“Won’t that be dangerous?”
“Extremely. She might die from a blood overdose. Or it might trigger her youngblood state, which will be dangerous considering the uncharted bounds of her hybrid abilities. Especially here of all places. But that’s far more preferable than any alternative.”
There was a brief but tense pause.
“Let’s do it,” Sterling said, a faint tremor in his voice.
Chapter fourteen
A Walk on the Feral Side
“Stayawake,Ruby.”Sterling’svoice was distant, even though I could feel the cool kiss of his fingertips on my cheeks. “We’re going to make you all better, but you must stay awake.”
The poorly hidden distress that underscored his tone felt like barbed wire threading tightly around my heart.
The agony that ravaged my body was so raw and intense, each shallow breath I took was a painstaking task. Part of me wanted to let myself sink into the sweet, numbing darkness that threatened to engulf me, but another voice sliced through the haze that swaddled my brain.
“Stay with us, Red. Don’t leave us. Not now, just after you’ve gone and gotten us all hooked on you.”
“Corry,” I whispered, feeling my lips curve into a smile against all odds.
I forced my eyelids open, even though it felt like weights sat on top of them. The edges of my vision blurred, but the male in front of me came into focus, and instead of Corry’s cerulean eyes, I found Sterling’s ghostly orbs fixed on me.
“So damn beautiful,” I found myself muttering, not quite all there mentally, but not really caring either way. Sterling’s fringe of white lashes fluttered as a brief look of surprise flickered over his marble features. The determined pinch of his brows wiped the expression clean a moment later.
“We have to hurry,” he said, turning in the direction of his brothers. “I’m not sure if she has the strength to drop her fangs at the moment, so make the wound for her if she needs.”
Corry leaned into my view. His blue eyes banked with worry. “Wait. We can’t feed her here, can we? What if we’re caught?”
Even the thought of shifting so much as an inch made me whimper. “Can’t move. I–I hurt.”
I didn’t like them seeing me like this. All weak and incredibly mortal.
“Don’t worry, doll.” Eros’ voice rumbled from somewhere outside my view. He must have been behind me because the next moment, I felt his hand graze over my shoulder. My mark warmed under his touch, which chased some of the pain away. “No one’s moving you until you’re healed.”
“He’s right.” It was Lavinia speaking now. Her voice was further away than the others, probably giving my guys and me some space. “With how bad the break seems to be, we can’t risk moving her. We have a few minutes before they expect her in the dome room, so you’d best hurry with the donation before Erik Thorn sends some of his men to look for her.”
Sterling gave a dutiful jerk of his head and raised his wrist to his mouth. His lips parted, revealing stunning fangs that gleamed in the lobby’s muted lighting. The sight of his needle-sharp canines dipping into his flesh was a tantalizing sight that would probably have made me weak in the knees if I could feel them.
Pressing the wound to my mouth, my silver prince’s skin was ice against my fever-hot lips. When his blood hit my taste buds, a heady moan bled out from me.
“That’s right, love,” my ancient priest purred, his or maybe someone else’s hand stroking my hair in gentle praise for the simple task.
Sterling’s blood was even more delicious than I remembered. Maybe because this time my body had a desperate need for it, instead of just a perverse desire.
The blood that filled my mouth was intoxicating, but watching Sterling’s reaction to me suckling on his wrist was almost just as exhilarating.
His lips softened as I drew his blood from his body into my own.
His throat twitched with a swallow, which drew my attention to the silvery scar of my mating mark on his throat.
A chill rushed through me, and for a moment, I felt no pain at all.
“That’s it, love. Take me in,” Sterling cooed, his lips twitching into a reserved smile where relief lurked at the corners of his mouth. “She’s responding well to the blood. Her pulse has steadied, and her color is returning. Though I’m not sure how much more I can give her.”
“Let me,” Eros’ gravelly voice sounded.
The next thing I knew, Sterling was pulling away, and a hungry growl tore through the room. An awkward beat passed before I realized it was mine.