Page 19 of Claim of Blood (Blood Bound #1)

Chapter Ten

Leo

Leo drifted toward consciousness slowly, awareness seeping in through layers of unfamiliar lethargy.

Warmth pressed solidly against his back—a presence that should have triggered every defensive instinct he possessed.

Instead, his body melted further into it, even as his mind began the slow, automatic cataloging of details.

A steady breath ghosted over the curve of his neck. One arm lay draped across his waist, Adam’s palm spread possessively over his stomach. The sheets beneath him were impossibly soft—cool against his bare skin where they didn’t touch, warm where they did.

Cool air brushed his face. Leo forced his eyes open.

Moonlight spilled across polished floors and deep shadows cast by floor-to-ceiling windows. The curtains had been drawn back, revealing a star-filled sky. How long had he been out?

Then memory crashed over him in sharp, disjointed waves—Adam’s fangs in his throat, pleasure so intense it blurred into pain. That impossible heat. The vampire’s power pouring through him. Claiming him.

Training snapped into place like a blade unsheathed.

His eyes swept the room with practiced precision.

An empty IV stand loomed beside the bed, tubing dangling limp.

Four used bags lay discarded on the nightstand among sterile packaging and faintly glowing magical runes.

Medical. Emergency. He didn’t feel sick, only. .. heavy. Drained. Used.

Behind him, Adam stirred.

The arm at his waist tightened, and lips pressed against the curve where neck met shoulder.

“You’re thinking very loudly, beauty,” Adam murmured against his skin.

Leo’s breath caught as Adam inhaled deeply at his nape, the vampire’s cock stirring against his ass in a slow, deliberate roll.

His thoughts scattered, his body responding before he could reclaim control.

He was still weak, still healing. But when Adam’s cock pressed against him, he forgot everything except the heat blooming low and bright.

“I…” Leo swallowed hard, trying to focus. The IV bags. “The fluids.”

Adam’s mouth brushed the mark on his neck. “My sister called to congratulate me. She reminded me that while vampires can exchange blood, you can only give.” His arm tightened, possessive. “I took too much, beauty. The bags were to help you recover.”

Adam ground against him, and Leo’s last coherent thought vanished. His body ignited despite the lingering weakness, a familiar hunger rising through the fog. He pressed back instinctively, seeking more contact.

“You were made for this,” Adam rumbled, the sound reverberating through Leo’s chest. The arm cinched tighter, and Leo’s breath hitched as Adam pulled him closer.

“Please,” Leo breathed, hating how natural the plea sounded, how much truth it carried.

The nightstand drawer opened, a faint scrape that barely registered over the roar in his ears.

Cool lube dripped between his cheeks, Adam’s fingers following, tracing deliberately along his cleft.

One finger breached him, sliding in with devastating familiarity.

His muscles clenched reflexively, welcoming it.

Adam worked him open with steady precision, teasing, slicking, stretching. A second finger joined the first, making Leo gasp. He couldn’t stop pushing back, couldn’t stop the soft, broken sounds falling from his lips.

“You’re so tight,” Adam whispered, voice a dark caress. “I want you to feel every inch. I want you gaping.”

“Yes,” Leo gasped, trying to spread his legs wider. “Please.”

Adam obliged, curling his fingers until Leo saw stars. A third finger stretched him mercilessly. He arched, trembling, muscles fluttering around the intrusion.

“So eager,” Adam murmured against his ear. “Your body craves this.” His fingers pressed deeper. “Do you need my cock, beauty?”

“Yes.” Leo’s voice cracked. “Please.”

Adam slid his fingers free, leaving him empty and aching.

“Feel that?” Adam’s thumb circled his rim, slick and obscene. “That emptiness? That’s how I want you—always desperate for me.”

Leo writhed, a sound halfway between a sob and a plea. Some part of him screamed this was wrong—that he shouldn’t crave the one who’d broken him open. But that part drowned under the need pooling in his belly.

Adam flipped him onto his back, strong hands spreading his thighs wide.

He pushed Leo’s knees nearly to his chest, exposing everything.

Humiliation burned hot through the haze of desire.

He should have twisted away. Should have said something.

But the only thing that left his lips was a choked, needy plea.

The blunt head of Adam’s cock pressed against his entrance.

Relief and hunger surged in equal measure.

In a single thrust, Adam filled him to the hilt, forcing a strangled cry from his throat as pleasure detonated behind his ribs.

He came instantly, helpless, his release painting his stomach.

His body clenched around Adam’s cock like it belonged there.

“You’re mine,” Adam growled, voice thick with possession. “And I’m going to fuck you until you scream. Until every vampire in this mansion hears you come.”

The threat—promise—made his cock twitch again. Shame and need tangled in his chest until he couldn’t tell them apart.

Adam laughed, a satisfied rumble. “That was just the beginning.”

He set a brutal pace, hips snapping forward, filling him again and again. Each thrust struck that devastating place inside him. Adam’s hand wrapped around his cock, merciless, forcing him toward another peak.

“Ah—fuck!” Leo gasped, back arching. The pleasure was too much, too sharp.

“You like this,” Adam panted, his hand tightening. “Being fucked raw. My cock in you.”

Leo could only nod, his breath coming ragged.

“Come for me again,” Adam commanded, voice dark silk. “Show me how much you love it.”

Release crashed over him again—hot, violent, impossible. Even as he trembled through it, Adam kept thrusting, the pace growing erratic. Leo felt the thick swell of Adam’s cock, the final deep lunge that tore a ragged scream from his throat.

Heat flooded him. He shuddered, boneless, as Adam collapsed over him.

“My beauty,” Adam whispered, pressing his face to Leo’s throat. “So perfect.”

Leo only managed a weak moan. He was empty, and yet completely filled.

“Mine,” Adam growled again, fangs grazing his skin. “Always mine.”

“Always yours,” Leo echoed, too wrecked to pretend otherwise.

Adam eased out with deliberate slowness, leaving Leo trembling. Then he shifted them, pulling Leo to rest against his chest.

“Why didn’t you bite me?” Leo whispered, voice raw.

“You need time to regenerate,” Adam murmured. “The claim was... intense.”

Leo’s gaze fell to the empty IV bags. “How long?”

“Three days.”

Leo tried to sit up, panic flaring. Adam held him firmly. “Three—”

“Yes. Three.”

“Fuck.” Leo closed his eyes, shame and confusion tangling in his gut. “My family—”

Adam cut him off by sliding two fingers into his oversensitive hole. The sensation detonated through him, wiping the thought clean.

“Speaking of family,” Adam said calmly, “did you know about the microchip?”

“The what in my shoulder?” Leo’s breath came ragged as Adam’s fingers began to move.

“A microchip,” Adam repeated evenly. “With GPS.”

“I didn’t know,” Leo said, voice shaking. His mind reeled. “I want to see it.”

“If you can catch the chicken it’s attached to, you can,” Adam said, amusement in his voice.

“You put it on a chicken?” Leo blinked. The absurdity broke through the numbness.

“Lander’s idea,” Adam said, fingers idly circling. “He thought it might flush them out. So far, no one’s come.”

The implications crashed over him. If they’d been tracking him, they’d known exactly where he was—yet they hadn’t come. He felt hollow, brittle.

“They left hours after I claimed you,” Adam added, his hold tightening. “Just after dawn.”

“They wouldn’t just—” Leo’s voice failed. But the timing was inarguable. They hadn’t waited. Hadn’t even tried.

He shook his head, throat tight. “None of this makes sense.”

Adam withdrew his fingers slowly, leaving him aching. He shifted Leo to straddle his thighs, so they were face to face.

“The timing troubles us,” Adam said. “Your family abandoned a coordinated operation within hours. The Court and Pack have been searching. Nathaniel’s enforcers went to the rental company with security footage of the vehicle and plate numbers, but according to their system, that vehicle never existed. ”

Leo frowned. “That’s not surprising. We’re thorough.”

“The Coven attempted to scry—”

A bitter laugh escaped Leo. “You can’t scry for hunters.”

He shifted slightly away, exposing his left ribcage. There, stark against his skin, was an intricate tattoo: a crossbow and blade crossed, with three hash marks etched along the blade. The carved handles and bow were covered in delicate patternwork.

“These aren’t just decorative,” he said, voice low. “A witch carves the patterns during initiation. It doesn’t make us completely invisible, but it scrambles scrying. Most covens assume the spell failed.”

“Clever,” Adam murmured, still tracing the patterns. “And this is standard for all hunters?”

“Yes,” Leo confirmed, trying not to react to the way Adam’s fingers drifted along his ribs, each touch sending small shivers through him. “Every hunter I’ve ever met has some version of it. The designs vary between clans, but the basics are always the same: the crossbow, the blade, the spellwork.”

“Adam,” he continued, voice quieter, “my family wouldn’t just leave. Even if they thought I was compromised, protocol was always to maintain surveillance. To gather intelligence. A few hours isn’t enough time.”

“Time for what?” Adam prompted, his hand sliding to rest on Leo’s hip.

“To do anything useful. To learn the situation. To plan.” Leo shook his head, frowning. “They had an entire operation prepared. You don’t just abandon that overnight. Not unless…”