Page 5 of Crimson Shifter
A mixture of anger and shame sliced through my veins, causing me to feel like I might lose the contents of my stomach at any moment. Or it could be the fact that Talon put me on my ass no less than twelve times thanks to the motherfucker stating the count every time he bested me.
Which was every single time.
“I endured rigorous training,” I said, hating the way my voice sounded a couple of octaves weaker in reference to this admission. “It just wasn’t the kind of training you’re referring to.” I held his gaze, noting the slight shift in his eyes, the smallest softening around the edges as he studied me.
A flash of pity colored his features, and my fangs punched out.
“You are not here to pity me, hunter,” I snapped.
“No, I’m here to make sure you stay alive,” he said, stepping closer to me, his eyes on my fangs. “Right until the moment I have to kill you.”
I narrowed my gaze up at him, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’ll give you no satisfaction,” I said. “So you might as well putthatlittle fantasy to rest. I have no intention of betraying my king.”
“Oh, I have quite a few fantasies when it comes to you, little viper. You may have everyone else fooled, but I've known my fair share of nobles like you. When push comes to shove, you'll always choose your own skin and your own blood over anyone else.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “And what makes you so different? You’d die for your hunter brothers. What makes you think I wouldn't do that for my own brother?”
“Which one?” he fired back, and I felt his words like a physical blow.
It wasn't like I didn't deserve a fair amount of shit for the suffering I’d caused, but I had done my damnedest to earn back the respect of my king and his mate and anyone else who had given me a fuckingchance.
It seemed like Talon would never fall into that category.
Just as well. It was safer for him—and everyone, honestly—to remain a healthy distance away from me and my Zorin name.And besides, we were as likely to kill each other as we were to work together.
“I can't believe you don't know how to fight,” he said, shaking his head.
If I didn't know any better, I’d say he looked concerned. Probably because he knew if shit reallydidhit the fan at my family’s estate, he’d need somebody he could count on to back him up.
A deep, old rage flared inside me, a familiar burn that’d been there since I came of age. Since I was old enough and smart enough to realize that I was being purposely kept at a disadvantage by my family. I wasn't allowed to train like my brothers because I was only meant for one thing: breeding.
“I was trained in seduction,” I said. “Charm. Courtly ways.” I shook my head. “Does it really matter if I can’t defend myself?” I asked, instead of lamenting my dislike of this situation. Him trying to train me didn’t have anything to do with bonding over our shared annoyance with my current fighting abilities. “If anything truly awful happens, can't you just shift into a horse and gallop us out of there?”
Talon looked down at me with incredulity. “You seem preoccupied with the idea of riding me. If you're that desperate for a release, I'd be happy to let you mount me?—”
I slapped him so hard his head snapped to the left. So hard my hand stung.
A wave of triumph washed through me, power soaring through me atfinallylanding one hit?—
My spine cracked against the mat again, the fucking hunter moving so quickly I hadn't been able toblinkbefore his hand was around my throat.
“That was good,” he said, his voice rough and raw, as if all those hunter instincts had perked up at the hit. “Usingdistraction can be a useful tool, especially when you're at as big of a disadvantage as you are.”
My hands flew to his muscled forearm, trying to dislodge his hand from my throat where he held me, but did not squeeze. All it would take was one thought from him, one quick grip of his fingers, and I'd be a goner.
His arm didn't budge, and I tried moving my body, but he was above me, his muscular thigh shoved between mine, pinning me and rendering me helpless.
His smile shifted from prideful and cocky to downright mischievous as he glanced down between us. “Keep wiggling like that and we're going to have a much different training session.”
“Keep fucking dreaming, shifter,” I snapped, although his voice and his intentions had washed over me like a warm waterfall.
I desperately tried to stop the way my body reacted to his, but it was impossible.
It’dbeenimpossible since the moment the annoying male had walked into this residence and made my life a living hell. Not only haunting my waking hours, but my dreams as well. Dreams of him in positions not quite unlike the one we were in now, but with a lot less clothing.
The memory of one such dream flashed through my body, and I cursed myself for how long it had been since I’d chosen a partner to help me ease the need now pulsing between my thighs. A need that for some reason only cropped up around one of the most infuriating and annoying vampires I'd ever met. One who hated me with a vengeance, no less.
Talon’s nostrils flared a fraction, and I didn't even have it in me to feel shame at what he was no doubt scenting on me.