I RACE DOWN THE STREET, ducking and weaving through traffic and parked cars like a crazy person. Shouts of protest follow me as I barge not-so-gently into anyone who gets in my way. Adrenaline courses through my body, fuelling me to move faster than I thought I was capable of. I have no idea where Alex ended up. We both sprinted in different directions. I’m not sure if that was the best decision or a stupid one. Either way, I’m now at the mercy of a hunting vampire with no one around to support me. I briefly wonder if he has made it to the car, or if Cas has tracked him down. My heartbeat is deafening in my ears as I launch myself down the alley alongside a club. The door is propped open by a brick and an employee sits on the ground, a cigarette in one hand, and his phone in the other. He’s so focused on his phone that he doesn’t see me slip past him and through the door. I run down the hallway, the music thumping so loud the ground vibrates beneath my feet.
As a figure appears at the end of the hallway, I skid to a stop, and my heart plummets into my stomach when Hunter steps out of the shadow. His dark, menacing tattoos appear all the more so in the dim lighting. He tilts his head, a predatorial smirk inching across those perfect lips.
I step back. His sharp eyes track my movements.
‘Catch me if you can,’ I breathe, smiling despite the fear coursing through me. It’s not real fear – I don’t think – but it’s hard to distinguish since my heartbeat is pulsing madly in my chest to the point it is painful.
Hunter bares his fangs at me. A warmth spreads through the pit of my stomach as I gaze at them longingly, loving how they feel when they’re plunged inside my throat.
I wonder how they would feel in other places . . .
Hunter is standing unnaturally still as his cunning eyes assess me closely.
‘Run, legata una. I am coming for you.’
His words break my trance, and I turn and dart through a door. I’m suddenly faced with a throng of people congregating on the dance floor, and I take a moment to try and see a way through them. Knowing I barely have seconds, I shoot forward, throwing myself into the centre of the crowded dance floor. Sweaty bodies bump and grind together, gyrating and thrusting to the sensual beat playing from the DJ at the front of the dance floor.
Turning, I scan the room, quickly finding Hunter as he drifts along the edge of the dance floor, smirking.
Hunter draws nearer, slipping between bodies as if he is gliding through the air. I back up slowly and steadily, trying to find the easiest way to get back out onto the street. A girl whoops loudly, flinging her bra at the DJ. Hunter’s eyes quickly follow the movement and I take it as my chance to flee. Ducking as best I can, I rush toward the closest door, and shove through it, hoping it leads to the alley. The door bangs shut behind me and I swallow greedy gulps of untainted air. I peer around me, quickly realising I have just made a mistake that would have cost me my life if this was a real hunt.
Instead of ending up somewhere that will lead me back to the safety of the public, I have somehow detoured to an empty corridor, filled with bright signs reading, ‘fire exit, use this door’.
‘Shit,’ I curse, spinning around and jiggling the handle.
‘In case of an emergency, this door must remain locked.’
Growling, I shove at the door hopelessly, trying to get it to unlock. When it doesn’t give, I kick at it angrily. I turn around, taking off at a jog, and head down the hallway, seeing various fire exit doors that are all locked.
A blur of motion hurtles past before stopping in front of me. I shriek, and trip over my own feet in my hurry to backpedal. Before I know what’s happening, Hunter sweeps me into his arms, and slams me against the wall. I gasp, and he grins wickedly as his fangs slide out, giving me barely a second to prepare before he bites savagely into my neck. I scream again, but it morphs quickly into a moan. The adrenaline surges through my body like a tsunami as I cling to him, sliding my fingers through his hair. His hands roam over me, gripping and grabbing me in places I have dreamt of him touching. He palms my ass, and I love how tightly he holds me against him. As he continues to suck on my neck, I trail my fingers down his hard stomach, slipping them underneath his waistband.
‘I want to touch you,’ I plead.
He moans, grinding hard against me. ‘We can’t.’
‘Hunter,’ I whisper. ‘I want you.’ Brushing my fingertips over his skin, I lean closer. ‘I need you.’
Hunter breathes hard, and I can feel that we’re both rapidly losing the battle over our self-control as the adrenaline from the hunt and his feeding overwhelms us. Ignoring his feeble protests, I push my fingers further into his pants and circle them around his thick length. I feel like all the air escapes my lungs at the feel of it. Yanking his pants down, he growls as he withdraws his fangs and pushes his lips to mine as I pump my hand along his length.
Sinking to my knees, I look up at him, his dark eyes connect with mine, mirroring the desire I feel as I wrap my lips around him. Hissing, his hips meet my movements, making me feel all kinds of hot as his heavy breathing fills my ears, drowning out any other sound around us. I don’t stop until I gag and my eyes prickle with tears, and I reel back, gasping for air. Hunter lifts me up and slams his mouth against mine possessively. In one fluid movement, Hunter tears the top of my dress, ripping the material straight down the centre, including my lacey bra underneath. My breasts spill forth, bouncing for a moment before he captures my nipple between his lips. He sucks it, running his rough tongue across it. Arching my back, I whimper, reaching down to his length, moving it at a furious pace. His fangs slide into the tender swell of my breast, and my core throbs from the feel of it. I’m so caught up in the feeling of his mouth, I forget that my hand is moving like crazy over him. Warm liquid spills across my hand and he lets out a roar against my skin as he comes. Both of us are almost out of breath as he continues to bite. I close my eyes, throwing my head back as I bring my hand to my mouth. Hunter retracts his fangs, watching me intently as I lick off his release, loving the taste of him on my tongue.
Hunter makes a deep sound at the back of his throat, hoisting me up high. I let out a cry, my eyes flying open. I barely have time to reach for the railing above me. I grip it tightly, as he throws my legs over his shoulders. I hold myself up as he tears the underwear from my body, opening my legs, and diving between my thighs. Feeling his tongue lick straight down the centre of me, I yelp as he buries his face into me. I wrap my legs around his neck, already quivering, knowing my own release is only moments away. His tongue ravishes against my swollen clit at an inhumane speed. I come undone with a scream, feeling the spurts of my desire leave me. He swallows it up shamelessly, his face now coated in a sheath of wetness. Completely spent, my grip on the rafter above me loosens and I collapse into his arms. He cradles me against his chest as the last of my energy evaporates from my body. My dress is in tatters around me, exposing every part of my body to him. He sinks to the ground, holding me in his lap.
‘I’m so glad we can do these other things,’ I whisper.
Hunter chuckles and softly kisses my forehead, then my nose, before lingering on my mouth. He pricks the pad of his fingertip with his fang and smears it over my lips. I lick it, feeling the energy from him rush into my body, like a light that was on the verge of blowing out, suddenly burning at full brightness.
‘How am I going to get out of here?’ I laugh, looking down at the strips of fabric around my feet. The only part of my outfit still intact are my high heels. Hunter gently places me on the ground beside him before he gets up and collects my things. Indents from the heels of my shoes are visible on his back, but they clear up before my eyes.
‘I’ll go steal something,’ he says.
‘What?’ I exclaim.
‘Be right back.’
After a few moments, he appears with a leather mini skirt and a crop top. He dresses me quickly. The shirt slips off my shoulder and he adjusts it.
‘Might be a little big,’ he says.
‘I’m not even going to ask how the hell you got these.’
‘That’s probably best,’ he agrees.
‘Well. I lost the game,’ I say as we walk back to the corridor, the pulse of the music still humming through the walls. I feel like I’ve just woken up from an epic massage followed by the most amazing night’s sleep.
‘Didn’t seem so bad losing, did it?’
Smirking, I glance at him. ‘Certainly not.’