Page 8 of Dating is for Suckers

“Nothing. I just don’t sleep with random men.”

“You don’t sleep with your boyfriends either.”

I turn my gaze back to Joe. I can’t take any more of his judgment. As it is, I’ve made enough of a fool of myself tonight. Turning away from both men, I walk away from the cross but soon find myself caged in between them with no way out.

“Oh no, Lissa,” Joe croons in my ear. “You’re not getting away that easily. You’ve denied both yourself and me for long enough. Tonight, we will finish this. I’ll make a separate bet with you. If, by the end of the night, if we can’t get you off enough times to make up for all the lackluster partners that you’ve had, you can walk away. No judgment, no fussing. You can leave through those doors and never have to see either of us again.”

Heat floods my body at his words. Would it be possible? Could he succeed where no one else ever has? “And if you can?”

“You’re going to give me a second chance to make you happy. Sounds fair?”

There’s something in his tone, something I can’t identify. What else is he hiding? Turning, I look up at his face, trying to judge what I’m missing, but it’s blank. He’s giving nothing away. “What about Rory?”

Joe’s lips curl up, his white teeth flashing in the dim lighting. “That all depends on how well he performs. Now, to make this fair, you will not fake anything with us. You will also not hold anything back. I want to hear every sigh, every whimper, every moan.”

His words slam into me, crawling deep into my brain. I don’t know what’s happening, but it’s as if I want to obey him. Despite how reluctant I feel deep inside, I want to give him all of me. It’s only for one night. If he can break through whatever wall this is, then maybe it would be worth trying again, but if he can’t, what’s the harm in letting him attempt this?

I slide my hand out to shake on our agreement, but Joe simply shakes his head, giving me another heated stare. “We don’t shake on bets like this.”

“Then how do we -?” My words are cut off by his lips descending on mine, capturing me with a fierceness I’ve never experienced from him before.

When we were together, he was always gentle, tender. That man is nowhere in sight, and despite my efforts to resist, my body melts under the onslaught of his lips. Rory slides up behind and grabs my breasts, his grip tight enough that a gasp flies out of my mouth. Instead of pulling back, Joe takes the opportunity to force his tongue past my lips.

It’s like peppermint and Christmas. It’s memories of happiness I’d repressed from years ago. It’s like I’m finally feeling him for the first time. When we dated, we made out numerous times, but somehow, this is different. I can’t tell if it’s the fact that my inhibitions are finally lowered or if Joe realizes the stakes and is pulling out everything in his arsenal to get me back.

Joe finally pulls away, his lips pulled back in a wide grin. Fear swirls deep inside me, pushing out all the pleasant feelings he’d stirred with his kiss. Are those honest-to-God fangs? There’s a lot I don’t know about his life, but you’d think he’d mention something as odd as cosplaying a vampire.

“What - when did you put those in?”

Rory’s grip tightens around me, rendering me unable to move as Joe dips his head closer. “They’ve always been there, my love. Why do you think in the several months we dated, I never really let loose with you?”

“But you could have taken them out. You never had to pretend to be a vampire to get me to want you.” Memories from when we first walked into the club slam into me. I saw everything then pushed it aside. I didn’t want to know. Deep down, I still don’t. Ice drips down my spine as I watch him slide the tip of his tongue up to one of the sharp edges.

His gaze shifts behind me to Rory, and it’s as if they’re having an entire conversation I’m not privy to. After a moment, Rory jerks his hands up, holding my jaw in one hand and my forehead with the other, prying my mouth open. Smiling once more, Joe presses the fang into the tip of his tongue until blood wells up and fills his mouth.

I want to scream, but the sound comes out muffled. It’s drowned out by all the other sounds of sex, passion, and fear. I’m just one voice among many. One so easily silenced. Joe slides his thumb across my cheek, a soft caress, as if to comfort me, but it doesn’t work. How dumb is he to think I can be swayed to his side when I’m literally being held captive by his goon?

When Joe dips his head back down, he shoves his bloody tongue inside my mouth, transferring it to me, and I heave, nearly gagging as the cool, coppery liquid slides down my throat. But then something shifts, morphs. My body is on fire, unquenchable. It’s as if all my inhibitions have been torn down to reveal the writhing mass of need buried beneath my skin.

Joe pulls back and stares at me, his lips set into a smug smile.

You don’t have to be afraid of me. I will not harm you. What we do to you will feel uncomfortable. It might hurt, but I will never damage you.

His lips are unmoving, but I hear his voice inside my head clear as day. What is he doing to me? How am I under his spell like this?

Oh, I think you know. Do I have to spell it out for you?

“Are - are you going to kill me?”

Rory chuckles behind me, his icy breath searing across my heated skin. “And deprive us both of the pleasure of your body? Never.”

“I have craved you since the moment I saw you,” Joe says out loud. “I was stupid to toss you away like that, but now that I have you, I’m going to make things right.”

“Are you going to make me like you? A - a -.”

“Vampire,” Joe finishes, lips curling up. He pauses for a moment, his eyes drifting over my face. I’m not sure what it is he’s looking for. “Let’s see how tonight goes. Then we can discuss that. If you want me to turn you, I shall. But understand this. It’s for forever. I will never let you go. At the end of tonight, if you feel as if we have not seen to your every need, my offer still stands. I’ll wipe your memory and let you go.”

“But if you choose me.” Rory clears his throat behind me. “Us,” Joe continues, his lips pulling down into a frown. “Then you’ll be ours forever. Can you live with that?”