Chapter 32

I shake my head and he digs his fingers into the scratch, reopening it. A sliver of pain fires across my nerve-endings. I wince. He glances down and I follow his gaze to find the blood seeping down my belly. He removes his fingers, only to bend his head and slurp at the open wound. A shiver of something—lust, fear, maybe a mix of the two?—ladders up my spine. He licks the scratch again, then glances up at me, "Does that disgust you, Pretty Face ?" He tilts his head, "Me drinking your blood."

"No." My voice cracks, and I clear my throat. "No." I shake my head, "Strangely, I find it reassuring."

"Reassuring?"

"It confirms to me that you are human, for some reason. It tells me that you don’t hide your proclivities. ." I swallow, "it affirms that you don’t shy away from what your heart wants, and that… That is something."

"Is it?"

I nod. "Most people go through life trying to ignore what they really are deep inside, but not you." I peer into his face. "What you see is what you get with yo