Page 56 of Bite of Sin

“Consider this my brotherly advice of the month.” Viggo dropped his hands on my shoulders, giving me a push forward as we went down the stairs from our place to Impulse.

I shot him a glare. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“You need to do things differently,” Viggo said.

“What things?”

Pax pushed open the door, walking into Impulse with me right behind him. Gia gave us a smile from the bar before continuing her talk with Dee. Warner was back in the cage next to our spot, though he was still far enough away not to hear us if we spoke quietly. He was pacing the four steps he could take around the cage, his eyes wild when he caught sight of me.

“Why am I still alive? What do you want?” he hissed, his voice lacking its usual vigor. Staying locked up was getting to him.

I arched an eyebrow, assessing him with a cold gaze. “Nothing I don’t already have.”

He scoffed, finally coming to a stop and grabbing the bars. “You don’t have her. If you did, I’d be dead.”

His words pissed me off more than they should have, but I didn’t let him see that. Viggo came up and threw an arm around my shoulder, leading me to our chairs. Once we were seated, Viggo waved Dee over. Pax didn’t say a word. His brows were furrowed like something was bothering him. He’d been like that for the last week but refused to admit what was wrong.

“He’s right, you know,” Viggo said in a low voice. “You don’t have her.”

My jaw muscle flexed. “Thanks, asshole. I do have her. She’s mine. Everyone here knows it.”

Viggo rolled his eyes. “But you don’thaveher.”

“Stop talking in riddles,” Pax muttered. “It’s annoying.”

“Hey, Viggo,” Dee purred, jumping into his lap. “Hungry?”

“Not yet.” He wrapped his arm around her, running his other hand down her arm, massaging her skin as he stared at me. “Dee, do you think Kali likes Zan?”

Dee let out a nervous giggle, her stare begging Viggo not to include her in this conversation. I eyed my brother warily, wondering why he was bringing her into this. He laughed before nuzzling his nose into her neck and groaning when he got a whiff of her blood.

“Don’t be scared,” he coaxed her, shooting me a smirk. “You’re safe from my little brother. Tell us what Kali thinks of him.”

“She hates him,” Dee said quickly, playing with the tips of her hair. “The only reason she listens is because of the human and the necklace.”

Viggo brushed his lips along her throat, giving her soft kisses. “You think she’d leave if she had a chance?”

“Yes,” she panted, her focus solely on Viggo’s touch. “She’s tense all the time. Don’t you notice when she smiles?”

“It’s not real,” I grated out. “I already know all of this, Viggo. What’s your point?”

“My point, little brother, is that you want her. I don’t care if you want her in bed or more than that. Either way, you aren’t doing it right. You’ve been insufferable since she got here, and now it’s even worse after you kissed her.” Viggo brushed Dee’s hair to the side, exposing the other side of her neck. “Try a new tactic.”

My patience was about to snap. “And what did you have in mind?”

“Be nice to her.”

Pax leaned forward, glaring daggers at his twin. “Bad idea. There’s no reason for him to get closer to a newbie. She’s a fucking liability.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know you don’t like her,” Viggo said. “Doesn’t really matter. Zan has no plans on letting her go, do you?”

“No.” The answer was out of my mouth before I could think about it. But it was the truth. As if on cue, the front door opened, and just like every night, Kali stepped through, her gaze going for Warner first before her eyes met mine. She stared at me with indifference, acting like I wasn’t even worth her time. My annoyance flared, and I had every intention of following her to the bar until Viggo spoke up again.

“See? You’re going to go over there and pull her away, pissing her off all over again.” Viggo shook his head. “She isn’t a typical vampire who learned who you were at the center. She doesn’t respect you, fear you, or want to fuck you. You’ve never dealt with someone like her. You literally locked a necklace on her and forced her here. She knows you’re a Kane and is still acting that defiant? She’s not going to change unless you do something different.”

“I don’t need to change,” I growled. “This is my fucking city.”

Viggo shrugged. “Fine. Enjoy having blue balls, then. Because I haven’t seen you look at anyone else since she got here.”

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