Page 8 of Cruel Vampire King (Honeyblood Vampires #1)

The day was suspenseful, but we weren’t attacked again. Though Thessa caught sight of some minotaur tracks, we didn’t run into any beasts other than a flock of griffins. They were small beasts, only about the size of a house cat. The real danger was that their noise would alert others to our location, so we killed them quickly.

That night, we cooked the griffins over a low fire. We still had at least a week’s worth of travelling, and we only had three days of supplies left. Best to extend it as much as we could. It was a shame the kelpie flank had ended up full of maggots the morning after we cooked it.

Greyson joined me as I was setting traps to protect us from a night ambush.

“I was finally able to see you fight when we took out those griffins,” he said, leaning against a tree. “You’ve got a good technique. I’ve always found flexibility to be the most desirable trait in my women.”

I tightened the snare and glared up at him. “Your women? Are you counting me in that number now?”

Greyson’s smile remained firmly on his face. “I think you’d enjoy being my woman, Elara. I’ve made my interest clear, haven’t I?”

A retort rose on my lips. I’d had plenty of male interest. Before my family was slaughtered, there were Michael and Jaxon, both who had vied for my attention. Neither of them had gone any further than holding my hand, but I sometimes wondered how far they wanted to go, and how many ‘no thanks’ signals I’d been sending them. My head was so full of romantic notions that the pimple-faced boys I knew couldn’t fit.

And at the coven… well, there were plenty of males who thought my legs would fall open the moment they complimented me. After all, how else could I thank them for being so generous enough to give me their attention? Me, the scarred woman, missing half her face. And that wasn’t even counting the times I’d overheard them wonder—what other parts of my body had been scarred? I had breasts, but did I have nipples left? What did my ass look like under my clothes? Had my clitoris been burned off?

I stopped myself from snapping back at Greyson. He didn’t flirt with Ysara or Thessa, although Ysara flirted with him and Kael. If he was just looking for someone to take advantage of, Thessa, being as young as she was, would be the prime suspect.

Maybe he was earnest in his interest. Maybe he wasn’t wondering about my body as a collection of parts that may or may not work for his pleasure.

Greyson wagged a finger in my face. “That nose is pretty nasty. How about I fix it up for you? Your injuries will make fighting more difficult, and we still need to stick together.”

“I don’t understand you,” I admitted, squinting at him.

“Maybe you can’t understand that I’m genuine,” he murmured, his voice low.

His dark eyes certainly seemed sincere as he gazed up at me under his lashes. My heart skipped a beat as I took in how handsome he was. Even being in the forest for these days, he was elegant and attractive. His shoulder was bandaged still, and I absently ran my fingers over the bandages.

“Are you sure you should be wasting it on me?” I asked. His scent drew me in, sweet in the forest.

And I found myself wanting… something. What exactly, I wasn’t sure. Maybe I wanted to feel a draw to him that would allow me to forget about the ever-present vampire king, even for a few moments. Would Luken be watching my channel now? I hated that I couldn’t stop myself from wondering what he thought about this.

“Sure, you can heal me,” I finally agreed.

Greyson grinned and opened his mouth. A high, keening wail burst through the trees. It was distant but still felt like nails raking down my spine. The wail was answered by a series of screams. It was a symphony that had been haunting us all day. The other teams were close enough that we could hear their deaths, whether, by other teams or the beasts of the forest, I wasn’t sure.

“Gods, I wish we knew how many there were left,” I sighed.

Greyson snorted. “Where would the fun be with that?”

I rolled my eyes and gestured at my face. “Get on with it.”

His lips twisted briefly, but his smile came back soon enough. He put his hands on my face, cupping my cheeks tenderly. I closed my eyes as the tingling heat radiated from his hands. A sharp pain went through my nose as the bones realigned. I winced, but the pain went straight to my core. If I’d been turned on a little last time, now it felt like a liquid fire was taking root in my belly.

Would it hurt so badly to give into the flesh?

“That’s enough,” I said quickly, pushing aside Greyson’s hands. My face wasn’t so puffy; when I touched it, the swollen flesh only throbbed dully. “Thanks. I’ll take the second night watch—wake me when it’s time.”

“What about the griffin?” Greyson asked, his eyes widening.

I shook my head, not willing to answer. My heart hammered in my chest and I found a good spot to stretch out on. What had that been? He wasn’t kidding when he said his magic could be erotic. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe he hadn’t exactly been trying to keep that eroticism contained…

***

It was dark when Greyson woke me. “Time for you to take watch,” he whispered. His face was close to mine. “Unless you want to slip off for a bit? Nobody will notice.”

I’d been dreaming of him—at least, his face. It had been Luken in that strange way that dreams were. There was still that earning in my core. I glowered at him as I pulled away.

“No, thank you,” I growled, harsher because of my physical arousal. It didn’t take long for me to get my body under control, but my mind was another story. It kept wanting to replay the images it’d dreamed… only with Luken’s real face.

Seriously, what was wrong with me?

Greyson leaned back on his heels. “Is there something wrong with me?”

I brushed my hair from my face and put it into a fresh braid. “Just because I’m saying no doesn’t mean anything is wrong with you.”

“Snarling as though the offer is offensive indicates something else,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “I’m a handsome guy. We’re in this forest without anyone else. We could both die in the morning. What’s so repugnant about wanting to have a quick fuck in the forest?”

“There are cameras on us,” I said, grabbing the hindquarters of one of the griffins. I tore the meat off the bones. “I told you before, I don’t want to end up on porn sites. So just leave it alone. Ysara’s been flirting hard with you. What’s wrong with her?”

Greyson grunted and shrugged, not looking at me this time.

Was he more of a douche than I’d thought? Could he really be trying to turn me on with his magic? I didn’t want to examine that too closely. Maybe I didn’t feel that electric pull toward him because I was unconsciously protecting myself. Not that I was comparing my attraction to him to the all-encompassing pull I felt toward Luken.

If I had any sort of self-preservation, I shouldn’t be attracted to either of them.

“Ysara’s already with someone. I’m not in for that sort of threesome,” Greyson muttered.

I frowned at him as I chewed and swallowed the tough meat. Only then did I realize that Thessa was the only sleeping figure in camp. I stiffened, looking around. Kael and Ysara were missing! My heart started to beat harder. Kael was supposed to have the map. Had they slunk off, betraying us?

“They left some time ago,” Greyson said coolly.

I understood the implications of his previous words. But I jumped to my feet anyway. “It’s not smart to go sneaking off. Stay here with Thessa.”

Part of me wanted to wake her up and drag her with me. If I didn’t feel safe with Greyson, why would Thessa be? But it wasn’t entirely that I didn’t feel safe with him. Even if he had tried to stoke my fires with his magic, I didn’t think he’d go any further than that. And I’d be back soon enough, to stop him from using his pretty mouth to get his way with her.

Besides, some arrogant part of me insisted that Greyson wasn’t interested in just anyone. He wanted me.

Our wolf-shifter and orc had left a clear trail through the forest. With the full moon overhead, the shadows were short, and the terrain easily traversed. Still, I heard them before I saw them. The grunts, the cries of pleasure. I hesitated before I crept to the edge of a cedar and peered through its branches.

They’d both discarded their clothes. Ysara straddled Kael, gyrating her hips wildly as she leaned against his chest. Their eyes were locked on each other, oblivious to the forest around them. A surge of something went through me, and I beat a hasty retreat. It wasn’t arousal; the sight did nothing for me. Whatever it was, it was the same reason I didn’t interrupt them, why even though I’d gone to bring them back to camp, I was leaving them.

Pity?

Jealousy?

As their cries of pleasure faded, my mind turned to Greyson’s offer. Was this really something that I needed to hold to? What did it matter what people thought about me? I’d been meticulous in preserving my modesty during the Trials. Hiding in bushes when I relieved myself, keeping myself covered when taking care of my injuries. I didn’t want people to look at me that way. It made me sick to my stomach to think of strangers jerking off while thinking about me.

I tried to imagine sex. Not with anyone in particular, just the act. When I’d first gotten my period, my mother had sat me down and explained the facts of life. Sex feels so much better when you wait for marriage, she told me. I’d full-heartedly believed it. After her wedding, my oldest sister, Anna, had casually said that the first time was awful and she wouldn’t have waited if she’d known what it was like.

I would have gladly fallen in with Greyson at one point in my life. That time was long ago, though. Even Kael and Ysara taking advantage of what comfort they could from the physical act was outside of possibility for me. I’d trained myself not to react. I’d trained myself not to become aroused. I had a purpose.

Maybe I’d damaged myself too much to ever enjoy that sort of relationship. In the end, it didn’t matter. Because this wasn’t about me. It was never about me.

I snorted, annoyed at myself. I’d lost focus. Between Greyson’s flirting and Thessa’s innocence, I’d started to think of ways to end this without my team dying. Even Kael and Ysara, though I didn’t feel particularly bonded with them. We were getting closer to the end, when I’d have to kill them.

“Don’t get weak now, Elara,” I murmured to myself.

Arms wrapped around me. I gasped as I was pulled backward, a hand slapping over my mouth. I elbowed back instinctively, but whoever had grabbed me seemed to have anticipated this move. I was spun around, my elbow grazing nothing but air. Then, I was suddenly pinned against a tree. There was no pain, only pressure as two hands grasped my wrists and pinned them over my head. A rigid body pressed to mine.

And glowing amber eyes were inches from my face.

All the air seemed to disappear from around me. Everything I’d just been reasoning with myself for why I wasn’t more attracted to Greyson was like smoke on the wind. Heat swept through me, originating at the place where his cool fingers wrapped around my wrists. I was in such a vulnerable position right now, his body too close to mine for me to fight back, my hands incapacitated.

The heat didn’t care.

He moved both my wrists to one hand and dropped his other to my hip, where his fingers dug in. It was just shy of painful and I found myself wanting him to dig those fingers in deeper. My chest heaved, pressing my breasts against him. He seemed unaffected by our closeness, that square jaw set firmly in disgust.

“What the hell is going on between you and that elf?” he snarled, his voice low with jealousy as his grip tightened possessively.

In response, liquid pooled between my legs. I pressed my thighs tightly together, trying to quell the feelings there. Frustration burned through me. Why did my body insist on reacting like this to him, of all people? Why couldn’t it be Greyson I found utterly irresistible?

I lifted my chin, glaring at him. I might not be able to control my body, but I could control my words. “Why do you care what I do with Greyson?”

Maybe if I provoked him enough, I’d finally get some answers!

A low growl answered me. All my senses seemed to grow sharper. I felt the rough bark of the pine behind me, smelled the crushed grass mingling with the scent of resin and Luken. The silvery moonlight mingled with the amber glow of his eyes, bathing his handsome face. The sharp lines of his cheekbones were thrown into sharp relief, his stern brow, his kissable mouth…

Luken pushed his body up closer to mine. A thrill washed through me as I felt the length of his erection against my belly.

“I have a vested interest in whose cock goes inside of you, Elara,” he rumbled.

“And if you’ve been watching, you’ll know I turned him down. The cameras, remember?” I twisted my hands free, and he let me. He even stepped back when I pushed both my hands against his chest. The space between us filled with the chill night air, making me shiver. “There’s no cocks going inside of me. Not his. Not yours.”

Luken’s lips twitched.

I shoved harder at him, forcing him back another step. My blood was on fire as I scrambled to regain my wits. What was the reason I’d said before? Oh, right. Cameras.

“Speaking of, what are you doing here?” I asked, drawing a knife from my belt. It was unlikely to do much damage to the vampire king, but I had to have something to keep him away. “Is this a weird PR stunt? Make people think that you care and have them feel sorry for you when I die?”

Luken smiled coldly at me. “Your channel is having some… technical difficulties. And there will continue to be more, so long as I require it.”

“And why do you require it?” I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

I should be afraid. I should be terrified of the bloodless killer who had murdered my whole family. But now that there was space between us and he showed no move to come at me again, I could only think of the tender way he’d cupped my face after the lake. The surprising softness of his mouth on mine as he breathed life back into me.

With nothing but moonlight between us, I felt something… intense pulling me toward him. It was as though I was a fish on a hook, being relentlessly drawn forward. Or maybe that was too violent an image. Perhaps I was the climber on a cliff, clinging desperately to a rope as the person at the top drew me closer to him, closer to safety.

Even though there was nothing safe about Luken.

I put the knife away. It wouldn’t do any good anyway. “If I tell you what’s going on between Greyson and me, will you answer my questions?”

“No.”

His flat refusal startled me. I pulled my braid over my shoulder. It was knotted, greasy, and dirty. I must look like a mess. Yet if the bulge in his pants was anything to go by…

“Was it real?” I asked, my voice low.

He lifted one heavy brow. “Was what real?”

“If it’s real, you know what I’m talking about.”

He stared at me, then a genuine smile crossed his lips. He chuckled lightly. “You mean, did I really pull you out of the lake? Did I really save you from the kelpie?”

A shiver ran down my spine. It was real. “Why?”

“Because I wanted to,” he answered with a careless shrug.

I waited, holding my breath. He was answering the question of why he saved me. Not the question I’d really asked. It was the same one I’d asked when he had pulled me out of the water. Why had he killed my family? He had to know that was still the question at the forefront of my mind. He had to know. If he had anything to say, anything to defend himself, now would be the time to say it.

He was silent, staring at me.

This was insane.

“How do you have magic?” I demanded.

“I’m half-elf. It’d be weird if I didn’t have magic,” he drawled.

“Did you use it on me?”

His other eyebrow lifted, and he gave me a look that questioned my sanity. “Of course I did. You’ve been dead if I hadn’t.”

So, was it that magic that was making me so desirous for him? Why was he playing these games, anyway? If he was hard, if he wanted me, why not just take what he wanted? A man like him, he didn’t care about the effect it would have on me. Certainly not after he killed my entire family! So why was he standing there, as though waiting for me to make the first move?

“Why bother saving me from the kelpie?” I snarled, because it was the only question I could ask. “Why go through that trouble when you’re happy enough to put me through the Blood Trials in the first place?”

His face darkened. I’d upset him. His nostrils flared and for a moment, I thought he was going to open his mouth. But he didn’t say a damn thing. He only turned and stalked off through the forest, leaving me weak-kneed and shaky, craving his closeness even as my hatred for him grew.