Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
CIPRIAN
“I can’t believe that worked,” I mutter as Marius joins me in the shadows outside Viviana’s hotel.
“I told you it would,” he drawls, taking the phone from his pocket. “She liked the video.”
My eyes threaten to roll, but I’m too focused on Viviana’s window to allow my gaze to move. “I want that video destroyed.”
“After I escort your little researcher to your doorstep, I’ll happily toss this into an open fire,” he tells me, holding up the phone for me to see one more time before slipping it back into the pocket of his gray slacks. “She might want to watch it again in the car.”
“Fine.” I don’t say anything else about it, just watch as the light flickers off in her room. “You’re not charging her for the tour.”
“No, I intend to charge you instead,” he says.
I’m again tempted to look at him but can’t shift my focus away from my quarry. Her scent is like a fucking drug. I inhaled it shortly after she arrived in Bra?ov, the blood-orange citrus swimming in the wind and taunting my inner beast.
Gods, she smells better than I could ever have imagined. It makes me wonder why I waited for her to come to me.
Fuck, I should have gone to her.
Dragged her out of her dorm apartment.
Taken her against a wall.
Made her fucking mine three very long years ago.
It feels like forever ago since that fortuitous night when my systems alerted me to her existence, sending me on a beautiful chase through the interwebs as I sought to learn everything about Viviana Dalca.
The moment her photo appeared to me that first time, I froze, shocked by the innocence staring back at me.
This little human is stalking me? I wondered, intrigued.
After several minutes of reviewing her research history, it became clear that the curious little creature had been studying me for years. But it wasn’t until she started looking at the property deeds—specifically my signature—that alarm bells went off.
A flaw in my programming, clearly, as I should have been alerted to her presence two or three years before my system went off.
Because it seems my sweet little stalker has harbored a dark obsession with vampires for a very long time.
Well, I’m not a vampire, pet, I think. I’m the fucking King of Strigoi kind.
And she just entered my trap.
My world.
My nest.
I’m going to make her regret ever embarking on this research journey.
Make her realize how dangerous her fixation truly is.
Make her wish she never discovered my existence.
Her tears will taste divine. They’ll be a decadent appetizer before I enjoy her blood as my main course. And maybe her body for dessert…
“You’re growling,” Marius informs me.
“And?” I press, aware of the rumble that’s ignited in my chest. It’s taking serious restraint not to wrap myself in shadows and teleport into my intended pet’s room. Introduce her to my wings. My tail. My cock.
But I want her in the confines of my estate before I play with her.
In a place where no one will hear her screams.
“The sound is reverberating through the square, Ciprian.”
“So maybe a storm’s coming,” I reply, finally looking at my oldest friend and confidant. “Humans always explain away a supernatural’s presence. I’ve told you this a thousand times.”
“Yes, I’m aware their minds can’t fully embrace the truth of our existence.
But what’s that saying? Seeing is knowing?
Understanding? Accepting?” He shakes his head, sending his silver-blond hair cascading like a waterfall around his head.
“I really don’t fancy having to glamour anyone who happens to see you right now. ”
“Then eat the mortal instead,” I say, slipping my hands into the pockets of my dress pants and returning my gaze to Viviana’s window. “They’re food, Marius.”
I don’t usually kill my prey. But if he doesn’t want to go through the trouble, he can just finish the job or take the human back to our home world. I don’t really care so long as it doesn’t become a regular occurrence.
That happened a few centuries ago—not with Marius but with a former rival that I killed for creating an inconvenience for me in this world. I’m still fighting the rumors that whole incident created.
Which, interestingly, is about to bring the little mouse upstairs to my doorstep.
My insides burn at the prospect, my mouth salivating for a taste of her.
Fucking glorious citrus…
She’s a craving I’m longing to satisfy.
Since the moment I first traced the strands of research history to her, I’ve been obsessed. Her thick brown hair will look amazing in my fist. And those innocent, dark eyes will cry so beautifully while I shove my cock down her throat.
Gods, I can’t wait.
I have centuries of lust built up in my veins, all of it waiting to be released… on her.
She’ll beg me to stop. Then beg me for more. Because I’m going to become her addiction. Her air. Her master.
I’ve never taken a toy before, always preferring just to feed, glamour, and release.
Humans are too fragile to suit my needs.
But Viviana Dalca is going to learn how to take me. Please me. Kneel for me.
She wanted to find a vampire. Well, she’s going to have to accept a Strigoi King instead. Me.
“You’re growling again,” Marius mutters.
“Not all of us are gifted with the ability to hide our monstrous traits,” I return.
“Gifted or stunted?” he asks, aware that I often favor the latter term when referring to Marius’s peculiar talents.
“Tonight?” I glance at him. “Tonight, I consider it a gift, as it allowed you to engage in conversation with my pet in a human space. I suppose I’ll feel similarly tomorrow as well. Ask me again in a week, though, and perhaps my opinion will have changed yet again.”
He grunts. “Your inability to mask our enviable—not monstrous—traits is why I continue to question your preference for this world.”
“I’m not engaging in meaningless conversation with you again,” I tell him.
“And since when is she your pet?” he demands, ignoring my comment entirely.
I repay the favor by not acknowledging his inquiry and wrapping myself up in shadows instead.
Then I teleport up to the room I’ve been watching for far too long. The light went out only a few minutes ago, so my prey might still be awake. That’s fine. Unlike Marius, I don’t mind a little glamour.
Especially when it comes to my intended pet.
But one glance at the bed tells me glamouring won’t be necessary. Because my prey is already asleep, her pretty gaze hidden beneath closed eyelids dusted with thick, dark lashes.
Hmm. I move forward, my steps silent.
The sleeping female has no idea a predator lurks in her room. She’s too innocent to sense me. Too mortal. Too delicate.
I take in her petite frame, barely concealed beneath the thin sheet. Are you wearing anything underneath it? I wonder, reaching down to gently tug the fabric away from her shoulders.
Twin straps of cream-colored silk meet my gaze, the fabric alluring against her light-colored skin. What’s even more alluring, though, is how the tank top clings to her curves as I reveal more of her.
Seems my little mouse enjoys sensual nightwear, I think, admiring the outline of her nipples beneath the satiny texture. I can almost determine the color of those stiffening peaks, but not quite. Mmm, soon, though…
My tail twitches behind me, eager to play.
A little introduction won’t hurt, I decide, allowing the triangle tip to flicker up to her bed—to the leg tucked beneath the sheets.
My eyes slide back up to her face, watching for any sign that my slight touches are disturbing her sleep. But all she does is part her plump lips like an enticing invitation.
This female appeared much more studious online, reminding me a bit of a young librarian. Scholarly. Intensely focused. Soft.
She still possesses all the traits from the photos and videos I’ve seen of her, yet she’s even more tempting in person. Maybe because of her scent. Or perhaps it’s her luscious mouth. It looks so sensual now, that invitation still lingering…
The tip of my tail travels up along her side, memorizing the subtle curve of her hips to her tiny waist, skimming the fleshy mound of her tit before reaching the bare skin of her shoulder.
A hum of electricity shoots through me, stealing my breath and causing my nostrils to flare.
Fucking divine, I think, captivated by my prey.
It takes every ounce of control that I possess not to lean down, lift her into my arms, and teleport us both back to Negru Castle.
I want her to come to me. Willingly. It makes her the hunter in this scenario and me the prey.
Which is a unique turn of events.
Perhaps that’s what has roused my sleeping beast.
You sought me out, sweet pet, I think, my tail moving up the slender column of her throat. And now you’re going to experience the consequences of your obsession. I allow the triangle tip to trace her lower lip, the sensation of it going straight to my hardening cock.
My body responds to Viviana in ways I’ve only ever dreamt about, making me pant with need.
“Gods, princess,” I breathe, my voice too low for her to hear. “I’m going to enjoy destroying you.” My tail dips between her parted lips to tease her tongue before slipping out to draw a wet path down to her neck. I pause against her pulse, my fangs tingling in my mouth. “Your blood sings to me.”
The confession leaves me in a whisper, my heart skipping a beat.
No other human has ever made me salivate like this before.
All I want to do is lean down and bite.
Fuck, I want to do a lot more than that. However, I pull my tail back, refusing to give in to the temptation tonight. I only came up here to see her. To taste her scent on my tongue.
And to mark her as mine.
Which I’ve done with a few strokes from my tail.
Any other monsters in the area will know to leave this female alone until I’m finished with her. And that includes my best friend, the forever flirt.
Marius will have her in his clutches tomorrow as he drives her through the Carpathian Mountains. Yet it’ll be my scent filling the car, not hers.
My lips curl, pleased.
Viviana Dalca is my female. My human. My pet.
Welcome to my world, princess. I can’t wait to make you crawl…
Against my better judgment, I bend to brush my lips against hers.
My first kiss…
Fuck.
I instantly want to kiss this woman again.
Which is why I teleport out of her room before I lose control of my inner beast. He’s hungry. Dying for a bite. Begging me to fuck.
I’ve always sated my savage side with blood, nothing else.
But Viviana has awakened something inside me, something that won’t be satiated until I’ve claimed every inch of her.
Her existence has enchanted me, creating this dark obsession.
Now she’ll be the one to help me satisfy these urges. Even if it means breaking her fragile form in the process.
Poor little pet, I think, materializing in the shadows once more outside her building. I wish I could go easy on you, Viviana. But it’s just not in my nature. So sleep well, princess. You’re going to need all the rest you can get…