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As I uncorked the bottle, I allowed myself to lean closer, inhaling her floral fragrance. “I’ll let you in on one of my secrets. I have an abominable sweet tooth, and I need something delicious on my tongue every evening to be satisfied.”
When her breath hitched, I huffed a laugh that sent shivers down her spine.
I poured the thick caramel liquid into two glasses.The heady smell of summer berries and vanilla filled the room as Jade accepted her glass, sniffing the wine with a constricted noise.
“Goddess, I’ve smelled nothing like this before.”
Enraptured, I watched as she tipped the glass, sipping it before her eyes popped wide in surprise. “How can something taste this sweet? Like nectar of the gods.” She moaned, immediately taking another, larger mouthful.
With a sharp inhale, I turned my back on Jade to drip some blood from the mini cooler in mine, feeling undone by the flushed approval gleaming on her lovely face.
“You don’t have to do that, you know.” She speared me with a reassuring look. “I’m aware of your diet, Alexei.”
My fingers twitched on the glass, the only outward show of gratification her words brought me. “I know it can be off-putting to warmbloods to watch vampires drink a person’s lifeblood.”
“I don’t mind.” She shrugged, as if it truly mattered not at all. “I eat food and drink wine, and you consume blood. It doesn’t make any difference to me.”
Deeply touched—and painfully aroused—I drank from my glass, the thick burnt sugar flavor resting on my tongue.Yet if I didn’t taste the flavor of her plump lips, coaxing her tongue to tangle with mine, I would surely perish. I wanted to spoil Jade with beautiful slips of silk and decadent desserts. Fill her with so much abundant affection and desire that she could never doubt how strongly I felt towards her.
“I’m curious,” she mused lightly, blissfully unaware of my debased imaginings. “I can’t believe I’ve worked within the Court for a year, and I still don’t know the specifics of how you stay alive.”
I raised an eyebrow. “What are you curious about? I’m an open book, darling.”
“Right.” She snorted before growing thoughtful. “I don’t know if this is taboo to ask, but why do you always drink like this? Do you never, you know…” She blushed, spearing two fingers into her neck. “With mortals or other creatures? Or what about animals?”
“Nothing between us is off limits,” I told her earnestly. “For vampires, the only way to receive true nourishment is by drinking from warmbloods. As we’ve adjusted to modern times, some of us have shifted to a diet of bagged blood out of morality or necessity. It’s not as tasty, nor as fulfilling, but it does the job.”
I watched her face for any signs of disgust, but none came.
Satisfied, I added, “As for animals, they can be drunk from in times of need, but we can’t survive off their blood alone.”
“Hm,” she murmured around a sip. “So, you don’t drink from others? Ever?”
I took a swig of wine to avoid answering. Voice like gravel, I rasped, “Not often.”
Her gaze flickered, but she didn’t push.
I could see the cogs in her clever mind working to decipher my vague words, and needing a distraction, seized the opportunity to delight her with something magical. Anything to clear away the gloom of my past and my unclear future.
Tonight I wanted to only be a male devastatingly in love with his mate.
No wrathful fathers, dark talismans, or pending betrothals. Just the two of us.
Ushering her to follow me down the lantern-lit path down into the woods, I lifted my brows expectantly. “What do you say, darling, are you up for an adventure?”
18
The forest beyond Henry’s cabin offered little in the way of comfort, though the clean air purged the unpleasantness of our fight. Jade’s boots crunched noisily beside me as I led her through the thick wall of pine trees towering up to the dark sky bathed in the warm light of the waning moon.
“You’re not luring me out in the wilderness to murder me, I hope?” Her eyes rounded in mock alarm.
I snorted cheerfully. “If I wished to murder you, I wouldn’t bother leading you away from the comforts of the cabin. You are quite alone in the world out here.”
“I’m not so delicate or weak as to die without a fight.” Wiggling her fingers, she shot me a sardonic look. “I may even have you running away scared if you’re not careful.”
Her magick was a palpable energy in the surrounding air, ethereal and powerful.
My gaze softened on her. “I have no doubt of it, darling.”
