Bloodlust

Thirst

— LIAM —

Mate, my ass.

The sight of the bastard trying to take Venice away from me sent violent thoughts through my mind. My formalities of being ambassador were shored aside. I wanted nothing more than to tear into him.

Not only for lying about this second-chance bullshit but also for putting my mate into a difficult situation. I knew the Princeps were behind this somehow. They wanted her torn away from me; they'd boasted as much.

There was far too much possession in his eyes for someone just doing what he was paid to, however. I wanted to scratch his eyes out for looking at Venice that way.

"What is this?" he asked. Despite the level tone in his voice, there was a crack in his armored exterior.

Venice sucked in a quick breath. "Macay, hi. We were just talking."

I grabbed her waist when she moved to approach him. They both looked at me—her, in warning, and him, in hostility.

My canines elongated, the razored tips resting against my bottom lip. Had Eleanor not succeeded in making me feed from her this morning during a moment of weakness, I might have ripped Macay's desperate little heart out.

Fortunately for him, my blood lust wasn't the strongest will at hand right now.

"Let her go," he snarled.

He kept the sound low enough that others wouldn't hear. That was good. His gaze dropped to Venice.

"Liam," she hissed, "let go."

My lip peeled back in a snarl. She glanced down at my fangs and gulped.

"I'm not letting you go with him," I muttered. "You're mine."

Her eyes filled with panic as the pitch of her voice escalated. "Listen to me, Liam. Calm down."

She touched my arm, our gazes locked. My body automatically responded to her soothing voice. I relaxed my grip on her and then realized how hard I'd been holding her.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "Did I hurt you?"

"No," she spoke too quickly. She masked a grimace with a fake smile that sliced through me.

I let go of her completely now and took a step back. I couldn't believe I'd grabbed her so firmly. My control had just . . . slipped.

"I'm sorry," I said, looking down out of complete shame and disgust. "I'm so sorry, Venice. I didn't mean to—"

"I'm fine, Liam. It's okay." She raised her brows and waited for me to reluctantly nod. "We're not done yet. Let's get back to work."

"Okay," I ceded.

"We're going. You need to find Eleanor."

"I know," I muttered.

My eyes remained fixed on the floor while I processed my behavior. Something about my little human mate turned me into the feral beast that earned my kind a bad reputation in storybooks.

The King Alpha's voice boomed through the ballroom walls, but I had no interest in listening. This was all bullshit. I was losing my head because of it.

Eventually, I returned to the table. Eleanor frowned as I sunk into the chair beside hers.

"What took so long?" she whispered.

Flicking my eyes at her, the evident annoyance cued her to leave it alone. She huffed and leaned back in her seat.

I pushed the plate of biscuits and eggs away, repulsed by the strong odor and my inner turmoil. From the moment I woke this morning, I sensed today would not go well.