Page 8 of Taste Me

Right now, rejection seems to be the last thing on this male’s mind as he appreciates every line and curve of my body, making me feel immediately vulnerable and naked even though I’m clothed.

Well, sort of clothed.

I’m wearing my dress from my date, one that Ayla picked out for me, and I gravely regret wearing it. It’s too tight, too revealing, and too short.

All things this mercenary appears to appreciate as he tilts his head, seeming to admire every slice of skin available to his view.

Snapping my fingers at him, he manages to look up.

If he keeps looking at me like he’s going to eat me, I might just let him, and I can’t have that.

Because when I felt his hand on my skin, it felt like Daithi’s.

The repulsion of his memory makes me shiver.

But the sensation of Daithi’s magic is diminishing as if it’s simply a strange echo on this male, suggesting that it might wear off if I give it time.

Perhaps it’s only temporary—Daithi’s magic tried to find me, but it can’t sustain itself forever.

Stop trying to rationalize sleeping with him,I chide myself.

“Sorry,” he whispers, practically purring his words. “It seems that I have this overwhelming desire to taste you and I’m trying to understand why I haven’t yet.” He grins once more, this time not hiding his interest intasting meas his fangs appear again. “Do you feel it, too?”

I give him one more glare for good measure—as if to say,Absolutely not, even when my body is saying,Absolutely yes—and then hurry to my bedroom to find my emergency phone powered by magic before I do something stupid.

Ayla is off tracking down a lead for a project the Dukes of Lapland gave us, so I can’t ask her for advice. But she gave me a number to call in the event that I need to talk to the dukes without her.

It isn’t a number I ever intended to use, but the safest way to deal with this situation is to treat this male like a rogue mercenary.

He appeared out of nowhere, killed a bookkeeper, and ruined my flowerbed.

I’m just the queen’s sister trying to live a quiet life, an insignificant mute witch with a penchant for languages.

Yes, I like this plan,I decide.

Giving the mercenary to the dukes would eventually get back to my sister, but it would buy me the time I’d need to do some research.

I could get some blood from him once he’s in lockup and—

Why not explore this connection before you push it away?my mind interrupts.You don’t have to sleep with him. You could just have a taste. Surely he’d give you a little blood if you simply asked.

I don’t like that train of thought. It’s one planted by fate itself and it knows how to speak to my innermost desires.

I’ve lived a life of solitude—by design, not by choice.

And this male is making me feel things I’ve never felt before.

As always, I override emotion with logic. I prefer books, knowledge, and facts to whims of the heart.

Or whims of alluring magic, as it were.

Fact number 1: My fated mate is a skilled killer.

Fact number 2: He has Daithi’s magic on him.

Fact number 3: Daithi O’Neely tried to use me and I killed him for it.

Logical conclusion: Daithi’s magic has found a way to repay the favor.