Midnight Pleasure [THE PLEASURE SERIES BOOK 1]

Chapter Twenty-Six - Drystan

Drystan stood at the edge of the compound, a smirk still spread across his lips. He pulled on the hood of his jacket, pulling it over his eyes. Footsteps sounded beside him, and he turned his head to see Melora standing next to him. Drystan, surprised, chuckled as he questioned her, "How did you get out of your restraints?"

Melora looked up at him smugly. "I'm stronger than you think." She was dressed head to toe in black, almost every inch covered. She pulled a hood similar to his over her head. 

Drystan couldn't help but smile at his mate. She was smart. She was correct; he had forgotten about her new strength. He would have enjoyed hunting knowing she was naked and tied up waiting for him, but he was excited to show her how to hunt. He took her hand, bringing it up to brush his lips against her knuckles. "Are you wanting to go hunting with me?"

Melora looked up at him, her eyes shining underneath her hood. "I am. But I thought that we had to wait until night to hunt?"

Drystan shook his head, taking a step out of the compound. "Not necessarily. As long as our skin is covered, we'll be fine."

Melora nodded. "I thought that our strength would be hindered as well?"

Drystan shook his head again. "No. It would be easier to hunt at night, but when we are craving sustenance, we need to feed." He pulled her quickly through the forest, dragging her closer to where the trees stood closer together. "We can't keep taking blood from each other. As long as our bodies are protected from the sun, we'll be fine." He turned his head and looked down at Melora. Her eyes were darting back and forth, unsure of where to look. "Listen to the heartbeats, my love." He stopped them in a small, dark clearing and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Find a strong heart. That's the one that you want to feed from. We're not going to kill the creature, we'll put them to sleep, so it's easier to feed from them. We never take an animal's or human's life unless necessary. Do you understand?"

Melora nodded her head. Drystan waited as she looked around the clearing. He could hear the same heartbeats as she did, and he hoped that she could listen to the most vital heart. They stood there for a couple of minutes before Melora turned her head sharply to the right. She slowly raised a hand as if she was unsure if she was right. "Over there," she whispered. 

Drystan followed her hand and smiled as a giant wild hog moved through the bushes and into the clearing. The heart of this creature was strong. Drystan leaned down and spoke in hushed tones, "Good, Melora. You'll need to use stealth to sneak up on him. Be very careful."

Melora looked up at him. "You're not going to help me?"

Drystan smirked as he shook his head. "No, my love." He squeezed her shoulders. "You've got to learn how to do this on your own. I'll be here if anything goes wrong, okay?"

Melora nodded as she turned her attention back to the hog. Drystan watched as she began to move her feet, so she was standing behind the hog. He couldn't help the proud smile that flirted against his lips. Her footsteps were barely heard as she moved them on the ground. You learn fast, my love.

Melora's eyes snapped to his quickly, amusement dancing in her eyes. Don't distract me, Drystan. 

Drystan chuckled as he stood behind her. Melora continued to move toward the hog but stopped just short. How do I put it to sleep? she questioned. 

I was wondering when you were going to ask, he chuckled. Push into its mind, command it to sleep.

That's all? Her voice danced through his mind. 

Drystan nodded. Yes. Will it to sleep. It will try to fight you but continue to push. Eventually, it will sleep. 

Melora nodded as her body straightened. Drystan could feel through their connected minds her concentration. He was proud of how quickly she was learning. He watched as the hog started to shake his head. It moved its hooves forward, but it was starting to get sluggish. Eventually, the hog fell onto its knees before falling over onto its side. Melora turned around to look at him with a giant smile spread over her face. 

"You did good," Drystan grabbed her hand, bringing her toward him. "Now, we feed." He led her to the side of the hog, kneeling on the soft grass. He pushed against the primary vein of the hog. "This is where we'll feed."

"If you and I feed from the same animal, won't we kill it?" Melora solemnly looked down at the hog, stroking its fur with her hand. 

Drystan shook his head. "No. We don't take much from the animal. Just enough so we don't hurt it, but enough to sustain us until we're hungry again." Drystan ran his fingers over the primary artery and motioned to Melora. "I'll let you know when you need to stop, okay?"

Melora nodded. Drystan could feel his body tighten as he watched her fangs grow. She bent down slowly to the artery of the hog. She hesitated for a split second before plunging her fangs into the artery. He could hear the rush of blood flowing from the hog into his mate. He let her have a couple more pumps before placing his hand on her shoulder, making her stop. 

Melora sat up, wiping the blood off of her lips. Her eyes moved over to his. "I'd like to taste yours."

Drystan eyebrows shot up. "You can later, my love." He started to bend down to the hog. "I need to feed before you plunge your fangs into me." He pushed his fangs into the exact spot where Melora had placed hers. He closed his eyes and worked to control himself. This blood didn't taste anything like Melora's. It wasn't sweet. It wasn't intoxicating. He wanted to taste her blood again. 

Drystan pulled back, closing the wounds with his tongue, before sitting up. "We need to go back to the compound," he told her as he stood up, helping her to her feet. "Carwel wants to talk to us."

"What about the hog?" Melora asked as she pulled him back. 

Drystan turned to her. Blood was drying on her chin. He will have to teach her how to be neat when taking blood. He gripped her chin gently and raised it. Bending down, he stuck out his tongue and licked at the blood. He felt a shiver go through her body at his touch. He straightened, smirking down at her flushed face. "It'll wake itself back up once we are away from it. Now, come. We've got to get back."