Page 87

Dane

D ane let himself be shoved back, although he was annoyed with his brother for cutting off his view of the intriguing blue-haired boy.

He knew what was coming next: Fox was going to tell him they needed to fix this, compel the lanky human into forgetting what they were, then either intimidate or beat the shit out of Jamie and Luc as a message to not go spilling their secrets to whomever they pleased.

(Whether Dane and Fox could successfully beat the shit out of Jamie and Luc was another question.)

The bottom line was Fox was too protective to let this slide. Too angry. Too—

“I say we go for it.”

Dane gaped at his brother, at that face that was so like his own and yet so completely different (how people couldn’t tell them apart baffled Dane on the daily—Fox was clearly his own person, with distinct expressions and tells anyone paying attention could see).

Fox’s eyes were currently lit up with some inner fire, and a mischievous smirk was gracing his lips.

It was the most perked up Dane had seen him in ages.

Lately he’d been all worried looks and concerned sighs—like Dane was some sort of mental case Fox was trying to solve.

Dane narrowed his eyes at him, unconvinced. “Are you fucking with me right now?”

Fox’s smirk deepened. “He smells good, doesn’t he?”

That was the understatement of the century. The kid smelled like fresh desert and summer rain, like the very best postmonsoon mornings back when Dane and his twin had lived in the desert on the outskirts of town.

Dane shrugged a shoulder, keeping his face as blank as he could. “Good enough.”

Fox laughed at him, the fuck. “Yeah. Sure. Good enough,” he mocked.

“You know we can’t, like, keep him.” Dane couldn’t believe he was having to say it out loud, but Fox was clearly having a momentary lapse of sanity.

Fox crossed his arms, shrugging lightly. “Why not?”

“Why not ?” Dane ran an agitated hand through his hair. “He’s human! He knows about us.”

“So? He knows about others too. He just said so.” Fox licked his lips. “It’d be nice having dinner at home every once in a while.”

“He’s a waif!” Dane pointed out, thinking of those thin limbs, that wiry body. “If we ate every week, we’d kill him within a month.”

Fox looked at him like he was the one being unreasonable. “So we just stick to, you know…partial meals. A little snack every now and then. We can supplement. And he said he’d clean.”

That was… maybe a little compelling. Dane glanced around at the hallway, at the dust mites swirling around the overhead light. He sighed. “What’s his deal, anyway?”

Fox shrugged again. “Bites feel good, don’t they? Maybe he’s like a little vampire junkie. Plus, he’s curious as hell.”

Dane didn’t have to ask how Fox knew that.

It was obvious just looking at the guy. The way he’d drunk in the sight of them on the porch, like he was clocking every little detail for later.

The way he’d tried to peer into their house over their shoulders, as if the two vampires in his way were nothing more than a minor inconvenience.

Dane gave one last attempt at introducing some sanity to the situation. “What if it’s a setup?”

Fox laughed. “For what ? By whom?”

Dane shot him an accusing look. “You just want to fuck him.”

“And you don’t?”

Dane shifted in place. He couldn’t exactly say that.

Besides the fact that the guy smelled like everything good in the world, he was also…

compelling. That faded blue hair that looked almost pastel, parted in the middle and tucked behind his ears.

The matching eyebrow piercing, which maybe was supposed to look punk but just looked… pretty.

He was pretty. A delicate nose and surprisingly pale lashes framing sharp, curious eyes, slender wrists encased in a mix of leather bracelets. Sure, his face seemed sort of permanently etched into a scowl, but Dane and Fox had been accused of the same.

It wasn’t that they didn’t know how to smile. Most people—vampires, humans, whatever—just didn’t deserve it.

“Dude,” Fox said, clearly losing patience with Dane’s silence. “Come on. This could—this could be good for us. We need a little excitement, huh?”

Dane tried not to let his surprise show on his face that his brother was actually voicing that out loud, this subtle boredom that had overtaken them both.

They didn’t usually talk about this stuff.

Not even when they’d finally decided to leave that fucking den.

There hadn’t been any big heart-to-heart, no unpacking of inner wounds.

Partly because there was no need—they each knew how the other felt, always. They couldn’t not with the bond.

And right now Fox was excited—Dane could feel it—for the first time in a long time. It flickered through the bond like little snaps of electricity.

How could Dane deny him, his brother who never asked for anything? Who always acted for Dane and Dane alone?

He couldn’t. It was as simple as that.

“All right,” he conceded. “Why the fuck not?”

Fox clapped a hand on his shoulder before opening the door.

Dane had to stop himself from crying out a curse when there was no one in front of it.

He hadn’t realized until that moment just how much he’d wanted to say yes because where the fuck was the strange human?

Dane’s devil was practically howling inside him, enraged that they’d let the sweet-smelling creature get away from them.

They needed to run after him, to chase, to hunt —

A familiar creak sounded out, and Fox and Dane both turned in unison to see the kid slumped on their porch swing, rocking it gently with his toes.

“Hey,” he greeted calmly, his voice the same soothing monotone it had been for their entire previous conversation.

“You guys hash it out? Decided whether I’m friend or foe? ”

“What’s your name?” Dane found himself asking, refusing to acknowledge the bone-deep relief he felt at seeing him there.

He couldn’t keep calling the guy “the kid” in his head, no matter that he looked to be in his early twenties at best. Barely older than the college kids that toddled by their house in a drunken stupor throughout the school year.

The kid tucked a loose strand of pale-blue hair back behind his ear. “Colin. Yours?”

The fact that this Colin had come by their house, asking for a place to stay and offering himself up as a human blood bag without so much as knowing their names clearly amused Fox, who laughed out loud. “I’m Fox. This is Dane.”

Dane nodded his greeting, well aware Colin would forget who was who come morning. They always did.

Fox gestured to the door. “Shall we show you inside?”

Colin cocked his pretty head, his face unreadable. “You’re gonna let me stay?”

“Trial run. We’ll give it a month.”

Fox was being uncharacteristically civil. Usually Dane was the one who spoke for them when it came to strangers. Fox had more of a hair trigger. But back at home, when it was just the two of them, Dane was the quiet one. Funny they’d fallen into that pattern with Colin already.

“All right.” Colin rose from the porch swing and strode toward them, planting himself in front of them expectantly.

Fuck. Was the human wanting them to bite him right there and then?

Dane’s dick twitched at the thought. It would be stupid to do it where anyone might see, but if they took him over to the porch swing, covered his body with both of theirs, and sank their fangs into that creamy throat…

Colin’s brow furrowed. “Are you going to show me inside or what?”

Fox cleared his throat, glancing at Dane with a smirk that said he knew exactly what Dane had been imagining. “Of course, little lamb.”

Colin scowled at Fox as he swept past them into the house. Not a fan of the nickname, then. He was ballsy for a human; Dane would give him that. Fearless.

The trills of excitement traveling down Dane’s spine weren’t just coming from Fox anymore.

Was this the worst idea they’d ever had or the best thing to happen to them in months?

Dane didn’t often have occasion to feel embarrassed in front of humans.

It had been decades since he’d cared enough what any of them thought to even manage it.

But he felt vaguely uneasy as Colin stared into their living room and the mess that had piled up over the last month: the empty chip bags, the heavy layer of dust, the stains of what could possibly be blood.

It was like the physical manifestation of Dane’s weird brush with pseudodepression.

“Jesus.”

Dane winced as Fox crossed his arms, his muscles bulging in a clear intimidation tactic. “Listen, human, we follow a different set of standards.”

Colin shot them both an unimpressed look. “Did you forget I know other vampires? Slovenliness is not a requirement of the species.”

“Dane usually cleans,” Fox muttered, his imposing stance deflating.

Dane flicked his shoulder. “Fuck off if you think you’re throwing me under the bus.”

But Colin was already pushing past them, making his way to the kitchen. It wasn’t horrible . They didn’t use that room much, other than storage for chips and beer.

Colin opened the fridge, clocking the various six-packs that took up residence there, and the lack of anything else. He moved on to the cupboards, seeming to make note of each dish (or lack thereof). He finally turned to Fox and Dane with a small sigh. “Are you two vampires or frat boys?”

Fox scowled. “You didn’t say you were going to be a judgmental housekeeper.”

Colin cocked his head. “Your feelings are easily hurt, huh?” He slid past them again, making his way upstairs. He glanced at the closed doors and then back at them, clearly expecting some guidance.

Fox gestured to the correct doors. “That’s Dane’s room. That’s mine.” He pointed across the hall. “That’ll be yours.”

Colin opened the door leading into what would be his room, scanning it quickly and turning back to them. “I can keep the furnishings in here?”

“Sure.” Dane couldn’t even remember what furniture was in there in the first place. He was pretty sure whatever it was had come with the house when they’d bought it. He hadn’t set foot in that room in…years, maybe?

Fox stepped closer to the human, his voice soft and sultry. “Aren’t you going to check our bedrooms, little lamb?”

Colin gave him a blank look. He may have smelled like whiskey, but he certainly wasn’t acting drunk. Or maybe he was just skilled at hiding his tells. “Why? I’m not going in there. You can keep them as filthy as you like.”

Dane’s lips twitched as disappointment emanated from Fox. It was clear his hopes of fucking their new roommate were going to be harder to achieve than he’d thought. He was too used to giving his hopeful hookups one glance and having them drop to their knees, practically begging to suck him off.

Fox shot him a glare, and Dane immediately knew what he was thinking: As if you’re not disappointed too.

Whatever.

They followed Colin back down the stairs, and Dane was too aware how much they resembled puppies following at their master’s heels. They watched in silence as Colin took one last look at the downstairs bathroom, then faced them, tapping at his chin. “You’ve got air-conditioning?”

Did they? Temperature extremes didn’t really affect them, so Dane had no idea. But Colin asked the question as if it might be a deal-breaker if they said no, for all that he’d shown up at their house out of nowhere asking for a place to live.

Dane didn’t know what to make of his relief when Fox said they did.

Colin gave a sharp nod. “All right. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon. That’ll give me time to pack what I’ve got and stop at the store for some cleaning supplies.”

He moved as if to slide past them once again, probably to waltz out the front door without a care in the world, and without even a glance toward each other, Dane and Fox moved forward at the same time, blocking his way, both on the same page.

Not this time.

Colin stopped in his tracks, eyeing each of them in turn, not an ounce of fear radiating off him. Was he brave or broken? Dane couldn’t figure it out. “Can I help you?”

“What if we want to feed now?” Fox asked, leaning in, his voice low. “Tonight?”

Colin shook his head. “Tomorrow, after I’ve settled in. Can’t have you backing out after you’ve had a taste.”

Dane highly doubted just one taste was going to be enough. Not with the way this kid had grabbed their attention. His devil shifted restlessly inside him, wordlessly agreeing.

Fox pushed just the slightest bit closer to Colin, and Dane followed in turn. He couldn’t help it. It was like there was a magnetic pull. “But what if we need it?” Fox crooned.

Dane hid his smirk as Colin stared Fox down. They didn’t actually need to feed—they could definitely hold out a few more days—but their new plaything didn’t need to know that.

Instead of shying away, Colin moved forward and placed a hand first to Fox’s forehead, then to Dane’s, like a mother checking her child’s temperature. “You don’t feel cold, and you’re not trembling. You’ll be fine.”

“You do know other vamps, huh?” Dane asked, trying to stop himself from grabbing at Colin’s hand and placing it back on his head.

His touch had been soft and cool, and Dane wanted more of it.

But then realization set in, and a hot bolt of…

something…spiked through him. It was clear Colin wasn’t lying about being fed on before.

Which meant some other asshole had gotten a taste.

Colin glowered at them both. “Of course I do. I’m not a liar. I’ll be back tomorrow.”

He continued to stare them down, clearly expecting them to step back away from the door.

Fucking fearless.

But Dane couldn’t help it—he couldn’t let him leave just yet.

He leaned in closer, breathing deeply, inhaling more of that amazing scent.

He was gratified by the slight catch in Colin’s breath.

So the human wasn’t entirely unaffected by them, then.

“Do you know how good you smell?” he asked him, his voice coming out barely more than a whisper.

Colin sucked in a deep breath of his own but gave no other sign of being affected. “I’ll smell just as good tomorrow,” he said quietly.

And then he pushed past them and slipped out the door.

Dane and Fox were left looking at each other, the absence of the human an almost tangible thing between them.

“What did you just let into our house?” Dane found himself asking.

Fox’s smile was slow to start, but it grew steadily into a wide, manic grin. “I don’t know. But I fucking like it.”