My heart thumps against my ribs, remembering the feel of his full lips. Demons and saints…
I swallow those thoughts and meet his gaze. “No, I don’t think so,” I say sharply. He frowns, his sapphire eyes darkening. This time I speak in a kinder tone. “You don’t need to lie to me. I should think we were past all that. Whatever it is, you can trust me.”
I’m not sure why I say that. I’ve never given Alaric a reason to trust me. I’ve spent weeks attempting to stab him…
Things feel different between us now. I’m not sure when they changed. Maybe the night he was injured, or the night when I would have given him everything had he not stopped us, or two nights ago when Elise tried to kill me.
Or some other moment, or perhaps all of them combined.
There’s a heavy pause hovering between us as I realize those words are true. Alaric must come to the same conclusion because his features soften.
“I have said too much already, and we have other matters we must discuss.”
I want to push but decide to let it go, for now.
With his free hand, he reaches up and pulls my hair over one shoulder. And then his mouth rests against my skin. My pulse jumps and I know he can feel it as he places slow kisses along the space between my neck and shoulder.
Between his kisses, the hand holding me to him, and the other resting on my upper thigh, a haze settles over my thoughts, clouding my mind. Warmth pools low in my belly. It takes everything in me to keep from shaking my head in an attempt to clear it. I am thankful his hands aren’t wandering freely, then thinking would be impossible.
“This visit will be dangerous for you,” he whispers between kisses.
And with those words, icy adrenaline floods my veins.
“But I will do everything in my power to protect you. They are not to be trusted, so don’t let your guard down, even for a second.” Another kiss. “And always carry the dagger.”
I swallow. Were it not for Alaric’s words keeping me grounded, I might almost believe this moment is real.
“What about this,” I ask, pressing my back against him to indicate how intimate he is when we are seemingly alone.
He breathes a heavy sigh. “We must make them believe you have the mark. I will touch you as if you are mine.”
My heart lodges between my ribs and Alaric smiles against my shoulder.
“And not just when you attempt to kill me.” The corners of his lips turn down. “Forgive me, my dear Clara, that bargain must be placed on hold for the time being. We cannot have them knowing the truth if you wish to live.”
“Then, how am I to earn my freedom?”
“For now, let’s concentrate on keeping you alive. You can have your freedom—when it is safe.”
My head swims and my stomach is in knots. I am glad he stopped kissing me. He’d offered me an escape last night, but like a fool, I had refused. At the time, it had felt wrong somehow to accept the easy out. Like cheating.
Now I understand why he made the offer.
“I want to get down,” I say, my voice is soft and desperate.
The horse comes to a stop. I open my eyes, unaware of when I had closed them. We are in the exact spot where we mounted.
Alaric dismounts quickly then reaches up to take me by the waist and guides me down. My legs shake, but he doesn’t release me yet. Instead, he pulls me in close, wrapping his arms around me.
“When I touch you, understand that I am doing so to protect you.” There is hesitation in his voice. “Do you trust me on this?”
Do I trust him? I have been trying to kill him, to draw blood and win my freedom… He is a vampire—a monstrous beast that rips families apart—and I’m only human. I hate him for what he is, and he hates me for killing his sister.
Yet he is asking if I trust him with my life.
I pull back to look him in the eye and say, “Yes.”
Chapter Three
Clara
We walk arm in arm back into the house. Neither of us speaks. This is a game. One that could be deadly for me if I misstep. Though I still don't understand why other vampires would care what he does with me. Alaric claimed me—that should be the only thing that matters.
But there is so much more to this than I ever anticipated. All I wanted to do was keep my sister safe and alive. I have spent the last month and a half trying to get back to her.
Once inside, I blink to adjust my eyes to the dim light. Standing in the doorway of the drawing room is the vampire from last night. He holds a goblet full of what I can only assume is blood.
“Run, little human. Hide. The others are coming, and they are far more dangerous than even I…”
His hazel eyes follow us. Nerves crawl up my spine.
Alaric guides my chin up with one finger. He gives me a tight smile and pulls me a little closer into his side.
The walk to my rooms has never felt so long. I can practically feel the gazes of all four of the vampire guests following us. Though I don’t see them, I know they are there.
I enter, turning to close the door, but he is already inside.
Alaric raises a brow as if he knew I’d intended to shut him out.
“Clara,” he starts, and there’s something in the way he says my name that makes me bristle. “If I mark you—”
“No,” I say, not even letting him finish. “We have been over this before. You know why I don’t want the mark.”
He looks distraught. Now I feel terrible for snapping. I step up to him. Genuine worry darkens his eyes. I reach up and brush my fingers along his brow to smooth away the frown lines. He is worried about my safety.
“I do not know what to do with you,” he says.
It would be insulting from someone else’s mouth, but he doesn’t mean it in the way a human or another vampire would.
“It will be okay.” I have no idea if that is true. It doesn’t matter, because we both see it for what it is—a useless platitude. But it’s all I have to give.
He steps back and nods. “I will continue to ask you to reconsider the mark until you change your mind, or you are safe.”
I grit my teeth until my jaw aches. He knows my answer will always be no.
“You know the laws, Clara. You have always known them. Once claimed, a human is at the whim of their vampire master until death.”
My eye twitches. Master. My heart races for the second time today, but now it is for an entirely different reason.
I am not a thing to be owned.
“Then what is the point of this charade?” I hiss, motioning between us. “If you are my master and I must fall to your will, then why not bite me now and be done with it? If what I want means so little, why pretend you are giving me a choice at all? Just force the mark on me already and be done with it. Or better yet, kill me.”
Baiting a vampire… not exactly a smart move on my part. One might actually believe I want to die.
His eyes narrow and he lets out a low snarl, fangs bared. I take an involuntary step back, but he advances, closing the distance between us until his chest is flush with mine.
“The point, dear Clara, is that the last thing I want is to have a human unwillingly tied to me for the remainder of their life.”
My eyes widen at the venom of his words. I open my mouth to speak, but he holds up a hand, staying me.