The Sacrifice Read online

  The thought sends a shiver down my spine—it would be like working with a wolf or a mountain lion and having no idea until it was too late. Still, Aiden James seems much too civilized to prey on his coworkers, whoever they might be. Maybe he’s the CEO and doesn’t have to deal with them very much—that would fit his cool, remote personality to a T.

  “What are you thinking about?” he asks, looking at me closely.

  “You, Master,” I blurt before I think. I clear my throat, my cheeks getting hot. “I, uh, was just wondering where your office is. Where you work from.”

  “I own a company with offices in downtown Tampa, if you really want to know,” he says. “Most of my employees are in a separate building from the one that houses my office.” He gives me a rare smile, baring those sharp white fangs it’s so easy to forget about until they’re staring you right in the face.

  I bite my lip and look down. He must know I was thinking about him snacking on his workers. Was it a lucky guess or can he see into my thoughts somehow?

  “Your face is very easy to read,” he remarks.

  “That’s what Lexy says too,” I say. “Uh, my cousin.”

  “The one you were talking to today on the phone?” He raises an eyebrow at me and I blush.

  “Well, yes. Are you monitoring my phone calls?” I demand.

  “I could if I wished, but no. I do, however, take note of when my telephone or computer has been used.”

  “You can’t cut me off from the outside world forever,” I protest. “I have a life, you know. Maybe not a very exciting one but—”

  “What do you most want?” he says. “Ask, Emma. I can’t promise to give it to you but I won’t be angry with you for asking.”

  “To talk to my cousin,” I say at once. “Maybe go out with her for lunch sometime. Or have her over here?” I make this a question because I’m not sure about asking to have people over to his house.

  Aiden frowns. “Yes to the first request—you may talk to her as much as you like on the phone. As to having her here, I am a very private man.”

  “I understand,” I say quickly but he raises a hand to stop me.

  “But, I understand the female need for companionship.” He sighs. “You may have her over as long as you’re willing to see her while you’re dressed in the way I see fit.”

  “You mean I can’t take off the harness when she comes over,” I say flatly and Aiden nods.

  “Exactly. I need you to wear it for a certain number of hours during the day. It serves to open you and also to remind you of me.” He looks at me intently. “I never want to be far from your thoughts, Emma. You are never far from mine.”

  I look down, unable to stand the intensity of his gaze. “Don’t worry,” I mumble. “I…I think of you a lot too. I can’t help it.”

  He smiles and strokes my bare thigh until I shiver. “I’m glad to hear that.”

  “What about my class?” I ask in a rush, my heart pounding. “Can I contact my professor? When can I go back? My final exam is coming up soon and—”

  “No classes, not yet.” He frowns. “It’s not safe.”

  “Not safe?” I frown back at him. “I’ve been going all semester with no problem. I mean, I know it’s a night class but—”

  “You didn’t belong to me before,” he interrupts me, frowning sternly. “I’m sorry to tell you this, Emma, but as the new Sovereign I have many enemies who would be happy to do to you what they couldn’t do to me.” He sighs. “Besides, you’re not nearly through with your training yet. And…”

  “And what?” I prompt him impatiently.

  He looks at me thoughtfully. “And I’m not ready to share you yet,” he murmurs at last. “The bond between us is still too fresh—too new. I need you here, where I can nurture it. And protect you.”

  “Protect me and keep me all to yourself, you mean,” I say snappishly.

  “Exactly.” He’s perfectly calm about it, as though it’s not a big deal for him to keep me confined in his home. “Now then.” He claps his hands. “Let’s have no more unpleasantness. You can contact your professors and ask to do the assignments from here. If they give you problems about it, let me know. I can be very…persuasive when I have to.” For a moment his gray eyes flash silver and I shiver.

  “All right,” I whisper, though inside I’m still upset. Am I going to be kept a prisoner here in his house this entire year? It’s very confusing to be so attracted to a man who is also a vampire and my captor. I must have the worst case of Stockholm Syndrome ever because I can’t help wanting to please him, can’t help craving his touch…

  Before I can dwell on the problem too much, Aiden rings a tiny silver bell and calls for Barnes to bring out dessert.

  It turns out to be banana coins—slices of banana wrapped in some sweet pastry and fried until they’re crispy on the outside and meltingly soft and sweet on the inside—with a scoop of coconut ice cream on top. The entire concoction comes in a little porcelain bowl with a matching pitcher filled with golden honey sauce on the side. Aiden drizzles a little bit of it over the dessert before spooning up one of the coins and a generous amount of ice cream. He holds it out to me.

  “Be careful, darling. The inside is going to be extremely hot but the ice cream should keep it from burning your tongue.”

  I wonder if he’s always this solicitous and careful of all his submissives, then I remember him saying this isn’t a game he plays often. He certainly seems to be enjoying it now, though. He feeds me two more coins with the creamy smooth ice cream and gives me a sip of cool water to cleanse my palate. Then he puts down the spoon, sits back and looks at me.

  “It’s time for the second part of dessert now, Emma,” he says softly, his eyes half-lidded and his voice deep and soft. “Can you guess what that might be?”

  “No,” I whisper, my heart suddenly thumping. “No, I…I have no idea. What is it?”

  Instead of answering, he asks me another question. “Tell me, my darling, have you ever sucked cock?”

  Those dirty words in that deep voice of his sends a spark of heat straight to my bare pussy. “No,” I whisper, pressing my thighs together, feeling suddenly even more naked. “No, I…I never.”

  “Well, you’re going to learn. Come here and kneel before me on the ground.” He scoots his chair away from the table and opens his long legs. Then he unzips his expensive gray slacks and pulls out his cock.

  I try not to gasp but I can’t help it. He has the longest, thickest shaft I’ve ever seen in my life—and that’s saying something because Lexy has a thing for gay porn and she’s always making me watch it with her.

  Aiden seems unaffected by my shock. “It is both a blessing and a curse,” he remarks as he strokes himself slowly with one well-shaped hand. “It is the reason I was turned in the first place—but it also ensures that I can never take a female without extensive preparation.” He gives me a slow smile. “Which is one reason I am so content to take my time with you, my lovely little witch.”

  I stare at him until I remember I’m supposed to do more than just look. Awkwardly, my hands still cuffed in front of me, I slip off the chair and knee-walk over to settle between his thighs.

  “Very good.” Aiden strokes my hair away from my eyes and gives me a look of approval. “Now the main thing is to never use your teeth but I don’t really expect you to be able to fit much of me in that lush little mouth at first.”

  I’m relieved to hear that. His shaft looks thick enough to choke me. “But then…what do you want me to do?” I ask hesitantly.

  “To begin with, just lick.” He raises an eyebrow at me. “You did like the honey sauce, didn’t you?”

  “Yes.” It was delicious—sweet and a little tart as though a tiny bit of lemon juice had been mixed into it.

  “Good,” Aiden rumbles. Lifting the porcelain pitcher, he drizzles a thin line of honey sauce over the broad, throbbing shaft of his cock. “Come here, darling,” he murmurs, beckoning to me. “Lick me clean.”