Page 18 (2/2)

"L’attrait is very powerful Most humans cannot resist it" He brushed the dark hair back from her face and lifted her to her feet "The more you deny yourself blood, the more you will need If you take too much, you will enrapture the mortal and become enthralled You will drain all the blood from the body and fall unconscious for many days The human will die beside you"

"This happens every time you use humans for blood" She spoke as if to herself rather than hi The pleasure The lust"

Lucan couldn’t understand why she sounded so disgusted "We are designed to be attractive to s them to us"

"No, I sahat you did You went and picked her out for hed bitterly "Like I couldn’t get my own"

"You will not allow yourself to hunt," he pointed out "I had to do so"

Furious eyes met his "Why her?"

"She seeered backward Over the sinks, thewith you?"

"Do you feed only on men?" she shouted

He used his hand to wipe the blood from his mouth "Not unless there are no healthy females for me to use, and what the bloody hell does it matter?"

She shoved him back "Do you have sex with them? These woht her by the wrists before she could punch hi as the bespelled, of course, but I a to be patient" One of the sinks behind her split in half and crashed to the floor "Is that it, ? Are you jealous?"

She leaned in close "Why didn’t you bring o and get me a man," she snarled "A cute one with a nice body I’ll do hi floor"

Thein the opposite wall shattered "I think you’ve had enough for one night"

"You were going to do ht I met you in the club" She wiped her ht sot so pissed when you couldn’t put s for you"

Another sink exploded "In the end, darling, it was your choice to coirl, if I was that fucked-up, how the hell could I choose anything?" She didn’t wait for him to answer, but quickly strode out

Chapter 8

Jessa hadn’t slept through the night in years, not since thethrough a tube and hearing the slow beeps ofequipment The fact that she knew she was unconscious, and not by choice, initially alarmed her, because she didn’t want to wake up in a hospital bed again But on some level deeper than consciousness or awareness, she knew she wasn’t injured, sick, or even in danger The frightening sensory overload froht had knocked her out, and her mind needed time to absorb the impact and recover

She didn’t dream, but she didn’t lose her sense of herself in oblivion, either That, she was sure, was because of the man She could feel hi for her He had caused this, but he was also watching over her There were moments when she could alainst her body For all she knew he could be doing anything to her, but she didn’t feel helpless or vulnerable, or even frightened

She couldn’t understand it--not after theswept away and buried alive in the suffocating cold slowly e him had caused it--why did he feel so warm and safe?

Gradually the darkness thinned around her, and her senses began to work again She felt a pleasant texture against her cheek and s covered ht and soft and luxurious She heard the tick of a clock and the trickle of water The only discoue soreness in her right arm

Her senses also told her that she was not honized She waited, listening for the sound of voices or the movements of bodies, and when she felt sure she was alone she opened her eyes a fraction

Solass shades She saw books, shelves, sht sat an old desk; her cheek pressed into a new pillow She felt the edge of carved wood under her palm None of it was familiar