9. CATALINA

NINE

catalina

“We get to bite you whenever we want,” Asher finally said. I opened my mouth, heart thundering in my ears. “Without killing you, of course.”

I blinked quickly. Well, it’s a good thing he mentioned not killing me . The sarcastic thought faded with thoughts of biting...

I shivered, stomach churning with discomfort and something I didn’t want to face.

“That’s a bit unreasonable,” Tobias lashed out.

“She’s skittish around us and that doesn’t exactly scream vampire-lover,” Asher drawled. “Pet. You’re jumpy and I don’t see you surviving around vampires long enough to get what we need if you don’t learn how to curb it. You have to act like you want to be around our kind, that you crave our bite.”

That wasn’t too far from the truth. I wetted my lower lip, trying to wrap my head around his words. It was true; vampires put me on edge—in too many ways, and what he insinuated was that I would be around many of them while doing whatever it was they had planned.

“Exposure therapy. What better way to make you relaxed than to bite you until you’re used to it?”

“He has a point,” Jax mused. Sounded like a load of bullshit to me.

Asher invaded in my space, and grazed his nose against my ear.

My mouth dried, eyes widening.

“See, Pet, you tighten up like a clam.”

“No,” Tobias snapped, shoving off the wood and stepping to my other side. The crippling effect vampires had on me was a detriment. If I managed to not tense or freeze up, and the vampire ever came after me, I might be able to slam a stake into his chest just as I’d seen Tobias do to the one that attacked him.

“Let’s leave it to a vote, then.”

“Asher—”

“What?” He blinked innocently. “I vote yes, Jax already voiced his thoughts. This is for Ren, so I’m sure he agrees. What was that?” He cupped his hand behind his ear. “Bastien is in agreement too which means you’re outvoted.”

So they decided on things by voting. As interesting as it was seeing their little interaction, I weighed the pros and cons internally. Yes, it would help my phobia, but it meant getting close and personal with them. Also, there was a Ren and a Bastien? I knew Ren was the one I was helping them find, but this was the first I’d heard of Bastien.

“But of course, none of that matters without you,” Asher purred, slipping his arms around me and peering down at me. I craned my neck to look into his eyes, offput by his touchiness.

“I-I don’t know ...” Anything vamp related freaked me out, but it had more to do with the fact that I’d loved when Tobias sank his teeth into my wrist and Asher bit my neck. I didn’t want to face the ugly truth of my addiction. I’d much rather just keep writing about it, thank you very much.

My morals were so screwed.

“Consider this just a training of sorts, a physiological test in effort to help you.” Asher pursed his lips, waiting.

There wasn’t a doubt in my mind he was doing this purely for selfish reasons and pure self-interest but it kind of made sense. Plus, if what they were going to have me do was be around a lot of vampires, the thought of freezing up surrounded scared the shit out of me.

“And what am I going to have to do?” My voice held an underlying tremble.

“Hm, just a little bit of this, a little bit of that. We’ll explain more later.” Asher flexed his hands against me. I was really doing this.

I nodded slowly . . . helplessly. I licked my lips, squeezing my nails into my palm.

“Then we have an agreement,” Asher announced, stepping away from me and clasping his hands in front of him. “I’ll order her some suitable clothing and shoes since the places she’s checking out have requirements.” He crossed his arms, rubbing his lower lip with his thumb.

“Jax, we’ll need you in a few days, she seems the most scared of you. I’ll introduce her to my bite today.”

I sucked in a breath. “Now? You want to get started this second?”

“Come around in a few hours, I favor hunting during the witching hour.” A shiver coasted down my spine. Asher clapped once, a grin on his lips. “I’ll start planning our fun.”

His palm pressed into my back and he nudged me. I mechanically left the kitchen and my movements almost hurt with how stiff they were.

Tobias followed me to the door. The hollow thump of my steps echoed with each beat of my heart.

“Are you sure about this?” There seemed to be genuine concern inflecting his tone.

“No.” But I didn’t have much of a choice.

As I climbed the steps, I side-eyed the crow perched a-top a windowsill. Everything about this place screamed spooky. I rubbed my arms. This was it, there was no turning back. I’d wallowed in bed, wracking my brain for the couple of hours before coming back, but no matter what way I tried to think of it, I was in this, so I’d dressed in a simple green sundress exposing my neck. Hopefully, with a willing participant, he’d be a clean eater because getting blood out of clothes was close to impossible. My stomach lurched and I pressed my hand over the bulge of my inhaler in my dress pocket. The door swung open as soon as I stepped forward.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Pet.”

A chill swept over my arms, lifting goose bumps as I stepped inside, my dress fluttering around my ankles. It felt empty in here. It was odd.

“Is anyone else here?”

Asher hooked his arm around my waist and the door creaked shut.

“They went to fetch blood and talk to someone that may have information on Ren.” Again, mention of Ren. They seemed especially concerned by his absence. I tapped my fingers against my thigh in a quick rhythm.

“So what are we doing?” I slipped out of his grip, moving toward the black leather couch. I hoisted myself onto the cushion and plopped down.

My feet hung from the couch and I frowned down at the space between my flat ballerina shoes and the floor. They must have been custom made to fit these vampire giants.

Asher’s gaze weighed heavily on my face, and I sank my teeth into my lower lip. His blue eyes swirled, heat in their depths.

“Do you have your inhaler?” I dropped my chin. “Be sure you have quick access to it.”

Okay, that put me on edge. What games were going down today? “You’re making me nervous.” His teeth flashed with a grin. God, this was not going to be good.

“I thought we could start out with a little round of hide and seek.” His lips tipped up. “I want to see how much you can stifle that fear of yours. If you keep your fear in line, I won’t be able to find you. But if I sense you.” His fingers grazed my throat. I flinched and his smile widened. “I get a treat.”

“I-I don’t know if this is the smartest course of action.” I cleared my throat. So, he would basically hunt me down, and I had to go hide somewhere and try not to fear him finding me? Yeah, it sounded impossible. A game he expected, no, wanted me to fail.

“Would you like to back out?” He tilted his head, and I wet my lips.

“Don’t act like I have a choice,” I croaked.

Asher grinned again and placed his hands at his knees as he bent near my face. His nose hovered over mine and his sweet scent wafted to me. I cleared my throat again and wiggled into the couch. He shouldn’t smell so good.

“Your fear makes my mouth water.” I sucked in a breath, spine straightening. I backed up, cringing into the couch, but he followed, pressing the tip of his upturned nose into mine. “Vampires sense things in many ways.” His nose caressed my cheek. “The quickening of your heart rate is a dead giveaway.”

“Y-you can hear my heart race?”

The corner of his lips twitched. “More like I see it pounding in your throat . . . we are very attuned to blood, and the scent racing through your veins emphasizes with your racing heart . . . with your fright.”

He dropped to his knees and was still taller than me in this position.

“Human bodies have an immediate reaction to fear, and oftentimes, many can’t distinguish the difference with other urges. Like when you’re wet and needy.” He purred and the low pulse of my clit throbbed in answer. I squeezed my legs together, not wanting him to sense that . His eyes widened, drawing his head back in a jerk. Asher’s eyes slitted and he breathed in deep, hands flexing into the cushion of the couch, corralling me with his arms. A groan slipped free from his lips.

My face must be as red as a fire engine. I wanted to plead and beg that he wasn’t sensing my lust toward him, but I very much doubted he’d believe a word I said. Part of my brain railed at me, telling me how wrong it was for me to be excited, but the other part didn’t give two shits. He was hot, no, he was damn sexy. Every flirtatious touch, smirk, and expression was meant for seduction.

“To some, your reactions could simply seem like fear.” He grinned so wide I could see, the thankfully retracted, incisors.

I swallowed hard.

“So you only scent things when I’m turned on or scared?”

“ Mmhmm ,” he rasped, fingers diving into the couch near my thighs. He shook his head hard and backed up, leaning on his fists.

“When hunting, the primitive side of a vampire takes over and it’s difficult to pull out of that mainframe.”

“And is this what hide-and-seek will be? Hunting me?” It didn’t seem the brightest, especially since we were alone.

“It’s not an issue for me. I’ve never lost control.” He waved his hand in the air as if physically brushing my worries away. “You will not die today.” I blinked at him. He spoke about killing so callously, and I took a moment to soak that in. It was a hint at his inhuman nature, and I didn’t like it, but there was no turning back. I’d made a decision and I could only stick to it.

“Okay,” I said, nodding slowly as I slid off the couch to land on my feet. “I’ll hide, but no using vampire speed.” He tilted his head eerily. A fear-riddled shiver ran down my neck.

“You have thirty seconds.”

Shit. I quickened my pace, jogging around the corner of the entrance. I chewed on my lip, debating which direction to go.