Page 49 of Bite of Sin

I’d have Pax look at who was on duty that night. At least I’d gotten one piece of useful information out of this. She hesitated for a moment before reaching behind her and tucking the stake into the waistband at her back.

“I’m done,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “It’s a waste of time when I can’t kill you. And I don’t feel like sharing anything else.”

“Too bad. I’m not finished with you. I want more.” I strode forward, catching her arm before she could scramble out of reach again. “Tell me something. Something you’ve never told anyone else. Not even him.”

Her eyes widened before she scowled. “That’s not fair.”

“The truth,” I reminded her. “Unless you want me to leave here and have fun with Warner.”

She swallowed thickly, not fighting me when I pulled her closer until her chest smashed against mine.

“I…” She stopped and cleared her throat. “Do you read books?”

“What?” Her question threw me off.

“Fiction. Made up stories.”

I shook my head. “No.”

“That’s all I did growing up. There was a library in my city, and I would spend hours curled up in the corner reading. It’s how I learned so much about how life was before the war.” She was almost whispering, and for once, her heart rate changed, pumping faster. “And I read so many stories about people falling in love. I remember wishing that I’d feel it. The amazing feeling of true love. Finding my person. But I never did. And I realized why it’s just in books. That will never happen in this world.”

I went still as a statue when her hand slipped under my shirt, her fingers trailing softly over my abs. Fear was blatant in her gaze as she looked at me, but there was something else there too that I couldn’t decipher.

“But whenyoutouch me, I feel something,” she breathed out. “And I don’t understand it.”

Now it was my heart that was pounding against my ribs as she kept touching me. She raised on her tiptoes until her lips were hovering so close to mine that I could feel her shallow breaths. She hesitated, as if waiting for me to refuse her, but my head was still spinning. I’d never talked to a woman like this. It was always just about sex.

“And now I’m wondering what else you can make me feel,” she whispered.

Her lips crashed to mine, and I brought my hand behind her neck, bringing her closer. I pushed my tongue into her mouth, letting out a groan. She tasted better than I fucking imagined. She eagerly kissed me back, her small moan making my dick grow hard. The things I wanted to do to her—

There was a stinging pain on my chest, and terror lit through me when I realized it was right over my heart. I ripped my mouth away, my eyes cutting to hers. Only wicked determination was filling her gaze, and my rage exploded. I glanced down to see the stake pressed against my chest, hard enough to break skin.

“Strength isn’t the only way I can beat you,” she purred, her voice full of dangerous promises. “I could have killed you right here.”

“Then why didn’t you?” I hissed, tearing the stake from her hand. Fury was radiating from me, and I stepped away to get back in control.

“Because you’re a Kane.” She crossed her arms. “I’d be dead the second I walked into Impulse without you. Like I said before—I’m not stupid.”

It wasn’t a surprise that she knew who I was. Pax had told me that Gia ran her mouth. The shock was that I’d fallen for her act. She drew out a weakness that I didn’t even know I had. Fuck. She was becoming my weakness. There was no way I’d let that happen again.

“I need to get back to work,” she sang out, turning away from me. “And the whole thing about me reading is a truth, by the way. So don’t touch Warner.”

I watched her walk away. She would make a great vampire. My father would love her. Once she came to full strength, she’d be a perfect soldier. Strong and cunning.

Half of me wanted to strangle her. But the other half wanted to fucking kiss her again. She was growing more abrasive, like she knew I wouldn’t kill her. The problem was, I wouldn’t. Even after what just happened.

Chapter20

Kali

Itrudged through the streets, my stomach churning with nerves. Another night at Impulse. I wasn’t sure how long I could do this. After I went back to the club last night when Zan took me to the park, Warner had tried to talk to me, and I couldn’t even look at him. I wanted to say so much to him, but not when Zan and the twins were listening. What if I said something that screwed everything up? I couldn’t chance it.

I was even more apprehensive about facing Zan. I had no idea how he was going to act after what happened last night. He was probably going to be even more on edge around me now. But it didn’t matter. He was a Kane. I couldn’t kill him, or I’d be hunted by vampires for the rest of my life, even if I did escape. The Kanes were vampire royalty. Killing them was my last resort now. But if I could do it without getting caught…it was a possibility. Especially if it gave Warner and me a chance at freedom.

I’d also stabbed him because I needed to see how far I could push him. He’d had chance after chance to hurt or kill me, but here I was. He didn’t want me dead. When I shoved the stake into his chest, I half expected him to end me right there. But he didn’t.

I pushed open the front door, unable to swallow my grin at the memory of Zan’s face. When he realized I had the stake to his heart, the disbelief was worth it all. Even though I was sure he wouldn’t fall for that twice.

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