Read Online Desire After Dark: Lords of Pleasure by Jo Carlisle - Free Book Online Page A

though not too insistently—yet. Casually, she shrugged. “I found you in a dire situation, and I was intrigued enough to bring you home to heal you.”
    “And keep me as a pet of sorts.”
    “Exactly.”
    “Maybe you should place a studded collar around my neck.”
    “Actually, you’d look stunning in one.”
    Head tilted, he paused, those twin laser orbs attempting to pry into her soul. “Something about your story doesn’t make se—”
    Just then, Taryn strolled into the room, leading the group of servants he’d picked. Kass barely managed to hide her relief. Luc had been gearing up to grill her in earnest. Now, hopefully his suspicions could be forestalled long enough to allow her to come up with a plan—perhaps indefinitely.
    Kass scrutinized the three young women and two young men Taryn had brought. He’d done well. She’d have chosen these gems herself, a testament to how well she and her slave had come to know each other. A glance at Luc, the hunger evident on his face as he shifted to sit up more on the pillows, revealed that he approved, too.
    “Any further complaints about your choices?” she asked, needling him with good humor.
    “None.” He grinned at the assembled donors, who wore avariety of expressions from very shy to openly wicked anticipation. “Not where these beauties are concerned.”
    “Good. Now for the rules—”
    “More rules,” the vampire groaned. “Does she have this many for you guys?” A couple of the serving girls giggled, but no one answered. They knew better.
    “As I was saying,
rules
. First is that none of your donors may be harmed, and you’ll leave no permanent marks on their bodies.”
    “I
never
hurt those from whom I feed,” Luc said. “Unless I run across a creature with a corrupt soul. Then I will drain my prey without an ounce of remorse.”
    One of the girls shivered.
    “Fair enough, but that won’t pertain to anyone within these walls.”
    “It might, if it’s someone who doesn’t belong here.”
    She relented some. “Point taken. Should you discover an evil intruder inside the palace or anywhere nearby, feel free to dispatch him. The next rule is that you may feed from any of these five donors Taryn has selected, but you may use any one of them no more than twice in one week. Of course, this is to prevent them from becoming too weak to perform their other duties.”
    “Agreed, since I need to take blood only once per day. I have a question, though.” When she nodded, he went on. “What about Taryn? Am I not allowed to feed from him?”
    “No,” she said sharply. Then she softened her tone, because it wasn’t his fault that it never occurred to him
not
to ask what no one else would dare. He was powerful in his own world, after all. “Any other questions?”
    He raised a blond brow. “Am I allowed two of them at once?”
    “Greedy, are we?” She snorted. “Play with all five of them atonce if you want, but remember that counts as one time for each of them whether you bite them all or not. I won’t have you taking unfair advantage of them. Indulge in an orgy twice and you could be a hungry vampire by the end of the week. Anything else?”
    “Can I feed? I’m starving.”
    Anticipation fired her blood. This was where things would get incredibly fun. “You may.” Waving a hand at the five donors, she introduced them, girls first. “These are Lyric, Maya, Tansy, Fallon, and Jinx.”
    Not surprisingly, Lyric and Jinx caught Luc’s attention first. All of his donors were pretty, but none more so than these two, who were faeries. In fact, they were uncommonly beautiful, perfect specimens of their kind with delicate, shimmery wings and long silky hair, Lyric’s crowning glory a lilac purple and Jinx’s a deep royal blue.
    “Stunning,” he murmured, flashing his fangs. “As are all of you.” His servants looked pleased as he considered them. “Lyric, I’d like for you to stay. The rest of you I look forward to tasting