Free Kai (A Dark Assassins Novel Book One) by Valerie Ullmer

ignited her and made her crave more.  
    The one problem of her newly discovered attraction.   He made a vow to protect her because of the situation she had brought to their attention and not because he chose to have her stay.   She had to remember that although essential, feeding from her was distasteful.  
    Her life became endangered the moment she had made the decision to destroy research, but although they were stuck together until a group decision had been reached, she knew she had to make it as easy for him as she could.  
    So, she became resolute.
    She would become numb to his touch and lecture her body not to react to him, no matter how many times a day he would need to feed.   If need be, she would think of scientific calculations in order not to react, do anything to get her mind off the pleasure from his touch.
    That, or expire from unfulfilled lust.

Chapter Seven

    Kai

    Kai had heard her quick retreat as she hurried down the hall, recognizing which door she disappeared behind by the soft click as it closed, but couldn’t manage to unfreeze his large form in order to follow her.  
    His chest heaved with deep breaths as he tried to cool his heated body.   Aware of the distant flutter of wings from nocturnal birds outside and the silence throughout the rest of the house, his thoughts refused to budge from the woman in the other room.   Rough fingers rubbed against his forehead as he tried to understand his reaction to the taste of her blood, the smell of her skin as it heated from his touch, and a sexual urgency that had left him stunned by the intensity of it.
    He couldn’t decide what affected him more.   Her sweet blood that had tasted more like a delicacy, or the desire that pulsed in his veins as her soft curves pressed against him.  
    She had trusted him, despite her fear and the way he had treated her since he brought her home.   He found himself torn between taking her soft mouth beneath his, or sinking his fangs into her luscious skin.   But in the end, his thirst had won out.
    Between the contract on her life, and trying to keep his distance from the temptation she presented, he hadn’t given much thought to sustenance, and that had presented a danger that he hadn’t thought through.  
    He never allowed a lapse in feeding, but he knew that answer didn’t allow for the reason he reacted with such intensity to her taste.   He wanted to blame his reaction to her presence in his home or the simmering attraction beneath the surface, but while he drank from her, pleasure beyond anything he’d ever felt gripped him.   Avoidance had deepened his need for her, not detracted from it, and he knew he couldn’t stay away from her for a moment longer.
    Without a solid idea how to proceed, he hurried to the bathroom door, pausing when he heard her voice.   When he realized what she said, he smiled as he listened to her whisper to herself as her feet shuffled on the tile floor.   Relieved that he hadn’t been the only one distressed by what had happened, he struck the door with a soft rap so he didn’t startle her.   Her mutterings came to an abrupt stop, and he found he missed her voice.
    For a long moment, he considered what he would do if she refused to speak with him.   He’d understood with clarity how rude he’d been when he put distance between them after such an intimate encounter, but before he could come up with the proper apology, the door swung open.   A smile lifted the corner of his lips.   Liv had been nothing but brave, and he expected nothing less of her, even if she stood in front of him, a blush of embarrassment staining her cheeks.
    “I didn’t quite get what you were saying,” he said.
    Her fist shot out, and when she punched him in the arm, a laugh rumbled from his throat.   He rubbed his arm, a natural human reaction that he must’ve never forgotten, and she rolled her eyes at his action.
    “Don’t be obtuse.   I know that it didn’t hurt.   But if you keep