"You abandoned me when I needed you most!" Aurora screamed, her voice piercing. "La Mort went on a rampage and I was locked away in a mental asylum in England, enduring months of torture while carrying our children. I waited for your rescue, but you never came! I suffered, hoping you'd save me, but you never did!"
Her words had tumbled out unbidden, revealing secrets she'd meant to keep hidden. All she'd wanted was the emerald Zion necklace, but Sebastian's stare broke her defenses. He was staring at her with desire, and it filled her with resentment.
She loathed that he wanted her now... Why?! Why now?!
Sebastian's eyes never left hers as he coughed up blood, his body swaying before he dropped to his knees. His chest heaved with ragged breathing. "This... This brings back memories, doesn't it?"
Aurora's eyes flashed with wrath. "Are you out of your mind?"
Sebastian looked up at her, a weak laugh escaping his lips as he nodded. "Not as crazy as you, Ma méchante. You're using the dagger I gave you for protection to stab me. Again."
Aurora's fists clenched, her anger explosive. She strode towards him, her fist connecting with his cheekbone in a sharp crack. "Shut up and die! I want no part of these memories!"
Sebastian's laughter was a low, husky rasp, his head tilted at an angle. "You hate me, don't you?"
Aurora snorted in disgust. "What kind of ridiculous question is that?!" She couldn't believe he was still talking after she'd stabbed him in a vital spot.
She lifted her leg to deliver a kick to his stomach, but he caught her dress, his hand closing around the fabric with a fast, strong flow. The unexpected tug threw her off balance, and she felt herself being dragged into his arms, her body landing squarely on top of his large, powerful frame as he intentionally fell back, pulling her down with him.
She stiffened.
He smiled weakly, his eyes gleaming with a mix of pain and desire, and wrapped his strong arms around her. "Want me to apologize, Ma méchante?" he whispered, his deep voice husky from weakness and the intoxicating scent of their bodies pressed together.
Aurora tried to scramble to her feet, but Sebastian's grip around her body was mightily strong. Her eyes widened in surprise at his powerful hold, and she froze, looking at his face.
"Release me," she growled.
But instead of complying, Sebastian asked in a weak whisper, "Which do you desire more? The emerald Zion necklace or my blood?"
Aurora blinked, surprised. "What?"
"The emerald Zion necklace or my blood?" He asked again.
Aurora's eyes quickly darkened, and she snarled, baring her fangs in rage. She grasped Sebastian's thick neck with both hands, her grip tightening. "The necklace,"
"Liar," Sebastian hissed, his crimson eyes flashing ominously. "Your thirst for my blood is undeniable. You can't hide it, no matter how hard you try to deny it."
Aurora's expression twisted in a snarl. "I'm not attracted to your blood," she insisted. "You rejected me, severed our mate bond. You..."
Sebastian's voice exploded in a fierce growl, cutting her off. "To hell with the mate bond! You'll become addicted to my blood, just like you were before. And I'll make sure of it."
Aurora's eyes turned even darker, her anger reaching a boiling point. "Shut up!"
"No, Ma méchante. I'll make you crave my blood more than ever before. If that's the only way to claim you again, so be it."
Aurora's eyes narrowed, her heart pounding rapidly as she struggled to maintain control. The intoxicating scent of Sebastian's blood filled every corner of the room, making her proximity to his bleeding wound almost too much to bear.
"Hand over the necklace, Sebastian," she threatened, her voice barely above a whisper, as she tightened her grasp around his neck. "I won't ask again."
Sebastian's lips curled into a sly smile, sensing her restraint slipping. He knew he was pushing her to the edge, and he reveled in it. Just one more push, and she would be his.
"You've been holding La Mort captive since our children's birth, haven't you?" He whispered, his voice dripping with seduction. "For ten years, you've stifled your deepest desires and primal instincts, sacrificing your own nature to protect them from corruption."
He reveled in the fury building in her hypnotic eyes.
"Darling," he purred, his voice low and sensual. "We both know that with me, your control is an illusion. I am your anchor, your restraint, and your ultimate downfall, just as you are mine."
"I am not yours," Aurora snarled, her irises flashing from purple to ocean blue, finally settling on the calming stormy ocean hue.
One final push.
"Ma méchante," Sebastian hissed, his voice saturated with primal possessiveness. "You belong to me, now and forever, just as I belong to you."
Aurora's patience snapped. "Enough!"
She released her grip on his neck, leaned in and sank her fangs deep into his skin with a harsh, desperate force.
"Yes.." Sebastian chuckled, a low and euphoric sound. His smile twisted in ecstasy, as Aurora grasped his shirt tightly, drinking in his blood with reckless abandon.
The familiar rush of intoxication coursed through her veins, reviving her body and reawakening sensations she thought were long dead. For the first time in ten years, she felt truly alive.
His blood coursed through her veins, its intoxicating sweetness sent her heart racing and heat surging through her body, defying the chill of the room. Her craving consumed her, and she didn't care about the quantity of blood she was taking. She only wanted more, her decade-long starvation driving her to excess.
But Sebastian, aware that her unbridled thirst would surely kill him, released his hold on her body and grasped the back of her neck, yanking her head away from his skin with a sudden, sharp jerk.
Her fangs retracted instantly, her face still inches from his, her lips smeared with his blood. A sight that sent a jolt of arousal through him, leaving him rigid with desire.
Her eyes brightened, her parted lips releasing ragged, heavy breaths. "Bastard," she hissed, the word barely escaping her teeth.