Free Twisted by Gena Showalter Page B

knew how to feed. Hadn’t he proven that to Victoria, over and over again?
    The memory had his gaze falling to her neck, where her pulse hammered swiftly. The ache in his gums returned. Mine, he thought again. Mine to bite and to drink from and to kiss.
    You don’t even like her. Not anymore.
    â€œI’ll bite her,” she continued through gritted teeth, “and you can drink from her.” She didn’t give him a chance to respond. She simply lifted and bit.
    The human closed her eyes, moaning as the pleasurehit her. Pleasure Aden knew very well and still craved, despite his determination to remain aloof.
    Vampire fangs produced some kind of drug that numbed your skin and flowed straight into your veins, warming you up, making you feel good, too good . Which was exactly why so many humans became addicted, willing to do anything for another nibbling.
    Not him. Never him. Not again.
    A second passed, then another. Victoria lifted her head. Blood wetted her lips a deep scarlet, and Aden wanted to lick them. Instead, he forced his gaze on the two punctures in the human’s wrist. Blood wetted there, too, and he groaned. What he didn’t do was chastise Victoria for disobeying him. What right do I have to chastise her? He simply claimed the arm offered to him and brought the wound to his mouth.
    He licked once, twice, tasting ambrosia, groaning again, before sucking, letting the nectar fill his mouth, swallowing, his eyes closing in the same surrender the human had experienced. And yet, in the back of his mind, he thought that as wonderful as this blood tasted, it should have tasted better . Should have been sweeter, with only a little hint of that spice.
    â€œâ€”has no fangs, yet he still craves blood,” Riley wassaying as Aden became aware of his surroundings again. “It’s unheard of.”
    â€œApparently not,” Victoria snapped. “Look at him. He’s enjoying every moment of this.”
    â€œEnjoying? His eyes look dead, and have ever since he woke up. Something’s wrong with him.”
    Aden knew they were talking about him, but just as before, he didn’t care.
    â€œWell, she’s enjoying it, then,” Victoria added, words sharp as a whip. “If I wasn’t holding her back she’d be grinding on him.”
    â€œDo you want me to deny that?” the wolf muttered. “Because we both know I’d be lying.”
    â€œYou’re a terrible friend.”
    â€œWhatever. Just don’t kill her afterward. To borrow her, I had to promise Lauren you’d do her laundry for a week. And I had to promise you’d do it forever if any harm came to her slave.”
    â€œThanks a lot. You couldn’t have asked Lauren for a male?”
    A tremor rocked the human. Of fear? Or was she still too lost to the pleasure to care, either?
    â€œI’m only guessing here, but I don’t think humans—even former humans—are like us. They can’t separatefeeding from sex. I figured Aden would appreciate a female.”
    â€œWell, he’s appreciating her too much!”
    Riley arched a brow at Victoria. “Are you jealous, princess?”
    â€œNo. Yes. He’s mine.” A pause. “Well, he was . Now…he pushed me away. Twice. Did you see him push me away?”
    â€œYeah, I did, but he loves you, Vic. You know that.”
    â€œDo I?” she asked softly.
    Did he? Aden wondered. Even though he didn’t like her at the moment? Because, as he knew, you didn’t have to like someone to love them. A lesson he’d learned as a child, when his parents had him committed, then walked away and never looked back.
    He hadn’t liked them, might even have hated them, but even still, he’d loved them. At least at first. But as the days had passed in a medicated haze, as other patients beat him up and called him names, that love had withered, leaving only the hate. Then, the hate, too, had left him, and