Lustre of Twilight (Love Bitten)

She watched me warily as I slowly closed the small distance between us and crouched down to be at her eye level. “What is your name?” I asked gently.

“Why would I tell you?” she snapped suspiciously.

I almost grinned widely at her show of fire, but I didn’t want her to mistake me for a predator, so I carefully kept my expression and voice kind when I responded, “Because we’re here to help”—I smiled, but softly—“and I don’t want to call you ‘miss.’ So, let’s start again. I’m Jareth, and you are?”

She didn’t answer right away, still appearing skittish, but eventually, she said, “Narkissa.”

Narkissa. It was a beautiful name, befitting of its owner. “It’s nice to meet you, Narkissa. In answer to your first question, those were nightwalkers, evil vampires intent on destroying you,” I explained.

Narkissa recoiled and gaped at me as if I’d grown two heads. “What? Are you crazy? Vampires don’t exist! And why would they want me? I’m nobody!”

My eyes dropped to her neck before I shook my head. “You are everything to someone.” I gave her a very brief overview of her destiny as a consort, and by the time I finished, Narkissa’s chocolate eyes had gone wide and round as saucers, but they were plagued with disbelief.

“Even if vampires are real, that’s insane. Fate can’t just...just...pick someone for me!” She sounded more outraged than anything, which might have been amusing if I wasn’t the one who had to convince her that this was real and let me take her to meet with the council for protection.

The consorts we saved had all kinds of different reactions to the truth, but the most frustrating were the ones who wouldn’t accept it. A lot of times, they refused the council’s help, went off on their own, and ended up dead as a result. Although, it was usually more about accepting the reality of the supernatural, whereas Narkissa seemed to be royally pissed at the idea of an omnipotent matchmaker.

In any other circumstance, I would have enjoyed her uniqueness and bold personality, but I had a job to do, and her protection came before anything. “There’s a place we can go—”

Narkissa snorted adorably and began to struggle to her feet in the small, confined space. “I’m not going anywhere with you. You’re obviously insane, and your hotness doesn’t quite beat out the crazy meter.”

I rolled my eyes, then tossed a warning glare at my brother who was stifling his laughter. Jackass.

Narkissa had nothing to grip, so her hands slipped on the grimy walls of the dumpsters, and she landed on her ass again. I growled in frustration and leaned in, grabbing her arms and hauling her to her feet.

Holy fucking shit. The warmth of her skin radiated through the transparent fabric and apparently—going by the steel shaft that had just spring to life in my slacks—thin enough for our bond to snap into place.

Mine.

Visions of tearing off all her layers and everything I would do to her naked body flooded my mind. It was hard as fuck to rein it in and remember where we were and that Narkissa would be falling right into my arms and begging me to fuck her.

Narkissa’s mouth opened, and she stared at me, clearly experiencing the same overwhelming flood of arousal. Perhaps that was the only convincing she would need. Keeping our eyes locked, I bent my head and leaned in for a kiss. Before our lips touched, my head snapped to the side when Narkissa delivered an impressive right hook to my jaw.

Motherfucker! I almost cried out, but the slightest movement of my jaw sent pain ripping through me.

Ouch, Liam said in my head.

Shut it, I responded as I bent over holding my jaw and trying to catch my breath. Damn, I think she broke it.

It took several minutes for my accelerated healing to mend the bone, but when it felt solid and pain no longer radiated from the cracked bone, I stood and moved my jaw around to test it. Good as new.

Returning my gaze to Narkissa—I scowled when I saw that the spot where she’d been standing was now empty.

“Looking for your consort?” Liam drawled with a sly grin. “She went that way.” He jerked his chin in the direction of the alley. Since there had been only one car in the parking lot, I assumed Narkissa had taken off in her vehicle.

“Fucking hell,” I sighed. Liam grinned, and I threw him a glare that promised I’d get even before I jogged around the building to try to find a clue as to where my mate had gone.

As I suspected, one of the cars had disappeared, quite quickly if the tire marks on the pavement were any indication.

Closing my eyes, I thought back to when I’d arrived and what the other car in the lot had looked like. A silver Audi.