Page 29 of The Red Moon

“And to think, the humans call us animals,” I murmur, leaning in close enough to taste the hotel toothpaste on her breath.

There’s a flicker in her eyes, and each brow tenses. She doesn’t say anything, only lets her delicate pink mouth hang open. Us. I said us. Natalia isn’t human anymore. Not fully. There’s a dormant part inside of her now, a monster getting stronger every time the curse of my bloodline finds a new artery to invade. It won’t be long until she feels the effects. A few days. Maybe less. It’s near impossible to gauge when a human’s senses heighten after being turned.

She peers down at her feet, her mouth thinning to a straight line. “Because I’m not human.”

I bring my hand to her cheek, fingers sliding between wet strands of hair. “No. You’re not.” Looking at her ankle, only the scars of Viktor’s teeth remain.

“There’s something I want you to do.” Her voice is soft and pleading.

“Anything.”

Natalia swallows hard, and when she looks me in the eyes, the subtle glow I’ve seen before flashes in each iris and disappears. “I know it won’t change anything. You can’t be cursed twice—” She pauses and laughs incredulously. “But I need you to do this for me.”

I draw a breath and wait. Hanging off every word.

“Bite me,” she finally says, her voice firm and unwavering. “The same way you bite someone to turn them.”

I hold her gaze, tilting my head to the side in contemplation. I don’t know if she even knows what she’s asking. The last person I bit was ripped apart to show the consequences for disobeying an alpha. For turning without permission. Ida died a more horrible death than her sickness would’ve asked for. Because of me. Biting Natalia wouldn’t affect the changes happening within her now, we both seem to know that. But she’s asking me to do something I swore I’d never do again.

Her stare intensifies, and she grabs both sides of my face, hands warming my jaw. “Viktor did this to me out of anger. Turned me because he had something to prove. I don’t want to be reminded of it every time I see this scar. To think that there’s a piece of me that’s his.” Tears fill each eye and spill out, adding to the water dripping down her cheeks. “If I have to pretend you were the one that turned me, then, so be it.”

Something simmers in my chest. It’s hot. Scalding, even. I made a promise to myself years ago, but I also made a promise to protect her at all costs. And if that means sacrificing a vow to preserve the Natalia I’ve fallen in love with, then I’ll do what I must with a fucking smile on my face.

I give her a solemn nod until my fangs grow to a sharp and pointed length. She reacts by arching her head and exposing her neck to me in submission. There’s no fear in her eyes, only the familiar glint the woman I saw before my brother cursed her. Before he cursed my prey.

“Take a deep breath, Natalia,” I say, my voice low.

She does without question. And as her chest lifts to its peak, I drive my teeth into the side of her neck, burying past the first few layers of untouched skin.

NINETEEN

NATALIE

Forgive me father, for I have sinned, and the beast’s name is Nikolai fucking Vostik. He ravages my throat, and I don’t pull away. This is different. When Viktor bit me, the only thing coursing through my veins was an unspeakable amount of agony. Like I was tossed into the fires of hell, the gods condemning me for the curse he was inflicting. Now, the only thing I feel is … bliss.

He growls, vibrating both of our chests and sending a shockwave to my core. My breath falters. A whimper flees my low-hanging jaw. Tiny droplets of blood dance down my neck and stop halfway. When Nik sinks his teeth deeper, more is added to red collecting at my collarbone. I gasp, the sound strangled and weak, but no less hungry for more. There isn’t pain. No hint of discomfort. Just an intense desire to have him throbbing my center.

Nik unlatches his teeth from me, and stands upright, eyes glowing brighter than they have since Völk. I don’t want him to stop. No, I think I’d prefer him to bite different parts of my body now and leave his brand in places only I can see. My blood coats his mouth, and God, I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m not disgusted at the sight of it. Not repulsed. I’m fucking aroused.

“What—what does it taste like?” I ask through suffocated breaths.

Nik’s mouth spreads into a bloody grin, his long fangs painted red. He drags his finger over his bottom lip and brings it to his tongue, sucking away the mess. “Sweet.”

My thighs clench tight, and the throbs I felt before? Gone. Violent tremors now threaten to unravel me. A cramp forms in each foot as my toes curl on the hotel shower mat. Dimitri and Alexey are less than ten feet away from us, but I don’t care. I don’t care that I feel like I can sleep for the next twelve hours. Right now, all I want is him.

Smirking, I drop the towel to land in a wet bundle at my feet. His eyes flash with hunger and then something else. I take a step closer, bringing the hardened peaks of my nipples to his exposed chest. Desire rolls in my stomach, the sensation stronger than anything I’ve ever felt.

“Natalia …” he growls. “What are you doing?”

My grin deepens. “Hunting.”

“Don’t make this harder than it already is.”

A small laugh passes through my lips. I glance down at the blanket tied around his waist and back to his golden eyes. “That’s exactly what I want to do.”

“We can’t. Not until …”

I grab for the blanket with both hands, unknotting it slowly. “Until what?” I ask, a seductive edge in my voice.