Page 141 of Taming His Vampire Mate

“What is it, darling?” Simone demanded, instantly at Poppy’s side.

“It was me,” Poppy whispered, stricken. Her wide eyes locked on mine. “The mate spell… that’s what caused the bleeds.”

“What? How is that possible?” Ethan asked, staring at the glow. Then his brows pulled together. “Okay, um… yeah. It’s the same sigil that’s on the vampires affected by the mate spell. But that doesn’t make sense, right? You weren’t anywhere near here when you cast it.”

“No,” Daniel said quietly. “Itdoesmake sense.”

We all stared. He grimaced. “Wolves are bound together through magic. It’s subtle, but there’s a real magical connection that gets forged when they’re in a pack together, similar to a mate bond. They’re also linked—again, through magic—to the land itself. That’s how they can sense it when something from another plane breaches this world. The magic of the land itself tells them.”

Poppy’s head snapped toward him. “You’re saying my spell hit Jeremy andkept going?”

Daniel nodded. “It probably connected with Jeremy, spread outward through the pack, and then into the land. And this area was already unstable…”

Ethan frowned. “And it just needed a push.”

“A spell powerful enough to rewrite fate would do it,” Daniel said dryly. “The bleeds were unstable already—it was only a matter of time before they opened again. But this sped the process up.”

Poppy’s face crumpled. She covered her mouth, horror in her eyes. “Fuck.”

Simone caught her, pulling her into an embrace. Poppy didn’t cry, but the enormity of what she—we—had done seemed to have left her speechless.

I knew exactly how she felt.

You couldn’t have known,Jeremy whispered into my mind.

I nodded stiffly. If Poppy and Daniel were right, we had caused the bleeds. It was a miracle no one else had died. Yet.

And it meant I was directly responsible for what Jeremy had become. How could he ever forgive me?

There’s nothing to forgive,Jeremy said firmly, clearly hearing the dark spiral of my thoughts.If I hadn’t met you, I’d still be living rough in the woods—or I’d have forced Reed to challenge me. I might be dead. I wouldn’t change anything that happened.

But you did die!My frustration burst through the bond.That’s literally a thing that happened!

Sure,Jeremy soothed.But I came back. And now the pack has backup. Crescent Springs will have witches and vampires to help guard it. I’m leaving them in good hands.

Until Poppy, Ethan, and Daniel could figure out the spell that might close the bleeds for good, Tatiana ordered a team of witches to stay in Crescent Springs. Nathaniel stationed vampires there as well.

The wolves might not have been thrilled to share their town with other supernatural creatures, but we didn’t stay to see how it all unfolded. Jeremy left Reed the bar. Eventually, he’d sign it over—it wasn’t as if we needed the money—but for now, he’d be a silent partner.

We didn’t go back to Seattle. Instead, we went to Gold Bar. I could have listed a dozen logical reasons not to head to Seattle. It certainly wasn’t wise to push our luck with Jeremy’s transition, after all. But in truth, I needed the peace of being surrounded by the motley crew of love-struck saps that somehow felt like family. But I counted myself among them, so it wasn’t as though I could judge. Much.

* * *

It was raining outside, the second night of our stay at Michael and Danny’s. It was one of those gentle Pacific Northwest drizzles that never really stops, just shifts in tempo. The smell of wet pine drifted through the open window, blending with the cut grass and incense scent of my mate.

Jeremy stood beside me next to the bed, bare-chested and fresh from the shower, his damp hair curling slightly at the edges. His hand brushed mine, slow and deliberate, and I let my fingers curl into his palm.

“I keep waiting for this to feel unreal,” he said quietly. “But it doesn’t.”

“No,” I agreed, tracing the line of his collarbone with my gaze. “It feels like fate.”

He turned toward me, his hand sliding over my hip. “Good.”

Then he kissed me, slow and deep. His lips were warm, familiar, and still capable of unraveling me. There was no urgency in him. Only reverence.

I let him guide me with a gentle touch until my spine met the cool sheets of the bed. His fingers slid up my sides, mapping me with wonder in his eyes.

I arched into him without thinking. No pretense. No second-guessing. Just want and trust.