Free Made By Design (Blood Bound Series Book 2) by J.L. Myers Page A

thought my body took over, needing blood to repair itself. The desperation was similar to waking after Caius had drained me at the Armaya. But this time I knew what I was doing, and what I was about to do. Still, I didn’t care. Instinct had taken over.
    I flung Kendrick’s hand away and sprung, blindly knocking Ty down and trapping his warm body with my hands. My fangs closed in on their destination, but they never met flesh. Kendrick took hold of me and hauled me off Ty. His arms were like bars around my body, and with my unhealed injuries and inability to breathe properly, he had the upper hand.
    “Amelia, stop it,” Kendrick rasped in my ear, fighting to contain me. His next words were only for me to hear.
Do you want him to see you like this?
    Before me, Ty had gotten to his feet and was taking slow steps toward us. His expression wasn’t horrified, as I guess I’d expected it to be. Instead it was surprised, and maybe a little disappointed. “It’s okay.” He wasn’t looking at me but at Kendrick. “If she needs my blood to heal…”
    “Are you kidding?” Anger flared from Kendrick through the bond. “She just…and you?” He shook his head and glanced up to the edge of the cavernous hole we stood in. “Never mind. There’s another full bottle in my backpack. It’s up there. Go get it.”
    Given his condescending and demanding tone, I expected Ty to argue, but he didn’t. “Sure. Whatever.” He shrugged then leapt, clearing the debris and landing on the opening’s edge. In seconds he maneuvered his way back through the obstacle-filled descent and held out the full bottle, an unreadable expression blanketing his face.
    Kendrick released me and took the bottle, thrusting it into my hands. “Drink it.”
    I took the bottle and turned my back. I didn’t think Ty seeing me drink blood like this would turn him off, but after attacking him I just felt too exposed. With a few pain-filled gulps, the glass bottle was empty, the hunger sated. The sharp lancing of my breaths began to ease. The flesh below my ribs and that of my own lung rushed back together in a thatch-work that stretched and bound. I gasped at the sensation, able to breathe again. All my wounds had healed.
    I ran my tongue over my teeth, still able to taste the blood. It was peppery and somehow familiar. Suspicion dawned on me. “What kind of blood was that?”
    Kendrick crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “I brought it as backup. I never thought you’d need it.”
    Ty looked from me to Kendrick in confusion. “What’s going on?” he asked. “What’s the problem?”
    I invaded Kendrick’s thoughts to find the answer. My jaw clenched and I hissed through gritted teeth. “Say it.”
    Kendrick stared at me, half apologetic and half irritated. “It’s mine.”
    “You ulterior motive dick.” Ty grabbed a fistful of Kendrick’s shirt. His free hand was tense at his side, trembling as canine-like nails grew from his fingers. “It’s not enough that you’re in her head every second of every day, you have to trick her too?”
    “It wasn’t a trick.” Kendrick tore Ty’s fist from his shirt and pushed him back. “She needed to be healed, and we already know what my blood can do for her.”
    I wanted to step in and put an end to this, but I was pissed too. Kendrick deserved the backlash, and Ty was giving enough steam for the both of us. Besides, I was so over the complication of our threesome that I just wanted to ignore the issue. “No punches. No drawing blood.”
    With a hard look at them both I strode away, focusing past their continued arguing and at the cavernous space we stood in. Most of the room was charred from the fire. Still there were remnants of what had been here before. Shackles lined the sooty walls, much like the ones that had entrapped me at the Armaya. A shudder ran through me and I picked up the closest one, studying it. There was an engraved marking, a symbol