Page 45 of Blood Curse

Elias cleaned the scratches and covered them with a thick pad. The white cloth turned pink but held. He motioned me closer.

“Put your hand here,” he said. “Firm pressure. If the scent becomes worse, step back.”

“All right.”

Stellan stayed close as I crossed the small distance.

I put my palm over the dressing.

Mara’s blood pulsed against it.

The Crown pushed pleasure through me so hard that my breath caught. My jaw ached with the need to bite. I fixed my gaze on Mara’s face rather than her arm.

“How bad?” she asked.

“Very.”

“Do you want to bite me?”

“Yes.”

Several people gasped.

Mara didn’t. “Are you going to?”

“I haven’t decided to.”

“Useful distinction.”

“It doesn’t feel useful.”

“Most useful things don’t.”

Elias wrapped a clean bandage around her arm while I kept pressure on the pad. The bleeding slowed. With every layer he added, the scent faded and my thoughts became easier to hold.

My hand still wanted to press harder. The Crown kept turning the pulse under my palm into an invitation. Each beat promised heat, strength and the relief of giving in.

I loosened my fingers instead.

Mara watched me do it. “Still yours?”

“My hand is.”

“The rest?”

“Arguing.”

“You’re winning.”

“You don’t know that.”

“You’re holding a bandage instead of my throat. I can make a reasonable guess.”

“There,” he said. “You can let go.”

I removed my hand.

Blood stained my palm through the dressing.