Page 19 of Bonded Through Bite

Rafael leans against the counter and watches me like I’m a specimen in a zoo. I don’t care. The burger drips sauce all over my fingers and I lick them clean before going for more. Somewhere in the middle, I dig into the other pack and pull out the ice-cold cola and sigh. Heaven.

I’m halfway done with my milkshake and purring in bliss when he comes closer and clears the trash away. There is a weird expression on his face that I can’t figure out, so I lift my eyebrow.

Rafael takes a seat opposite me and silently waits for me to finish my milkshake. When I put the cup down, he still doesn’t say anything.

“That was good,” I say just to break the silence.

“Not hungry anymore?”

“Nope.” I shake my head.

“Good.” His expression turns grim. “No one who’s trying to lose weight eats like that. Yet, you’ve lost some. Your friend was worried, truly worried. You came to the Lair looking for me, determined to fuck. What’s going on, Samantha?”

“Nothing. Can’t a girl get laid every once in a while, without it being the end of the world?” I snap.

Disappointment flashes across his face before it turns stony. Rafael crosses his arms over his chest and looks like he’s going to sit there until I come clean.

I huff. “I just had a few crappy days and wanted to have some fun. Is that so wrong?”

“No, there is nothing wrong with that. But that’s not all. I know you, Samantha, and you have never shown up at the Lair without underwear, no matter how crappy your day has been.”

I wrinkle my nose. “How would you know if I had underwear on or not?”

“I could compel the truth out of you.”

Yeah, that’s a nope. Compelling doesn’t work on me, thanks to the original lump in my brain. Or that’s the working theory Thea and I came up with. Since nothing else made sense.

The company I work for specializes in hazardous cleaning services. Things like accidents and crime scenes. There was a vampire on one of the sites we were contracted to clean. A gruesome murder; lots of blood left after the body had been taken away.

The vampire had beautiful blond hair that was streaked in blood, a cocktail dress—also drenched in blood—and she was just hanging around, looking smug. Her compulsion for us to forget she was ever there didn’t sink in. Everyone else in my crew treated her like air, and thankfully, some part of my survival instinct kicked in and I pretended not to see her either.

I don’t think my life expectancy would be very long if the knowledge that compulsion doesn’t work on me came out. It doesn’t matter much now, though.

“You can try,” I say and narrow my eyes at him. Now it’s interest that flashes in his eyes. They lock with mine and intensity bleeds into them. After a moment, I roll my eyes, get down from the table, and go dump the cup in the trash too.

“That’s very interesting,” Rafael says right behind me and I give out a little shriek. Damn him for moving so fast and quietly. “Now let’s try this again.” He spins me around and takes hold of my chin. “What’s going on, Samantha?” His eyes bore into mine, intense and determined.

“I told you, nothing that concerns you.”

“Everything you do concerns me.”

“You are not my boyfriend. It was just sex.”

“I may not be your boyfriend, yet, but it wasn’t just sex. Stop avoiding and tell me the truth.”

“The truth is I wanted to have sex with you.” I’m getting frustrated. Why is he pushing this?

Rafael leans in close, our lips almost touching, and my body immediately focuses on that. It wants this useless conversation to be over too, so I arch enough that my breasts rub against him. The slight contact sends electricity running down my body and turns on the ache.

“Rafael,” I moan and press closer so I can kiss his throat. Rafael’s fingers band around my neck, but he doesn’t push me away immediately.

“Samantha.” He moves back enough that our gazes lock. “Talk to me.”

Damn him, the softness in his tone is cutting through the sexy haze and pulling at my emotions. My eyes start to water and I blink furiously to keep them from spilling over. I’m not going to cry. I’m all cried out.

“If you don’t want to fuck, just go.” I hate that my voice quivers. Rafael pulls me into a hug, his hand rubs down my back, and I realize I’m gulping in air. I don’t want to talk about this.

The tears spill free and soak his shirt. My whole body trembles and then the dam breaks free. Sobs tear free and I clutch his waist for support. Apparently, there are some useless tears still left.