Page 56 of Claim of Blood (Blood Bound #1)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Lander

Lander drifted to consciousness between two bodies. For a disorienting moment, he couldn’t place himself until the scents registered.

Blood. Power. Adam.

And something brighter, fresher. Leo.

Reality snapped into focus.

Memories of last night rushed back. Not just the intensity or the pleasure, but what made it different. Last night, Adam hadn’t used his power to force Lander’s submission—that overwhelming pressure that demanded submit-submit-submit and left no room for choice.

For the first time, he’d chosen it.

A soft, needy sound caught his attention. Leo was pressed against him, making little sleep-noises while his fingers clutched possessively at Lander’s shoulders. The hunter clung to him like Lander might disappear if he loosened his grip.

Strange, being held like this. In two and a half centuries, Lander had always been the one doing the holding.

“He’s quite affectionate in his sleep,” Adam’s amused voice murmured directly into Lander’s ear, sending an involuntary shiver down his spine. “Unlike someone who tries to maintain his dignity even in unconsciousness.”

Lander attempted a scoff, but managed only a strangled breath as Adam’s hand slid deliberately along his hip.

“You’re still fighting it,” Adam observed, his tone carrying no judgment, only patience.

“This shouldn’t be possible,” Lander whispered, keeping his voice low enough not to wake Leo. “One vampire, one claim. That’s the way it’s always been.”

Six months ago, his biggest worry had been whether the Brussels interviews would run over schedule and delay the opening of the Belgian office.

He’d spent weeks coordinating staffing, planning cultural integration seminars, and managing the endless logistics of expanding Nocturne internationally.

Normal, manageable problems with clear solutions.

Now he was lying naked in the First’s bed, marked by fangs that shouldn’t have been able to mark him, craving submission from someone he’d been scheduling quarterly reviews with.

It wasn’t that any of this was bad. It was that none of it had been the plan.

Adam’s laugh was dark and rich against the back of Lander’s neck. “And yet, here we are.” His hand moved to brush against the side of Lander’s throat, finding the barely perceptible indentation of fang marks that healed hours ago. “Your body understands what your mind still resists.”

Lander turned his head slightly, meeting Adam’s eyes over his shoulder. “How are you so calm about this? This breaks everything we know about claims.”

“We know very little about claims. And… I’ve lived a very long time,” Adam said, his voice soft but steady. “Long enough to know that some rules aren’t as absolute as we think.”

“But you’re the First. If anyone should uphold our traditions—”

“Magic doesn’t care about our traditions.” Adam’s fingers traced the marks on Lander’s neck again. “It follows its own path.”

Lander frowned. “You make it sound like it’s alive.”

“Maybe it is. Maybe it just knows what it needs.” Adam’s gaze grew distant. “And right now, it seems to need this.”

“This?” Lander echoed.

“Us. The three of us, for now.” Adam’s attention returned to Lander’s face. “I stopped questioning why a long time ago.”

Lander started to respond, but Leo stirred, his breathing changing as he surfaced toward wakefulness. His eyes fluttered open, confusion giving way to recognition, then a slow, sleep-soft smile spreading across his face.

“Morning,” Leo murmured, his eyes meeting Lander’s before darting over Lander’s shoulder to find Adam. No shame, no hesitation—just simple pleasure at finding himself exactly where he was.

The hunter’s easy acceptance sent an unexpected pang through Lander’s chest. How could Leo adapt so quickly when Lander still felt like he was standing in someone else’s life?

“Good morning, beauty,” Adam replied, the endearment meant for Leo but his eyes fixed on Lander’s face, studying his reaction. “I believe Lander was just about to explain why he’s still pretending this isn’t exactly where he belongs.”

Leo’s brow furrowed slightly, his amber eyes clouding with concern as he looked at Lander. The hunter shifted, as if to pull away and give space, but Adam’s hand kept him firmly in place.

“No,” Adam said, his tone gentle but unyielding. “No more running from this. Not from each other.”

Lander swallowed hard, caught between centuries of careful planning and the undeniable pull of what was happening.

“I had my life mapped out,” Lander admitted, the words feeling raw in his throat. “Every step planned, every goal clear. Now I don’t even recognize the path I’m on.”

Leo’s eyes darted between them, sensing the tension. “What did I miss?”

“Lander’s questioning reality,” Adam said.

“I am not,” Lander snapped. “I just asked why this is even possible. It shouldn’t be.”

“And what did Adam say?” Leo asked.

“Magic,” Lander replied flatly.

Leo’s lips twitched. A smile broke through, then a small laugh. “Magic? That’s the big explanation from the ancient vampire?”

“It follows its own path,” Adam said, not bothered by Leo’s amusement.

“Very cryptic,” Lander added with a hint of sarcasm.

Leo’s laugh faded into thoughtfulness. “Felix might know.”

“Felix?” Lander tensed at the name, that unwelcome pull stirring in his chest again.

“He’s been studying vampire lore for years,” Leo explained. “All those books in his apartment—he’s been collecting research about your kind since we were teenagers.”

The mention of Felix seemed to shift the energy in the room. Adam’s fingers traced the faint marks on Lander’s neck again, more possessive now. “We could ask him,” he suggested. “Later.”

Leo settled back down, seemingly oblivious to the tension. “Later sounds good.”

“Much later,” Adam agreed, but his hand was already gliding down Leo’s spine with unmistakable intent.

Leo’s breath caught, his body responding instantly, pupils dilating as his focus narrowed. The pressure of his hardening arousal pressed to Lander’s stomach sent an unexpected surge of heat through Lander’s body.

“Feel him,” Adam instructed, his voice dropping to that commanding tone that bypassed Lander’s resistance. “See what happens when he yields.”

Leo shuddered as Adam’s hand slipped lower, and Lander found himself transfixed by the hunter’s expression—the complete absence of shame, the pure pleasure written across his features.

Without conscious thought, Lander’s hand moved between them, fingers wrapping around Leo’s length. The hunter gasped, eyes flying open to meet Lander’s.

“Yes,” Adam encouraged, his own arousal evident at Lander’s back. “Show him how good it can be.”

Leo’s head fell forward, forehead resting on Lander’s shoulder as he trembled. The trust in that simple gesture loosened something tight within Lander’s chest.

Adam shifted their positions, guiding Leo until he straddled Lander fully. The movement brought their arousals together, hot and hard. Lander wrapped his fingers around them both, feeling Leo’s pulse throb against his own.

“Perfect,” Adam murmured, his voice a low rumble as he moved to kneel behind them.

The nightstand drawer scraped open. Lander watched Leo’s face as the snap of the bottle cap echoed in the quiet room. Leo’s breath hitched, anticipation written across his features. When Adam’s slick fingers disappeared behind him, Leo’s eyes fluttered closed, lips parting in a silent gasp.

“You’re beautiful like this,” Adam told Leo, his free hand stroking down the hunter’s spine. “So responsive.”

Lander felt Leo tremble above him as Adam worked him open. Sweat beaded on Leo’s forehead, his muscles tensing and relaxing with each careful movement of Adam’s fingers.

“Keep him distracted,” Adam ordered Lander, voice rough with desire.

Lander tightened his grip, stroking slowly. The friction pulled a moan from Leo’s throat, his hips jerking forward instinctively.

“That’s it,” Lander encouraged, surprised by his own need to participate, to be part of this.

“He’s ready for me,” Adam said, eyes meeting Lander’s over Leo’s shoulder. “Watch his face when I take him.”

Leo’s fingers dug into Lander’s shoulders, his breathing shallow with anticipation. When Adam pushed forward, Leo’s entire body tensed. His mouth fell open, a broken sound escaping as Adam filled him completely.

“So big,” Leo gasped, his body trembling with the effort to adjust.

Adam held still, giving Leo time to adapt. His hands gripped Leo’s hips, fingers pressing into the soft skin hard enough to leave marks. “Feel how he takes me,” Adam told Lander. “This is what complete yielding looks like.”

When Adam began to move, Leo’s body rocked with each thrust. The motion created a rhythm that Lander felt in his hand, still wrapped around them both.

Every reaction in Leo’s body transmitted through touch—the tightening of his thighs, the shudder that ran through him when Adam hit just the right spot.

“Faster,” Leo begged, his voice cracking. “Please, Adam.”

Adam complied, his pace increasing—hips slamming into Leo with wet, obscene sounds that echoed in the quiet room.

The bed rocked beneath them, rhythmic and relentless, each thrust punctuated by the slap of skin on skin.

Leo’s mouth hung open, eyes half-lidded, every breath a gasp as Adam fucked him deep and steady, stretching him around the thick length driving into his ass.

Lander felt everything—Leo’s cock twitching in his palm, the tremors in his thighs, the way his whole body tightened every time Adam bottomed out with a low, guttural grunt. The slick heat of it. The rhythm of it. The intimacy of it. It was raw and stunning and real.

Leo’s hands scrambled at Lander’s shoulders, trying to ground himself, but every thrust undid him again. His voice broke on a moan. “Fuck—Adam—deeper—please—”

“You hear that?” Adam growled, his voice ragged. “He wants it harder.”

Then he gave it to him.