Chapter 8 #2
Dragging his intense gaze off me, Davlov nodded and placed the coolbox down.
“Thank you, Dav. Would you fetch Shane another tray of what I prepared before?” Shockingly, a slight smile curled Bal’s mouth, and I saw Davlov’s eyebrows twitch upward a little. “It got destroyed by an angry fledgling, and it’s been too long since he ate something other than me.”
Davlov’s cold mask broke, and he smirked. “Of course.”
So, he wasn’t resentful of being asked to do a menial task that any of the castle staff could do. I guess he climbed up one notch on my respect scale.
The door clicked shut, and silence fell. I gulped as it dawned on me he'd been the one who put a tray of food together for me.
Balthazar turned his back and waved his hand in front of a tiny black sensor at the side of a mirrored door. It slid open smoothly. Inside was the biggest walk-in closet I’d ever seen. Expensive suits hung neatly above rows of perfectly folded t-shirts and precisely placed footwear.
Mother wolf, the guy was meticulous about everything, including the neatness of his wardrobe.
My heart dropped a little as I realised he was getting dressed.
That probably meant he was going to leave me to deal with my bloodlust alone today.
Or maybe he thought it was done, though I hadn’t forgotten his warning to Sorcha.
Believing I was a danger to her was the only thing keeping me from seeking her out after the way she’d clung to me yesterday.
My wolf had claimed her, and I needed to know how she felt about that.
My chest ached at the emptiness I’d seen in her face, and the droop of her shoulders as she’d walked away.
Maybe she had stronger feelings for Bal than she did for me?
My wolf stirred, and my chest squeezed. If she was my mate, why did the thought of Bal leaving hurt so much?
The room tilted, and suddenly I was naked and tied to a hook. Pain scored my skin as I was bitten over and over. My heart thundered, my breathing hitched, and coldness invaded me down to my bones.
I blinked and forced air into my lungs.
It’s not real. It’s not real…
Bal’s back was to me. Fuck! I couldn’t let him see me weak and trembling. Flashbacks weren’t unusual, they happened without reason, but I’d never had one in front of him. If Sor was nearby, her gentle voice and touch would bring me back.
With my wolf’s help, I forced the vision aside, swallowing down my nausea, and breathing slowly in through my nose and out through my mouth like Sor had taught me.
I closed my eyes and concentrated on the feel of the breeze from the open window in my skin, of the birds singing, of the thick carpet under my feet.
I’d promised myself after being thrown in that supernatural prison and being forced to fight or fuck, that I’d always be the one in charge of my life.
But I wasn’t in charge when the vamps had kidnapped me, nor when the Count had wrung every ounce of pleasure from my body.
I swiped my forefinger and thumb across my closed eyes.
Had I really let this vamp tie me up? Shit!
What was I doing? This bloodlust thing had clearly addled my brain.
I dropped my hand and eyed the open door of the closet.
No matter my past, if I were bluntly honest, the experience had been beyond erotic.
I had begged him to touch me, but was that because I knew I needed to feed?
Or maybe it was the thought of Balthazar touching me that had stopped me from fighting those bonds?
I huffed. Yeah, if I were honest, it was both.
The object of my thoughts walked out of the closet dressed in a pair of loose sweats and nothing else.
That expanse of broad chest, and the fine dark hair that trailed from his navel down perfect ridges of muscle to the tantalising vee that disappeared under the low slung waistband…
.beautiful. There was no other description.
Unlike the past week, though, it was all me that enjoyed the view, not my wolf, who, for once, heeded my request to stay buried.
Bal mirrored my posture, leaning against the doorframe of the closet as I kept my shoulder propped against the bay window wall.
The silence was expectant and, for the first time ever, I felt unsure.
My heart raced, and I was horrified when my cheeks heated.
I had no experience handling this kind of situation.
With my other lovers, I was always the Alpha, the dominant one, and I’d usually walk away as soon as the sex was over.
I sure as shit didn’t sleep in their beds like I had with Bal.
“Nothing to say, Shane?” he asked evenly, his voice showing no hint of emotion.
It was impossible to tell how he felt about what had happened between us. I straightened, as pissed off at his coldness as at my reaction to him. Yes, he’d always been distant, but that was before he’d basically wrung every drop of cum out of my body while feeding me from his veins.
“Oh, I have plenty to say…” I stalked forward, the power that he’d given me surging through my body.
I hated that he’d put himself at risk for me.
Sure, he was immortal, but he only had so much blood, and he’d given me too much without replacing his own.
His generous actions, though appreciated, had been irresponsible.
He had people who relied on him, just as I’d had when I was pack Alpha.
Sorcha was one of those people, and he’d put her at risk by risking himself.
“Like, why did you nearly kill yourself for me?”
He straightened as I stalked closer, but he didn’t back away. Inside, I smiled. I knew he wouldn’t.
“Like, why did you bring me so much pleasure when you didn’t have to?”
Another step.
His face remained cold and closed, but his body betrayed him, as did those haunting eyes of his when red bled into the pale irises.
His breathing ticked up, and he lifted his nose and inhaled.
I stopped an arm's length from him, our height equally matched.
“Like, why did you prepare and bring me my favourite food?”
One more step and we were almost nose to nose.
Bal’s eyes were blood red and pulsing. I couldn’t help myself.
I leaned in and lightly dragged my tongue over his lips.
“Hm? Bal?” His taste was like drinking fine wine.
I moaned, savouring the glorious flavour that was uniquely his until I wanted to drown in it.
He blinked, and even though he remained withdrawn on the face of it, that sign of surprise made me smile inside.
He’d clearly expected me to rant and rave and be embarrassed about what had happened between us.
It wasn’t lost on me that he’d brought me back to his home to deal with the bloodlust instead of staying at Connor’s.
I was happier back here, but it wouldn’t have mattered.
I wasn’t part of a pack. I wasn’t a shifter.
It didn’t matter what they thought of me any longer.
In fact, it was liberating to realise that I had no responsibilities beyond surviving—for now.
Although it wasn’t entirely true that I didn’t care what anyone thought of me.
I cared what Sorcha thought...and what Bal thought.
I needed to know if this was just a bloodlust thing or if it meant more.
Which was ridiculous. I wasn’t a teenager with his first crush, yet I couldn’t totally quell the hope that I was different to the other Mades he’d fed and fucked through bloodlust.
“I gave you permission to call me Balthazar, Shane, not Bal.”
I dropped a kiss on the corner of his mouth, aware my canines were growing.
He didn’t kiss me back, but neither did he pull away.
“Really? Well, I like Bal. Balthazar is such a mouthful, don’t you think?
” I held his gaze and pushed my body against his.
I felt his erection as surely as he would feel mine.
The musky scent of his lust teased my nose, and a low growl rumbled in my throat.
He might have showered, but I was ready to get him covered in my scent again…
Bal’s eyes brightened to their icy colourless state, and his face remained cold, withdrawn. A sense of dread filled me right before his mouth opened. “Kneel.”
A sudden and tremendous weight pushed on my mind. I pulled back a little and shook my head to rid myself of the urge to do as he said.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s called control, Shane. You don’t have it. I do. Now, kneel.”
My chest tightened, breath hitching in my throat, and there was nothing I could do to stop my heart racing, but not in a good way. I snarled. “No fucking way. I don’t kneel for anyone. Never again.”
Something flashed through Balthazar’s eyes, a minute frown creasing the bridge of his nose, but it was gone quickly. He remained utterly still, his nose still touching mine. “You will kneel for me, Shane. Would you like to know why?”
That pressure was pounding through my brain, pain shooting through my head.
“Fuck you,” I growled, fighting his compulsion as my wolf pushed forward, furious at this treatment.
My bones shifted, but, instead of a full shift, I halted at that strange state between wolf and vampire.
The moment my wolf looked into Bal’s eyes, his fury waned, and I knew.
He craved Bal’s dominance as much as he had before, but this time he wanted this ancient and powerful creature to work for it.
I forced him to retreat. No one would control me ever again. Not even him.
“No, I don’t want to know why. Because I won’t kneel for you or anyone else.”
Bal’s lip curled, his smile chilling. “You will kneel. But it will only ever be for me.” He leaned in, a fine mist floating from his mouth, and I had no choice but to breathe it in.
Another wave of command slammed into me.
I panted, fighting my need to comply. I was a damned Alpha, not some weak Omega wolf.