Page 58 of Our Sins in Blood (Coven of Sin 1)

I ripped my wrist out of his hold with a sneer of disgust. Iknewit. This was just a move for the throne. “I’m not playing that game with you, Feral. I’m not so desperate for your cock that I’m willing to saddle myself with you for all eternity to get it.”

He moved so fast, his hand was off my ass and in my hair before the words had barely left my mouth. He wrenched my head back and I choked out a miserable whimper as he craned my head so that my throat was exposed to him.

Leaning into me, he brought his face so close that I could feel his breath tickle my flesh, red eyes leering at me with an intense mix of lust and contempt.

“You ever think that maybe this is beyond us? Of course not. Because you’re just a sheltered little brat. Who gives a shit if you hate me? This isn’t about who you like best. It’s about who will make a good king.”

“I would pick Corry a million times before you, asshole.”

He snorted. “You owe Corry an apology for acting like you did after he saved your hide. But you aren’t so stupid to think he’d make a fit ruler. Just like you, he’s too young and naive.”

“Sterling then.”

“Sterling doesn’t want to be king. And before you go making me more pissed, don’t even dare suggest Eros. You wouldn’t survive one night in his bed, let alone an eternity by his side as his mate.”

“So that’s your angle? You’re the least shitty option?”

“My angle is that I am brutal, I am ruthless, I was forged by your father, out of cruelty and malice and I stand before you as an unbreakable force, a formidable king.”

“Shouldn’t a king be soft, merciful?”

“Not one that sits on the throne of vampires.” He released my hair and his touch suddenly turned gentle as his knuckles grazed over my hip. “Those things will be reserved for my mate when I take her into our bed.”

He was playing mind games with me. He had to be, this side of himself he was showing me had to be fake. Just a ploy to get the throne. Not that I blamed him. Claiming the throne was important to him. But from the little I gathered of my father, would he really be that different of a ruler? He wanted it so damn bad, he was willing to do anything it took. Seducing me and break my heart being the least of it.

Hell, for all I knew, he’d wanted the throne so bad he’d murdered my father and staged it to look like a suicide. That would explain why he’d been outraged when the Elders had decided to honor my father’s long-time wishes of making me queen. Now I was his only way to the throne, it was in his best interest to keep me safe. Especially now that there was a risk of that enemy coven capturing me and using me to show that the Cape Cod Coven is weak and not meant to be in charge. He wanted me to be his figurehead. The pretty little queen sat alongside him. Alongside Vincent Feral, I’d been a queen only in the sense that I’d carry a title. All I’d really be was his plaything. And even though that idea held much appeal with my hormones, it would be insane to actually give into those dark, fucked up desires.

“I want to go home.”

“Home?” His brows arched. “Does that mean you’re not going to try to run away again?”

“No. It would be stupid if I did. I get that now.”

The thing was, I felt it was also stupid to stay. Hell, for all I knew the vampires in the Cape Cod Coven were even more dangerous than the vampires outside it. The only thing I had going for me was that I would eventually be the head bitch of the whole place if I played my cards right. The difficult part would be surviving these princes for four months. The beginnings of a plan were starting to sprout in my mind and we rode back the whole way home in silence as I picked at the details.

Chapter thirty

A Stupid Idea

VincentpulledhisRolls-Royceinto the hanger filled with the coven’s eclectic collection of cars, and my throat constricted when my attention landed on Corry’s Ninja—which was now mine I guess.

For all the good it’d do me now.

Vincent cut the engine and watched me with an indiscernible expression as I glared at the motorcycle with crossed arms. “You know, that’s his favorite bike. He doesn’t let anyone else touch it.”

“So?”

“So, out of the three he has, he wanted to take you out on the one he’s most proud of. The one no one else gets to touch.”

I didn’t bother with asking what his point was. He wanted me to apologize to Corry, and admittedly I owed him one. Unlike prince douche-bag here, the youngblood genuinely liked me. Even though he’d used my desperation to escape as a means to mess around with me, he lied and double-crossed me to prevent me from leaving. Not out of selfishness, but because he wanted to keep me safe.

“Yeah, so I was a bit selfish and short-sighted. I’ll apologize to Corry.”

“Good,” the vampire grunted, unfastening his seatbelt to jab a finger out the window. “Because he’s right there.”

I got out of the car to see Corry leaning against the hanger door with his hands shoved in his pockets. I couldn’t make out the details of his expression, with his back turned toward the moon he was wrapped in shadows.

“Finally,” he gritted. He tilted his head back, his nose in the air as his chest swelled with an inhale. “Surprised she’s still got her V-card by how damn long you took, bro.”

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