Page 19 of Feeding Frenzy (Crimson Coven #3)

NINETEEN

catalina

“Catalina Herrera.”

I jumped, banging my knee under the table. I’d been so absorbed in blocking out the clanging coming from the kitchen, the conversations of customers, and the crying child across the restaurant that I hadn’t noticed him. Alistair slid into the booth opposite of me. I slowly let out the breath I’d held and took care not to breathe through my nose. Wouldn’t want to try to eat the vampire I had to rely on.

I turned toward the waitress’s footsteps as she approached with my food.

“Here you go.” She set the plate of pancakes and steaming coffee in front of me.

Her gaze settled on Alistair and her eyes slightly widened, her body visibly reacting. Sure, Alistair was attractive, but I had too many Crimson males on my plate. I was good. My gaze fastened on the pounding at her throat. I fixated on it.

Alistair tapped the back of my hand, and it ripped me out of the alluring sight of the pounding at her throat. Only the knowledge that I wouldn’t like the taste held me in place.

“Let me know if you need anything,” she said, but my attention was already on the food before me. I couldn’t take a breath yet, but steam floated off the top of the coffee. Would it taste as good as I remembered? I licked my lower lip and grabbed a fork and stabbed it into the pancake. The tips clicked against the plate with a loud crack. A fissure opened up to the edge of the ceramic. I pursed my lips and scooped some pancake with the prongs.

“You shouldn’t do that,” he drawled.

I stuffed the fork into my mouth and it clinked against my now sharp incisor. I winced, but clamped my mouth shut. The food rested on my tongue like sawdust.

My stomach turned. I frantically looked around for a napkin.

Alistair sighed and tugged a folded piece of cloth from his pocket. He held it out for me. The material was smooth against my fingertips. I winced apologetically and turned to the side to spit the food out.

“Uh, thanks,” I croaked and bundled the sullied cloth on the plate. I cleared my throat and lifted my chin. “What will you want from me?”

He leaned back, lacing his hands on top of the table.

“What is it you want from me ?”

“Safe harbor. To get my questions answered.”

His eyebrows raised.

“Perfect. I have a few questions myself.” He went quiet, studying me. “Why don’t we start here, how did you turn without becoming blood mad?” He cocked his head.

I pursed my lips.

“I don’t know.”

“Does it have something to do with you being immune to compulsion?”

“I don’t know,” I repeated with more frustration. He hummed. “Can a vampire be without a Coven?”

“Sure. But I do not recommend it.” He grinned. “Strength in numbers. If you’re a lone vampire, anyone can take you out without repercussions, but if you have a Coven, you have the Sire’s protection.”

“Oh.” So many decisions to make.

“Many things to think about,” he said and checked his phone. “I can house you until you decide.”

Relief dropped my shoulders. I wouldn’t have to sleep in a bus station tonight. I nodded and was already standing.

Alistair raised an eyebrow up at me.

“You’ll have to learn the art of blending in.”

I laughed nervously, shuffling from foot to foot as I looked at the mess I’d made on the table.

“Can you let me borrow money?” I asked sheepishly. I could feel the blood I’d fed on rush to my face.

His eyebrow lifted and he pulled out a worn leather wallet. After rifling through it, he tossed a hundred on the tabletop. “Thanks.”

Alistair wasn’t so bad. I trailed a few feet behind him. With each step to the exit, thoughts pounded against my skull. Was this the right choice? Maybe I should go back to Crimson Manor? This would be my fresh start, but did I want that?

The glass door clanked shut, and I followed Alistair. He headed directly for the SUV parked along the curb.

I rubbed my eyes. I didn’t know what I wanted, but I was already down this path. At the very least, I could take a moment away from them . Their demanding presence—their overbearing tendency to steam-roll me.

I grimaced. That was what this boiled down to. I was hurt. And I wanted to do the same to them by taking myself out of their equation. And I knew that would hurt them because they cared for me.

Alistair opened the back door and waved me forward. I came to a screeching stop. Familiar leather seats. A knee moved and then Tobias came into view.

“Get in here, now, Catalina,” he hissed. Oh, he sounded pissed. My fangs extended and I clicked my teeth at him.

I whirled and now faced Asher with his eyebrows drawn down, eyes slitted and lips twisted. Turning to make another run for it in the opposite direction, didn’t work either. Ren sneered at me.

I was trapped.

That was why Alistair was so accommodating. And while he was at it, he was getting information out of me.

“You liar!” I whirled on him. “I take back all the positive things I thought about you.”

“They would have savaged my Coven with theirs. I couldn’t risk my people.” He winked. This duplicitous—I threw myself at him, hissing and yanking at his shirt, trying to reach his throat.

Arms banded against my stomach, and I was pulled away. I smacked at the arm and tossed an elbow back.

“Fuck,” Asher grunted in my ear.

“She’s spitting mad.” Ren sounded too happy. I stiffened and turned my glare toward him.

Ren lifted his hands, as if he were turning himself over. But that stupid godforsaken grin didn’t leave his face. Before I threw myself at him, I cinched my eyes closed. This was much more aggressive than I’d ever been. I didn’t like it, but my God, they brought it out of me. I went limp in Asher’s arms and when he softened, I pulled free, smacking his roaming hands away.

“Catalina,” Tobias snapped from the car, sounding more cross than I’d ever heard him. I clamped my mouth shut and glared at all of them with my arms crossed. “In the vehicle.”

“No,” I said stubbornly and began to walk.

“Pet,” Asher snapped. I yanked my arm away before he grabbed it.

Alistair watched with a smirk on his face. I took a beat, breathing in through my nose before I could remind myself not to. Sweet, sweet blood.

Blood flowed in their veins. The one they stole from others to keep alive, but there must be some chemical change when it goes into vampire bodies, because human blood wasn’t delicious like vampire blood. My body tensed to spring.

I gritted my teeth. I could do this. Stay still. Stay !

I flung myself at Alistair, the closest vampire. My fangs burned to sink into his throat. I bunched his jacket and hauled him down. His throat was right there .

Hands plucked me away from him. Thrashing, I managed to land a headbutt backwards. Whoever held me grunted. I flailed toward Alistair, but he was already feet away from me. I turned my attention to the arm around my belly. Shoving at it was useless.

“Ren, let me go!” He continued dragging me to the SUV parked at the curb.

“Shh, Pet, you’re calling too much attention to us.”

“Had she been trying to feed on me?” Alistair’s eyebrows raised.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Asher scoffed from somewhere behind me. I was too busy pushing against the edges of the car. My arms were spread, braced against the open door, while my feet braced against the bottom edge.

“In. Now,” Ren snarled in my ear. He swept my legs out from under me and shoved me in, face first. Tobias caught me before I face planted.

Ren swatted my ass. I yelped more from the shock than it hurting. Ren pushed his way in, making me crowd against Tobias who curled his arm around my torso.

“Don’t,” I bit out, pulling from his arms and plopping down on my butt with my arms crossed. Asher slipped into the passenger seat and turned to look over the middle console. “You’re not going to be able to keep me forever. I’ll fight you, and this time, I’ll hold my own.”

Silence as they all exchanged looks. Tobias sighed. He was likely listening to their thoughts.

“I’ll kill Peter if you try,” Ren said, so casually. Of course they would threaten Peter. That was how they got me to do what they wanted last time.

“I’ll kill myself,” I gritted my teeth, holding his gaze. He stiffened. “I’ll slide something right through my heart. Be nothing more than dust.”

No smugness in sight. I had him. I raised an eyebrow. “Stop threatening my brother.”

His lips thinned. A beat, then another passed.

“Fine,” he hissed.

“Fine,” I hissed back, my fangs popped out in the same breath.

Ren’s tense face relaxed, and he gripped the back of my neck, pulling me to his lips.

“You have no right being this sexy.”

I smacked my palm on his face and used it to push back from him. He gawked at me, but I only crossed my arms again.

“We need you,” Tobias murmured. I didn’t turn to look at him. Every time I did, I thought of Imogen.

“You seem fine without me.” The corner of my lips twitched. “Why don’t you go look after Imogen, if you need someone.” Tobias stiffened beside me.

“You are the one we want.” I slowly turned to look up at Ren. I forced myself to look unimpressed.

“Words. Words. Words. From you guys, it means nothing.”

Ren’s face slowly became red. He was going to blow, but I didn’t care.

“Please, Pet.” Asher’s eyes widened earnestly. “We need your help. Jax is unresponsive.”

“He’s deep in his mind. He thinks you’re dead,” Tobias interjected. “He’s suffering.” It was a slap to the face. My lip warbled, but I quickly stiffened it.

“He’s not my problem. None of you are my problem,” I ripped the words out from the hurt balled inside me.

I gritted my teeth.

“I’m going to fuck the tantrum out of?—”

“No,” Tobias cut off Ren.

Ren and I stayed glaring at each other. He bristled.

“We’re done forcing you, Catalina,” Tobias said it like he was pissed. I laughed.

“She’s fucking laughing now?” Ren snarled out.

Tobias shoved open the door and held it for me.

“What are you doing!” Asher shouted.

“We are not disrespecting her desires any longer.” I jumped out of the car. The sound of shuffling came from behind me, but I took another few steps.

“Please,” Asher croaked. I slowed. “Don’t leave us.” Another pause. “Don’t leave me.” The raw whisper reached deep into my chest.

I took another step away and clenched my hands. I could disappear. Leave them behind . . . I wanted to. Then why couldn’t I move my feet?

Their faces rifled before my closed eyelids. I didn’t doubt that they cared for me. It was never that. It was the kowtowing to Imogen. I slowly turned to look at them. Every inch of them strained. Ren steadily stared at me—waiting. Tobias had his back to me, his shoulders tight.

“I did wrong by you. By our Coven,” Tobias said. “I should have taken Imogen somewhere else as soon as she arrived.”

“You should have,” I managed to push from my tight throat. An ant crawled across the cement, a piece of food in its mandibles as it struggled up the incline.

“Do not blame everyone else for my mistake.” Tobias paused. “If you order me to, I will leave Crimson Coven.” I whipped my head toward him, but he still had his back to me, so, so stiff.

“You should have told me Sire’s can order their Progeny and force them to obey.”

“An oversight. I would apologize for that, but you will never be placed in such a situation again.”

“Have some sympathy for us. We have not navigated being a human or human emotions since we were one,” Ren said.

“Sympathy? That’s funny coming from you.”

Ren scowled and leaned against the car. Their please filled my head, mingling with guilt. Jax thought I was dead?

I sighed and slid into the backseat. Ren took a seat on my other side, forcibly scooting me to the middle seat. I tried to elbow him, but he dodged it. Asher clapped Tobias on the shoulder, and it jolted him to life. Asher went to the passenger side while Tobias slid into the driver seat. He pulled away from the curb.

“I left the car over there.” I pointed at the vehicle as we passed it.

“You wrecked the—” Asher cut himself off and groaned. His phone was already out, fingers flashing over it. “Talia will drop it off later.”

I shrugged.

“I’m staying on a trial basis.” They didn’t respond to that. I scooted to the left to get some space from Ren, but he was once again flushed to my side once I managed to get distance. “You need to apologize to me.”

“For what?” he grunted.

“Are you serious?” I scoffed. Asher’s head whipped back and forth as he followed our argument. “How about being a dick, throwing me around, almost draining me, burning my stuff ?”

“No, I don’t feel apologetic about burning down your house. It brought you closer to me.” What a twisted load of bullshit. He was always like this: unrepentant, demanding, casually cruel. The burn in my gums became unbearable. I lunged, sinking my teeth into his arm.

He hissed, but all that faded away as I sucked in a mouthful of the sweet blood. On the first swallow, the fire in my gums and belly abated. My knees perched on the edge of the seat, while I held his arm to my mouth. I’d moved so fast that I struggled to comprehend it.

There was no resistance from him. I dragged in another pull of blood. Nectar filled my mouth, and a moan hummed in my throat. Warmth flooded my system, settling in my belly. My eyelids lowered and I floated on a cloud of bliss. On my next swallow, I breathed in, taking in his scent.

Ren groaned, his palm settling on the back of my head to keep me to his arm. He didn’t need to force me into it. I wanted to drink my fill.

“What the fuck is this?” Ren croaked, and his hips shifted. “Being bitten shouldn’t feel like this.” His words were veiled behind a muffled curtain. I breathed again so I could taste him at full capacity. A throb pulsed through me. Heat flowed through my veins. Maddening lust. I pulled up, yanking my fangs from his arm. The wound continued to leak. I sank my fingers into his hair as I tossed my leg over him to straddle his waist.

I pressed myself so tightly against him that my front was flush to his and I struck again, sinking my fangs into his throat. The layer of skin gave under the sharp incisors with a satisfying pop . He jolted up, driving his hips up, so his cock ground against me with the layer of jeans between us. Blood flowed into my mouth. I settled on the bulge, my hands slid over his body, traveling between us.

I slipped my finger into the waistband of his jeans. With a quick jerk, I ripped the seam. His cock bobbed free, the wet tip grazing my hand. I wanted him in me. Now. I yanked at the hem of my pants and a rip traveled down the side. With a quick jerk, my bottom half was bare. Pulling free of his throat, I hoisted myself up to perch on his tip, staring down at his parted lips. His eyelids were lowered so much that I only saw a sliver of his brown eyes.

Ripping clothes was definitely simpler as a vampire. I hovered above him, his tip pulsating at my entrance. Blood trickled from his bite wounds, but I especially liked the one at his throat.

Their biting kink was really beginning to make sense. I was mesmerized by the blood slowly traveling down his neck. I licked my lips and leaned down to tongue the droplet before it bloomed into his shirt.

Ren hissed a breath out. He tasted so good, and I loved his sounds. His thighs tensed. Before he could beat me to it, I sank onto his shaft. He eased inside me. My channel fluttered around him, clasping onto him. I moaned and nuzzled my nose into his throat. I inhaled, savoring him, then sank my fangs in again. This time, much gentler. He grunted, jolting his hips upward to drive inside me.

A burst of blood filled my mouth, and I hummed, attached to his throat. I moved my hips in a gyrating grind on him while drinking him. He muttered nonsensically and it was music to my ears. Lust was a breathing, living thing inside me and he fed it so easily.

I slid my fingers into his hair, tugging at the strands and scratching my nails into his scalp as I gripped strands. I didn’t let up grinding on him. His cock filled me up, prodding at my cervix with each writhe. Ren jerked under me, the thrusts as uneven and frantic as mine. I drank more from him. Liquid spread on my tongue, and I drank every bit of it. I lapped my tongue against the bite wounds and Ren hissed.

He took hold of my hips and slammed me down. Again and again until the steady rhythm of our flesh meeting filled the car. Fire blazed through my sex and the growing sparks exploded. I cried out against his throat. My hips moved frantically. As if my body had a mind of its own. Ren shouted and his throat vibrated against my lips.

“Yes,” Ren hissed. He pounded into me so hard.

I cried out with each demanding thrust, and it threw me over the edge.

My channel gripped him greedily—draining him. His release warmed my core. He jutted his hips upward again, releasing more into me. I wound my arms around his head, riding out the wave of pleasure.

Bliss.

Orgasms were already phenomenal, but holy shit, this sensation wrecked me, like every nerve ending had been set aflame. Electrical pulses shocked my system. The sudden passionate swell abated, like the lull of the receding ocean.

I went limp in his arms. Ren petted my spine, running his hand from the top of my head down to the small of my back.

The burn had been satiated.

I wiggled on top of him. We were so wet. I pushed up and a gush of moisture dripped down the insides of my thighs.

“Clean me off,” he said gruffly. His hand wrapped around my neck and guided me down. My knees settled on the floor of the car and Ren spread his legs. His shaft glistened with our mingled need.

I wanted his cock in my mouth. Wrapping my hand around the thick base, I smoothed my hand over the steel shaft, gliding it up and down the wetness. The tip pulsed, red and straining. I leaned forward and ran my tongue across the little hole at the tip of the mushroom head.

His taste filled my mouth. The same sweet and salty taste mingled with another taste. Mine. I hummed with him in my mouth.

Ren groaned and I peeked up at him to see his face slack jawed as he stared down at me. His eyelashes pointed downward, so they seemed longer from this angle. Cleaning the rest of the liquid from his tip, my fang grazed against his shaft.

I shied away, but he forced my head back down.

“Bite me,” he ordered.

I widened my eyes up at him. That sounded like it would hurt.

“Bite m—” I angled my head slightly and sank my fang into the shaft. This time, there was no pop. His blood flooded my mouth, and I curled my hands into fists at his thighs. I sucked, drawing more blood into me.

He shouted, fisting my hair in his hands. I pulled up slightly, giving him a second. His chest moved in a harsh breath again.

There was a perk to blowjobs. I didn’t have to breathe anymore. I grinned.

“What’s with that evil grin?” Ren murmured, swiping his thumb across my lower lip.

“You taste good.”

“Insatiable, needy, Cat.” He blinked slower, then his head lolled.

“Ren!” I shouted, propping his neck before he tipped to the side. “Asher, what’s wrong with him?”

A hand settled on my shoulder, and I followed its guidance, until I crawled to the side. Asher leaned over the center console. He gripped Ren’s hair, forcing his head up.

“Be gentle,” I croaked. Had I killed him? Asher let Ren’s head go and he tipped to the side, forehead thumping on the window. Horror struck me. “I killed him!”

I clasped my face and tears had already begun to drip down my face. I shuddered on a gasp. “Why are you laughing?” I cried, shoving Asher’s shoulder so hard he pitched back. It only sent him deeper into a laughing fit. He managed to catch himself with a palm to the shoulder of the seat. “What have I done?” I cried, my hands hovering near my mouth.

“He’s not dead,” Tobias said, meeting my eyes in the rearview mirror. There was an odd tone in his voice.

I whirled on Asher who finally calmed enough to swipe the corner of his eyes.

“He needs to feed, Pet.” Another coughing laugh.

I sank my fangs into my wrist.

“What are you doing—no!” His shout came too late. I’d already shoved my leaking wrist to Ren’s mouth. Once my blood smeared against his lips, his throat worked. He swallowed and on the third, he clasped my wrist to him.

“Okaaay, nevermind,” Asher drawled.

“What?” My slowed heart lurched, but I kept my wrist up to Ren’s lips. “You guys need to stop with the cryptic stuff.”

Tobias’s hands flexed on the steering wheel.

“It’s not supposed to taste good,” he said.

My lips twisted. My confusion must have been plastered on my face, because Asher said, “Vampires do not feed on vampires.”

I blinked, struggling to wrap my head around Asher’s comment. “It’s seen a little like cannibalism.”

I gasped, jerking back so fast my back hit the door and pulled my wrist from Ren.

“You’re scaring her,” Tobias snapped and yanked Asher to sit down. “And stop popping your head up. I don’t want to get pulled over. It’s a waste of time.”

Ren stretched his neck side to side with a groan.

I settled in the seat beside Ren, watching him while I wrung my hands.