Page 111 of Bleed

I can feel my control slipping, the edge of it burning away with every pump of my cock. I want to bite her, to mark her in every way possible, to make it absolutely clear that she belongs to me…

But I don’t.

Instead, I press my mouth to her ear and whisper, “Say you’re mine.”

She’s trembling, wracked with pleasure and pain and everything in between. “Yours, Eli,” she whimpers, a tear leaking from the corner of her eye.

I shove a hand between her body and the mattress, fingers delving down to strum her clit. She detonates in a matter of seconds, her pussy gripping my cock like a vise as she freefalls into her climax.

The sensation is too much. The pressure building inside me snaps, my eyes squeezing shut as a blinding wave of pleasure rolls through my body. My fangs break through, and it takes everything in me not to sink them into her shoulder.

Beatrix shudders, collapsing onto the bed in a boneless heap as I pull out and quickly free her wrists. She breathes in shallow gasps as my gaze combs over her naked body, clocking every fresh bruise blooming on her skin.

Slowly, she turns her head, a sated smile on her lips. “Possessive bastard.”

I stare back at her, my typically analytical mind suddenly a jumbled mess.

The scientist in me knows what I should do– record the results, continue my research.

The man in me can’t bear the thought of losing her to someone else.

And the vampire in me absolutely refuses to rescind his claim.

Chapter

Twenty-Four

BEX

There are probably a thousand things I could be eating for dinner right now.

The refrigerator is stocked with expensive cheeses, fresh produce, fancy deli meats, and at least three different kinds of berries. There are plenty of restaurants all over the city that will deliver here, and I’m pretty sure Elliott has enough money that I could order a five-course meal every night for the rest of my life without him even noticing the charges.

And yet, here I am. Curled up on the sofa with my legs folded underneath me, eating instant ramen straight out of the cup.

God, I’ve missed this shit.

There’s something comforting about food that requires absolutely no effort beyond boiling water and waiting three minutes. No garnish, no artisanal ingredients, no pretentious bullshit. Just noodles, powdered flavoring, and enough sodium to give the health-conscious an aneurysm.

I slurp up the last tangled mouthful, broth splattering my lower lip.

Perfect.

The elevator dings, and I startle, nearly inhaling a noodle as my head snaps toward the foyer. The doors glide open to reveal a familiar blond vampire, and my face immediately splits into a grin.

“Albie!”

He inclines his chin in greeting, a reluctant smile pulling at his lips.

“What are you doing here?” I ask as I lean forward to set the ramen cup on the coffee table, licking a drop of broth from my thumb. “You here to see Eli?”

“Actually, no. I’m here to see you.”

I perk up. “Really?”

“Mhmm,” he hums. “Doc asked me to do a blood draw.”

A little spark of excitement shoots through me. “About time he started drinking from his source,” I say, unfolding myself from the sofa and planting my bare feet on the floor.