Releasing her breast, Killean skimmed his fingers down the curve of her side, over her rounded hip, and down between her legs. When his fingers slid through her nest of curls, Simone went still as stone against him and her thighs clamped shut.
Killean froze when he realized what he was doing. This woman was ahunter! What would his family think if they could see him now? They would consider him weak and despise him for his weakness.
But not only was Simone a hunter, she was also an innocent. One who deserved better than a Savage’s touch, and one she would be bound to forever if he let things progress between them.
Jerking his hand back, he rolled away and launched to his feet. He tried to adjust his robe to cover his erection, but it was impossible. Unable to look at her again, he stalked into the bathroom and almost slammed the door before recalling he had to hear her over the water if something went wrong.
His shower couldn’t have been any colder if he added ice to it, but it did nothing to dampen his lust for her, and he didn’t bother trying to jerk off to ease his erection. It had been years since he was successful in the endeavor, and though he was aroused to the point of pain, it would only infuriate him if he tried to masturbate and still couldn’t find any release. Instead, between the icy water and his willpower, he eventually got his erection to soften.
Turning the shower off, he climbed from the tub and toweled himself dry as he stared at the door. He had to get away from her before something like that happened again, but where did he take her?
He didn’t know if Ronan and the others were still at the compound or if they moved after he left them. If they hadn’t moved, they wouldn’t let him step foot on their property again, not with what he was now.
He would have to call and hope Ronan still had the same number so he could arrange a way to give Simone back. He didn’t know what he’d do after he was free of her. He didn’t trust himself to be around hunters or humans anymore; he might never be capable of being around them again.
With what he was now, he couldn’t return to his old life, but what was his new one? Would it forever be this hideous in-between of fighting against becoming a monster and battling his conscience?
He’d chosen this path, but he’d battled bloodlust his entire life and felt confident he could handle what would happen to him after he killed. That was before the bloodlust became a living entity pulsing through his veins. With every one of those pulses, the demon part of him begged for him to kill.
And he certainly hadn’t anticipated how enticing the idea of keeping the hunter in the next room would be.Remember what she is.But the hatred he’d felt for hunters most of his life didn’t boil to the surface as he recalled the feel of her soft body molded against his.
He ran a hand through his tousled hair before slipping the robe back on. He was ravenous. Usually, he could go a couple of days between feedings, but not anymore. He required blood soon.
He nudged the door further open, and his gaze fell on Simone. Her shoulders tensed when he reemerged, and she hunched forward on the edge of the bed. Her head was bent, so her cascade of long hair shielded her delicate features from him.
Staring at her profile, he felt like a bigger asshole. She may be a hunter, but as such, she’d led the most sheltered of lives until she was taken from her stronghold.Don’t get closer and don’t understand her; she’s going back!
Still, he found himself saying, “I’m sorry. That shouldn’t have happened.”
Simone cursed the fire burning her cheeks. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him, so she gazed at the carpet.
“It won’t happen again,” Killean stated.
And a part of her inwardly cried at his statement. She should stay as far from this complicated vampire as possible, but sheyearnedfor it to happen again. She wished it hadn’t stopped in the first place. Yes, it had frightened her when he tried to touch between her legs, but it also excited her. She’d felt perched on the edge of finally learning what her body craved so badly.
“Are you hungry?” he asked.
Simone shook her head; it was the best she could do.
Killean walked over and retrieved his filthy, discarded clothes. He tugged his jeans on under the robe before removing it to pull on his shirt. “We’ll go out and buy some clothes from the nearby stores,” he said.
When she still wouldn’t look at him, Killean tried to keep his temper under control. “I really am sorry.”
Simone cringed. “It’s fine,” she managed to choke out. “Really. Don’t apologize.”
Killean had no idea how to proceed; he’d never been in a situation like this with a woman. But he’d upset her, and he had to try to fix it. “I realize you don’t have a lot of experience with men, and I shouldn’t have—”
“Stop,” she groaned, unable to handle anything else he might say. She was sure she would spontaneously combust if he kept trying to apologize.
Killean closed his mouth. He didn’t know how to deal with women. It had been years since he’d had any close interaction with one, and his past interactions consisted of a tumble in and out of their beds.
The last woman he’d been close with was his mother, and she died when he was seven. He’d spent the four hundred forty-five years of his life since her death avoiding getting close to anyone. He planned to remove Simone from his life, but he still felt like the biggest piece of shit. What had he been thinking to touch her in such a way? She was responsive in the beginning, but she’d had no idea where it all could lead.
“I took advantage, and I shouldn’t have,” he said.
Simone dropped her head into her hands and tried not to scream. Why did he have to keep going with this?
“And for that, I am sorry,” he said.
