Iniquitous (The Marked #3)(14)

“It feels like you’re mine.”

My heart came to a definite stop and then kicked off into overdrive. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

I wasn’t sure how to feel about anything anymore.

On one hand, I knew I was safe from Engel being able to establish a bloodbond with me, and that was great news, but on the other hand, Dominic now had the power to compel me if he wanted to. And that was so not great news.

“Does that scare you?” he asked me, his voice a sinister drawl that fluttered over my skin like a butterfly.

“No.” I swallowed noisily.

He laughed again. “You're lying, angel.”

Hell yeah I was lying. “I don't know how I feel about it,” I said, not wanting to reveal all my cards to him. He already had way more power over me than I was comfortable with. “I'm not even sure I believe you. I sure as hell don't feel any different about you,” I added, lying again.

“Is that right?”

“Yup.” I looked up at him just as he sprouted a smile. I found myself staring at his mouth, momentarily distracted by the fascinating form of his pouty lips.

“Come here,” he said.

“Excuse me?” I blinked the distraction away and met his eyes.

“Come closer, angel,” he repeated, though this time, there was a strange vibration in his voice that resonated through my body—through my bones. It was like a siren call that only I could hear.

A call I had to answer.

I shuffled forward, nudging myself towards him. Frankly, I had no idea why I was listening to him, but I was and it didn't occur to me to question it.

“Kiss me,” he said with the same mesmerizing tone as earlier.

I wanted to tell him no. Like hell no. But instead, I began inching my way closer to him, pulling myself further and further out of the safety of the tub to meet his waiting lips. Only when I was a whisper away from his mouth, close enough that I could smell the scent of whiskey and chocolate on his lips, did he put his hand on my shoulder and stop me.

I blinked away my confusion.

“Do you believe me now?” he asked smugly.

I felt my cheeks redden as I narrowed my eyes at him. “You did that on purpose? You compelled me?”

“I was proving a point.”

“And what point is that, Dominic? That I can't trust you? That you can take advantage of me?” I spat, retreating into the warm water. My cheeks were still inflamed from embarrassment, and even though I was yelling at him, the truth was, I was angrier with myself for not being able to resist his compulsion.

“If I wanted to take advantage of you, I would have let you kiss me,” he pointed out.

“So what? You want a medal for it? It was still a jerk move!”

I turned away from his condescending eyes and tried to simmer myself down. I suppose, at the end of the day, he did have a point. He could have made me follow through on that kiss. Heck, he could have made me do a lot worse than that. That had to stand for something, didn't it?

It did, I decided, knowing that I desperately still needed him in my corner.

“Don't do that again,” I warned him, meeting his eyes. This was hard enough without the added worry of wondering if he was making me do things against my will. Though, at this point, I wasn't even sure what my actual will was anymore.

“You have nothing to worry about, love. I have no interest in doing that again.”

My head ticked back a notch. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I asked, feeling strangely offended by his alleged disinterest in me. “What, am I some un-kissable toad now?

“I beg your pardon?” He chuckled.

“You heard me. Are my lips not good enough for your royal vampire mouth?” I went on, feeling far more offended than I was comfortable admitting. I seriously needed to get help.

He laughed again, shaking his head at my little outburst of indignation. “No, love. It simply means that when you finally do kiss me again, it's not going to be because I compelled you to. It's going to be because you want to.”

My stomach did a strange flip at his words, but I quickly shut the sucker down. “Well, good, because that’s obviously never going to happen again.”

“Never say never, angel.”

I wasn’t sure what scared me more; his smug demeanor about it, or the fact that he said it with such certainly. Like he was holding all the cards in his hands…like he knew something I didn’t.

And unfortunately, with Dominic, I could never really be sure.





7. EAT PRAY BLOOD


After steeping in the bath for nearly an hour, my two wardens took me back downstairs to the main floor where I was led into a sprawling dining room big enough for a king and his army. Or just Engel and his leeches. I immediately tried to gauge my surroundings, noting the wood-beamed ceilings, and the dark, lengthy dining table at the center, but I had a hard time staying focused with all the ridiculously amazing aromas coming out of the kitchen.

Saliva pooled in my mouth as I inhaled the smells and tried to picture the corresponding dish. I couldn’t help it. My stomach had been in a constant state of near-famine for the last…God knows how many days. Ten seconds in and I’d completely forgotten about my recon work and even stopped fidgeting with the hem of my two-sizes-too-small crop top.