Page 123 of Ravenous
Her brows lifted. “Why would you care if I’m affected?”
“You’re my business partner,” he said evenly, though the words caught in his throat. It was more complicated than that. Notthebond, but something close enough to unsettle him.
Lust, yes. Hunger. Yet beneath it all ran a thread of protectiveness that tightened every time he looked at her. Again and again, the same thought surfaced:How bad were the Badlands to you as a girl?
He’d spent more time with her than he ever had with anyone outside his family, but they’d never spoken of their pasts. Still, he sensed that no one had stood between her and the worst of it.
He could stand there now. That cost him nothing. He was strong, and money seemed to calm her. He could help her earn more. So he kept showing up, telling himself that was all it was.
She scoffed. “Now you’re concerned about business?”
“As you often remind me, our venture is lucrative.”
Her brows knit. “Is gold everything?”
“You were very convincing when you assured me it was. What is happening here?” His gaze narrowed. “Ah. Youareaffected by that energy.”
Her mouth parted in outrage. “I was in a fantastic mood earlier,” she snapped. She had been—bright, almost effervescent—despite spending the day mopping blood and stripping beds of half-dead donors. She always told him,You don’t want to know.
Now he asked, “What is your wild news?”
“It can wait.”
“Then hear mine.” He stepped closer. “I found vampires in Umber who don’t drink from sentient beings. They’re monk-like abstainers.”
She recoiled, face twisting. “They pierce animals?”
“No. They harvest blood and consume it like wine. Dignified, actually.”
Her expression seemed to steal the air from the room. Her voice dropped. “So the way I drink is…undignified?” She tapped her tongue to a fang point.
“Dangerous,” he corrected. “Your eyes will redden eventually. Or you’ll kill by accident. This enclave avoids that.” He couldn’t hide the faint pride in his words as he said, “Arctos will find this valuable.” Ink had been given a chance at redemption, and he hadn’t disappointed. With this information, he couldrebuild trust. He wanted Nadje to trust him too. Wanted to show her he could fix things. Before he thought better of it, Ink said softly, “With the payment from this job and the Lykae king’s, I intend to buy back the fire from Baelor.”
Her hazel eyes snapped vampire black. “Not this again.” She flung up her hands. “You’re worse than a fey lute player who knows only one tune. ‘Tickle My Pointed Ears’ on an endless loop!”
“Nadje, we handed a madman something we didn’t understand. I must fix this for both of us. Historically, hubris like ours begs for punishment.”
“All you care about ishistory!” Her disdain darkened. “This is our job. This is what we do. You’ve been stewing over this for weeks. Every mission, you look like you swallowed something foul. I’m sick of it!”
“And you haven’t been stewing, which is worse! Do you never consider anything other than finishing a job?”
Her lips thinned. She cared, but she wouldn’t admit it. Then: “Like people’s feelings? Did you consider mine when you acted as if you were falling for me to get my secrets?”
Were they to rehash this? The weird anger in his chest said,DO IT.“You used me just as well!”
“Only because you put me in your sights first. And the fact that I used you doesn’t erase what you did to me.”
They were spiraling. The air thickened. That strange energy in the Skein wrapped around them like smoke, stoking heat in their hearts.
He tried to claw them back. “Baelor is dangerous. What will he do with that fire? Weaponize it? Burn the Skein? Some sects want total destruction. What if he leads one?”
“For all the gods’ sakes, you think too much!”
He had been told that all his life. Resented it now. “I thought too little when I was fucking you, didn’t I?” The words ripped out before he could stop them. But hostility clouded his vision and scalded his rational mind.
Fangs lengthened, she took a slow step toward him. “Yes. You did think too little.” Her voice was lethal velvet. “I played you, and you can’t let go of that either!”
Rage surged. Primeval. Demonic. He bared his own fangs, something he hadn’t done since his youth. “You told me our situation was put up or shut up. Very well.” His voice was low, shaking with fury. “I remove myself from this partnership entirely.”
