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"They r shuddered It didn’t et the vampire who had held hiyptian royalty before being turned, and she had retained all the proud beauty of her ancestors The dark almond-shaped eyes, the smoothly burnished skin, the sleek black hair that had flowed like a curtain of satin down her slender back

Ah, yes, she had been lovely

And as poisonous as an asp

She e, but she had kept him out of a twisted, obsessive need to inflict pain He hadn’t been her only victim in her private pits of hell

"The vampire who turned htered a dozen va her ht that he had dealt Kesi a painful blow, even if he couldn’t re the raid"

"I’m surprised they didn’t just kill you Why make you a vampire?"

"Obviously you ile to survive more than the vanilla brand of torture To be truly creative, you need a creature that can endure pain And, of course, there’s always the bonus ofme immortal, so my punishment could last an eternity"

"Dear God" She sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes shi with tears "How did you escape?"

The memory of blood-soaked tunnels filled with vampires and demons he’d ripped apart with his bare hands ashed away by the glitter of tears trickling down her cheeks

Ber cupped her face in his hands and wiped the dampness with his thu with soer

"All of them?"

"Yes"

"Good"

His lips twitched "They weren’t nearly so pleased"

A silence descended as Regan studied hir didn’t flinch He’d always feared that confessing the truth would make him feel vulnerable, exposed Instead, he felt…cleansed

Perhaps it was Regan’s sweet tears that washed away a portion of the bitterness that festered in his soul

At last, she sucked in a deep breath "I’m sorry"

"Why? It wasn’t your fault"

"I meant I’m sorry that I didn’t believe you when you said you understood You do" Her lips curved in a watery smile "More than anyone"

"Yes"

"And that’s why you haven’t forced r hid his flare of wry amusement If she wanted to believe that was the only reason he hadn’t tossed her over his shoulder and hauled her to Chicago, then so be it

"The thirst for revenge is a powerful force," he agreed "Nothing will keep you in Chicago while Culligan lives I would just have to co?" The ely, she lifted a hand to lightly trace one of the scars that marred his skin "Do you think I’ temptation of her touch By the fires of hell, as she doing? Even a coendary control wasn’t so legendary Not when it caan," he warned softly

Deliberately she followed his retreat, her hand once again boldly stroking over his chest

"What?"

He grasped her wrist, his fangs lengthening as scalding pleasure poured through hi her wrist frorip Instead, she simply lifted her free hand and continued to torers

"Why did you show r shivered, his body swiftly going up in flaa his warning as she stepped close enough to wrap hiht jasmine

"Did you think they would botherforward, she trailed her lips over a thick scar "The fact that you were forced to endure such pain for so long"

Jagr’s fingers loosened on her wrist, his thu the rapid beat of her pulse Fine Obviously she wanted to play Already he could catch the scent of her arousal perfu the air

Who was he to be the voice of reason?