Only Vampires Cry Blood (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #3)(31)

Another step brought him within touching distance. I sucked my breath in and held it, afraid to say or do something I'd regret. I hated that he was likely right. I was tied to him through Arys. As much as it ate me up inside, it was something I had to think about on a deeper level.

Slowly exhaling, I struggled to remain calm. He was just a step away from invading my personal space. Being in the same room with him was enough to ignite a response within me. When he was two feet away and exuding that heavy, inviting energy, it was damn near impossible to resist him. It fed my hunger and stoked the flames of power waiting inside me for the right touch. I swore softly. Between the bloodlust and the power hunger, my resolve was fading fast.

“If you bring trouble to my town, I will drive you out of here. Even if it means ripping your heart from your chest with my bare hands.” The words were a struggle, but I meant every one.

Ignoring me, Harley held a hand close to me, touching my aura but not my body.

Lucky. I glared at his hand, ready to bite his fingers off.

“You are your own weakness,” he said thoughtfully. “If you weren't so stubborn, you would have a substantial amount of control over your power … and your hungers. You need to leave.”

That was surprising. “What?” I asked, unsure if I'd heard him correctly. I shivered as I felt the growing energy between us ripple. He was vibing off me as strongly as I was reacting to him.

“You shouldn't have come here with the bloodlust plaguing you. It causes your entire metaphysical being to be compromised. That in turn speaks to me, calls to me. You have no idea how powerful your allure is.” As he stroked a hand along my aura, it created a fluttery sensation in the pit of my stomach.

“I don't need blood to live. I'm not like you.” My mouth was dry, and the words came out breathy and soft. It sounded like I was trying to convince myself rather than him.

“A useless argument.” Harley moved in a slow circle around me. The feeling of his energy touching mine grew, and I had to focus hard on staying calm. “Can't you feel it?

How easy I could have you.”

Adrenaline flooded me, and my heart increased its pace. Again, I was reminded of how stupid I was for coming here, trusting him on any level. He stopped directly behind me, blocking the doorway. I tried to respond, but the words wouldn't come out. I gasped for breath, feeling like the air had been sucked from my lungs.

“Please, don't.” It was all I could manage. His power was magnetic, drawing me to him in unnatural ways. I was caught in the middle of the turmoil, fighting to deny the many urges that taunted me. Why did giving in have to be so wrong?

I gasped when he touched me. His hands were warm from his recent feed. It was like being zapped with electricity. The crackle of our power meeting was startling. Like the last time Harley had physically touched me, I ached for more of him. I knew it was the illusion of his power; his touch was meant to stir the wanton desire coiled deep inside me.

Yet, I wasn't supposed to react like every other victim he claimed.

Harley ever so slowly slid his hands down my upper arms to my elbows and then to my wrists. His fingers wrapped around each of my wrists in a grip that was sensual and commanding but not controlling or binding. My resistance continued to fade. This was all kinds of awful. He was taking me down faster than he had the time I'd been here against my will. If I'd learned anything from Harley, it was that I was a weak fool with a lot more to learn than I'd thought.

“Consider this your first lesson, lovely lady,” he murmured low, his lips close to my ear. “Your power is your weapon, no different than fangs or claws. Weakness is your first enemy. Don't ever walk into battle unprepared unless you're ready to die your mortal death.”

I shuddered, and though I longed for it to be disgust, it was pleasure. I found some solace in the fact that I was bonded to Arys. Harley couldn't bind me or kill me.

However, that only ruled out two of the things he longed to do to me. There were many others.

His grip tightened around my wrists until my heart pounded. I knew I had to pull away. I could throw him off me with no more than a thought. I didn't do it simply because I didn't want to. He held me under his thrall, and I didn't want to fight it. Fuck that. I had to.

“Tell me, Alexa, do you want me to stop?” He released my wrists suddenly. With one hand he entwined his fingers through mine, sending a shock of power through me. I was ready to melt into a puddle at his feet, just that fast.

With his other hand, he swept my hair to the side so that it no longer hid my neck.

Alarm bells went off inside my brain. My voice was steady, but my knees were weak.

“Yes. I want you to stop.”

It was partly true. I really did want him to stop. He'd once told me that I was more powerful than he was. The difference was that he knew how to use his and very well at that. His abilities were rooted in desire and pleasure in its many forms. It came second nature to him. I longed to control myself with such ease.

“Then stop me.” He nuzzled my hair, deeply inhaling my scent. He groaned, and I knew that it wasn't only my control being tested now. This could get messy.

I concentrated hard on pushing him away. I felt his resistance like a brick wall behind me. He chuckled at my failed attempt. The touch of his fangs against my bared neck was as heavenly as it was horrifying. I was definitely afraid, and still, a part of me wanted him to bite me. Harley's bite was powerful, almost as intoxicating as Arys'. This man knew the taste of my blood, my essence. It couldn't come to that again. I was stronger than that.