“No one will make you do something you don’t want to do.” His eyes became vampyrelike and narrowed to red slits. “My true mate, my draga moja, will want to be what I am.” His eyes burned into her. “No need to worry that description fits you, huh?”
Her sore throat wheezed on the air she breathed. “Look, don’t take offense or anything but I’m not exactly sure what that means. Yesterday I liked what we did. But it was sex, pure and simple.” Her shoulders flinched in reaction to the bead of sweat trickling down her spine.
“Hey, you’re sweating. I’ll ask Hol to turn up the air.” He spun on his heels and headed toward the door.
“I’ll scratch her eyes out if she comes back in this room.” Christ, I did not say that.
“Yes, you did.” Alek rubbed his hands together before pushing one through his striped mane. He prowled back across the room, stood toe-to-toe with her. “Pull the claws in, honey. Makes you look like a wild cat and that turns me on.” Grasping her shoulders, he lowered his head to her neck, where he licked and nibbled on her pulse. Set her freezing-cold blood on fire.
“Alek, don’t, please,” she begged, fear gnawing at her insides. Her pussy clenched and sent cream sliding to the seat of her already wet panties. Normally commando, after what happened last night, she thanked God she’d fabricated a pair. Hands shaking, Viv was suddenly more afraid of what would happen if he stopped.
“I’ll never stop. I want you,” he murmured softly against her neck. “Whether you choose to have claws or not doesn’t matter to me.” His head came up and their eyes clashed. The vampyre red gone, lust flared in his emerald depths. “I smell your desire.”
Too late to stop but she tried once more. “Aww, hell, please—”
He cut her off.
“Yeah, please take me. I’m yours tonight, Viv, pure and simple.”
Chapter Four
Alek scoured her face intently as she made up her mind. Force wasn’t something he’d use and he would put to death any male who mistreated a woman. It was hard to watch hesitation play across her features. Thoughts skittered in every direction around her mind and he couldn’t grasp a single one.
He waited as each drop of sweat forming on her delectable body sent her aroma floating through the room. She smelled like heaven.
“I can give you everything you need.”
It killed him to see her pink tongue peek out and move across her lips, kissable lips that beckoned to his. He hunched his shoulders to loosen the kink that had settled there while he waited.
He’d never force her but neither would he let her go. Viv owned him and she didn’t know it yet but she was his. Never intending to let things go this far, Alek was unsure of his next move.
“Viv, let me make love to you. Just once more.” Her need slammed into him like a sledgehammer. That’s all it took. He moved his arms around her waist, pulled her tight in his embrace and whispered, “I’m thirsty, honey.” Could she, had she quenched his thirst for the prince’s blood? Alek hadn’t thought about him for hours. All he thought of was having this woman in his arms and making her…happy. Giving her what she wanted, what she needed. The idea of being with her always, keeping her to himself, made his heart soar. With Viv in his arms, for the first time in years Alek felt free.
Her head lolled to the side, baring her jugular. His fangs lengthened, ready to take what she offered. His tongue ran along her shoulder, lapped at the base of her neck until she trembled.
“Do it, taste me.”
His teeth sank slowly into her sweet flesh, punctured the vein and he drank. Her life force flowed into him, rushed to every depleted cell in his body. The cats purred, stretched and preened. Each getting what they wanted—blood, Viv’s blood.
Alek clutched her ass, brought her hard against the bulge in his slacks. Not ready to remove them yet, he enjoyed the feel of her mound pressed to him.
Finished, he licked the pinpricks closed. “You’re so sweet.” His lips touched spots from her collarbone to the vee at the front of her leather vest. His tongue tasted and teased behind her ear and back down the vein he’d just fed from.
Her hands pushed between them and nudged his shirt up.
No, not yet. Let me hold and feel you against me just like this.
“How is it you slip so easily into my thoughts?” she asked.
Because you’re mine. When she stiffened he said aloud, “For as long as you want to be.”
Her hands had reached his nipples and she pulled them roughly.
“You want to play rough?” He lifted one of his hands from her butt and returned it. Thwack. Her pelvis lurched forward, molding into his dick. “Ahh, you liked that, huh?”