Page 127

Jamie

“ S o, um. We’re off.” Danny gave a shrug with his words from his place on Jamie’s porch, Roman looming behind him and Jay waving from his spot slightly off to the side.

Jamie was a little surprised they’d come by for a send-off in person, but he wasn’t complaining. He liked Danny and weird little Jay. Roman he could take or leave, but he clearly meant something to Luc, even after all the bullshit, so Jamie was willing to cut him some slack.

The tiniest, most threadbare, could-snap-at-any-moment bit of slack.

The fact that Roman had saved Luc’s immortal life might have tipped him over just a bit in Jamie’s favor as well.

He’d never forget the sight of Roman throwing the feral vampire off Luc’s limp body.

The twins had helped too, of course, but they were the ones that had gotten Luc into the whole mess in the first place, so Jamie wasn’t feeling all too charitable toward them at the moment.

Although, they had at least been in place to witness Jamie’s transformation themselves.

They knew now, from what they’d seen with their own eyes, that Luc was tethered and bound, no longer at risk of feral behavior.

Plus, Jamie as a vampire had his own territory rights in Tucson, and like he’d told them, he’d been there longer.

They wouldn’t be skulking around trying to kick Luc out of the city anymore, not based on their own stupid rules.

It would even maybe have been fun to try to force the twins out instead (“This is my town now, dickheads.”), but it probably wasn’t worth the hassle, Jamie supposed.

Jamie had found out later that Jay had been off running the feral vampire’s victim to the hospital.

The woman screaming had been real, and he and the twins had startled him away when they’d arrived from different directions.

It was just Jamie’s luck the creature had decided to circle back and stalk him instead.

Maybe it had been his delectable seer blood tempting him. Who knew?

Heroics aside, Roman and Luc were studiously avoiding eye contact with each other at the moment, each pretending the other didn’t exist. It was almost cute, such blatant stubborn alpha male behavior.

Jamie felt blessed he’d never been inclined to posture in that way.

Frankly, it seemed exhausting. Although, there were some benefits to being mated to one of them, Jamie supposed.

Like he and Luc fucking literally all night long.

He smirked to himself at the thought, shifting in place, marveling at how good he felt after all that. He should have been unbelievably sore, but apparently vamp healing was helpful for more than just battle scars. And Luc had been awfully generous with the magic tongue rimming…

But Jamie didn’t think he would have been able to help himself, even if soreness had been an issue.

He’d woken up on fire, this want burning inside him.

Needing Luc’s touch, needing to be close to him.

It had taken a whole lot of convincing for Danny to get him to leave Luc’s side, and in the end, the other vampire had been forced to very bluntly state that the sooner Jamie drank some blood, the sooner they could all leave him and Luc alone to fuck like rabbits.

Jamie really liked the guy, honestly.

But like, how did vampires get any work done in this world?

How were they not all just fucking and biting each other all the time?

Truly one of life’s great mysteries. Supposedly some of the…

ferocity of this attraction would fade, if Danny’s words could be believed.

But you just had to see how Roman looked at his mate to know it couldn’t be fading all that much.

Roman looked at Danny like he was a juicy steak half the time and like he hung the literal moon in the sky at every other moment.

“Well, thanks for stopping by to make sure Luc wasn’t kidnapping me and then going the extra mile and beheading that feral dude for us.”

Danny blinked twice. “Oh. Yeah. Anytime.”

“ Not anytime,” Roman countered with a growl.

Jamie shot the surly vampire his best smile. “Don’t worry. Next time, we’ll visit you. Give you all a chance to host. You seem like the kind of guy who’d do a full tea service for guests or something.”

“Not likely,” Luc snapped.

At the same time—“Oh, goody!” This from Jay, who had wandered off the porch onto the neighbor’s property, trying to commune with the neighbor’s cat from the looks of it.

The cat for his part did not seem impressed.

Roman raised a dark brow at Jamie. “I am not sure I like you very much.”

Jamie smiled wider at him, kind of wishing he had his fangs out. But that would probably be rude. “Ditto, big man.”

“I think he and Soren might get along,” Danny said thoughtfully, tilting his head and studying Jamie.

Roman scoffed. “Except he is mated to the vampire who attacked Soren’s mate.”

Danny shrugged. “Yeah, well, he’s mated to the vampire who killed me , and I like him just fine.”

“That is because you are too good for this world, little king,” Roman said with a look to his mate that felt almost too intimate to witness. Danny blushed at his words, which Jamie had to admit was pretty cute. But he’d had enough of other people’s lovey-dovey bullshit for now.

He had his own lovey-dovey bullshit to get back to.

He mouthed the words I’ll call you to Danny and shut the door in his face, laughing at the sounds of Roman muttering through the wood about manners.

He and Danny had talked over that blood bag (which to be honest, hadn’t been that bad, the weirdness of drinking his meal aside).

About the ridiculousness of two men so clearly not over their friendship trying to avoid each other for an eternity.

About how if the mates of said men were so inclined, they could push them together over the years, do their part to encourage the repair of that friendship.

Sure, Luc and Roman may never be exactly warm and snuggly with each other, but Jamie had a feeling that had never been their type of friendship to begin with.

“Well.” Jamie turned and rested his back against the door. “Just the two of us.”

At least for the next fifteen minutes or so. Monique had texted that she and Alice were coming up for air and she’d actually be staying in her own home for the first time in days, so he should go ahead and hide any evidence of rampant sexcapades about the house.

Jamie had made the mistake of mentioning concern over Monique coming back from her extended hookup to an inevitable den of iniquity, and Luc had murmured not to worry; he’d be buying them their own house before the week was out.

He’d brushed his fingers along Jamie’s chin, holding his gaze with those shockingly bright green eyes.

“Make no mistake, I’ve put a lot of thought into having you all to myself, flower. ”

Jamie shivered a little at the recollection of both the words and the wonderful, enthusiastic head that had come after, catching Luc’s smirk out of the corner of his eye.

Because that was the other thing. They were so fucking in tune now that Jamie had turned. Jamie kept catching little hints of Luc’s emotions. His lust. His pleasure. His love. Jamie could even feel Luc’s monster underneath the surface, content and sated now that their bond had been confirmed.

There was also the feel of Luc’s guilt.

It was there, just a little lick of it, casting the tiniest shadow over Jamie’s new bliss.

It was clear to him Luc had some feelings about the way Jamie’s transformation had taken place.

Which was interesting because Jamie couldn’t sense a bit of guilt in him otherwise.

Luc didn’t feel any true remorse when it came to Danny and Roman, not really. A little regret, maybe.

Should Jamie be concerned that Luc only felt those things when it came to him? That his monster didn’t seem to care one bit about the rest of the world?

Probably.

But Jamie was definitely equally fucked up because all that rose in him at the thought was a dark, devious pleasure. Luc was his . All parts of him belonged to Jamie. His goodness. His badness. Everything in between.

Forever.

Speaking of. Jamie reached over and grabbed a handful of Luc’s shirt, tugging playfully. “I have somewhere I want to go.”

The tattoo shop was mostly empty this early in the day, other than a bored-looking receptionist with a bleached bob and more piercings than Jamie could count.

He was a little jealous, actually—she looked pretty rad. He’d been here before for some of his own piercings, but he’d always kept them to his ears.

He looked to Luc. “Do you think I’d still be able to get pierced these days? Or would the accelerated healing just, like, pop the dang thing right out?”

Luc glanced over from the other side of the room, where he’d been perusing the books of flash tattoo options and, judging from the slight sneer on his face, finding them lacking.

Snob , Jamie thought affectionately. Such a ridiculous snob.

“I’m not sure. I’ve never tried.” Luc eyed first the receptionist and then Jamie, and Jamie could tell he was mentally transplanting her piercings onto Jamie’s face. “Is that what we’re here to find out, flower?” He didn’t seem to hate the idea.

But Jamie didn’t answer the question, unable to keep the grin from his face when Luc scowled back at him in frustration. Whatever. Surprises were fun; everyone knew that.

He sauntered over and grabbed Luc’s hand, lacing their fingers together as he looked over the flash books Luc had been judging so harshly. “You think those three are back in Hyde Park by now?”

Luc huffed. “As if I care.”

Jamie smirked, flipping through the pages.

He didn’t buy the tough guy act. Or the way Roman and Luc had avoided eye contact during the trio’s departure that morning.

There was a strong bond there, and even if it was frayed by decades of hurt and trauma, the core still held.

And they had endless time to repair the rest.

Especially with him and Danny in cahoots. Jamie wasn’t sure exactly why Danny didn’t hate Luc more than he did, but Jamie wasn’t going to look an overly forgiving gift horse in the mouth. And it worked doubly for Jamie, since he had a feeling he and the other newbie vampire could be good friends.

Even if Danny did come attached to a grumpy, suit-wearing stick-in-the-mud.

Jamie looked up from the flash book as the man he’d been waiting for came out from the back, rubbing hand sanitizer between his palms. “Jamie? Come on back.”

“Wait here,” Jamie ordered, pressing a swift kiss to Luc’s frowning mouth.

When the vampire still looked like he would protest, Jamie leaned in for a longer, filthier kiss, with lots of tongue for good measure.

He shot the waiting employee a wink at the end, feeling only slightly guilty for the questionable PDA.

Taming a monster took a lot of work, okay? Sometimes there was going to be collateral damage.

This time, he gave Luc’s muscular ass a swat as he walked away. “Be right back, monster.”

It didn’t take long at all. Barely half an hour and they were out the door, Luc still acting vaguely pissy at being left behind in the shop. “You didn’t have to pay for it,” he grumbled. “I could have compelled him for you.”

“I’m not gonna scam some poor tattoo artist out of his money. Save that for the Walmarts of the world. Although, I do want you to teach me the mind-control thing. That’s pretty fucking cool.”

“Pretty fucking cool,” Luc repeated, musing over the words. He squeezed the hand Jamie had tucked into his. “Have I told you today how much I love you, my sweet?”

Jamie nodded, squeezing him back. “Like five times. You’re pretty sappy now that we’re bonded, aren’t you, green eyes?”

“I’ll show you sappy,” Luc growled, a surprisingly playful sound, pushing Jamie back into the alley they’d been walking past. He pressed the whole length of his body against Jamie’s front, collaring his throat with one broad hand. “Think you’re in charge now, do you, flower?”

Jamie did his best not to reveal the way the little dominance display had his pulse racing, but he knew Luc could hear it anyway. Jamie could hear it, his poor little vampire heart pounding away.

Still, he arched a haughty brow, just for fun. “I’ve always been in charge, monster.”

“Yes, I believe you have been.” Luc reached up to stroke the hair away from Jamie’s face, but he didn’t take his other hand from his throat. “Show me,” he ordered, tightening his grip just a little.

Jamie maintained eye contact as he unbuttoned his jeans, delighting in the way Luc’s bright eyes flared with heat. He turned down the top band of his pants, revealing the script marked into his hip.

For my monster.

Luc glanced down, and then his green eyes were burning into Jamie’s, his hand tightening again on Jamie’s throat. Jamie resisted the urge to purr at the sensation. “How do you know it will stay?” Luc asked, his voice gruff.

Jamie shrugged. “I sort of guessed. But human skin regenerates all the time, and tattoos manage to stay visible. I don’t know exactly how it works, but I figured it would still hold on vampire skin.

Maybe it’ll fade faster, maybe I’ll have to have it retouched in a few years, but that’s fine.

I’ll have it redone as many times as I need to. ”

“For my monster,” Luc murmured, tracing the edges of the tattoo with one finger now, softly. Reverently. “And what is for your monster, exactly? The tattoo? This body it’s been etched on?”

“All of it,” Jamie answered simply, relaxing into Luc’s hold. “My body. My soul. All of it’s for you. A reminder, should you need it.”

Through the bond, Jamie could feel the pleasure and love coursing through Luc at his words. “I like it very much, flower. Very much.”

“I thought you would, you possessive bastard.” Jamie hooked a hand around the back of Luc’s head, pulling him in close, nose to nose. “But don’t forget. It goes both ways. You belong to me too, every part of you.”

“Even the darkest parts.” There was a faint question in Luc’s tone.

“ Especially those,” Jamie said firmly. “And when you feel out of control, you come to me, huh? I’ll give you exactly what you need.” His cock plumped in his jeans at the thought of it. Taming his vicious monster whenever it was required.

Luc’s breath hitched, and he released his hold on Jamie’s throat, caressing his chin with a brush of his knuckles. “You really are a desert flower, aren’t you? So beautiful. So alluring. But you draw blood when you want to. I’ve underestimated you from the beginning, haven’t I?”

Jamie nodded. “That’s okay though. You’re getting it now.”

And Jamie had endless lifetimes to keep reminding him.