Scorned by Venom (Argentium Vampire Hunters Trilogy #2)

9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Winnie

Iwas grateful Sage was ready to call Naomi, but she wanted time to burn off her nervousness first by sparring. We decided to set up the call for midnight. Since I had a few hours to kill, I worked on a project I thought about while we were out getting supplies. With high hopes of creating something extraordinary, I had purchased a pair of necklaces.

After inserting a chip into a bezel, I made a spring connection and put a pearl with a flat back on top. Taking the pliers, I pulled the claws of the bezel over the pearl to hold it in place. If it worked correctly when activated, it would send a location alert to multiple phones. Once I was done, I slid it onto a silver chain and held it up.

“What’s that for?” Lyric asked, and I grinned pridefully, handing it to her.

“It’s a GPS necklace. When you push the pearl, it sends an alert to our phones. I figured Sage may need it. If it works, I’m going to make more.”

“Wow. That’s so cool!” Lyric turned it over in her fingers, admiring it before her gaze met mine, and she sighed when she saw my glasses. “Why do you insist on wearing those when you have perfect vampire vision?”

“I told you, I used to wear glasses and they make me feel smart.”

She snickered, then handed the necklace back before pressing her luscious lips against mine. The kiss was short and sweet, but perfect, like she was.

“I gotta go. I promised Sage I would spar with her before the call.”

“You look too beautiful to be sparring.” I laid my hands on her cheek and stared into her amber eyes. She was so gorgeous, it almost hurt sometimes. “Have fun, mama.”

When she pulled away, her scent filled the air, sending my blood pumping and emotions flooding straight to my . . . my heart?

The scent people released when they were in love was called an amore. It differed from the lustful scent they released when they’re horny. Her sweet smelling lilacs were now mixed with lemongrass as her amore caressed my senses.

The scent filled my heart with joy and happiness. I gulped down my shock, my bulging eyes locking on hers. “You love me?”

Lyric’s face quickly turned confused. “What?”

Setting the necklace on the table, I stood. “I can smell you,” I whispered before snaking my hands out and yanking her toward me. “I can smell your love.”

“Oh, my god!” She inhaled sharply before clasping her hand over her mouth like it would contain the scent.

I laughed, pulling her hand away. “It’s okay if you love me, Lyric.”

She nodded. “I know and I was going to tell you, but I was worried about what you’d think. We’ve only been together a few months.”

The nervous expression she wore made me want to ease her emotions. I leaned in and gently kissed her before pulling away. “Thank you for loving me,” I said with sincerity.

Her heart nervously pounded in her chest as she peered into my face, searching for something. She inhaled deeply before letting out a long sigh. Judging by the look she finally settled with, it was clear I had said the wrong words.

“It’s okay if you don’t love me back.”

Fuck.

Realizing what I had done, I swallowed the lump in my throat. “It’s different for vampires, babe. I won’t know until I know. If that makes sense.”

“I’m going to go spar.” She pulled away and headed out the door, leaving me feeling like an asshole once more.

Fuck seemed to be the only word that shot through my mind daily at this point.

There were only a few women in my life I would even consider loving: my sister, Lyric, Sage, and Peach. I had somehow pissed off three out of four of them in the last twenty-four hours. I made a mental note not to piss Peach off next—I wouldn’t live if I did.

Love was a hard word for me to use. It not only came with insecurities, but I felt it meant I’d have to put someone else’s needs before mine. Every day I watched the emotional pain both Vivi and Sage went through, and it wasn’t something that interested me.

The longer I sat there, the more I wondered what I could do to make this situation better.

Lyric deserved a man who loved her and could give her the children she would want someday. I wasn’t that man. I was a goddamn vampire.

Knowing I could never completely fulfill her needs killed me inside. And I realized I should have let her go before she fell for me. My selfishness had fucked everything up. If Luka was here, he’d be the voice of reason.

With a sigh, I headed outside to find Sage. When I approached the makeshift ring, everyone stood around watching Sage get her ass kicked by Peach. A smug part of me wanted to snicker, but I didn’t. My friend had been through enough bullshit, and the last thing she needed was me being unsupportive. Plus, I’d seen her kick ass before, so I knew she wasn’t bad at fighting. She just needed to regain her strength.

Sage went after Peach with a roundhouse kick to the chest. Peach caught her ankle and twisted it and Sage fell to the ground. Faster than lightning, Peach was on top of her with fangs bared.

“Match!” Marcus yelled.

Peach rolled off, leaving Sage gasping for air. “Fuck! This sucks.”

Peach lowered a hand and pulled Sage to her feet. “Let’s take a break. You’re a little rusty.”

“I feel like I’m sixteen again and new to training. My muscles are already hurting.” Sage rubbed her neck with a grimace.

“Muscles stiffen when you don’t use them,” Marcus said, entering the ring. “You need to get up before the sun sets and stretch and jog. I’ll run with you.”

“Me too.” Lyric handed Sage a water bottle before she locked her gaze on Erik. “We could all use the extra training for the mission. You in?”

He shook his head. “I don’t need to jog in the mornings. I spar almost daily.”

“Plus, you get that extra special training with Kimber at night,” I added, and Erik glowered at me.

“Do you just like to hear yourself talk, Winnie?”

“It’s Winston, and yeah, I do.” I grinned, showing him my fangs.

Lyric put her hands on her hips and glared at Erik without saying a word.

With that one look, he quickly relented. “Whatever. I’ll run with you guys.”

“Perfect!” Lyric squealed, back to her sweet self. “I’ll ask if any other humans want to join us.”

“I made something for you,” I said, stepping in close to Sage.

When I held up the necklace, she narrowed her eyes on it. “It’s pretty, Winnie, but I don’t wear jewelry.”

“You’ll wear this one because it’s important. Turn around so I can put it on you.”

Sage hesitated, then turned away, pulling her hair to the side. I slid the necklace around her neck and latched it. She twirled back around and, judging by the look on her face, I knew she would say something sarcastic.

“Did you fill this thing with your fancy vampire blood?”

I smirked. “You wish you were that important. If you push the pearl, it’ll send your location to our phones, alerting us that you’re in danger. Press it.”

“That’s cool as shit.” She ran her finger over the pearl and mere seconds after pushing it, beeps came from around me. I pulled out my phone as did a few others.

Erik held up his phone. “I got it.”

Drag nodded. “Me too.”

“Same,” Ravage added, before shoving his phone back in his pocket. “How many of those did you make?”

“Only one for now, but I have enough GPS chips from the Venom vans to make more.”

“These will definitely come in handy.” Ravage moved in close and with gentle fingers, admired the pendant. He smiled before dropping it. “I love a good pearl necklace.”

I laughed as did Drag and a few others.

Sage rolled her eyes. “It didn’t even take two minutes for someone to make that joke.”

“Can I have one of those?” Lyric asked, and I turned my attention to her.

“I’ll give you a pearl necklace anytime you want, mama.” I winked, making her blush and causing Erik to gag.

“Gross!”

A large sigh left Peach, her expression frustrated. “Listen. I have students to teach. Y’all can either get the hell out of my ring or fight me!”

I put my hands in the air and backed away from her. “I’m good, Peach.”

“Me too.” Lyric quickly followed, causing me to laugh.

“Bunch of scaredy cats!”

“Only because you’re amazing, Peaches and Cream.” Marcus’s words caused Peach’s cheeks to turn pink.

“That I am.” She gave him a wink before she turned toward Sage. “Let’s go again.”

Sage let out a hard breath before retaking a defensive stance.

Even though I wanted to watch Peach give Sage a pounding, I had shit to tend to, so I turned to Lyric. “Can I talk to you?”

“Sure.”

She gave me a half-suppressed smile, and I could tell she was still upset by what I didn’t say. I grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the forest, and even though it was dark, I could still see. Being a human, she couldn’t, so I kept her close to me to make sure she didn’t trip.

We walked in silence for a while because I didn’t know how I would approach the subject. Once we were far enough away for anyone to hear, except for maybe some vampires paying close attention, I stopped and turned toward her, and she instantly shook her head.

“You don’t have to do this, Winston.”

My mind raced as I wondered what she thought this conversation was about, because I was definitely about to throw her a curveball. “You don’t even know what I’m going to say.”

A small laugh left her. “You’re going to say you should have said something and you’re sorry. It’s fine. I don’t need an apology or for you to tell me you love me when you don’t. You’ll love me on your own time.”

“Actually, I was going to say I’m not sure being with me is what’s best for you.”

“Excuse me?” Lyric’s expression turned pissed off quicker than I’d ever seen before. She pointed a finger at me, and if I wasn’t a vampire, I would have been frightened. “You don’t get to tell me what’s best for me! I can make my own damn decisions.”

Lyric never cursed, so when she said damn, I knew I was about to get my ass whooped if I didn’t explain my reasoning. “I can’t give you kids, Lyric.”

Her anger faded, her expression turning sympathetic. “Is that what this is about?”

“There was a look on your face before and after you went and saw Drag’s niece . . . there was happiness there.” I swallowed the growing knot in my throat, shaking my head. “One I can’t give you.”

She placed her palms on my chest. “You are my happiness, Winston. I’m still young and don’t know if or when I will want kids, but it won’t be anytime soon.”

I placed my hands on top of hers and her skin was cold from the night air. “I get it, but this isn’t me saying I don’t want to have kids and may change my mind down the road. I literally can’t give them to you because I’m a vampire. You need to think about that.”

As I stared into her beautiful face, the sadness in her eyes told me she wanted kids, and one day, we wouldn’t be together because of it.

“I understand, but it doesn’t stop me from loving you today.” A tear rolled down her cheek and I wiped it away with my thumb before she placed her forehead against my chest. “Can’t we just be happy for now?”

“That I can do.” I ran a hand down the back of her hair and whispered, “Happy for now.”