Page 35

Roman

R oman fingered the sheets on the hotel bed and grimaced—the thread count was definitely not up to his usual standards. But it had been the best he could find in this tiny town, and he wasn’t planning to stay long anyway.

Roman had been waiting in this hovel, only a few hours’ drive from Hyde Park—not nearly far enough for Roman’s taste—needing Soren’s confirmation that Luc was actually following him before he could put any real miles between him and his mate.

His mate who had looked so unbelievably lovely sleeping that Roman had barely found the strength within himself to leave the bed, let alone the city.

His mate who should have been in this bed with Roman now, whimpering while he rode Roman’s cock. Not hours away and out of Roman’s reach.

He had just received the text from Soren, and he was battling with his demon, trying to resist the urge to turn back the way they’d come. Roman’s demon was never a fan of long-term planning over short-term gratification, especially now, when it came to their mate.

Roman’s phone rang, and he answered it in an instant after confirming quickly that it was the call he’d been both dreading and longing for. “Little king?”

Roman had partly hoped Soren would be able to stall Danny a little longer, cover for Roman’s absence, but maybe Danny had been feeling the pull of this separation the same way Roman had. Like an ache in his chest he couldn’t seem to rid himself of.

“You left ?! Without even telling me?” Danny’s voice on the other end sounded just as angry and hurt as Roman had expected. Guilt surged through him.

“I am sorry, lovely. I thought it best this way. I was not sure I could go through with it otherwise.” Already his demon had made it hell for him to leave, growling its protests and throwing itself at the bars of its internal cage, trying to take over control.

Wrong, wrong, wrong . It only got more restless the further he strayed from Danny’s side.

“You really thought leaving without any warning was the best way?”

“You know this is not me really leaving you. Not really, not for good.” Oh God, did Danny know that? “Tell me you know that.”

“I don’t know what I know.” Danny’s voice had lowered from shouting to barely audible, but the hurt in it remained. This would not do. Roman needed his mate to understand.

“You were right, Danny. About Luc. About me needing to deal with him. And I would never forgive myself if you were hurt in the process. I needed to be far away from you to make any sort of move.”

“How do you even know he’ll follow you?”

“He has already. I had Soren make sure of it while you were working. Luc has left Hyde Park.”

“But—but what will you do with him?”

“Talk with him, to start. Just him and myself. I have been running from it for far too long. Just as you said, little king.”

Danny groaned in exasperation. “I was tipsy and spitballing ideas. I didn’t think you’d leave the very next day . What if talking doesn’t work?”

It was the same worry Roman had, but he didn’t want to focus on potential failure. “Then I will have Soren come join me, and we will try to take him down.”

“You could get hurt.”

Roman’s chest ached at the concern in his mate’s voice. “I could. But my body can handle quite a lot. Yours cannot.”

“Way to rub it in my face,” Danny grumbled.

Roman chuckled. “There are many things I love about your body, sweet mate. Its fragility is not one of them.”

“If I’d known you were leaving, I would have…” Danny’s voice trailed off.

“What would you have done, mon amour?”

Danny made a strangled noise. “I mean, you could get really hurt, you know? What if Luc injures you or…or worse. And I never got a chance to say— Ugh, I’m really gonna have to say it over the phone, aren’t I?”

“Say what, little king?”

“I love you, okay!” Danny was shouting again. “I love you and your dumb vampire face, and I really thought I’d get to tell you that in person.”

Roman wanted to laugh. He wanted to cry. He wanted to do a million things, none of which he could do with his mate miles away and out of his reach. “You will tell me in person. Very soon. This is not goodbye.”

“I don’t like this.”

“Neither do I. Neither I nor my demon have any interest in being away from the side of the person we love.”

“You…love me too?” The hesitance in Danny’s voice was like a knife to Roman’s chest.

“Of course I do. My sweet, lovely, selfless little king. I could not ask fate for a better mate. You make me feel truly lucky, for the first time in I do not know how long.”

There were conspicuous sniffles on the other end of the line. “Okay. That’s—that’s…really nice to hear. I wish I could kiss you for saying such nice things to me.”

“I wish I could do more than kiss you, lovely mate.” The little hitch in Danny’s breath at Roman’s words had his cock hardening.

“What would you do to me?” Danny’s voice was husky.

“Ew.” Roman sighed as Soren’s voice cut in in the background. “No dirty talk in a hundred-foot radius of my person, please.”

Danny giggled, and it was one of the sweetest sounds Roman had ever heard. “Oops. Sorry, I got carried away. Soren’s driving me right now. I didn’t want to wait until we were home to talk to you.”

“I am glad you called. It is good to hear your voice. I am sorry to have left this way, but I need to handle my past so I can focus properly on my future. On you. I want to be the kind of man who deserves your forever.”

“You already are that man.”

Roman wasn’t, but it warmed his heart that Danny thought so.

“Where are you?” Danny asked.

“Not nearly far enough. I have been trying to make sure Luc is able to follow me, so I am moving slower than usual. I am not used to wanting him on my tail.”

“Please be careful,” Danny said. “Very, very careful. I just got you. I’m not willing to lose you.”

Roman smiled. His sweet, lovely mate. “If I had known all I needed was to leave town to get these declarations from you, I might have done it sooner, lovely.”

“Come back to me in one piece and I’ll give you all the declarations you want. Actually, wait.” Danny’s voice took on an indignant tone again. “I’m still mad at you for leaving without telling me. Am I? I think I am. I’ve got abandonment issues, you know.”

Roman couldn’t help his laugh. “How about when I return, I let you yell at me as much as you like. Then I give you as many orgasms as your body can handle. Then come the declarations.”

Silence, then the sound of Danny clearing his throat. “That could work.”

Was his little mate turned on? Roman wanted to explore this further—he’d never tried phone sex—but now was not the time. “Put Soren on the phone?” he requested.

“All right. You’ll keep answering my calls, right? Reassure me I didn’t dream you?”

“Always,” Roman vowed.

“I do love you, you know?”

“I love you too, Daniel Kingman.”

There was a shuffling noise, and then Soren’s bright voice came on the line. “Are you going to be confessing your undying love for me too?”

“Perhaps another time. Everything is all right over there?”

“Everything’s just dandy. I followed Luc a few hours out of town while Danny was working. He’s definitely on your tail.”

“I meant Danny. He seems…all right?”

“Jesus, what am I, his nanny?”

“Soren…,” Roman chided.

“He seems okay. He was definitely pissed that you left. You called that one right. But talking to you seems to have calmed him down.”

“I’m right here ,” Danny cut in. Roman could practically hear his pout over the phone. Adorable.

“He’s picking his brother up in a few hours,” Soren continued as if he hadn’t heard Danny at all. “Now that Luc’s out of town, he’s going to bring him to stay at Chez Danny for a while.”

“Danny must be pleased.” Roman was glad his mate would have his brother there to keep him company in Roman’s absence, even if Roman hadn’t fully forgiven the man for not taking proper care of Danny over the years.

“Sure,” Soren said lightly. “Though why anyone would be pleased to have that dull rock around, I’m not sure. He could’ve figured out that one-armed thing on his own.”

Roman could hear Danny protesting again in the background, defending his brother. “Family is important to Danny. And now you will not have to go out of your way to follow Gabe.”

“I’m not following him anymore.” Soren’s reply was indignant. “I just thought, for a minute, that he might be half-interesting. But I was wrong. He’s straight and boring as dirt.”

Roman had a feeling it was the “straight” part that was really upsetting Soren, but he let it slide. He had enough drama on his own without getting into Soren’s.

“Take care of them for me?” Roman requested, hating that he was having to ask someone else to watch his mate for him.

“I will. Though I’d rather be kicking Luc’s ass than be on babysitting duty. Call me if you need backup?”

“I will.”

“Want me to kiss your mate goodbye for you?” Soren teased.

In the most even, pleasant voice he could muster, Roman replied, “Touch him and I rip your heart out of your chest, mon ami.”

“Noted, you beast.” Soren snorted.

“Put my mate back on the phone.”

Roman and Danny said their goodbyes then, in terms that Soren only protested as being “too mushy” twice. Roman was loath to let the boy go, but he needed to continue moving.

He looked down at the last text he’d sent Luc.

You wanted me, come get me. Let us hash it out, old friend.

Roman could only hope he wouldn’t be killed in the process.

Roman hadn’t been driving long when the answering text from Luc dinged on his phone.

So dramatic, brother. Meet me in Islington, corner of First and Ash.

That was only a half hour away. Luc had definitely been catching up nicely, then. Unfortunately, it was back in the other direction, and Roman would be heading back toward Danny rather than further away.