Page 141 of Our Sins in Blood (Coven of Sin 1)

“She looks hot as fuck!” Corry shouted from outside in an attempt to be helpful to his blind brother. Cheeks burning to new levels of hellish inferno, I flung a withering glare at Corry. It was hard to be mad at him, though. The youngest prince was looking “hot as fuck” himself with how he lounged against his black Harley Davidson in a leather biker jacket.

Ignoring the youngblood, Sterling’s marble-smooth physiognomy contorted with a frown. “Be careful tonight, love. We have no shortage of enemies in Boston. Don’t draw attention to yourself. Watch the fight, then come straight home.”

“Can’t you come with?”

His frown shifted into a melancholy smile that I felt all the way down to my bones. “I never leave coven grounds unless I have to. Please don’t give me a reason to tonight.”

“I won’t,” I assured him.

Putting distance between us, I stepped toward the door to make my exit, but Sterling caught my wrist and pulled me against him.

Holding my head between his hands, my heart stalled out for one intense beat as he looked down at me with that devotion I imagined only a medieval-aged priest could pull off.

With every member of the coven watching, he kissed me.

His lips were gentle on mine, cool and perfect.

I never wanted it to end.

Drawing my arms around his neck, I stretched up on my tip-toes to deepen the kiss, and he dropped his hands from my face to loop his arms around my waist. He lifted me so I could get a better purchase on his mouth. With the way my body burned, I felt like I could catch fire, but I wasn’t sure if it was from the heat of Sterling’s kiss or the scorch of everyone’s curiosity hot on our backs.

We finally—reluctantly—broke away from one another. He pressed one last kiss to my brow, and I relished the last moments of his bare skin on mine.

“Be safe,” he murmured on a whisper so thin I barely heard it. He ran his fingertips over my face to glean my expression before pressing his lips to my ear. “And promise me something, Ruby.”

“Anything.”

“Keep pushing Vincent. You’ll break through his barriers. Never yield to him. Keep fighting. If anyone can reach the man inside the beast, it’s you.”

“I will,” I said with a shaky exhale. “I promise.”

Chapter sixty-six

Bathroom Break

Idecidedtherewerefew things better than driving a motorcycle at top speeds down a deserted road, with the wind in my hair and the open sky above. Nothing beat the sting of the chilly night on my cheeks, the rev of the engine beneath me, and Corry right beside me, glancing at me every few minutes, blue eyes glittering in the bike’s headlights.

It was freeing, completely exhilarating.

As we made our way toward Boston, the roads grew wider; the lights became brighter, and the sounds louder. It was almost overwhelming for someone like me, who’d never been to the big city before. If Corry wasn’t here, centering me, it would probably be too much sensory overload. But every time the lights became too blinding or the sounds too grating, I flicked my gaze to his and relished in how he looked on his bike.

This was his bliss.

And seeing him revel in it was mine.

Once we got into the city, I let Corry take the lead and followed him through the streets to the waterfront, where all the skyscrapers and billboards and cars melted away. We slowed the bikes as we came onto a gravel road that led into an industrial area filled with heavy machinery and warehouses that dotted the docks.

Compared to the rest of the area, the place was eerily quiet and dark. The only lights were from the occasional lamp posts stretched along the dock and the few illuminating the gravel parking lot. For how quiet it was, there were a lot of cars.

“Are these people all here to see the fight?” I asked as I pulled my helmet off and slung it over the bike’s handlebar.

Corry jammed the kickstand into place on his Harley and stood, sweeping his eyes over the filled lot. “Yup. The Warehouse fights are a hub for our kind to come and hang out over a beer and watch guys from different covens and packs and whatnot duke out some beef. But The Feral King and Deathwish matches always draw the largest crowds.”

Corry threw his arm over my shoulder and steered me toward the dock. As we approached the building at the end, the line of people waiting to get inside came into view. My jaw dropped. The queue of people would rival the Disneyland ride lines during peak seasons.

It shouldn’t have been surprising that the supernatural crowd was drawn to bloodshed, especially since these sorts of fights seemed to be legal within the community. They were a way to settle aggression without messing with peace treaties and alliances. But the fact that this many people were eager to see two of my guys rip each other to shreds didn’t sit well with me.

“There’s no way we can stand in this line. The fight will start before we get to the door!” The sudden panic in my voice made Corry’s brows lift.

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