Yew Queen Trilogy, стр. 29
The buzzing of my magic faded. I took a deep breath and let go of him, desperate to feel in control of my own damn body again. I hated this need I felt.
Kaippa got to his feet and tugged his sleeves down at the wrists. “It’ll take three days to bring forth the book.” He looked up. “Lucus.”
I frowned, wondering why he had said his name. “Three days. I can go back to my bakery and my life for a little while, hmm?” Oh, how I wanted to hear a simple Yes.
A vine reached toward Lucus, and he plucked one of its leaves. With careful movements, he wrapped my cut palm. The cooling relief was immediate.
“Coren, you may return to your life,” he said, “and we won’t lure you back for three days. On one condition.”
“Spit it out. I’m losing daylight here.”
“You must allow me to feed on your aura.”
“Oh, nice. Aurelio is the one who seems like he’s starving. And how does that help Kaippa?”
“She cares.” Kaippa put his hands over his heart and grinned like a psychopath.
“Don’t get excited, pal. I’m just trying to figure this shit out.”
Lucus’s face darkened. “You know better by now not to question my love for my brothers. I have the most control of us all, and therefore, the best chance of keeping you alive. And withstanding the sudden rush of your powerful aura. And as an alpha, I can give some of your aura energy to the trees in the courtyard. My brothers can feed off the trees’ energy, and Kaippa can feed on the sap.”
“I remember you saying you could eat the trees or whatever, but why do you even bother with humans if you can do that?”
“They don’t hold enough energy to sustain us properly,” Lucus said. “Not without a fae feeding energy into them.”
“It’s a deal.”
“No.” Kaippa raised his chin. “I demand the equivalent of one vial of blood. Real blood. I haven’t had any since our second appearance. I’m already losing my eyesight. I am desperate, and you know where desperation leads, Lucus.”
Lucus stared at the floor, his body vibrating with anger or frustration—maybe both. I wasn’t sure whether it stemmed from his basic hatred of Kaippa and vampires as a whole or if this tightly leashed rage of his had something to do with Kaippa and me.
“Coren, do you agree to Kaippa’s request and to allow me to access your aura?” Lucus’s words came out like punches, quick and furious.
I swallowed, my mind whirling around a thousand possible problems with this, the biggest being death, but I had to get back to Hekla, to the bakery, to life. I wanted to enjoy a few days, plot without these immortals breathing down my neck, and say goodbye to Hekla just in case this whole thing went south, which it most likely would.
I gritted my teeth and said a prayer to the universe at large. “Agreed.”
Chapter 20
My stomach did a not fun cartwheel. “I’m guessing you can’t use the palm slice I already opened up?” I waved my leaf-wrapped hand.
“That wouldn’t be pleasant for you.” Kaippa glanced at Lucus. “If I take you by the neck, my venom will numb the area.”
“You’ll feel much like you are under a lure,” Lucus bit out.
“Well, that sounds slightly less horrifying.” I turned to Lucus. “And you’ll stay here just in case he gets greedy, right?”
Lucus nodded but moved back a step as Kaippa came closer.
“Before we get down to business here, I have a question.” I felt like an idiot, but I had to ask. Aunt Viv hadn’t covered everything. Not even close. “I’m not, like, going to become a vampire at some point after this feeding thing, am I?”
Lucus shook his head. “You would have to drink the blood yourself.”
Shuddering, I held up a hand. “Okay. Not a problem.”
Kaippa locked gazes with me, his slightly canted eyes stirring the raw female inside me, the one that tended to urge me off cliffs into wild waters. “You shouldn’t decide against activities you have yet to experience, Coren.”
“No one’s perfect.”
I pulled my collar farther from my neck. Might as well get this over with. My heart was a jackhammer between my ribs as I tipped my head to give Kaippa access.
He took me in his arms like a lover, and I stiffened, really wanting to jam a knee into his groin. Kaippa winked, then his mouth was on my throat. There was a jarring pinch, but then a tingling sensation replaced the pain, and my muscles relaxed. The tingling spread down my chest, and my nipples pebbled inside my lacy bra.
Lucus’s gaze slid over me, and he took one deep, hitching breath. Kaippa’s lips moved along my skin, but I could barely feel them. I could totally feel his hands curling into my shirt and his lean body against mine. I never would’ve said I could be attracted to a guy like this, but here I was, swooning like hell in his vampy arms. With every pull from Kaippa’s mouth, a surge of desire plunged through me. The room began to spin.
Lucus stepped forward and gripped the back of Kaippa’s neck. “Enough.”
The vampire snarled, his teeth grazing my partially numbed skin.
“Kaippa.” Lucus’s tone was sharp as knives.
Relenting, Kaippa licked my neck, then backed away as he wiped his red lips with the back of his hand. I blinked at his transformation. He looked like he’d gained ten pounds of muscle. His hair and eyelashes had thickened, making him look like a guy just out of high school instead of a