City of Thorns (The Demon Queen Trials #1)(14)

It was hard to ignore how dangerous he was, how otherworldly. How he could end my life in a single heartbeat and move on to his next victim.

“Arch your neck,” he said in velvety voice.

I couldn't resist the urge to submit to his command. My eyes closed, and I tilted my head to give him access, making myself vulnerable to him. I felt his breath warming my throat, and a pounding heat swept through my body. My breath sped up, and my nipples felt exquisitely sensitive under my dress. I didn’t want to feel turned on by my supremely arrogant demonic abductor, and yet, here we were. The heart wants what it wants.

When I felt the brush of his canines over my throat, my breath hitched. Liquid desire slid between my thighs. I didn’t tell my arms to wrap around his neck, but they did anyway, welcoming him to my body. He felt as solid as the wall behind me. My pulse pounded, and I waited for the sharp sting of his teeth puncturing my skin. Instead, what I felt was a warm kiss.

Oh, God, that felt good.

A pulsing, sensual heat was spreading from the place where his mouth met my throat, and his tongue swirled over my neck. Then a sharp stab of pain curled my toes, made my heart slam against my ribs. His fingers tightened on my waist as his fangs sank into me, claiming me. Pleasure washed over the pain until all I could feel was the sexual ache building in me.

This was supremely fucked up.

I only tilted my head back more, giving him more access. I was tightly coiled with desire now, and I fought the urge to pull up the hem of my dress again. But I needed release, and he was the only one who could give it to me.

After a moment, he pulled his canines from my throat, and I started to fall against his chest, arms still wrapped around his neck. I’d never wanted someone so badly in my life. Clearly, my body had terrible taste in men. Really, just the worst possible taste. He was arrogant, insulting, a self-professed asshole who’d locked me in a literal dungeon. Oh, and he was a centuries-old blood-drinking demon.

“There,” he whispered, brushing a hand down the back of my hair. “Mortal.”

I leaned against the hard, muscled wall of his chest, and when I looked up at him, I saw that he looked nearly as dazed as I felt.

“That was horrible,” I lied. “I hated it.”

He leaned down and whispered, “I don’t believe you. But I suppose I am sorry about the abduction.”

I glanced down at the powerful arm wrapped around my waist, at the eerie snake tattoo. Then I pushed him away. “Okay. Let’s discuss how I’ll stay in the City of Thorns as your spy.”

“Is that what we’re doing? Because I detest mortals nearly as much as I hate Mortana.” He tilted his head. “But you do taste fucking delicious, so that softens the hatred a bit.”

I touched my neck, surprised to find that the two puncture wounds were already healing. There was hardly any blood at all.

“But you’re tempted by my plan, aren’t you?” I smiled at him. “Because you’re the Lord of Chaos, and you know that a mortal twin of a succubus can turn this city upside down.”

“And why do you want to stay here so desperately?”

I shrugged. “You summarized it yourself. My life is desperately sad. The yogurt pouches, the T-shirt cereal bowl. It fucking sucks, even for a mortal, and I can’t go back.”

“Here’s what you have to understand. There is, in fact, one circumstance in which demons are allowed to kill mortals. In which we can drain your blood with impunity or throw you into a fire pit. And that is if you enter the City of Thorns without permission, or under false pretenses. If the king or his soldiers determine that you’re actually mortal, then you will die, and probably in an excruciating way. So are you actually sure about this?”

Not at all. “Yes.”

He arched an eyebrow. “And once I fill you in on the secrets of the City of Thorns, once I tell you what I want, there will be no going back. I’m not letting you leave this city freely with my secrets, to wander around telling people what you heard. I’d have to kill you first.”

I bit my lip. “Are you saying I can never leave?”

“You can’t leave until you’ve helped me achieve my mission.”

“Which is?”

He shook his head slowly. “I can’t tell you that yet, can I? You’re either in or out. And you need to make your choice now. If I take you up to my apartment to divulge my plans, you will have crossed a threshold that you cannot return from until the mission is complete.”

Fear skittered up the back of my neck. But I already knew it was too late, that there was no going back. Because I was so close to having answers now. I needed to know what happened to Mom, and I wasn’t going to get another chance after this.

Now or never.

And the truth was, it wasn’t just that I wanted vengeance. I also wanted to get rid of the cloud of suspicion that hung over me at all times, that maybe I’d been involved.

With a tight chest, I nodded. “I’m willing to take risks. But since what I’ll be doing for you is dangerous, I’m going to need you to pay off my undergrad student loans. And I’d like to transfer to Belial University.”

He shrugged. “I can easily pay your loans. I can buy you a mortal degree if you want. But you cannot be at the university because Mortana would not be at the university.”

My eyebrows shot up. “You can’t just buy a degree.”