The Warrior Vampire by Kate Baxter Page A

nostrils.
    Fuck it.
    He strode through the door without a thought to the silver cuffs still hanging from his wrists with links of broken chain. Naya turned to face him, the murder in her gaze doing nothing to cool Ronan’s lusts. It seemed the angrier and more violent she got, the more he wanted her. Sick.
    â€œNaya…?”
    The male standing beside her—Santi—took a defensive stance, legs braced as though in anticipation of attack. His dark eyes narrowed as he assessed Ronan, and Santi’s jaw squared as he clenched his teeth.
    â€œI told you to stay put!” Naya seethed. The sharp, spicy scent of her annoyance banished that of her earlier anxiety. “Are all vampires this obstinate or is it just you?”
    Santi’s eyes widened. “Vampire?” He sprang to action, reaching out to guide Naya behind him.
    Wrong move, asshole. Ronan’s secondary fangs ripped through his gums. He wanted nothing more than to sink them into the other male’s flesh. A predatory growl escaped from between Ronan’s teeth and he let out a feral hiss. Santi’s pupils elongated as he answered with a similar, decidedly feline snarl.
    A shifter. Awesome.
    â€œEverybody just calm down.”
    Santi made no move to release his hold on Naya. His fingers bit into her arm, and though she made no outward show of discomfort, it sparked Ronan’s bloodlust and the need to commit violence burned through him. “If you don’t want to die today, shifter, I’d suggest letting her go.”
    â€œSanti.” Naya’s tone was panicked and it served to further agitate Ronan. “You can’t tell Paul he’s here. You can’t tell anyone . Promise me.”
    The shifter’s eyes narrowed, the once deep brown irises now blazing gold. His pupils were narrow black slashes and his incisors had elongated in his jaw. “A vampire, Naya? They should be extinct. What is he doing here? Why? The elders need to know.”
    The tang of Naya’s fear scorched Ronan’s nostrils, and the icy cold that had penetrated his veins not an hour ago threatened to surface once again. Naya’s brows gathered sharply above her eyes as though she sensed it as well.
    â€œRonan, put a lid on it,” she warned. “I’m fine. You’re fine. We’re all fine.” She didn’t look fine. Her scent sure as hell didn’t smell fine. And you could bet that male’s hands on her weren’t doing a gods-damned thing to make Ronan feel fine. “Santi, let me go.”
    The male released her arm in an instant and some of the ice retreated from Ronan’s veins. He resisted the urge to reach out and pull her to him, knowing it would do nothing more than spark her ire.
    â€œNaya, what in the hell is going on here?” The gold melted from Santi’s eyes, and with it more of the cold drained from Ronan’s gut. “With everything on our plate right now, don’t you think his being here is a little coincidental?”
    â€œWhat is going on here?” Ronan needed answers, and maybe he’d finally get them. He turned to his tight-lipped mate. “Naya?”
    â€œOur business is none of yours, vampire,” Santi said with a sneer. In an urgent whisper he said to Naya, “We know nothing about them. Him. He could be creating the mapinguari for all you know, and you’re keeping him in your house ?”
    Naya’s jaw dropped as though words failed her. Ronan took a step toward her and she held up a staying hand.
    â€œLook at him!” Santi said forcefully, throwing his open palm in Ronan’s direction. “He’s ragged and bloodied. Someone had him cuffed and bound, for the love of the gods!”
    â€œI cuffed and bound him, Santi.” Naya’s tight-lipped response nearly coaxed a smile to Ronan’s face. “I found him last night after I dropped off the repo with you.”
    â€œAnd you decided to keep