Page 33 of Siren in Love (In Love #1)

Corvin

~ Corvin

“Oh, look, they left scratch marks on the door.” Corvin pointed when Peter got them back to the honeymoon suite. He and Mike were holding Corvin up between them, which was good. Everything hurt.

“We’ll pay for that,” Peter said, then closed the door behind them. He stopped, looking at the table in the center of the sitting room. “You didn’t drink the champagne?”

“Ugh, couch.” Corvin pointed.

“Of course, hon. Come on. Let’s get you settled.”

“Michael, the champagne. I requested an excellent bottle so you’d be able to celebrate.”

“We were busy, Peter.”

“We had cocktails,” Corvin confessed.

The vampire groaned. “I cannot let this stand. Besides, your fiancé is hurting, and some alcohol will take the edge off.”

Two minutes later, Mike and Corvin were sitting on the couch in their bedraggled state, a flute of champagne in each of their hands.

“This is going to help with the ocean-water-and-blood taste in my mouth,” Corvin said.

“Good man, Corvin. Michael, to you and him and to drowning zombies and their necromancer. I’m also glad to know your wedding isn’t off, but let’s save that for the next round of toasts.”

Corvin downed his champagne. I also need to forget about Peter giving me mouth to mouth. Oh, wait. Did he save my life? Do I owe him now?

If he expected anything of the kind, Peter didn’t mention it as he kept refilling their glasses until the bottle was empty. That happened faster than Corvin would’ve thought possible.

Corvin zoned out while leaning on Mike and listening to him chatting with Peter, the words not quite coming together to make sense. Then Peter left to deal with things. Guess drowning makes you really tired. No, almost drowning.

“Honey?”

“Hmm?”

Mike stroked Corvin’s cheek. “I asked if…if the wedding is still on?”

That got Corvin pissed, except he didn’t have the energy to really show it.

“I don’t like that line of questioning, and I don’t like that a fucking zombie almost broke your neck.”

“I’m fine. So—”

“Yes, Pineapple Mike. I’m going to marry you, and then I’m going to make you take me on a proper vacation.” He reached for Mike’s hand. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? That you’re special?”

“Special, huh?” Mike kissed his knuckles.

That was probably very unsanitary. First the zombies, then the ocean.

We both need a really good clean. Except this is too nice.

“The time just never felt right. Everything went so well, you were perfect, and I was in love with you before I even realized it, and then, boom, we ended up protecting a werewolf from a bunch of loups-garous, and you agreed to marry me.”

“You couldn’t just say, ‘oh, by the way, I’m this awesome mythical creature, just a lot cooler than the stories make it sound’? Also, did you just casually drop the fact that John is a werewolf on me?”

“Did I? That sounds like a terrible movie title.”

“So John is a werewolf.”

“Yup.”

“Well, fuck. We should’ve watched a documentary. You should’ve stopped me. That werewolf movie was probably all kinds of inappropriate.”

Mike laughed. The sound came out like breaking glass through his bruised voice box.

“It was the right movie, and you are the most amazing creature of them all, mythical or otherwise. If another man ever puts his lips on you for any other reason than getting you to breathe again, I will drown them in whatever body of water I can find.”

“You’re going to use that for your wedding vows?”

“Maybe. You don’t like it?”

Corvin smiled and let his head sag back against Mike. “Not telling.”

They didn’t have the energy to do much else, and Corvin dozed off while they waited for Peter to tell them everything was handled, and for some medical professional to hand them an aspirin or something.

A witch showed up a little while later to make sure Corvin and Mike were not in immediate danger of dying.

She pronounced them bruised and “smelling like a week-old beached whale” but otherwise fine, and suggested Mike not use his siren song for a while, and that they both get some rest. She added that a shower was not strictly speaking a medical necessity, but she highly recommended it.

When she’d left, they looked at each other.

“Do you think we should get up?” Corvin asked.

“To take a shower?”

“Yeah.”

“We’d have to move for that.”

Corvin nodded as best he could. “I think so.”

“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea.”

They looked at the door as Peter walked back into the suite. “As it turns out,” the vampire said, “the staff are very optimistic they can save my pants.”

Mike reached for the aspirin the witch had left them and dry swallowed two as Corvin said, “Awesome.”

Peter wrinkled his nose when he pulled up a chair. “Have you considered showering?”

“We were thinking about it,” Mike said.

Peter frowned. “Camelia said you two were mostly okay. Did she check your heads?”

Peter, Corvin noted, had showered and donned another set of pants that fit him just as nicely as the ones he’d worn when fighting zombies. What a show-off.

“Our heads are fine. Anything you needed, Peter?” Mike put a hand on Corvin’s belly.

Peter shrugged. “I just wanted to let you know the situation is handled, and the rest of our stay should be rather less eventful. I myself will head into town to seduce a nice little Morrowvaler for their blood soon. I simply wanted to make sure you two had everything you need. And are still engaged to be wed.”

“You live vicariously, don’t you?” Corvin asked. That totally makes sense for vampires. And it would explain so much.

“Well, sometimes. It’s hard not to cheer from the sidelines when love wins the day after overcoming masses of zombies and the force of the ocean herself. Plays have been written about less, Corvin.”

Mike looked at Corvin. “I think he was fully prepared to comfort either of us if this had gone differently.”

“That too.” Peter stood. “I have been given passing grades at emotional support. But as I said, I’ll go find someone with some blood to spare. You two smell too much like death and fish to be appealing in that regard.” With that, Peter left.

“Should we revisit that shower idea?” Mike asked.

Corvin looked at him for a long time, then said, “In a little while.”

Mike nodded. “In a little while.”