I’d done a lot of stupid things in my life for money, but agreeing to go to a vampire club took the cake as the stupidest.

Basically this could go one of two ways—I’d regret it tremendously or it’d be the time of my life that I took to my grave. As long as this didn’t put me in my grave. That was up for debate.

“I wish they’d hurry up already.” Cassie rubbed her bare arms against the chill as we waited at the head of the darkened alley.

I raised my eyebrows at her. “I’m sorry, do you want to tell the vampires that that they need to adhere to Cassie Time because you forgot a damn coat?”

She rolled her eyes at me. “I didn’t bother. Javier said it’s hot as hell in the club.”

Right, I figured free-flowing blood and orgies had a way of heating up a room. When Cassie pursed her lips at me, I realized I’d said that out loud. Ooops.

I shifted my weight from foot to foot to take pressure off these stupid heels I was wearing. They were bright red with silver spikes and sexy as hell—but they pinched my toes. Drawing attention to myself in Mission City was on my never ever do list, and these shoes—along with my skin-tight jeans, and black corset peeking from beneath my leather jacket—would draw all kinds of attention. I wasn’t sure why I was wearing this, but the dress code for humans to get into Bite was sex. Seriously that was the message—dress like sex. I didn’t think a giant dick was a proper costume, so here I stood with my tits out in a bad part of Mission, hoping like hell some vampire arrived soon to take me underground, where I’d give up my blood for money.

My life was insane.

A week ago, I’d been living in blissful ignorance that vampires only existed in books and movies. I had no idea that in old subway tunnels beneath these streets was a community of vampires. They kept their existence a secret, but were more than happy to pay humans if we showed them a vein. The only reason Cassie and I got an invite to Bite was because Javier—a hookup of Cassie’s—was a recruiter for them. He’d been clear—tell anyone about the club and there would be swift consequences. I’d asked what they were, and Javier had just stared hard at me. So naturally I took that to mean the consequences were torture and dismemberment not unlike the end of Braveheart.

For once, I was going to keep my mouth shut, because I needed that money. My dad had never been around, and my mom passed away years ago, so it was up to me to keep food on the table for myself and my younger brother. I’d spent the last month working four ten-hour waitress shifts in a row at the diner, so I was happy to do literally anything else for cash. The blood trade apparently paid great, so when Javier told us about Bite, I jumped at the chance. Why not? As for Cassie, she bussed tables as a cocktail waitress at a topless bar and was about done getting her ass grabbed without her permission.

I’d even done my hair, which was a first in…who knew how long. I hadn’t had a haircut in probably a year, and the ends of my dark brown hair brushed the top of my ass. I’d straightened it and let it down. Even Cassie was surprised not to see it in its ever-present knot.

A loud crack sounded out on the street, and Cassie and I jumped. Fuck, I hated this city sometimes. That could have been anything from a car backfiring, to fireworks, to a gunshot. There weren’t really any good parts of Mission. The city had long ago fallen into poverty after the steel mill went out of business. But where we stood? The worst of the worst.

“Shit, are you sure this is legit?” I asked. I was half convinced this was just going to be a bunch of weirdos who thought they were vampires. Which, you know, hey whatever floated their boats as long as I still got paid. We were down to crumbs in our fridge.

Cassie leaned into me and dropped her voice. “I swear. Javier showed me the marks on his neck.”

I scoffed. “He could have made them himself.”

One second, we were staring at a brick wall, and in the next second, the bricks were blurred—actually blurred out like a dream sequence—and a giant form stood in front of us.

By giant, I mean giant. He stood probably seven feet tall, a bulky mass of muscle beneath a pair of jeans and long trench coat. His boots were larger than my head, and when he smiled, fangs punched down against his lower lip.

“Passes, ladies.” He held out his hand, and we both stared at the giant fleshy thing.

I’d told myself earlier today this was true, that vampires existed, but now that one was standing in front of us, I realized I wasn’t prepared. No fucking way.

My gaze lifted back up to his face, and I pointed at my own teeth. “Those are… those are real?

Cassie hissed something at me.

The vampire’s smile didn’t waver. “Yeah, want to touch one?”

“Nope.” I held up my hands. “I’m good. You’re good. We’re all good. Great, good, great—oomph.” Cassie saved me from my runaway tongue with a swift elbow to the ribs.

She smiled her flirtatious Cassie smile at the vampire while I caught my breath. From her top, she pulled our passes that she’d received from Javier and handed them over to the big man. He glanced at them, and then stepped to the side, pointing at the blurry wall of brick. “Go on and walk through, and I’ll take you to Bite.”

Cassie took a step forward but I didn’t budge. Wait a minute. This was moving a little fast. “Uh, hey, can I ask a question first?”

Cassie turned around and bugged her eyes out at me. “Roxy!”

“Second question.” The vampire said.

“What?”

“This is your second question, but go ahead.”

Oh, so we had a wise guy vampire guide. Figured. “This is a paid gig, right? So when does the money exchange hands?”

The vampire looked half amused, half irritated with me. “Blood first, money second.”

I frowned. “That doesn’t seem fair. You all have the upper hand down there. How do I know you’re not going to keep me down there as a blood slave or something—”

Amusement fled the vampire’s face like a receding tide. “That is against the laws of our clan. For centuries we have vowed never to harm humans, or drink their blood without their consent and as long as I breathe, it’ll be that way for centuries more.”

When he finished talking, his shoulders were heaving, fists clenched, eyes swirling. And I was trembling so hard my teeth clacked. I liked to think I was a badass, but in no way did I have bravado in front of a pissed-off vampire. I’d made a joke that had offended him, and he wasn’t going to let it slide. I swallowed, trying to calm my racing nerves, while Cassie stood nearby, her face pale as a sheet.

“I-I’m sorry,” I said to the vampire.

His shoulders relaxed a bit. “It’s okay. That is… not a joke to us. We do not harm humans. You have my word.”

The way he said his last sentence, I realized that was a big deal to him, to give me his word. Words didn’t mean shit to humans anymore, but I wasn’t going to get into that with him. I nodded. “Okay, thank you.”

He gestured behind him at the shimmering door. “Are you going to attend Bite tonight then?”

“We just…walk through that wall?” I asked,

Cassie looked like she was going to murder me.

“It’s a portal,” the vampire said. “We’ve installed them several places around the city. Only the members of our clan—the Gregorie clan—can activate the portals to access the tunnels. They’ve long been sealed over to humans.”

I glanced at Cassie, and then down at my pinched toes in my heels. I lifted my head and looked the vampire square in the eye. “Okay. Yeah. I’m ready.”

With one last look back at Mission, I followed Cassie through the door.

---

We walked down a set of damp concrete steps. Our guide—his name was Zeb, we learned—explained how the club would work. He was adamant we’d never be forced to do anything we didn’t want to do, which was a nice thing to hear, but I’d believe it when I saw it. He also explained that before we were bitten, we’d inhale somnus, which was a gaseous drug the vampires secreted from their wrists. It was also what they used to activate the portals. Zeb said the somnus would make us feel like we had a good alcohol buzz, and was necessary because without it, their saliva would turn us into vampires. So yeah, somnus and I were gonna be friends.

Vampires couldn’t get human venereal diseases, and didn’t really understand condoms, so we the burden of birth control was on the humans. No problem, I had an IUD, but I wasn’t intending to get quite that intimate with a vampire anyway.

Zeb also told us he was part of the Gregorie clan—named after the ruling family. I asked if there were more of these “clans” and all he said there was another in Mission, but they were not friendly to humans. When I tried to ask more questions about them, he clammed up.

We walked down a long hallway lit only by sparse wall lights until we reached a nondescript door that only said BITE along the top.

He turned around at the door and faced us. “Either of you change your minds?”

“What if—?” Zeb’s gaze shifted to me, and Cassie rolled her eyes. I glared at her. “I’m just wondering if I can change my mind once I’m in there.”

“Sure.” He grinned, all fangs and white teeth. “But I doubt you will.”

I decided not to ask what that meant. Maybe ignorance was bliss here.

“We’re ready,” Cassie said.

“Feel free to dance and loosen up first.” Zeb said. “You can always turn down a vampire who approaches you. Once you meet, they will likely take you to the Feeding Room. At midnight, all humans go there to be picked by a vampire. They feed; you get the money. Any questions?”

He looked at me pointedly. I shook my head.

With a nod, he opened up the door and waved us inside. The base of the music hit me like a punch to the gut and a resounding boom rattled my spine. The heat was like a wall, and I could already feel sweat dripping down my neck. I took off my leather jacket and tossed it on a rack along the wall with a dozen other jackets. I was loath to part with it, because I loved that jacket, but I also didn’t want to die of heatstroke.

Cassie and I made our way toward the dance floor, where a spotlight roamed over a mass of bodies. Everywhere I looked, I saw skin. Vampire males apparently hated shirts? Because glistening pecs were everywhere. Was that sweat or blood clinging to that man’s nipple? Actually, never mind. “Ignorance is bliss. Ignorance is bliss.” I chanted to myself.

“What are you saying?” Cassie yelled over the music.

“I need a drink!” I answered. Wait, did alcohol in my blood affect its…value? See, there I went with more questions.

Cassie was already grooving to the music and about three vampire studs were checking her out. With every sway of her hips, her skirt brushed the bottom of her ass. Was she wearing underwear? Fuck, I needed a Xanax.

I glanced off to the side of the dance floor, where there was a large area full of couches. I wasn’t sure what I pictured when Javier had told us this was a club with no inhibitions. But whatever I imagined didn’t prepare me for what I saw. The lights were dim, but I could still make out the activities going on.

Now I understood why we were supposed to dress like sex. The walls, the couches, heck even some of the floor was covered with partially dressed bodies. I was starting to be able to pick out the vampires right away. They were generally larger than humans, with large jaws to accommodate their fangs. And there was something about the way they carried themselves that was altogether not human.

Cassie and I stared as a male vampire stuck his tongue in a human man’s mouth, and then his hand down the man’s pants. The man’s knees buckled, then his body convulsed as his head fell back and his lips parted on a moan I couldn’t hear, but could feel.

On the couch behind them, a male vampire lay on top of a human woman, his hips churning between her legs. Even with the pounding base, I could hear her loud cries of ecstasy.

Cassie exhaled loudly. “See? We can get vampire dick and cash. Sign me the fuck up.”

“Pretty sure you already signed up, tiger.” I nodded to the dance floor. “Get out there.”

She ran her tongue over her teeth, moving her body in a way I wished I could. She tossed her hair over her shoulder and shot me a sexy grin. “I love it here. It feels so free!”

I guessed that was one way to describe it.

I tapped her on the arm as one vampire who’d been checking her out strode toward us. “Hey, uh, I’m going to grab a drink. Go do your thing.”

She lashed out a hand and gripped my wrist. “You okay?”

I smiled and lied. “Yep, fine! We’ll meet up in the Feeding Room, okay?”

She blew me a kiss, and then turned right into the bare muscled chest of a vampire who looked like he was going to devour her. Literally.

I skittered away, the dance floor making me feel claustrophobic. I wasn’t sure where to go. I was here, so I wanted the cash. Maybe it would be better to stay out of the way, then head to the Feeding Room at midnight, get bitten, and get the fuck out. Did I really have to make a friend? As amazing as orgasms were, I was kinda cool keeping my pants on too.

Why did this have to be a social thing? Where did I sign up for the quick feeding with zero house music and orgies? Vampires needed to know about drive-throughs.

Near the bar was a small hallway and I ducked into the entrance, hoping to blend into the shadows. Too bad I hadn’t brought a book. I slid my back down the wall until I sat on the floor. Bending my neck forward until my hair formed a curtain to hide my face, I prepared to wait until I was shuttled into the Feeding Room at midnight. I’d make up a story to tell Cassie of course. Something that involved a sexy vampire with a big dick and talented hands. I would let my fantasy steer toward his tongue between my thighs, but I had questions about fangs and delicate skin.

The music changed, and I closed my eyes, wondering if I could get a quick nap in. Then the light shifted, just a slight flicker that I noticed from behind the thin skin of my eyelids. I opened my eyes, not lifting my head yet or making any sort of movement, to see two giant black boots planted in front of me.

I wasn’t stupid. Of course whoever was attached to those boots saw me, but I told myself if I didn’t move, maybe they’d go away. Move on. Go meet someone interesting who wasn’t cowering in a dark hallway.

But then the vampire crouched, his massive legs folding so I got a glance of thick thighs and massive hands that could palm my skull.

One of those hands extended toward me. It took everything in me not to flinch or run away. My heart was pounding out of my chest, the beat of it rivaling the music out on the dance floor. One finger touched the bottom of my chin and lifted.

My gaze went up taking in a muscled torso and broad shoulders covered in a dark T-shirt. I squeezed my eyes shut before I got to his mouth. He had to be a vampire; he was huge. Bigger than Zeb. Bigger than the ones I saw on the dance floor.

Wait, maybe this was a good thing he was big. Surely he’d want someone with more…blood, right? A larger person?

“Look at me,” his deep voice rumbled.

The command was like a hand plunging itself into my throat and tightening around my heart. I had to obey. There was no ignoring this voice.

I opened one eye to look into the dark gaze of a vampire. His black hair was brushed back, although a few strands fell down his forehead, nearly covering one eyes. His full lips were parted slightly, just enough that I could see the tips of white fangs touching his lower lip. His chin was pronounced, cheekbones high and sharp. And those eyes were pools so dark that I nearly tipped over and fell inside.

He didn’t say anything, and so I opened my mouth and said the first thing that entered my brain. “Okay, I’m looking at you.”

He didn’t grin. He didn’t react at all, and that finger of his hadn’t left my chin, like he knew if he let go, I’d break his gaze. I wouldn’t. I was pretty sure I couldn’t. Did he cast a spell on me? I had thought vampires didn’t have magic, but that was before I saw them make a door out of a solid wall.

I probably shouldn’t be back here. Would he kick me out? Shit. I needed this money, and I hoped I didn’t blow it. “Am I in trouble? I just came back here to get a breather.” Shit I was rambling, the words tumbling out of my mouth like blood from burst vein. “I’m totally prepared for the, uh, feeding and stuff. All about giving up the blood. Totally cool with it.” I held up my wrists and rotated them. “See? Clean. Good to go.” I beamed a bright smile.

The vampire stared at me for a long time, and just when I began to tremble a bit under his heavy glare, his gaze shifted to my neck.

My pulse was out of control now, an escalating ra pam, ra pum, ra pum in my neck. Could he see the veins? Could he smell the blood as it rushed underneath my skin?

“Do you—” My throat went dry. “Do you need to feed?”

His head tilted slightly, and then he reached out and wrapped his long fingers around my forearm. I held back a gasp at his grip as he studied the underside of my wrist. His thumb brushed the skin before dropping my arm. I shuddered at the brief touch.

“First time?” he asked. I nodded as I nibbled my lip. His gaze dipped again then rose back to meet my eyes. “I don’t need to feed from you.”

“Oh.” I didn’t know what to think about the pang of disappointment that streaked through my chest. I was terrified of this guy. He’d probably rip out an entire vein with that massive mouth. He cleared this throat, and I realized I’d been staring at his lips.

I shook my head, wondering what was wrong with me. I relied on my wits, and here I was caught staring at this vampire’s lips, wondering what it would be like to feel them on my neck.

The vampire rose to standing, and gestured for me to stand up. It took me a bit to scramble to my feet and I wobbled slightly on my heels. He steadied me with a hand on my elbow. “I’ll escort you through the club and set you up in a private room until it’s midnight.”

Well, that was nice. He wasn’t giving me the option of staying here in my dark hallway, but what he suggested couldn’t be bad. Except… “I’m sorry but who are you? Do you have ID or a business card or something?”

He stared at me like I had three heads. “Dru.”

“Is that your name or some vampire title?”

Again with the stare like I was fucking crazy. “My name.”

“And—”

“I’m head of security.”

Head of—Oh. Oh. He was a big shot. “Nice to meet you. I’m Roxy.”

His lips moved, like he was sounding out my name, but he didn’t make a sound. He dropped his hand on my elbow, jerked his head in an indication for me to follow him, and walked into the club. I did my best to keep up with his long strides.

We skirted the dance floor, and I kept my head down, eyes on my feet. When a husky moan reached my ears, louder than the base of the music, I assumed we’d moved into the couch orgy portion of the club.

The moans were plentiful, and the obscene noises coming from the couches had my head coming up, my gaze sweeping the area. Because really? Who wouldn’t stop to look at this?

Three female vampires were topless, writhing on a couch in a mass of limbs…wait was there a fourth? I counted off the legs I saw, but got lost at five and had to start over.

My head whipped to the side at the sound of some filthy words, and I saw Cassie on the couch, head back, legs spread, her skirt pushed up around her waist. A male vampire flicked a nipple on her pale breast, his white fangs flashing in the eerie light of the club. A shudder ran through her entire body as his lips grazed the underside of her other breast and he made his way down, down…

Cassie’s head fell forward, she opened her eyes, and locked gazes with me. Fuck, I was a voyeur, spying on my friend. But damn, she looked so happy, face flushed with pleasure. I shot her a thumbs up, which was geeky as hell, but the only thing my hands wanted to do. Her shoulders shook with a silent laugh, and then she winked at me just as the vampire did something between her legs that had her eyes squeezing shut again.

Okay I needed to look away now. My friend was happy and clearly being take care of. So, yeah. She was getting hers. I was being led to a private room where I could be by myself. At least one of us was getting the full vampire club experience.

A shadow fell over me, and I realized that I’d been planted in one place, staring at Cassie. Dru was probably not pleased. I glanced up, an apology on the tip of my tongue, only to look into the eyes of a vampire who was decidedly not Dru.

This one wasn’t quite as big as Dru but still bigger than a human. His lips were pulled back, fangs massive in his slick grin. His hair was long, brushing the top of his shoulders. His nostrils flared as he peered down, and his gaze settled on me like a rain of icicles. My hands instinctively came up and I wrapped them around my middle, glancing around for Dru. Fuck, how did I lose the biggest damn vampire in the place?

“Ah, pretty human,” he said, his raspy voice like a swarm of bees. “No need to hide. I see how you’re intrigued by what’s happening around you.” He took a step closer and alarm bells rang in my ears. I should step back, get away… “I can make you feel so good, better than you’ve ever felt in your life.”

I opened my mouth but with a quick movement, he had me backed up against a wall. I couldn’t see Cassie from behind the male’s big body, and I wasn’t sure she’d hear me anyway if I yelled for help, not with the loud music.

My stomach dropped as the vampire lifted his hand, a single finger brushing a strand of hair off the top of my breast. He licked his lips as he stared at my flesh. I was just a network of veins, and while this was what I signed up for, being pressed against a wall with this vampire at my front was not my idea of a fun time.

My voice was failing me. Every time I opened my mouth, only a series of clicks came out. The vampire pressed his thigh was between my legs, and the scent of him clogged my senses. Panic set in, and my heart pounded, my palms sweating as I raised them to half-heartedly push him away…

His body disappeared.

The heat of him was gone, his scent, everything and in his place was the massive hulking form of Dru.

The vampire who’d pressed me against the wall was on the ground, Dru’s boot on his throat. Dru hissed something at him, words I couldn’t hear because my heart was still pounding a drum beat in my skull. I placed my hand on my chest, confirming the organ was still there, that I was still alive and breathing, that my blood was still in my body.

The vampire was hauled to his feet by two other massive vampires and dragged away. Dru finally turned to me, his face like thunder. “Where the fuck did you go?”

“I didn’t go anywhere!” Now my voice worked.

“Then why weren’t you behind me?”

Oh so this was my fault? Rape culture was a thing in vampire world too? “I stopped to say hi to my friend. I didn’t expect a freaking vampire to come out of nowhere and press me up against the wall and threaten me with a good time, okay? Is this my fault?”

Dru growled—honest to God growled—and a tingle raced down my spine. I shouldn’t be turned on by that, and especially after what just happened. But I was. Goddamnit, I was. Did they pump aphrodisiacs through the air vents in this place or something?

Dru leaned in, placing a hand flat by my head, and bent down to speak inches from my face. He sighed heavily before he spoke. “This is not your fault. And I’m sorry. Volmer will be punished for what he did. He’s been…a little aggressive lately, and he went too far this time.”

All the fight went out of me, and I slumped against the wall. “Okay.”

Dru’s hand rose slowly, and then curled around my neck. He lifted my chin with his thumb, and the heat of his palm spread over my chest, tightening my nipples. I bit my lip to cut off a moan, and Dru’s eyes shifted. “Are you all right?”

I nodded, unsure I could speak. I was aroused; there was no other explanation. I rubbed my thighs together, trying to ease the ache and the pooling heat in my stomach.

His hand tightened, fingers digging into the back of my neck, and I arched into it, pressing my breasts against him, not knowing what was wrong with me, but unable to stop it.

He dropped his hand, lurching away from me, and running his hands into his hair and then down his face. I stumbled a bit at the loss of his body against mine. Had I done something wrong? Was there some sort of vampire make-out etiquette I didn’t know? Cassie seemed to be doing just fine.

“I thought—”

“Do you want me to leave you here or do you still want to go to a private room to wait?” His voice was strained, but I didn’t miss his meaning. Leave you here.

I blinked at him. “Would you stay with me, or—”

“No, I have to work. You pick. Stay here or private room?”

That stung a bit, but what did I expect? I hadn’t exactly been charming since I’d met Dru. If my options were to stay here alone or in a private room, I wanted the private room. When I told him, he nodded at me curtly.

This time he took no chances. He wrapped long fingers around my wrist and didn’t let go, even as I had to jog to keep up with him. My heels were killing me, and I focused all my energy on staying upright and not twisting an ankle.

We sped by the couches, and I didn’t look up. I kept my gaze on the way his T-shirt stretched across his muscular back and broad shoulders. He pushed open a door and then we were in a long hallway. I didn’t have time to look around because seconds later, we were through another door which opened up into some sort of lobby.

He didn’t drop my wrist, but I dragged my feet to slow us down, because I wanted to get a look at this. Also because my feet felt like they were going to fall off. The lobby was a semi-circle, and a large staircase was in front of us, leading up several stories. The floors gleamed and for a second, I imagined I was in some fancy hotel I’d only ever seen in the movies.

We walked around to the back of the staircase, where a female vampire sat behind a desk. She smiled at Dru, and her gaze drifted to me briefly before snapping back to him. “Hello, Dru. Would you like a room?”

“Yes,” he said shortly and snatched the key from her outstretched hand. “Block it out all night, please.”

She nodded with a polite smile, and then Dru was once again tugging on my wrist, pulling me toward one of several hallways lining the outside of the circle. Except this time, my feet were done. My right ankle said, fuck this shit, and collapsed like a drunk at an open bar wedding. I cried out as the pain shot through my leg. I would have hit the floor in a lump of tired of human, but I had a vampire companion who could move at the speed of lightning. He scooped me up into his arms, his dark eyes smoldering as they took in my body.

“What happened?” He demanded, his brows a straight line of anger. “Are you in pain? Was it from Volmer?”

I shook my head and pointed at my feet. “These heels…I’m not used to walking in them. My ankle rolled.”

He stared at my foot, then back at my face as he continued to walk down a hallway lined with doors. “Why would you wear shoes you can’t walk in?”

“They’re sexy,” I muttered.

He stopped at a door and unlocked it quickly, despite my weight in his arms. He didn’t set me down inside the door. Instead he kicked it shut with his foot, and then carried me to the bed, where he placed me down gently. He knelt at my feet and removed my heels, his warms hands caressing my ankles. “Which one?” he asked.

I pointed to my right.

He gripped it and rotated the joint, watching my face as he did. “That hurt?”

“A bit.” To be honest, his touch was making me forget about the pain. I hadn’t expected him to be gentle, but he held my foot like it was precious.

“Forgot how fragile humans can be,” he said, almost to himself.

“Hey,” I said. “We’re not that fragile.”

He raised an eyebrow, just one, and I got Jason Momoa vibes that made my blood heat. “We’re not,” I insisted. “It’s just those stupid shoes which I only wore because the dress code had made it clear we should come looking hot as fuck. And those shoes are definitely hot as fuck.”

He wasn’t looking at my shoes on the floor. He was looking at me. My face. “You don’t need the heels, Roxy.”

I swallowed, wanting to yell at him to let go of my foot, which barely hurt anymore. His touch was confusing me, arousing me. He lifted his hand and tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear. “You’ll have your pick when it’s time to head to the Feeding Room. I’m sure they’ll be plenty lined up, eager to get a taste of you.”

Don’t you want a taste of me? That was the first thought that flashed through my head. I bit my lip to prevent the words from flying out of my mouth, and his gaze immediately dropped. My pulse raced and I gripped the sheets of the bed, wondering why my body was lighting up, why I couldn’t stop staring at his lips and wishing his hands would travel up my calf higher and higher…

He stood up abruptly, dropping my leg like it was on fire. I stared at his back as he faced the door. “Dru?”

“I need to go,” he said. He didn’t even glance over his shoulder at me. “You’ll be fine here, I’ll have someone come get you when it’s time.”

No, he couldn’t leave. I wasn’t sure why yet, but I was in a panic. “Dru—”

“Bye, Roxy.” He turned the doorknob and opened the door.

“Dru!” I said, standing up quickly, which was a bad idea. As soon as I put weight on my ankle, pain shot up my leg. “Shit, fuck, ouch.”

The door slammed shut and Dru was back in my face, placing me back on the bed, his hands once again massaging my ankle. “Damnit, Roxy.” He sat down beside me on the bed, intent on his task.

I didn’t care about my ankle. “Why are you so eager to leave?” I asked. “Can’t you stay?”

He wouldn’t meet my eyes. “I can’t. I have work to do…and I can’t.”

Fine, he was making me come right out and say it. “Why won’t you feed from me?”

His hands paused on my ankle, and he lifted his head slowly. “Did someone explain to you what it’s like when a vampire feeds from you?”

Zeb had told us when we were walking in, but I might have zoned out a couple of times. “A little bit.”

He sighed heavily. “First of all, we need to feed right from the vein every few days. The rest of the time, we drink stored blood. Our saliva is an aphrodisiac. You’ll want to fuck. Some humans are used to it, and it doesn’t affect them much anymore, and that’s who I usually feed from. But this is your first time, and…”

I still didn’t understand. “So what, you don’t want to have sex with me so you won’t feed from me?”

He met my gaze squarely. “I don’t fuck humans.”

Oh. Oh. Should I be offended? “Do you think we’re dirty or—?”

He shook his head. “No, I just don’t do it.”

I was nosy as fuck. “Why?”

He blinked at me. “You ask a lot of questions, don’t you?”

“Yeah, it’s my flaw, sue me. So…why?”

This time his hand settled on my thigh, and the heat from his palm seeped through the denim. He rubbed his forehead with his other hand. “If I tell you, will you let me leave and quit trying to walk on this ankle?”

I pursed my lips together and nodded.

“About ten years ago, I fed from a human the first time she ever came to Bite. Blood virgins are…a bit of a novelty here. At the time, I was cocky and everything was a competition. So I fed from her and fucked her, and then went back to high-five my friends.”

“But it didn’t end there. She came back the next week. And the next. She became obsessed with me. With our culture.”

“Did she want to be with you? Are human-vampire relationships allowed?”

“It’s…allowed in special cases. Anything that puts us at risk for detection must be approved by our clan’s Council, like us traveling street-side frequently or allowing a human down here for anything other than blood transfer. But I don’t think she wanted anything from me other than to be turned to a vampire.”

“Is that possible?” I asked.

“We don’t just turn humans,” he said. “That has to be approved by our Council too. And it’s a process. She wouldn’t take no for an answer. Every time I saw her, she seemed more out of her mind than before.

“I…didn’t know what to do. I finally told her she couldn’t come back, that she had to forget about us. She didn’t like that, and somehow found out information about the other clan in the area. Unlike us, that clan is more than happy to use humans as blood slaves. They didn’t turn her. They sucked her dry. Killed her.”

“Jesus, Dru,” I breathed out. “That’s awful. I’m so sorry. For her and you.”

“I feel responsible, and although it’s never happened again with humans we invite, I can’t bring myself to get too close to humans. So I don’t.” The sadness in his eyes made my heart ache. “I won’t. Even if you tempt me like I’ve never felt before.”

My breath caught in my throat. “But surely you’ve been tempted by a human before. In the last ten years.”

He shook his head. “I haven’t. Even with her all those years ago, it was about the competition.”

“So…” Heat rose up my neck. “What do you mean I tempt you?”

His hand left my thigh and he rubbed his chest. “Around you, I feel…” He let his voice drop, and didn’t finish.

“What? You feel what?”

“I don’t know the word, okay?” His frustration was visible in the lines around his mouth, the piercing way his dark eyes studied my face. “I don’t know the word for this burning in my chest, this pull toward you and this need to be in your presence. I don’t know what it is, just that the feeling terrifies me as much as I crave it.”

I stared at him, unsure what to say, because I was fitting his words together in my head like a puzzle. I still didn’t have the larger picture when he stood up. “That’s why I have to go,” he said.

“Dru,” I pleaded.

“You promised,” he said softly. “I told you, and now you let me leave.”

I stared at him helplessly. How had I only met this vampire a mere ten minutes ago and now I was devastated to watch him walk out that door. But he was right. I’d promised. And who was I to make him go against his personal convictions? So I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Okay,” I said hoarsely. “Will I—will I see you again?”

He reached down, his large hand resting on my cheek and his thumb caressing my lip. “No.”

I appreciated his honesty. I gripped his wrist and pressed a kiss to his thumb. “Okay. I…thank you. For everything. Out there. This room. Your kindness. And your heart.” His lips parted, and the tips of his fangs gleamed. He’s a vampire, Roxy. What the fuck is wrong with you?

“Bye, my not-fragile Roxy.”

I laughed, and he dropped his hand. In seconds he was out the door, and he shut it behind him with a soft click.

He hadn’t looked back.

---

There was nothing to do. I had my phone, and because there was no Wi-Fi, I played some crappy game apps that my brother had told me to download. I tested my ankle and although it was a bit swollen, the pain wasn’t as bad. I couldn’t put my heels back on, but I could put enough weight on it to walk with only a slight limp.

Also I was a little scared. Would I want to fuck a vampire once they fed from me? The thought of taking my pants off for anyone right now was not an arousing thought. Except if it was Dru.

No, stop it. I wouldn’t see him again. So I waited in that room for what felt like hours, hoping that Cassie was all right, that Dru had forgotten about me, and that I wasn’t paired up with some lame-ass vampire.

I wandered around the room. It was basically like a hotel. There was a small bathroom with a shower and a single bed. Just when I was contemplating taking a nap, there was a knock at the door. I froze. “Uh, come in.”

The door opened, and I breathed out a sigh of relief when the woman from the front desk smiled politely at me. She wore her hair in tight bun, and her dress shirt stretched across her ample chest. She was doing just fine in her sky-high heels. I’d abandoned mine in the corner.

“Are you ready to head to the Feeding Room, Roxy? Dru asked me to escort you.”

Oh, escort. Fancy. Except I stood there in my bare feet. My makeup was not looking so fresh anymore, and my finger-combed hair was still full of knots. I was…not my best. I cleared my throat. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

She smiled at me again, and then gestured for me to follow her.

We walked down the hallway, out into the lobby, then through a doorway framed in red. This hall wasn’t lined with doors. There was just one at the end, and that, I suspected, was the Feeding Room. She pointed to it. “You’ll walk right through there, and toward the back, you’ll see a seating area for the humans. You’ll be chosen from there.”

Chosen. She made it sound kinda nice, but at this point, I just wanted to give up my blood so I could get the money and run. I nodded at her, and walked through the doorway.

I’d already passed through orgy central back in the club, but nothing prepared me for this. Sex acts, sex acts everywhere. Threesomes, foursomes. Limbs and blood and orgasms. For a moment I stood frozen at the front of the large room as I watched a woman getting the ride of her life while straddling a vampire.

Blood dripped from two small holes in her neck, slipping down between her breasts, where the vampire was smearing it on her nipples and sucking it off.

Hot damn.

The woman looked over at me, and smiled.

Okay, that was my cue to get to my area. I padded barefoot to the human seating, glancing around for Cassie, who I spotted in the corner pressed up against a wall with a vampire between her legs. Her eyes were closed, mouth open, and she looked blissed out. At least one of us was happy.

In the human seating, a female vampire who seemed to be the “human corraller” told me to sit anywhere. I took a chair near the front. As much as I wanted to hide, I needed to get picked. A line of vampires stood behind a rope, and I watched as one came to the front and scanned all of us. He chose a male human toward the back. The human walked away with the vampire, then the next blood-sucker in line stepped up. It went that way for a while, and I was picking at the chipped polish on my nails when I heard a deep voice say, “Her.”

I glanced up. A male vampire stood at the front, and his gaze was on me. I looked behind me, wondering if he meant someone else. I pointed to myself and mouthed the word, “Me?”

He looked confused, and said something to the corraller. She looked at me with an exasperated expression. “You! Let’s go.”

Oh shit, okay. This was it. My time to shine. “Do your thing, blood,” I muttered to myself. “Taste great. Don’t make me horny.”

The male vampire looked young, younger than Dru, but I didn’t know much about how vampires aged, so he could have been four hundred years old for all I knew.

“I’m Tack,” he said. “Your name?”

“Roxy.” I felt so stupid, walking beside him in my bare feet. He was wearing a T-shirt and jeans, but he looked like a million bucks with his hair nicely styled. He smelled good too.

I still didn’t want to fuck him.

“Look,” I said. “Do we have to, uh…” I made a face, hoping he got my drift and that I wouldn’t have to say the words.

He just stared at me.

“Do we have to…” I made a thrusting motion with my hips.

Now he looked slightly alarmed. “I’m sorry, what are you trying to ask?”

I was an idiot. “Do we have to fuck?” I blurted out. “This is my first time, and I kinda just wanted to give up the blood rather than the pussy. Like, one thing at a time, know what I mean? Baby steps.”

By now we were in the corner of the room, an empty couch near us that I couldn’t stop staring at. Was that where I’d be sitting when he bit me?

“I…can’t lie and say that I don’t want to fuck you,” he said. Were all vampires honest? I liked this. “But we can’t—and I won’t—pressure you into doing anything you don’t want to do. Maybe we should start with the feeding, and see how you feel?”

Right, he was banking on that damn aphrodisiac. Fuck, I missed Dru. I felt safe with him, and while Tack seemed perfectly nice, I didn’t want him. Not like I wanted Dru.

Why was I doing this? Why was I making a big deal about my first time? I wasn’t a virgin—sex-wise. I needed to shut off my brain and get on with it. You can’t always get what you want, Roxy.

I smiled at him. “Sure, uh, that sounds great.”

He smiled back, his grin all teeth and fangs. They looked sharp. Well of course they did, they had to slice flesh. No one wanted dull fangs, right? This was good. I sank down onto the couch and he plastered himself next to me. He passed his wrist in front of my face, and I inhaled something sweet. The somnus. My head fuzzed a bit, not too much. Not enough to calm my nerves, that was for sure.

He placed his hand on my throat, and his thumb caressed the vein on the side of my neck. “You have beautiful skin.” His breath warmed the side of my face, and I closed my eyes, pretending I was somewhere else as his nose nudged my earlobe. “I saw you sitting in there and I knew I had to have you. Blood virgin, right?”

“Yes,” I whispered.

He moaned and pressed closer. His hand tightened, and I felt the scrape of a fang on my skin. This felt wrong, so wrong. Stop thinking. Stop thinking. Just let it happen. What’s a little blood exchange between a human and vampire?

“You’ll see,” he said, his voice rough with arousal. “One bite and you’ll be begging for it, and I’ll make you feel so good, you’ll want to come back again, and again.”

I was going to throw up. I placed a hand over my mouth, because I was worried I’d spew bile.

“You’ll love it, Roxy, just you wait.”

He pulled away, and I waited for the slice of the fangs, for the suction of his mouth as he drank my blood, but with a jolt, the heat of his body left my side.

Someone yelled, and it sounded like Tack. I popped my eyes open only to see Dru growling a few words at Tack before turning to me with fire in his eyes.

The dark hue of his irises was swirling with red, mixing together like flames in the night. “What—” I began as he scooped me into his arms and strode across the room. I buried my head in his chest, not sure why he was here, and barely even caring about the money anymore. He’d come back, and I was in his arms, and for now that was good enough.

We traveled quickly, quicker than a human could travel and within seconds we were back in my room where my heels still rested in the corner. He sat me down on the bed and then kneeled on the floor between my legs. He circled his arms around me and buried his face against my stomach.

He didn’t speak, and neither did I. Out there, I’d been trembling and sick to my stomach. In here, safe with Dru, my blood settled, my nerves smoothed over.

I ran my fingers through Dru’s hair, and scraped my nails over his shoulders. His hard muscles shifted beneath my palms, but still he didn’t speak, didn’t give me an explanation as to why he’d taken me from the Feeding Room.

This massive vampire was on his knees at my feet. His arms were wrapped around my hips, and I’d never felt so safe and protected.

Okay, and turned on. Like a lot turned on.

I shifted my weight as the heat in my belly dropped lower. “Dru,” I said softly. “Why?”

His shoulders heaved with a sigh, but he didn’t talk. Instead I felt his lips move against my skin between the bottom of my corset and the top of my jeans. Oh shit, and it wasn’t just his lips, it was his tongue too, dipping in my bellybutton and teasing at the edge of my waistband.

“I’ve been hard since I saw you.” His deep voice rumbled against my skin. “Thought I could send you off, let you collect your money and get out of here but knowing you were there, that someone else was going to—” His words cut off on a moan and he leaned back a bit to grip my waist. His thumbs dipped beneath my jeans and pressed closed to where I ached for him. He licked his lips and tortured eyes met mine. “Fuck, I can smell you, Roxy. I can smell how much you want it. Is this for me?”

He could smell my arousal. Why was that hot? I dug my nails into his shoulder and pressed into his hands. “Yes. It’s for you.” Except, I didn’t understand what was going on. “But you said… you said you wouldn’t feed from me. Or touch me.”

“I know what I said.” His voice was a growl. “But I couldn’t let another vampire bite you. I walked in there and saw how scared you were. I had to protect you, even if I’m fucking terrified you’re not safe with me either.”

I touched his brow, his sharp cheekbones, admiring the perfect cut of his face. Was there a better face ever made? Probably not. “I think I’m safe with you.”

He swallowed. “Roxy…”

“Do you want my blood? My body?”

A shudder ran through his body. “More than I’ve ever wanted anything in my whole life.”

I wanted him too. “And you’re worried because of what happened last time?”

He nodded.

“I’m not her. If you weren’t a vampire, I’d want you all the same. Please trust me.” My body responded to his hands and his voice. What would it be like to kiss him and feel his skin against mine? I had to know. Fuck all the reasons I came down here in the first place. All that mattered was here and now, this moment in time in this room with Dru. “Then take it. My blood and my body. I want you to.”

His nostrils flared as his breath came faster. His hands gripped me tighter as his control seemed held by a thin thread.

“Please, Dru.”

His hands left me, and I nearly wept. This was it. He was going to walk out on me again. Goddamnit, why did I have to find the one vampire with a conscious?

Except he stayed on his knees, and his hands rested on his thighs. And when he spoke, he was all authority and command. “Take off your pants for me. I want to see you.”

I shivered as his words danced through my blood. I stood up on my bare feet and slid my pants down my legs slowly. I kicked my jeans off to the side, and since I hadn’t worn underwear, I stood in front of him wearing only my corset.

He sucked in a breath as he stared between my legs. His lips were parted, and his tongue poked out to catch on one of his fangs. “Your smell is…” He inhaled again, his eyes sliding closed briefly before popping back open. “Sit down.”

I sat down, the bedding cool on my bare ass. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been this exposed in front of a man. Just… everything all out. In a lit room. With hungry eyes taking me in.

He spread my legs and pressed a kiss on the inside of my left knee. As he drew closer, I braced myself with my arms behind me, still in awe of this massive vampire on his knees looking at my like I was the Hope diamond.

He was in no hurry. His hand slid up my thigh and then his thumb was pressing against my wet flesh. “So soft and pink and so fucking wet, Roxy.” His thumb pressed harder, teasing my opening. “You always get this wet?”

“Not usually.”

He drew his thumb back and wiped it on my inner thigh, leaving my skin glistening. “I wanted to do this from the first moment I saw you,” he said, then lapped at my pussy with that long tongue. I nearly came off the bed. I cried out as his tongue worked miracles, swirling around my clit, dipping into my entrance, then lapping up all the wetness that he caused.

He ate pussy like a starving man, humming to himself so the vibrations echoed throughout my body. Every once in a while I felt the prick of his fangs and it only sent my arousal higher. I gripped his hair and ground into his face, unable to control myself, and he must have loved it because he growled and went at me with his tongue harder.

I couldn’t stop my hips from churning as my body sought the orgasm I wanted so badly. I was heaving, crying out, whimpering his name as I fell onto my back, no longer able to hold myself up.

He lifted his head for a moment, his lips red and wet, eyes inhuman. “Come on my tongue, Roxy. Want to taste every bit of it.”

“Oh fuck,” I breathed just as his tongue went back at my clit and he plunged two fingers inside of me.

My back bowed off the bed and like a bolt of lightning, I came. The thunder rolled through me, spreading to every limb and to the tips of my fingers as Dru didn’t let up.

When I collapsed back on the bed, he still wasn’t done. His tongue was softer now, but he was eagerly lapping up everything my body had to offer.

When he lifted his head, I knew this wasn’t even close to being over. He stood up slowly, towering over me. The veins in his neck protruded as he seemed to fight to keep himself in check. He fisted his shirt at his upper back and pulled it over his head, dropping it to the side before quickly shucking his pants.

Fuck me. He was the most perfect specimen I’d ever seen. Massive shoulders, a huge chest that could probably bench-press five of me, and a tight stomach of rippling muscle. Between the boulders of his thighs was a long, thick dick that was pointing right at me. My pussy clenched.

He pushed me up higher on the bed and with a quick flick of his wrist, rolled me over onto my stomach. He made short work of the laces on the back of my corset and then tugged me up onto my hands and knees. This was never a position I liked—it made me feel too vulnerable, but when his hands settled on my hips, and his thighs pressed against the backs of mine, I felt nothing but arousal.

A hand wrapped around my throat and then he pulled me up, my back to his front. I moaned at the possessive way he gripped me. I’d just come, but I wanted him between my legs again, his mouth, his fingers, that thick cock. Goddamn anything, as long as it belonged to him.

“Your pussy,” he said, as his other hand flicked my nipples, “melted on my tongue. Dripped for me and tasted just like honey.”

I tried to talk, but the only thing I managed to say was his name on a whisper.

“That’s it,” he said. “Say my name. Scream it, whisper it, shout it. I’ll hear it every possible way from your lips by the time this night is over.”

His hand passed in front of my wrist, and that scent hit my nostrils again. “Gonna take that blood you offered, then I’m going to take your body again and again.”

“Yes,” I managed to say. “Please. Just don’t stop touching me.”

When his fangs entered my skin, I didn’t even feel the pain. He kept a firm grip on my throat as he drank from the side of my neck. With every drag, I felt an answering pulse inside, like he had a direct link to my clit. I reached down to feel myself, and my fingers came away slick. His fingers replaced mine, and he slipped three inside me, pumping them in time to his sucks.

I was on another plane of existence with the sensation of my blood being pulled through my veins and his fingers tapping at my g-spot. I came again, his name on my lips like a chant.

When his fangs left my neck, he licked the wound. I glanced over my shoulder to catch a glimpse of him, his fangs and lips dripping with red blood—my blood. He let me drop back onto the bed, and I caught myself on my hands just as he gripped my hips and thrust into me.

I screamed at the sensation of his cock stretching me. No one, nothing had ever felt like this—he filled me perfectly like he was made for me.

He didn’t waste any time. His hips jerked as he slammed into me, and I was babbling his name in a hundred different ways. He wrapped his fist around my hair and tugged, the force sending my ass slamming back into him. Oh God, the sensation in my scalp rode a knife-edge of pleasure and pain that throbbed in my clit. Since when did hair pulling trigger an erogenous zone? I was out of my mind as he planted one fist into the bed, the other using my hair like an anchor to hold me right where he wanted me.

I wanted to be there too.

His teeth skirted the rim of my ear. “So tight for me, Roxy. Been waiting all your life for me, haven’t you?”

Yes, no, probably. I couldn’t talk, not with my head forced back at this angle, and I didn’t want to. I was his to fuck, to use, to drink. My body would fuel him and also be the vessel for his release. And fuck, I wanted to be. I needed to be. I craved the way Dru fucked me like he owned me. Maybe he did, at least the part of me that wanted to be owned.

His teeth sliced into vein below my ear and I cried out, the orgasm racing through me like a tsunami. I’d lost count of how many times I’d come, between Dru’s fingers, tongue, and cock.

He drank from me greedily, the delicious drag flooding my senses. He fucked me through it, our bodies moving together, slick with sweat and blood. He hadn’t even come yet, and my thighs were soaked from my wetness. The obscene sounds of him sucking my neck and fucking into my wet pussy filled the room, the erotic echoes only making me hotter.

I came again, and just my inner walls clamped around his dick, he roared, and I felt his cock pulse inside me.

My arms and legs gave out, and I fell onto the mattress in a heap, his dick still inside of me. I was wrung out, exhausted, and so fucked out, I wasn’t sure what my name was anymore.

But I knew his. I’d always know his. “Dru,” I whispered.

His tongue was at my neck, licking at his bites, and his hands brushed my hair off of my sweaty neck. “My Roxy,” he practically purred. “What I wouldn’t give to be able to stay inside you forever.”

His dick pulsed again, and more wetness slipped out of me. I felt him pull out, and something in me panicked. My eyes flew open. “Hey, don’t leave—”

“Not leaving,” he said. A warm, wet cloth wiped between my legs. When he was finished cleaning me, he wrapped me in his arms. I might have muttered his name again, but then I was asleep in seconds.

---

But when I woke up, the sheets beside me were completely cold. I rubbed my eyes and sat up with the sheet clutched to my chest, and glanced around the empty room. God, I ached everywhere. Every muscle. I didn’t even want to know what my hair or face looked like. But I didn’t care about that right now, because my first priority was figuring out where the fuck Dru went.

He wouldn’t have bailed on me again, would he?

Shit, I couldn’t panic. If I acted like a clingy human, he’d freak out that I was going to do the same thing the last human did. Calm down, Roxy. It was just good sex, right? Really good sex. He hadn’t even kissed me, I realized now as I brushed my fingers over my lips. He’d bitten me, fed from me, and coaxed multiple orgasms from my body. But he hadn’t once kissed my lips.

Except I didn’t really believe it was just sex. Not when I remembered his whispered My Roxy in my ear. The tender way he held me. The attention he paid to my body, like he wanted to know every detail.

The door opened and I clutched the sheet to my body tighter, quickly glancing around for somewhere to hide. When Dru’s body filled the doorway, relief swept through me.

He watched me cautiously as he made his way across the room. He wore a pair of jeans, a black T-shirt, and his hair was slightly damp, like he’d just showered. I wanted him all over again. “How’d you sleep?” he asked as he sat down beside me and placed a warm, foil-wrapped bundle on my lap. I blinked at it, then up at him. “Um, okay, I guess. What time is it?”

“Ten am.”

“Oh shit,” I muttered. “What time did we fall sleep?”

“You fell asleep around two I think.”

“When did you fall asleep?”

He cocked his head at me with a slight frown. “I don’t sleep.”

I was in the process of unwrapping the foil when he said that. “What do you mean?”

“We don’t need to sleep. If we do, it means we’re sick and need to feed.”

“Oh.” That was probably Vampire 101 and I should have known. In the foil was a scrambled egg sandwiched in an English muffin.

Dru cleared his throat. “We hire a human cook who helps us since we don’t really need food. If there’s something else...”

“This is fine,” I said before I took a bite. Damn, I was hungry.

He watched me as I ate, and when I was finished, he handed me a water bottle. I could have used some coffee, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. After I’d chugged half of the water, I set the bottle on the table beside the bed.

Belatedly, I realized the sheets had slipped down to my waist, so I was topless. But Dru wasn’t staring at my chest. He hadn’t taken his gaze off my face once. I was starting to be self-conscious about it. “Is there something on my face?”

He shook his head. “I like to look at you.” His voice dropped to a low rumble. “And memorize what you look like so I can recall it easily after you leave.”

This was when he should kiss me. I wanted him to kiss me. What would his full lips feel like on mine? Would his fangs knick me? How would that talented tongue play with mine?

But he didn’t, instead all he said was. “Your friend is waiting for you. I’ll leave so you can get dressed.”

He stood up, and I reached for him. “Please don’t go.”

His gaze darted to my hand on his arm, then back to me. Shit, I was doing it. I was being weird. “I mean… I’ll get dressed in the bathroom. Would you just wait? And then we can say goodbye.” I was proud of myself that my voice didn’t crack on the bye, even if I felt the burn of tears at the back of my eyes.

He nodded, and I scrambled off the bed, grabbing my clothes on the way to the bathroom. After shutting the door, the first thing I did was check out the damage in the mirror. Wow, so, my face didn’t look too bad. In fact…did he clean my face? It was makeup free. I pulled my hair up into a bun, wiped my face and dressed quickly.

When I returned to the bedroom, Dru was sitting on the edge of the bed, his elbows braced on his thighs. He lifted his head, and I adjusted the corset that I definitely didn’t want to be wearing any more.

His expression was frustratingly neutral. I wanted to see him in pain like I was. I knew in my heart I wasn’t like that other human. I didn’t want to be a vampire, I wasn’t obsessed with this club. I just wanted to be in Dru’s presence, to kiss his lips and feel his arms around me.

When I stood in front of him, he reached out a hand and drew me closer, between his legs. He rested his forehead on my stomach, and the sight of his bent head gave me flashbacks to last night.

I wanted to ask if I could come visit him, but I wasn’t sure how he’d take it. So I stayed silent, and ran my hands through his dark hair. Was this our goodbye? A wordless one?

Finally he stood up, and with a tight jaw said, “It’s time.”

Right, Cassie was waiting. I picked up my heels and stood behind Dru as he paused with his hand on the door. He glanced at me over his shoulder, and opened his mouth like he’d speak, but then his eyes clouded over. With a nod, he opened the door and walked out.

We made our way through the club, now mostly empty except for a cleaning crew. Cassie stood near the entrance, arms wrapped around her waist, craning her neck to see me from behind Dru’s body.

“Roxy!” she squealed and raced toward me on bare feet. She crashed into me, and I wrapped my arms around her. “Oh my God, I was so worried. I didn’t see you all night.” She held me at arm’s length and studied my face. “You okay?”

I wasn’t. Nope. “Yeah, I’m fine. Are you okay?”

She beamed at me. “Great! I’ll be back for sure. What about you?”

I glanced at Dru, but couldn’t see his eyes as he stood in a shadow. “Uh, I’m not sure. Maybe in a couple of months if I need the money.”

“Oh, speaking of money.” She held up two envelopes and handed me one. “Here’s yours.”

I took it from her, the weight of the money not comforting at all. This was what I’d come here for, and now that I had it, it felt wrong, dirty. I was getting paid for what Dru and I had done. All I said was a soft, “Awesome.”

“Ready to go? I have your jacket by the way.” She handed me the leather bundle.

“Zeb will lead us back upstairs.” She pointed to our guide from last night, who stood by the doors.

I clutched my jacket, glad for the familiar feel of the soft material. “Oh wow, thanks. And yeah, I’m ready.”

She turned around with a flare of her skirt, and I risked another glance at Dru. He didn’t move toward me, and my heart felt like it was cracking into a dozen pieces. When I walked by him, his hand shot out, gripping my wrist. I paused as his thumb caressed the soft skin. “Bye, Roxy.”

Those words were final. And I vowed that no matter how poor I was, and how desperately I needed the money, I wouldn’t return. It wasn’t worth it to put myself or Dru through this. It ended here. Now.

“Bye Dru,” I said. Then I hurried after Cassie.