His smug voice did nothing to make her feel less pissed off with him. Yvette opened her mouth to protest, but he gave a quick shake of his head.

“Don’t even deny it. You were hungry even before you gave me your blood. How stupid do you think I am? I’ve drained you. If anything, you’re going to get weaker over the next hours. And we both know that the witch isn’t going to bring in a supply of blood for you. She has no interest in you staying alive. And then what?”

Haven’s eyes held a challenge, but she couldn’t figure out what it was for. Was he accusing her that she would attack one of them as soon as her hunger became too unbearable? “I won’t attack any of you, and certainly not Kimberly. She’s my charge. I have a duty to her.”

“How can you be so sure? When your hunger gets too great, you won’t know what you’re doing. You’ll fall into bloodlust.”

So he knew about that. Still, she had to deny it. She pushed against him and shook her head. “No.”

“I have a proposition for you.”

Yvette raised her chin and leveled a glare at him. What could he possibly do to avoid what she knew would happen in a few hours? “What proposition?”

“You’ll feed from me. Now. While the others are sleeping. Nobody needs to know.”

The vampire hunter was offering his blood? “But—”

“I ate plenty of food just now. I’m well-fed and healthy again, thanks to you. Now it’s time for you to get your strength back. Quid pro quo.”

Yvette searched his eyes to understand why he extended this offer. “Why?”

He looked away, avoiding her scrutinizing look. “I hate owing anybody anything, least of all a vampire.”

“You don’t owe me anything.” She locked her jaw, unwilling to accept the crumbs he was offering. She had her pride. “Keep your blood. I don’t need it.”

“You don’t have a choice in this.” Haven pushed his body closer to hers.

Yvette shook off his arms. “What are you gonna do? Force me?”

He gave her a wicked grin, and in that moment she knew she’d already lost the battle. “Something like that.” Then he gripped her wrists and held them against the wall. When he tilted his head to the side and moved his neck within striking distance of her lips, she took in his drugging scent: clean, male sweat, and the smell of bergamot.

“I’ll punch your pretty face to purée,” she warned him while trying to stop her fangs from lengthening. It was as impossible as stopping the sun from rising.

“Afterwards,” he promised as if he didn’t take her seriously.

“You, you—”

His neck connected with her lips as he pressed against her. “You can smell my blood already, can’t you?” It wasn’t fair that he baited her like that, that he dangled the most enticing scent in front of her twitching nose. “And you’re hungry. I won’t fight you. Just bite.”

***

Haven knew he’d gone completely crazy, but he also knew this was the only way. She needed to feed and regain her strength, and rather than let her go berserk and attack one of them in a frenzy of bloodlust—something he’d seen from another vampire before; it was terrifying and nearly impossible to stop—he was prepared to take one for the team. Wesley would never agree to it, and Kimberly shouldn’t be subjected to such gore. If anybody could get through this relatively unscathed, it was Haven.

He wasn’t afraid of the pain. Compared to what Bess had done to him, a bite would rarely register more painful than a well-placed punch by a drunken convict. And now that he knew that her bite wouldn’t turn him into a vampire, he was willing to make this sacrifice. He owed her that much. But after that, they’d be even. After that, he could go back and hate her with all the pain that he had buried in his heart. She was still a vampire, and a vampire was responsible for the murder of his mother and kidnapping of his sister. A vampire would pay for it.

But for now, he had to pay his debt to her. Yvette had saved him, and it was only right that he’d do the same. And that was the only reason why he was willing to go against his deepest beliefs and give her what she needed.

“Bite me,” he repeated. “Before I change my mind.”

Her lips pressed against his skin. Then her tongue licked over him. What the—

But he couldn’t voice his question, because the next thing he felt were her sharp fangs break through his skin and sink into his neck. There was no pain; it was as if the area had been numbed beforehand. Was that why she’d licked him?