• 𝓜𝓪𝓮 •

I stared down at my food, watching as the steam slowly faded away as it cooled. I wasn't hungry. Honestly, all I wanted to do was go back to my room, push that dresser in front of my door, and allow myself to waste away. It was the only choice I actually had the freedom to make in this fucked up world.

I thought my escape was perfect. A little terrifying, but perfectly executed. I left when no vampires were out, hidden by the cover of darkness. Besides that one woman who saw me, no one even noticed me. I ran for my life to those trees and beyond, and thought Tati was a godsend. Someone who happened to come across me on her way to gather supplies for the people at her campsite. Someone who would eventually let me in as well.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that everything fell into place too easily. Too quickly. Why hadn't I questioned how she found me? Maybe the relief that there were more people like me overrode whatever common sense I had in those moments.

It made sense now. It was so obvious. And I hated it and myself for allowing myself to believe it.

I should have felt somewhat grateful towards Kite for coming to get me before I walked into whatever hell awaited me in West District. I should have thanked him for saving me, even if it wasn't what I wanted, because I was brought back into the lesser of two evils.

"You need to eat," Luca said, his voice tearing my attention away from my food.

I almost forgot he was there.

He motioned towards my plate. "Especially since you allowed Noah to feed from you. There's protein and-"

"Stop pretending you give a shit," I said. "All you bloodsuckers just want a healthy meal walking around at all times."

He blinked. "That's not the case at all."

"No?" I sat back. "Then what do you want from me, Luca? You came back from the dead, show up out of nowhere, and expect me to believe you want something more from me than just my blood?"

He tilted his head. "Do you honestly want to know?"

I scoffed. "Enlighten me."

"At first," he leaned forward and rested his tattooed forearms on the table, "when I first saw you in the woods, yes, I wanted to know what you tasted like. What it would be like to have your flavor on my tongue. But now I want to know what you feel like."

My eyebrows drew together. "What I...feel like?"

He nodded. "What your skin would feel like against mine. How my cock would feel in your mouth or buried in your pussy."

I cringed. I was no prude - just look at the books I read - I'd just never had someone speak to me in that way. There had been attempts, all of which failed miserably because either it didn't suit the person speaking the words, or they were so awkward about it that I couldn't help but laugh.

Luca did it so effortlessly that it struck every part of me in the worst, and best, ways. And fuck I hated it.

He smiled. "And the hatred you have of me is so fucking sexy to me. I think we'd have amazing chemistry, at least inside of the bedroom. Outside, you could pretend you didn't love the feel of my dick inside of you."

"You're disgusting," I hissed, even though his words made me cross my legs involuntarily.

It didn't go unnoticed.

His eyelids lowered and that smile became a lazy smirk. "Say what you want, princess, but I can see what I do to you. And you fucking hate it. You absolutely loathe your visceral reaction to me because of what I am. But, baby..."

He leaned in closer, his eyes trailing down to my chest and back up slowly, his gaze leaving heat in its wake. The next words he spoke came out as a whisper. A promise.

A threat.

"You'll give in," he said. "And you'll be such a good girl for me."

I stood, pushing back away from the table so quickly that my chair clattered to the ground. It didn't surprise Luca in the least. He just looked up at me through his lashes, that smirk still in place.

My cheeks were on fire as I turned and practically ran from the dining room.

His words shouldn't have affected me the way that they did. Not after everything. Not after the way I felt walking into the dining room with him after finding everything out about West District and Tati. And especially because of what he was.

I didn't need someone to make sure I went back to my room. I went straight in and slammed the door before I realized what I was doing. I slid down the wood until I was seated on the carpet, my eyes wide and my breaths heaving in my chest.

"Oh, my God." I covered my face with my hands.

There was no fucking way. First Noah, now Luca? Noah had brought him up, but I didn't think anything of it.

Noah and Luca were so different, even before they were vampires. Noah was always the caring and gentle boy whereas Luca had always had a strange sort of darkness in him. What I felt towards Luca wasn't an "I can fix him" type of attraction. It never had been.

I slid my hands down my face and stared at the open window, trying and failing to forget the way he looked at me as I left. Like my reaction was just what he wanted.

I stood and locked my door - a lot of good that did me since the people I was hiding from had a damn key, but it made me feel better. My eyes found the pile of books that Luca had brought me, sitting innocently on my nightstand.

The books with two or more men sharing a woman.

The books that happened to be brought to me once Noah had said something about him and Luca being with me.

I turned and glared at the door.

Those sons of bitches.