Chapter 16 #3
“And if somebody’s fixing it, it’ll be me. Not some rich thug vampire I slept with who comes from the most powerful family in the city.”
My tongue pressed against my teeth while I stared down at her. Nobody spoke to me like this. Nobody. And yet… the more worked up she got, the more alive she looked.
Flushed cheeks. A fire in her eyes. The way her whole body braced like she’d fight me if she had to. It was intoxicating.
Fuck. I wanted her more with every word.
Unable to stand still, I pushed off the counter and slowly stalked toward her until our chests nearly brushed.
She refused to back away. Instead, she tipped her head back just enough to hold eye contact.
Good. Keep fighting me. I wanted to grab her right there and pin her against the refrigerator. Rip those oversized clothes off her body and work her up until that furious little glare shattered into desperate pleading. Wanted to watch all that stubborn resolve melt apart because of me.
My jaw flexed hard enough to ache.
“Fine,” I growled. The word scraped out rough. “You were a trapped, stubborn human trying to survive. I get it.” Every muscle in me tightened. “But you’re not human anymore.”
That finally made her falter. Her eyes blinked at the admission, so I homed in on the message.
“You’re a vampire now,” I continued. “You belong in this world whether you like it or not. So what now?”
Her lips parted, that earlier fire dimmed into uncertainty.
“I…” Her throat bobbed with a swallow. “I think I need to get these…” Her breath slipped out unevenly. “Urges under control first.” Her tongue slowly dragged across her lower lip.
My brain immediately stopped functioning.
“Yes,” I answered automatically, my voice roughening again. “You do. Which means you’re staying here.”
Silence. My own words hit me a second later. What the fuck did I just say?
I almost rubbed a hand down my face, wanting to groan out loud at making a stupid offer that would only make my life exponentially harder. Instead, I stood there like I meant every word.
“I agree with Calix.”
Rack’s voice cut through the room as he walked back in, both of us looking at him.
His gaze flicked between us once, instantly reading the tension like the calculating bastard he always was.
“She can stay in the third-floor suite.”
My eyes narrowed immediately. What game was he playing?
I’d expected him to drag her straight into his room the second he realized she was his Flame, but he was giving her space. Distance. Control.
Olivia’s attention snapped toward him, then back to me.
“I mean…” She stumbled over the words while twisting her fingers together nervously. “If that’s okay?”
Her eyes bounced between us again, uncertainty and hunger mixing together in a way that nearly unraveled me.
“One second, I feel normal,” she admitted quietly, “and then the next…”
Her gaze lingered too long. On me, on Rack, then finally to the floor, but I saw it. Need flashed openly across her face before she quickly looked away again.
She needed blood. Sex. Maybe both. Her body called for the blood to restore and the sex to soothe, and judging by the way my body reacted, I wanted to give her everything she craved.
This was going to be a fucking disaster.
Because standing there, watching her look between us with those hungry crimson eyes, one thought became painfully clear, I needed to get out of this room before I did something unforgivable.
“Rack,” I barked without looking back, already halfway down the hall. “Take the day off. Get Olivia whatever she needs for her room. I’m locking myself in the lab, so don’t bother me unless the house is on fire.”
I vanished downstairs as fast as my legs could take me before either of them could say another word.
The second the lab door slammed shut behind me, I dropped my forehead against it and exhaled hard.
My gaze drifted downward. The front of my pants strained painfully against the fabric.
“Are you serious?” I hissed at myself.
Storming toward my desk, I yanked open the top drawer and froze the second my fingers brushed lace.
Her panties. Still crumpled where I’d hidden them after last night.
The scent hit me instantly. Rose petals. Warm skin. Sex. My eyes shut before I could stop them.
“Fuck,” I groaned under my breath.
My fingers tightened around the fabric as I shoved my pants open and wrapped a hand around myself.
Lifting the lace to my face, it only took one inhale. Suddenly, she was everywhere.
Soft thighs wrapped around my waist. Dark hair tangled in my fists. Those red eyes were glassy with pleasure while she rocked herself against me like she couldn’t get close enough.
My grip tightened hard enough to ache, and I buried my face deeper into the fabric as another image slammed into me.
Olivia above me, blood smeared down her throat, lips swollen from biting, whispering my name like it hurt to hold it in.
More, Cal. More.
The memory hit low and vicious.
“You want more?” I snarled breathlessly. “I’ll give you fucking more.”
My hand moved faster, and the desk rattled beneath me. The chair scraped harshly across the floor. Every drag of the fabric against my face made my head spin worse.
I could practically feel her again. Hear her. Taste her along my tongue.
I leaned back, picturing her on top again, looking like a fucking goddess with blood dripping down her chin and neck, fangs out as she licked her lips.
Grabbing her hips, I slammed her down on me as I watched her bounce, the sound of my name breaking apart in her throat like she needed me to breathe.
Every thought made my body tighten harder. The pressure built fast and brutal.
“Fuck—”
I shoved the panties harder against my face as my hips jerked upward involuntarily.
More, Cal, she whispered. The breathless plea echoed through my skull.
My entire body locked up before pleasure ripped through me hard enough to wrench a groan from somewhere deep in my chest.
For a few seconds, all I could do was sit there, breathing harshly through my nose, my fingers twitching against the ruined fabric.
Then reality hit.
Slowly, I lowered the panties from my face and stared blankly at the mess across my desk.
Papers ruined. Cum splattered across reports. My own hand shook slightly as a hollow laugh escaped me.
“You pathetic bastard.” I swiped what was on my hand with the panties, getting a little thrill from thinking both of us were on that fabric now.
What the fuck is wrong with me?! She was Rack’s Flame. Rack. The guy who would walk into hell for me without hesitation. And here I was, jerking off in my lab with her panties shoved in my face like some hormone-riddled teenager. I was a fucking Syndicate Boss, for fuck’s sake!
Desperation was closing in, so I shook my head at myself and decided, no more. My jaw clenched so hard pain shot up the side of my head, and I abruptly pushed up from the desk.
Pacing helped for all of three seconds before the remnants of her scent clinging to my hand nearly derailed me again.
I swore viciously and threw the fabric back into the drawer and slammed it shut. Thoughts raced through my mind. How could I fix this?
Maybe it was just physical? That had to be it.
She smelled good. She was gorgeous. Sex with her was insane, but that didn’t mean anything deeper.
There were plenty of beautiful women in this city. Loads of women who would want to warm my bed for a night.
I could fix this.
I had to, because Olivia was moving into this house, and if I didn’t get myself under control soon, I was going to lose my fucking mind.
With my decision made, I grabbed a rag and started cleaning the desk aggressively. A plan began to form.
Work until it was late, drink as much blood as possible, then go out and find someone to get on top of. Easy.
Gripping the edges of my desk, my shoulders slumped and head hanging low, something ugly twisted in my chest, but I shrugged it away.
I had to make this work. For Rack, for Olivia, for myself.