Taste of Torment Read Online Free PDF

didn’t care that he was emotionally awkward or that he found it hard to articulate how he felt. He made it clear that he cared for me in other ways; he protected me with a ferocity that I wouldn’t have thought possible, would kill or die for me without hesitation. When his attention was on me, it was an undivided attention that was so intense it was both intoxicating and disorientating. It was hard to grasp, to comprehend, that I could really mean that much to someone.
    When he swiped his thumb across my bottom lip, I nipped the digit lightly. “There was never anything between us.”
    “I think he wished there had been. I don’t like the way he looks at you.”
    “You don’t like the way any bloke looks at me.”
    He gave me one of his lopsided grins. “Of course I don’t.” He gripped my hips possessively and held me flush against him. “I don’t like anyone fantasising about this body that’s all mine.”
    I curled my arms around his neck. “Yours? I don’t know about that,” I said playfully.
    His crooked grin turned devilish. “Then I guess I’ll have to claim it all over again later so you remember exactly who you belong to.”
    “I can’t see that you have any other choice.”
    Chuckling, he scooped me up and kissed me hard.
     

C HAPTER TWO
     
     
    ( Jared)
     
    Exchanging a look with Sam as we stood only one hundred yards away from the caves where Quentin Foy and most of his nest resided, I knew she was thinking the exact same thing that I was: What. The. Fuck?
    We had been on his territory for over an hour. Not just us, but the entire squad, Ava and her asshole of a brother, and also Evan – who had appeared as we were ready to leave and insisted on coming. Yet, the presence of fifteen vampires hadn’t earned a response. We had initially arrived much farther away, expecting to be approached the very second our presence was sensed. When no one came, we began to advance toward the caves, fully expecting someone to appear at some point. But no one had.
    Quentin, like most High Masters, should have guards surrounding his residence to protect him from anyone hoping to challenge him and usurp his position. But there didn’t appear to be anyone in sight. Oh sure, that didn’t mean that no one was around. There were vampiric gifts impressive enough to allow people to conceal themselves. But it wasn’t just that it looked deserted. The place was quiet. Too quiet.
    “I don’t like this.” Sam was biting her lip, scanning our surroundings once more. “What High Master in their right mind would leave themselves vulnerable this way?”
    “Quentin’s not exactly popular. It would be downright stupid of him not to have spies at the very least.” Seeing that Sam was rubbing the Celtic-looking tattoo that surrounded the base of her third finger, I smiled. It was something she often did when she was confused or anxious, as if the Binding knot gave her strength.
    Several times since we returned from our ‘honeymoon’, I’d been asked how I found life as a Bound male. Over the years, I’d heard some say that being Bound could make a person feel trapped. Back then, I’d supposed that was natural, considering there was no divorce or get-out clause. But being Bound to Sam didn’t make me feel trapped or restricted. Instead, I felt centred, more relaxed. I even felt strengthened, which was ironic given that she was my weakness. The power of it all wasn’t frightening, it was energising. It meant that she was mine, that she’d always be mine, and that I was connected to her in a way that no one else ever could be. That knowledge was like an anchor. And, yeah, I was possessive enough to feel a bone-deep self-satisfaction about it.
    As deeply linked as we now were, I knew and understood Sam much more. Every single layer of her was more intriguing than the last. I liked the idea that the longer the bond existed, the more interconnected we would become. I liked that I would always know where she was