smile that many of his kind failed to show, was too wide. Maybe he did have a human mate, but I couldn’t be sure. His heart did not beat, so Xander couldn’t detect the fault. Usually, vampires’ hearts began to beat as soon as they found their beloved or mate. Then again, I wasn’t that in tune with vampire anatomy. Maybe they had to bite them first for their hearts to beat.

“I sincerely appreciate it. I’ll be sure to send more gold over in the morning. I think that will be enough to keep the unmated vampires fed, at least for a few more weeks,” Mortus said dryly.

“We thank you again, Duke Mortus. Also for your wonderful recommendations on the Parliament representatives. They have been of great help to the country’s different regions. Lord Virion has done an exceptional job with taking care of the rogues.” Taliyah smiled, standing up to dismiss the duke. The duke had indeed been helpful in that regard. The new counselors had taken a lot of the burden off Taliyah.

“I’ll keep you informed if Clara and Kane hear anything. They are heading to the northern area of their kingdom this afternoon.” My mate smiled.

Duke Mortus’ decorative rings clinked on the metal handle of his cane, bowing low as he retreated into the hallway. “Thank you so much for your help. I do, surely appreciate it.”

Fuck. I wish I could tell if he was lying.

“Could you reach into his mind?” I murmured to Taliyah. Her hand interlaced with my fingers, pulling me out of the study.

“It was strange,” she mused, placing her finger on her lip. “It was like, there was a wall. Then again, Mortus is a very old vampire, and I’m still learning to dive deeper into the minds of supernaturals.” Pursing my lips, she led me up the stairs.

“Where are we going?” I asked. Taliyah had spent so much time outside, walking around the kingdom and accessing damages from rogues. She had begun planning where plots of land would be great to start crops. It would bring more gold back to the country, such as planting groves of trees, vineyards, and the like. The soil had rested for so long that it had become rich with nutrients, and vegetation had grown wildly where I had trees transplanted for our first date. All of Bergarian would reap the benefits of the fresh produce once she started the project.

“Come with me.” Her voice went low. The skip in her step had Xander stir as she led us down the hall. Her body in front of me, her head turning back, beckoning me with those red eyes. My cock stirred, hoping that what was to come would take care of my growing problem.

As we entered our bedroom, it was completely dark, with no fire roaring in the corner of the room. The door shut harshly, Taliyah pushing my back against it. The wooden door groaned under pressure, and my eyes widened as her fangs hung low from her mouth.

Hot damn.

“I’m tired of waiting.” She growled. Xander perked his head up inside me, his head cheerfully cocking to the side like a damn puppy. “You’ve taken care of me for weeks, every night, yet you wait to make me yours,” she purred.

Do what?

“I—I—”

“Cat got your tongue?” she cooed, unbuckling my belt with her magic. It was swiftly ripped from the loops of my pants. My breath caught like a virgin being fucked for the first time. My hands were raised by the force of her magic, touching the door, watching as she took control.

Her eyes flashed a bright, glowing red, and back to the subtle red I was used to. “The fuck?” I whispered.

“Don’t tell me this is something you don’t want?” Her eyes fluttered flirtatiously.

Where in the hell is my mate!?

“Oh, it’s still me, Jasper.” Taliyah’s long red fingernail trailed my jaw. “But we do have a problem.” I gulped, she watched my throat bob, and the hint of lust in her eyes had my cock come to life.

“We have been with the bond so long, pulling at it, tugging” —she pulled on the button of my pants until they fell to the floor—“that it has caused me to go into a blood heat.” Clearing my throat, I tried not to look at her tantalizing perky breasts trying to burst free from her red corset dress. Her braided updo fell around her as she willed the pins out of her hair.

Crimped, curly hair covered her breasts as the tie of her corset unraveled. Invisible fingers pulled her dress slowly on either side of her arms. The fabric peeled away from her body, each breast exposed but covered all the same as her hair moved to cover her nipples. Going lower, the dress fell away from her wide hips, now pooling to the floor.

Shit, shit, shit.

“If Duke Mortus hadn’t shown up, I would have taken you earlier. The tantalizing waiting has me all hot and bothered,” Her hair flew behind her.

Dear gods.

“May I ask”—I cleared my throat—“what is a blood heat?” My voice went an octave higher than I wanted to, but fuck, I was completely off guard. There wasn’t any warming up to this, not that I minded, but hell, she was still a virgin.

“It’s like a shifter’s heat.” Taliyah stepped forward, her claw ripping off my tunic. My bare chest heaved, her tongue licking straight up my chest and neck.

Don’t come.

“I need to feed, but feed from my bonded mate.” Her breath tickled my neck.

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