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He apologized mentally to the vampire part of himself—the little bit of his being that didn’t like the bright light—for irritating its senses. I’m sorry, little beastie.
People were always calling Jay “honey” and “sweetie” like that. Jay supposed it had something to do with his looks: he was petite, his facial features were maybe kind of doll-like, and he knew people thought of him as cute. He supposed that made them want to call him pet names. He didn’t mind it though—in truth, it warmed his chest when people called him nice things. It made him feel wanted, even if all it really meant was that he was nonthreatening.
Coming to Hyde Park was the best thing Jay had ever done. His only wish was that it could last.
But Jay had seen a chance—one last chance—and he’d taken it.
All Jay had was time. So much time. Except…as he set up his supplies, as if summoned by his moment of weakness, Jay’s phone dinged. Have you tired of your experiment yet? Jay sighed softly, scowling down at his phone. How did he always know like that? Jay debated ignoring it, but he didn’t want to deal with the consequences. Not yet! Four months left.
Everything was just fine. And he had four more months of it.
Alexei had the momentary, completely bizarre thought that he wanted to steal him. To put the stranger in his pocket and take him back to his apartment, stash him there for the foreseeable future. Just…keep him. Because apparently Alexei’s recent hermitage had melted his fucking brain.
He simply couldn’t look away. The guy was so…pretty. Gorgeous in a soft, unassuming way, with that little button nose, those Cupid’s bow lips. And really, the bed head look he had going on was too much; it was sending Alexei’s brain into dangerous territory. Like sweat-soaked sheets and a dark head bobbing between his legs and a million other dirty things he shouldn’t be thinking about.
“But you always smell so sweet. Like one of our vanilla cupcakes. Are you sure you haven’t been baking?”
He’s way too young for me.”
sweet, doll-like Jay, faced with one of his brother’s men. Alexei’s blood ran cold at the thought. Jay wouldn’t stand a fucking chance. No, Alexei should stay far away from him. Find a new place to haunt.
He wasn’t going to leave the guy alone. A good man would. But Alexei had never been a good man, had he?
his beastie was always very interested in everything Alexei).
Alexei huffed a not quite laugh. “No cupcakes, kotyonok.” Jay’s heart warmed at the nickname Alexei had started giving him. It meant “kitten” in Russian.
What was Alexei hoping to accomplish even? Slow seduction via increasingly complicated coffee orders?
His manager was very protective of Jay, ever since Jay had told him the truth of what he was.
Colin stepped a bit closer, leaning down to whisper in Jay’s ear. “That would be the simplest explanation to what he’s just seen. The kind of thing someone might expect: two people hooking up in an alley.”
Jay hadn’t known all that when he’d first approached Colin about feeding though. All he’d known was that his manager was kind, already sort of protective, and seemed to have a steady enough head on his shoulders that he maybe wouldn’t freak out about the existence of vampires. And Jay had really, really needed to eat.
“Do you want to drink my blood?” Alexie asked.
Jay turned from the oven, smiling at the thought. “Oh! I’m very good at following directions.” “I bet you are, kotyonok.” Alexei’s voice came out kind of throaty and husky and weirdly sexy.
“I’m a virgin,”
“Feed from me. I like the idea of giving you something you need, kotyonok. Let me be of use to you. Please.”
He should always be here, Alexei thought dreamily, listening to the strangely erotic sounds of Jay’s greedy gulping. In my arms.
But Jay finally felt full for the first time in a long while.
“You’re not afraid, little lad. You aren’t frightened of me.” The tension seeped out of Johann’s muscles in an instant with her words, his mouth snapping shut of its own accord. Of course Johann wasn’t afraid. Why would he be?
Eternal life. Eternal youth. Would you like that?” “No, Madam,” Johann answered honestly. He knew how the natural world worked, the ordinary cycles of men and beasts. To live forever would be…wrong. Out of order. But she corrected him instantly, the smile dropping from her face. “You would like that. Tell me so.” “I would like that.” And suddenly, just like that, the idea of eternal life sounded completely fine. Not unnatural at all.
It was months of that, as Jay learned how to be a proper gentleman under Veronique’s compulsion. Months of hidden, inaccessible fear. A knowledge that he wasn’t where he was supposed to be but that he couldn’t quite find it in himself to care about the way he should.
Colin nodded glumly, pinching at his lip. “Need to find myself another vampire,” he muttered, more to himself than to Alexei.
“And when he falls in love with you because he’s affection-deprived, touch-starved, and you’re his fucking first?” That answered the question of whether Colin knew Jay was a virgin. It also sounded like the perfect fucking outcome to Alexei.
“My mother was very…sad when I was growing up. She was kind but not always there, I guess you could say. And then she left when I was quite young. I don’t even know where she is now.”
“Okay, we’ll look that up later.” Alexei loved that “we.” He absolutely fucking adored that “we.”
He seemed upset when he made any mess at all, actually, up until Alexei exaggerated his own clumsiness with the ingredients, telling him, “If you’re not making a little bit of a mess, you’re not doing it properly.” Then Jay positively glowed, telling Alexei once again he was the “nicest human.”
The summer would be too late. Jay would be gone by then.
And neck bites were…intimate. Jay had only done it once that way with Colin; their last time in the alleyway, at Colin’s request.
“I fucking came. You just gave me the hottest blow job of my life, and two seconds later, I came all over myself.”
He took a deep breath, grabbing his phone and sending out a single text. I want to stay.
Alexei noticed then that up close, Jay looked a little…different. Dimmed, somehow, even with the clear delight he felt at Alexei’s arrival. Alexei placed his box on the counter, leaning in. “Hey, are you okay?” Jay shrugged, still fiddling with the button on his overalls. “I’ve just been a little stressed. It’s been…stressful.”
And then—because he had no idea what had Jay feeling so upset, but he so very much did not want it to be because of him—Alexei did what he’d been wanting to do since the moment he’d walked in and seen Jay’s smiling face. He leaned in all the way over the counter and planted a kiss on those Cupid’s bow lips.
Maybe not too much tongue in public though. You might make my fangs pop out.” “Is that a euphemism?” Alicia called
“For me?” Jay whispered, his gray eyes shining. Well, fuck. So the little vampire liked gifts? If Alexei had known, he’d have been bringing them from the very beginning. Probably shown up on day two with a goddamn diamond ring.
Alexei couldn’t even pretend to himself that locking Jay down didn’t sound like the best idea he’d ever heard.
“Does it hurt your neck, kissing me?” Before Alexei could even answer, Jay was patting his arm soothingly. “Poor human. Next time, just pick me up.” He turned to the rest of the room. “He’s very strong for a human. He can toss me around no problem.”
“Remember when you were my boyfriend?” “I prefer husband. Lover. Mate,” Roman declared,
“So the odds of two of you finding your mates here…” “Oh yes,” Soren giggled a little wildly, seemingly at some joke of his own. “Two of us.” Danny cleared his throat. “Shall we eat?”
Mate. Mates. Mated pairs. Fated mates. How did one go from being a boyfriend to being a mate? It was incredibly fucking important that Alexei find out, preferably yesterday.
Why the fuck couldn’t he be Jay’s mate? He’d be the most devoted mate there ever was, given the chance.
“We’ll leave,” he said simply. “All together. Find somewhere remote to spend some decades, until enough time has passed to join society again. Somewhere new though, obviously. A different country most likely.” Alexei looked to Jay, who was helping himself to a fifth portion of chicken. “And…you’ll go as well?” Jay flushed, shifting in his chair. “I’m not— Well…” “Of course you will,” Danny protested, his voice infused with a sincere warmth. “You and, um, well…any companions you might have. Luc and Jamie will come too, I think.”
“I’d like to make a snow angel, I think.” Everyone stopped talking, all of them looking at him with varying degrees of fond indulgence, but no one was actually stepping the fuck up for his suggestion. So Alexei did. “I’ll make one with you, kotyonok.”
Jay loved the outdoors? Alexei would live in a forest cave with him, if he asked. Jay wanted to be around people? Alexei could handle that, if it was for Jay. He’d let Jay do all the talking, all the inadvertent charming, and it wouldn’t be so bad. Jay wanted a messy house? They’d make blanket forts, have a million pets, destroy their kitchen with culinary experiments. Alexei could be enough. He could try. He would try. Until Jay’s better half came along and ruined it all, at least.
Alexei.” “I’m very happy with you too, kotyonok.” Alexei reached up to brush a strand of hair from Jay’s rosy cheek. “I didn’t have a real childhood. Your adulthood was stolen from you. Do you think together you and I could make one complete person?” Jay pressed his cheek into Alexei’s palm. “Except I’m not a person.” “You are.” Alexei frowned, confused at Jay’s self-assessment. “You mean because you have a”—what had Jay called it?—“a beastie inside you?” Jay nodded solemnly against Alexei’s hand. Alexei let out a slow breath. “You’re a person, Jay. A vampire person, maybe. But still a
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