Page 7 of Blood Day (Blood Alliance #7)

Instead, I sat back against my desk and continued feeding her. Every time I brought the bottle to her lips, her nostrils flared. Did she worry that I might drown her with it? I supposed some of my kind would.

Her cheeks flushed when I offered her the banana.

It was an erotic sight to watch the tip disappear between her lips. I allowed it to remain there for a prolonged moment while I fantasized about having my cock in that sweet mouth instead .

Then I gave her more water to wash down the sweet fruit.

She swallowed, her cheeks still pink.

And the sweetest scent of arousal touched the air.

Her arousal.

I inhaled deeply, welcoming the floral fragrance into my lungs and humming my approval on my exhale.

She squirmed in response, her first true movement other than eating since my return.

My lips curled as I gave her the banana again.

Her eyes seemed to hold mine as she accepted it, her cheeks burning even more. I could feel the heat rolling off her, and it had nothing to do with the miserably hot weather outside.

She bit off another piece, chewed, and then swallowed.

Beautiful .

I swapped the banana for her water and brought the bottle to my lips rather than hers. My dry throat needed relief, but the liquid did little to soothe it.

So I held some of the water in my mouth instead and bent to press my lips to hers.

She quivered in response, her floral scent increasing in intensity. Then she opened for me and allowed me to share the water with her in an intimate kiss of refreshing warmth.

I lingered long enough for her to swallow, then pulled back to give her the rest of the drink via the bottle.

Mostly because I didn’t trust myself not to do more.

It wouldn’t necessarily be a problem if I did. Students disappeared often as a result of lust and temptation.

I was honestly surprised no one had tried to take her yet.

So sweet and fragile. A beautiful flower in bloom with long stems and delicate skin .

Mmm .

I fed her the last part of the banana before opening her other water. She drank half of it, clearly dehydrated. But she paused near the end, her gaze holding a secret I didn’t quite understand.

“You’re still thirsty,” I said, finally breaking our silence. “Why did you stop drinking?”

“If I’m going back to my room, then I would prefer to take it with me. I often wake up thirsty from the heat.”

I frowned at that. Of course she would wake up thirsty. This place was a literal hellhole in the northeastern part of the Sahara Desert.

No one wanted to live here, which was why only a few vampires and lycans agreed to teach at the universities. There were ten around the world, all of them located in inhospitable regions.

I just happened to prefer this over political games.

For now, anyway.

“Finish this bottle,” I told her, ensuring she knew it was a demand and not a request.

She obeyed, her throat eager, but I caught a note of fear in her scent.

It was an intoxicating perfume that called to my inner predator.

But I swallowed my urge and busied myself with cleaning up after her finished meal.

Everything was biodegradable, including her fork, which made it easy to discard the products in my classroom’s trash bin.

Lily didn’t move while I worked, her obedience resolute as she waited for my next command.

I nearly told her to lie on my desk with her legs spread so I could indulge myself in some dessert.

“Get dressed” was what came out instead.

Rather than watch her obey, I walked to the closet at the back of my classroom and unlocked it with my thumbprint.

A few essentials lurked inside, including a case of chilled water in a fridge.

I grabbed four bottles—two for each hand—and brought them back to Lily just as she finished pulling on her plain white shirt.

All the prospects wore the same clothes—plain colors, either pants or shorts or skirts, and T-shirts.

When she attended her sexual arts classes, she typically wore nothing at all.

My class mandated shirts and pants for physical exercises.

Which she knew.

Yet she hadn’t thought to put her clothes back on while practicing her exercises tonight.

And I hadn’t bothered to correct her. Now I’d require her nudity going forward. Because it pleased me and that suited her goals.

Her eyes widened again upon noticing the items in my hands, confirming she could see in the dark. So she had to know I could see her, too.

But she didn’t try to mask her reactions.

I liked that.

It pleased me almost as much as her naked performance earlier.

“Take these with you,” I told her, giving her the bottles. “I expect you to drink at least two of them before breakfast.”

She’d almost fainted on me as a result of starvation and dehydration. I didn’t want that to happen again.

“Yes, Master Cedric.”

That right there was perhaps the only enjoyable element of this whole new world order—the way Lily called me Master . It made me hard every fucking time.

If only she meant it in the way a woman should—while playing in the bedroom. Alas, that time had passed.

“Go back to your room, Prospect.” The words came out a little harsher than I’d intended, mostly due to my own personal frustration. “We will continue your lessons after class tomorrow.” I pointed to the mat. “Same place. Same position. No clothes.”

She swallowed. “Yes, Master Cedric,” she whispered, bowing her head slightly.

But she didn’t immediately move.

Instead, she nibbled her lip, her gaze going to the water I’d given her.

I arched a brow. “I’m starting to question your hearing again, Prospect.”

She outwardly shivered, her eyes darting up to mine before falling again. “Sorry, Master Cedric. I…” She trailed off, causing both my eyebrows to lift in astonishment. Most humans would have run off by now, eager to obey. But not Lily.

“Do you wish to say something?” I asked, testing her.

She nodded. “Yes.”

Most would consider that response to be a failure—humans weren’t allowed to speak unless directly told to do so. But she was essentially saying she wanted to voice a thought.

And for me, that meant she’d passed.

“Speak freely,” I said, rewarding her boldness.

It was a dangerous response on my part, one that could earn her a death sentence later should she choose to behave this way in front of the wrong vampire or lycan.

Hence the reason I wanted her life to end early, to ensure her beautiful soul wasn’t tarnished too severely by what this world had become.

However, I would enjoy this side of her now and forever cherish the memory of my sweet flower.

At least until time erased her from my thoughts .

“I wanted to say ‘thank you.’?” Her words were soft. “For the meal and the water.”

My jaw ticked. She was thanking me for keeping her alive—the opposite of what I truly desired. And yet the words tasted so sweet on her lips.

I was torn between growling and smiling.

So I said nothing at all.

Because I didn’t trust myself not to strangle her.

Or fuck her against a wall.

Maybe both.

Such a dangerous conflict of interest.

“Good night, Master Cedric,” she whispered, smartly backing away from me and heading toward the door with her gaze on the floor.

She likely sensed my conflict. Perhaps even felt my need to kill her.

That would explain the heightening of her pulse.

However, she left a hint of that arousing fragrance behind, the intoxicating perfume circling me and begging me to chase her.

To hunt her.

To claim her.

She was my chosen prey.

One day I might just give in to this urge to take her. Devour her. Bleed her dry.

But not today.

“Sleep well, Lily,” I whispered after her, aware that she couldn’t actually hear me. “You’re going to need it.”

Because tomorrow I would show her just why she could never become a Vigil.

A lesson in delicacy and strength.

A lesson that she would absolutely fail.

My poor sweet flower.

May you bloom again another day.