Chapter 21
Scarlet
What the hell just happened?
The question continued to beat at her mind for the rest of the evening.
That kiss had been…
Fucking amazing.
Everything she never knew she wanted in a kiss.
He had dominated, taken complete control, overwhelmed her totally and absolutely until it was all she could do to just hold on and enjoy the touch of his lips and the alien roughness of his tongue combined with the smooth length of his fangs.
But his grip hadn’t been painful or unyielding.
Even as he controlled her, he adapted to her.
He pulled her head back but didn't strain her neck.
He grabbed her hair but didn't yank at any of the strands. She felt his claws, was acutely aware of their points at her scalp and waist but wasn’t at all afraid they would actually prick her.
He was so deliberate and controlled, she felt safe. And that feeling of safety made it easy to surrender to him. She didn't feel that disconnect and sense of dissonance that she experienced when other guys had tried to do the same in the past.
Then, his fang pricked at the inside of her lower lip.
Scarlet was a human trained nurse, but a domini trained healer. She was intimately familiar with the anatomy of both species and the differences between them.
Domini had a slightly larger overbite than humans, to make room for the long, vampire-like fangs that were only about an inch to an inch and a half long.
Those fangs came to a sharp point that was both naturally resistant to dulling and kept sharpened as part of routine dental care.
The tongue side of the tooth was grooved, providing a channel for blood to flow into their mouth when they bit into prey while hunting naturally.
It would be easy for that sharp bone to cut flesh. That was what it was designed to do, after all. But it was considered a fault against a person if they couldn’t kiss and not draw blood.
Domini were blood drinkers, but there were only two acceptable sources of that.
Either from animals that were either hunted naturally or had their blood harvested and sold grocery style, or sipped directly from the veins of an enemy.
When facing a strong foe, it was considered an honor – for both parties – to taste their blood.
Not to drain them – that was only done in emergency, like when Atem had drained the ratchi that captured them because he was starving.
Drinking from your foe wasn’t a sexual thing.
It wasn’t even really a hunger thing. It was more about bringing the strength of your foe into you and honoring the fight you shared.
Or, as in Atem’s case, it was a matter of survival and using your enemy’s blood to strengthen yourself while weakening, or outright killing, them.
Drinking from a mate or pleasure mate was absolutely taboo.
A mate was to be loved, not weakened, and a fight between mates that would justify an honorable tasting was, in itself, dishonorable if not outright abusive if one was considerably weaker than the other.
And feeding from a mate, especially the adassi, was an act that was reprehensible.
To steal from your mate in such a way was a violation of the very principle of the domini-adassi bond.
It was nothing at all like the human idea of sexy vampire drinking. It was a violation almost akin to rape among the domini. Absolutely wrong and forbidden and deviant.
Havali cutting her with his fang once could be considered an accident. That wouldn’t make him deviant, just careless. But the second one had definitely been deliberate. It had cut just a bit deeper, definitely drawn more blood.
And his reaction had been undeniable.
He had groaned, his grip tightening, his tongue running along both cuts. He swept the blood into his mouth then sucked on her bottom lip, trying to get more. He had chased the taste like a man starved and thrust his cock against her belly with each stroke of his tongue.
But that wasn’t what really surprised Scarlet. What surprised her was her own reaction.
Heat and pleasure rushed through her at knowing he was tasting her so deeply. That he wanted her so much that he had to break cultural taboo for her. His reaction alone, feeling his arousal and the depth of his desire, made her head fuzzy.
He would want more. She could feel it in the way he sucked at her lip.
He would want to sink his teeth into her flesh, to drink deep of her blood.
She could just picture him biting her neck, classic vampire style, or her wrist or inner arm, in an effort to hide the marks, or even at her thigh while he alternated eating her out and just eating her.
And she wanted that. She wanted him to drink from her that way. She wanted him feral and wild and dominating and know that she did that to him.
But when that desire escaped her as a sound, it had brought Havali back to himself. And she could see the exact moment that he realized what he had done.
Then, before she could assure him that it was all right, he was gone.
Scarlet had sent him a message through her combot, but he hadn’t responded.
So, now she was aggravated.
If he was going to kiss her like that, he was damn well going to face her afterwards. Especially since he considered what he had done unforgivable. And most especially since she desperately wanted him to do it again as soon as it was convenient.
That very same night seemed good.
She went to dinner, ready to rage if he wasn’t there. If he turned coward now, she might even reconsider her decision to accept him. Might. It had been a really good kiss.
But he was there in Peony’s room – where they had taken to gathering to eat so Peony could be included but also feel safe in her nest. Sitting unnaturally straight, staring straight ahead, looking remarkably like a man being taken to the guillotine.
Scarlet deliberately sat next to him and sipped at her water. She would have opened the topic immediately, but Atem, Peony, and Tuvo were already there, and she didn't want to have this talk with others. It was enough that he had shown up and she would be able to chase him down after they ate.
Dinner itself was an ordinary affair.
Alanna reported that they had talked to Haviss and expressed their concerns over his speech, and he had been horrified that they had taken it that way.
As Atem said, none of the representatives would have taken that argument the way they had and if they did, they were the ones in the wrong.
Haviss had even apologized, not realizing that, culturally, he might have insulted them.
Of course, Alanna had reassured him. No insult intended, none taken, just a concern raised that she would rather address early.
From that, they talked about who would be speaking tomorrow.
Since they hadn’t finished, their case would be first in the morning.
They would start by alternating allies and enemies, each given a chance to speak, until they reached the end of the list. Only the High Imperium knew who had registered as wanting to speak, but over such a controversial topic, she had no doubt that multiple people would all take the chance to be heard.
That eventually turned into a more casual conversation about possible baby names. Peony had been looking up traditional domini names while Atem asked about traditional human ones. For the first hybrid baby, they wanted to honor both halves of his bloodline if they could.
Which led to Alanna and Scarlet throwing out the most common male human names they could think of – for no other reason than they sounded absolutely ridiculous for an alien - “John.” “Henry.” “Paul.” “Steve!”
“The first hybrid alien in history is not being named Steve!” Peony declared angrily.
“I kind of like it,” Atem admitted, making Peony glare at them for daring to even bring it up, which only made them laugh harder.
Steve the Alien really had them rolling for several minutes. The guys didn't realize how plain and aggressively normal the name was so didn't appreciate how silly it sounded. Atem and Tuvo smiled along though.
Havali, however, remained stiff and silent. He ate his mushroom salad but didn't touch his marinated meat strips or his blood.
The others were having such a good time that, for a while, no one even noticed. But Peony, hyper aware of her nest and all her family that surrounded it, picked up on his mood as they were still debating the pros and cons of naming the pup Steve – mostly just to annoy her.
“Havali, are you okay?” She asked, deliberately pitching her voice over the laughter that abruptly stopped as everyone focused on him.
Scarlet had noticed he wasn’t touching anything bloody, but since she was saving the conversation, she had opted not to bring it up.
In having the attention brought to him, however, Havali lowered his two-tonged fork and carefully folded his hands in his lap.
“Atem,” he started solemnly.
The man who considered himself their brother and guardian immediately stiffened, glaring at him as though he already knew what offense had been made.
But he couldn’t. More likely, his instincts were riled up.
He saw Havali sniffing around Scarlet, and he hated him just a little bit for daring to do so before proving himself.
It was a domini thing, and the aggression would fade after they fought over her.
If they fought over her.
The resigned, aloof expression on Havali’s face did not bode well.
“Havali, not now,” Scarlet interjected sharply.
“I must submit myself to your guardian,” he replied woodenly, not even looking at her.
Atem started growling. “What must you submit yourself for?”
“Not a damn thing,” she snapped. “This is between you and me. I’m not a child. I don’t need Atem to fight my battles for me.”
“I cut her,” he said, ignoring her completely. “I made her bleed. I did it deliberately. And I enjoyed it.”
“What?” Peony frowned as Tuvo began snarling and Atem’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
“Havali, what are you doing?” Scarlet demanded to know, fist smacking against her own thigh.
“I have dishonored myself.” He lowered his head to Atem. A shameful move among the domini. “I ask no forgiveness. I know I don’t deserve it. I accept whatever punishment you deem appropriate. I won’t attempt to fight back.”
“The fuck you won’t!” Scarlet snarled.
“Stand up,” Atem ordered, a vicious growl rumbling through his chest.
“Do not-”
Scarlet didn’t even get to finish the order. Havali was already on his feet. Still with a lowered head. His face completely expressionless.
“Outside,” Atem continued.
“Guys, wait,” Peony tried to stop them, but they weren’t listening.
Havali led the way. Atem, still growling, followed close on his heels, claws already out and at the ready, fingers twitching in the air. Tuvo brought up the rear, his expression unforgiving.
“Don’t you dare walk away from me!” Scarlet snapped, jumping to her feet and racing after the three, ridiculous, overprotective males. She heard Alanna and Peony rushing after her – the latter with her blanket around her shoulders as usual.
They refused to hear her commands for them to stop, to just listen to her. Havali was a man determined to do something stupid while Atem and Tuvo were convinced he must be punished for it.
“Will you pay attention to me!?”