Finding Fire: Paranormal Romance (Bad Boys Of The Underworld Book 1) by Mallory Crowe Read Free Book Online

vision of those black eyes came back to her. Instead of scaring her, it brought her back to reality.
    “Why would his eyes be black?” she asked.
    Nicolas seemed confused at her question that had nothing to do with his previous foreboding statement. “Why?”
    She shrugged. “When I saw him killing that man, his eyes were black. I was wondering what that meant.”
    “Our eyes will take on darker colors when we are very passionate about something. Feeding is a very passionate activity.” He paused. “So is sex.”
    She immediately looked away, but a blush crept up her cheeks. “How could sex and murder have the same effect on you?”
    He shifted his body so he leaned in closer to her. She leaned back to move away, but he laid his big hand on top of her wrist that rested atop her leg. His hand didn’t grab or forcefully keep her from moving away, but its presence there, his warmth seeping in through her skin, stopped her just as surely as him grabbing her.
    He leaned his face closer to hers. “There is a reason the French nicknamed the orgasm ‘la petite mort’—the little death.”
    She couldn’t meet his eyes. She focused on his chest. It was wide, and his shirt was stretched tight over what were sure to be beautiful, sculpted muscles.
    She jumped off the couch at the realization she was imagining him shirtless. She closed her eyes for a second to clear her head. “What do you think you’re doing?”
    When she opened them, he’d risen and stood in front of her. She took an instinctive step back.
    “I—”
    “No.” She held up her hands to keep him from coming any closer. “You almost killed me earlier tonight. I almost shot you! I’m not doing,” she waved her hand between them to emphasize her point, “ this with you.”
    “What is the ‘this’ you speak of?” he asked with an all too knowing smirk.
    She narrowed her eyes at his pretend innocence. “I don’t take well to men pushing me around. I understand the earlier liberties you took were because of the invasion of your privacy, but if I’m going to stay here any longer, you can’t treat me like I’m your next snack.”
    Silence hung in the air after her declaration. After a minute of contemplation, he asked, “Will you help me kill Aleksander?”
    She was very aware of the fact he’d not addressed the boundaries she’d tried to establish. “Why do you want him dead?”
    He smiled at her. “You have no idea how lucky you are that you came to me with your little quest.”
    She bristled at the fact that he described her quest as being little, but she let him continue.
    “Aleksander is a king. He is our king. He took that position with force about sixty years ago. He stole the throne by killing my king. That’s why he needs to die.”
    Anna absorbed the fact that vampires had kings. “Who was your king?”
    “The king I served was Kirill. I was his best general. Aleksander didn’t even do me the honor of killing me when he took over.”
    Anna was surprised by the intensity in his tone, the pride in his voice as he mentioned his old position. “You’re upset because Aleksander didn’t kill you?”
    “Oh, not for lack of trying. For decades they tried to kill me, while I had to survive in mountains and caves. Aleksander lived in Kirill’s home, with his stolen money and power, and I was banished into the wilderness. “Eventually he forgot about me. He knows I exist, but considers me a small enough threat he doesn’t even try.”
    “So he just moved in and kicked you out?” she asked.
    “If anyone helped me, it would be considered treason. Those who remained loyal to Kirill didn’t meet easy deaths. They were slow and painful. For that reason, my own people were so afraid of Aleksander that they wouldn’t think twice about turning me in. I had no money, no home, and no one to go to for help.”
    “If you were that dangerous, how could he forget about you?”
    “He never forgot about me, but he thinks that if I ever come