Page 23 of Witchblood
“There aren’t that many gay alpha werewolves,” I said. There couldn’t be. Statistically I guess it could be, but in reality, being a werewolf was a brutal life. “And not that would want me.” A possession made sense.Apahaving to bribe them with property sounded more accurate.
“I don’t think all or even most of them aregay. Not in the terms that the western world deems it. Most of us predate current ideology. For some that is good, for others, not so much. I don’t consider myselfgay.The term didn’t exist when I was born as it does now.”
That irritated me. Just like Felix. “Too good to acknowledge you like dick while you’ve been staring at me like you can’t wait to get into my pants. No straight man kisses another man the way you kissed me.”
Liam laughed. It was a bright sound. “I like dick just fine. The parts don’t matter so much. I’ve indulged in my fair share of genders.” He nodded as if thinking about something I said. “I’ve actually been in your pants. Helped you dress and undress. Helped you shower, washed your flesh and held nearly every inch of you in my hands. Still I crave more. I want to explore your passion. Discover the sounds you make when your skin is under my lips and your body submitting to mine. I’ve had others before, but my wolf has rejected everyone until you. The wolf is the most basic and primal part of us, and yet he wants you.Demandsyou. Your gender doesn’t matter. The wolf doesn’t see gender, never has, no matter who I’ve brought to my bed. It sees mate or not mate.”
A hint of jealous rolled through me while my brain registered what he said. He’d been with men before? The parts didn’t matter? Was that a cop out? “How many other men have you been with?” I didn’t really want to know the answer.
A smile crossed his lips. “Do you really want to know about past lovers? You strike me as a jealous man. Part of your prickly nature perhaps.” Liam met my gaze, his pale blue eyes looking amused. Was he teasing me? He had to be teasing me.
I shrugged. “Since you know about mine. It seems only fair that I know about your past lovers.” And I knew almost nothing about him. Was he a player? He was handsome enough to have dozens of lovers lined up. He was also overbearing and overprotective like most alphas. The fact that he hadn’t stopped touching me since our kiss, which kept the power zinging between us, only proved just how attached he was to the idea of having me. Maybe he didn’t want a mate and just wanted a night with thewitchchild? Maybe I was just another conquest? Maybe the magic appealed to him? How much of his words could I trust as truth?
“I know about all yours?” Liam inquired. “I know of Felix. Was he your only? He isn’t an ideal example for relationships. I’ve heard stories even if I haven’t heard all of yours. Aren’t there otherissueswith past lovers who might come to call? I can’t imagine so many could resist the temptation.”
“Of an omega?” I asked because that was usually what alphas wanted from me. To possess an omega.Witchbornwas more of a curse than a blessing, though some may want me for magic they thought I had. Others might want me just to try to influence the Volkov. They’d have been disappointed to learn that I had little sway over him.
“The fire of your temper with your hair to match. The honey of your lips, and the scattering of freckles across your nose.” Liam ran a hand through my hair, letting the strands fall from his fingers like it fascinated him. “In the dark it looks brown, but the red…” He sighed. “I really like the red. Not the orange like some redheads, but more like sun-ripened strawberries, rare steak, or fresh blood. My wolf loves the latter two more, though I’ve been known to enjoy all three.”
If I hadn’t known he was an alpha wolf, his words might have scared me. But wolves loved blood almost as much as vampires. Usually they preferred it attached to some fresh meat, but his comparison told me he’d been a wolf a long time. When the balance between human and wolf began to blur, a wolf showed his age.
My red hair came from the bleed-through of the fox to my human side. It was a trait of thewitchborn. I had met two otherwitchbornin my life, and they too had traits of their spirit animal. Without the fox, my hair would likely be black as night, instead of interwoven with red which made it look brown. The older I got, the more injuries I healed, the more magic I used, the more my fox bled through. My hair was more red than black now. I’d always hated it. Even tried to dye it, only to have the red bleed through like some horror movie death stain. It wasn’t even a normal shade of red. Many complimented me on a dye job I’d never had. At least it wasn’t clown red. More that dark oozing color of blood like Liam had pointed out. Not fresh in my opinion, more the sort of brown red of drying blood.
Felix hadn’t liked it either. He’d required me to wear it in a ponytail so he didn’t have to touch it. I’d cut it a few times in my life, short like a normal guy. Only then the very vulpine and sharp shape of my face became more pronounced. More of the fox bleeding through. Keeping my hair long made me feel more human and the fox less noticeable. Though maybe I was fooling myself.
“I hate it,” I whispered. “Everyone hates it.” Mostly because I’d been a fox living among wolves. Never really accepted by the pack, but always longing for it. I never minded being a fox when I was actually in the fox shape. It was the human that overthought everything and condemned every little difference. Too long living in the shadow of others’ judgement had broken me. “I hate not being like everyone else.”
“I don’t,” Liam assured me. “You’re…” He let out a long sigh, fingers still curled in my hair. “Exactly what I need.”
I squinted at him. “A mutt of mixed heritages and blood magic? You’re a bit twisted, aren’t you, Ulrich?”
He laughed. “Maybe. So other lovers? You never did answer from who else you borrowed strength.”
“Hugo?” Was he actually a past lover? I couldn’t remember if I’d actually had sex with him or if it had been an elaborate fantasy. “Umm… It’s sort of complicated. And I wasn’t really his lover so much as a juice box. He’s probably not coming around any time soon.” Not unless it was to deliver me to a painful death.
Liam’s eyes narrowed.
“It was all sort of a big misunderstanding to begin with,” I rambled. “I helped a little girl who wasn’t really a little girl, but before she could bite me, Hugo came along. It really was a bit too much like the movie for me.”
“Vampire?” Liam’s voice became really soft and dangerous. “This Hugo is a vampire?”
“I didn’t know the girl was a vampire. Didn’t know Hugo was either. I mean I knew that vampires existed, butApanever let them near the pack, so I never met one. They smell different, but it doesn’t screamvampire smellto me. At least it didn’t. Now I could probably detect them a mile away. He was a smooth talker and looked like one of those Nordic gods you see on romance novels.”
“Nordic gods?” Now he sounded mad.
“You know, with the flowing blond hair and goofy clothes? Well the clothes were just a little off century is all and I was sort of shocked from having a curly sue attack me. Didn’t suspect that I was jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire when herescuedme. Then he kept me locked in my own head while he fed from me. I guess he couldn’t thrall me like he could other humans, so I dreamt while he ate.”
“Is he still alive? Hugo?” He drew out the name like he was debating on ways to kill the vampire and keep him dead.
“I guess. I drained him of energy to escape. That was a few weeks back. He’s probably healed by now. I’m not sure you can kill a vampire that way. Their magic is renewed each time the sun sets. I suspect they also draw power from death, which is why most of them are mob bosses dealing drugs. Hugo led me to believe he was pretty powerful, but I haven’t met a lot of vampires. I do know that by the time I’d escaped him, I’d lost two weeks of time.”
Liam’s expression was so intent I had to look away.
Chapter 10
Some things were better left unsaid, I guess. “Enough about me. Your turn. How many Hugos do you have in your past?”
A few heavy minutes passed before he seemed to be able to get a hold on his feelings. The tension in the room eased. He pulled out the last of the stitches and swabbed at my flesh with alcohol pads. “I’ve never been used as a juice box. I tend to bite back.” He flashed me a bit of a grin. “Where to start? Before I became a wolf? Only the most recent years perhaps? Categorize them by quality of lovers they were?” Now I knew for sure he was teasing.