Page 12 of Bleeding Love

Turning, I tried not to glare too hard so he wouldn’t piss himself.

“What?” I snapped when he didn’t speak right away. I needed to get out and calm myself. I needed to feed and kill something. I needed…

“Do you want us to restrain her?”

I opened my mouth to say no, but then I reconsidered.

“Put the magic cuffs on her,” I said, and he nodded, a wave of relief passing through him. He was probably more afraid of her than he was of me. She didn’t care if she destroyed this place and everyone in it. In his eyes, she was probably as much a monster as I was. “If anyone touches her, I’ll kill them. Make sure the others know that.”

The servant paled, nodding wordlessly.

I stepped through the door and slammed it shut. Then I hurried down the dark street in search of someone to bite and make it hurt.

Chapter 6

Celeste

Iwokeupfromthe sensation of someone touching me. I jumped so fast that the other person yelped and pulled back, falling off the chair they were sitting on. Before they could even look up, my hand was pointed at them and I was summoning my powers only to feel…nothing.

I gasped as I stared at the cuff hanging around my wrist, reaching for my magic again to confirm what my mind was refusing to accept. A wall separated me from my powers, and no matter how many times I threw myself at it, it refused to budge.

“That bastard…” I muttered, letting my hand fall by my side. At least this time, the cuffs didn’t chain me to a wall. They didn’t even bind my hands together, but the power suppressing my magic was unmistakable. Why did he decide to put them on now? Did I overstep before when…when…

My eyes fell to my wrist, only to find a wide bandage wrapping everything from my palm to my elbow. It was tight but not painful unless I moved it. That probably meant they put the cuffs on before my powers fully healed me.

My gaze returned to the figure that slowly rose from the floor, her hands fidgeting by her side. I had thought it was Roman, but considering I was fully clothed, covered with a blanket, and with a wet compress now lying in my lap, it had probably been her tending to me.

“Get out,” I said, glaring at her hard enough to scare any sane human away. She gulped but shook her head.

“I have orders to watch over you until I’m sure you’re alright,” she said in a small voice. “I’ll order your food now.” I opened my mouth to tell her I didn’t want any, but she was already giving instructions to someone standing outside. When she returned, I glared at her again, but she seemed to have regained some of her composure. “How are you feeling, madame?”

“Like a person bitten by an unhinged vampire,” I snapped, pushing the covers off and getting to my feet. She grimaced as if she wanted to agree, but then shrugged with a small smile.

“Master isn’t usually that…unhinged,” she said softly, her eyes watching my every move while I unbuttoned my dress. She had wiped the blood, but I felt dirty still, especially with the way he touched me after pinning me to that table. Not to mention how my body reacted to him drinking from my wrist.

I had been bitten by vampires before, but it had never been this intense. The first vampire I encountered had ripped my throat when his blood frenzy took over. But the way Roman had done it was slow and deliberate, not with the intention to kill, but with the intention to control. My brain had stopped fighting, the idea of resisting entirely foreign, as I lay there beneath him, and stared at those dark eyes while my precious blood filled him.

My urges were already too hard to handle, so much so that I was considering pulling one of his servants into my room and fucking him senseless until Roman stopped invading my dreams. It didn’t matter that I hated him or that he had taken away my freedom and my magic; my body wanted his touch, his power, his everything.

I shook my head, looking back at the maid since she had been speaking.

“What?” I asked and her face softened.

“I asked if you’d like to bathe. Or do you prefer to sleep some more?”

I looked at the window where the early afternoon light was shining through the drapes. He had to be asleep now, but there were a few more hours left until sundown. I still had enough time.

I could no longer stay here, not now that he dared drink from me against my will. My body might want him, but I wasn’t going to let that bastard touch me.

“Bathe,” I replied, and the maid nodded. I sat on the bed while the other two servants carried buckets of hot water to fill the tub in the bathing room. I was just preparing to undress when the food came and the maid made me eat before cleaning up.

I devoured it faster than I should have just to get her to leave. Collecting my dirty clothes and an empty plate, she gave me one final appraising look before she muttered, “Call for me if you need anything.” She didn’t lock the door, but as I pressed my ear to the wood, I could hear someone sighing outside.

I strolled into the bathing room. Sinking into the scalding water and hissing in pain, my body quickly adjusted, and I set on washing everywhere Roman had touched me. His cold presence lingered, but it wasn’t disgust that I felt while I scrubbed harder and harder with the washing cloth.

Once I took off the wet bandage, I stared at the two tiny holes just over my wrist—no tears, no scratches or anything. I had never seen a vampire execute such fine control in their life. My blood probably tasted like liquid sunshine to them, which should have made it even harder to resist. Power always did.

Stepping out of the tub, I dried myself and dressed in one of the gowns that had been left in my wardrobe. This one was black, and the buttons were on the front, so it didn’t require a servant to help me put it on. Once I was ready, I strode to the door and listened.

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