A Slave to Love, Broken Hearts, and Everything In Between

Chapter 22: Good Girls Get Mauled

Kiana POV

"Hey, Ace?" I asked, stroking his hair where his head was tucked comfortably into the curve of my neck. A rare lazy day in bed, since Katie was out all day at school and I had the day off, so Ace had taken advantage to move some work stuff around and had been here since early this morning.

I hadn't even had breakfast when he'd shown up, I'd just dragged him to my bed to keep sleeping until I was ready to fully wake up and start my day...which involved mostly us staying in bed enjoying each other's company uninterrupted, where it was cozy and warm in light of the cold dark autumn weather that had settled over us like a gloomy blanket.

"Hey, Kiana?"

I chewed my lower lip, hoping he wouldn't think I was being a complete weirdo. "When was the last time you had anything to drink?"

"Um...yesterday afternoon, I think? Maybe morning. Why?"

"Just wondering if you're thirsty."

"A little," he said, snuggling closer, fingertips trailing a line up and down my ribs, almost like he was strumming a guitar. Even with my blankets over us, his cool fingers made me shiver. "I'm not gonna go rabid with hunger if that's what you're thinking."

"It wasn't." Or maybe it was.

"So what were you thinking?"

I didn't know why, but I suddenly felt very shy about asking.

"Kiana?" He prodded.

"Just making sure you're good. I've had snack breaks, you haven't," I said instead, like the coward I was. "Thought you might be due for one."

"I definitely could go for a snack, but that would require me to get up and leave, which I have zero interest in doing," he said, planting a kiss on my neck and I squirmed, flaming at the touch, so sensitive from thinking about it most of the last twenty-four hours and after our lazy couple of rounds this morning.

Ever since Lexi had brought it up and Ace had pointed out that he was the only one who hadn't bitten me yet, it was all I could think about. What it would be like...a blinding intoxication the way it was with Blade or soothing like Lexi? Or maybe something completely different?

"You don't have to leave," I mumbled.

"You got some secret blood stash stored away next to the ice cream that I don't know about?"

"No..."

"Then how--oh." His quiet laugh against my throat tickled, which wasn't helping, and it took all my effort not to squirm under him.

"I just figured it would be easier. And this way you're not starving until you go home," I said quickly.

"If you want me to bite you, darling, you only have to ask," he said, amused as he tickled my side.

"You'd want to?"

"Um hello? Obviously I want to? You smell great, you taste great, and we both know it feels great," he said, nuzzling my neck now and it tickled in the best way. "I just didn't want to be the one to suggest it and make you feel like a snack, instead of my girlfriend, like I was just using you for food. Which, for future reference, I'll do it whether I'm thirsty or not because I genuinely enjoy it."

"Okay well, I wouldn't have thought that at all." If anything, I'd been self conscious wondering why he hadn't brought it up yet himself, if maybe my blood hadn't tasted as good as he said and he'd only been polite the times he'd tasted it. Or maybe that it was too soon to try. "I just wasn't sure if you were comfortable with that sort of thing or if you wanted to."