“No, no, not at all! It’s kind of fun. Come on, you can do it too!” he says excitedly.
I snort. “Okay, okay… umm. I guess like fire? It sounds horrid, though.”
“Ooh yes, fire. But it has to be extremely hot. He’s old, so we can’t let him heal faster than it burns him, you know?”
I sit up and look at him. “You’re a scary man when angry, you know that?”
He grins at me. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
“Uh-huh.”
I turn to the TV. “What about a comedy? I feel like you need some humor in your life.”
“I’m overcome with jokes. Jokes are dripping off me. It’s just that my jokes are so sophisticated that no one laughs.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Oh, god of humor, please teach me.”
“Ah, I refuse. There can only be one funny person, and it’s me,” he says, completely deadpan, but it makes me laugh which just confirms his craziness.
“You do make me laugh and most of the time I don’t even know why.”
“It’s because I’m the funny one in this relationship,” he says adamantly.
“Ah, right.”
I feel like I’m being watched and quickly look behind me to where Orin is just peeping at us through the open door. “There’s a creep staring at us.”
“I’m aware,” Marcus says.
“Just… checking on you,” Orin says as he backs out of sight.
“It’s my own Disney tower where Orin is the dragon and you are the…” I stare at him. “The other dragon.”
“There are two dragons now?”
“The grumpy dragon.”
“Beautiful. I love being the grumpy one.”
“I thought you loved being the funny one?”
“I’m both.”
“Ah, right.” I kiss his cheek. “Thank you for trusting me and not taking Orin’s side.”
“You’re welcome.”
I just hope I’m not making a mistake or putting anyone in unnecessary danger.
Chapter Thirteen
MARCUS
Was my life this boring before Finn? I see now that my life was broken into two sections, Before Finn and After Finn. I’m currently in the After Finn stage, but being forced to go our separate ways is putting me back into Before Finn, where my life must have been horribly boring and I never noticed.
I walk Finn over to where Karsyn and DeGray are sitting. They know the protocol. It’s day five of our new schedule, but I feel like their brains are so weak that they need to be reminded every day.
“I’m leaving Finn with you guys. If he’s in danger at any point, you’re expected to give up your lives for him, do you understand?” I growl.
Karsyn refuses to look up from his computer and DeGray waves me off like this isn’t what he needs to focus on.
“I think they heard it the first four days you did this,” Finn says as he pats my arm. “Now shoo.”
I grab Karsyn’s monitor and lift it so he can’t see it. “I asked if you understood.”
Karsyn slowly looks up at me, then takes an eraser he was playing with and chucks it at my head so fast that I don’t even notice until it slams into my forehead right between my eyes.
Silence falls upon the entire workplace as the eraser drops to the ground and bounces. Karsyn’s eyes are ridiculously huge as he looks at me in horror.
“I thought you’d catch it,” he whispers.
“Ohhhh no,” Finn says before a laugh escapes him.
“Don’t murder me,” Karsyn says as he rushes over and grabs Finn, lifting him up into the air while using him as a shield.
Slowly, I stoop down as everyone in the room watches and pick up the eraser before turning to Karsyn who is holding a laughing Finn. He’s the only one enjoying this situation while Karsyn literally fears for his life. Before I can figure out if I can make an eraser go through skin, DeGray steps between us and cups my hand in both of his like he’s locking down the eraser.
“We promise to take wonderful care of Finn. I have to head out in a bit, but I know that Karsyn won’t let him out of his sight,” DeGray says. “If he’s alive, that is.”
“But…” I hesitate. “But Karsyn will be dead, so I’m not sure he’ll be able to watch him at all,” I growl. “Come here, Karsyn, let’s see if I can stake you with an eraser.”
Finn wiggles free of Karsyn’s grip and slips around DeGray to smile up at me. Why’s he look so damn happy? Is he not at all upset that his newly acquired friend is about to meet his maker?
“You can’t kill Karsyn.”
“Why can’t I?”
“Because he’s my buddy and his hand slipped. Has your hand never slipped before?” Finn asks as he tries to pry the eraser out of my grip.
“Yes, my hand is going to slip in just a moment. Karsyn, come.”
Finn snickers as he pats my face. “You’re adorable. Now go get some work done.”
He continues to try and pry the eraser out of my hand, but his weak human fingers are inferior to my grip.
“Grumpy Marcus, hand over the eraser,” he says as he holds his hand flat.
“Only for you,” I say as I set it in his hand. “Karsyn… watch your back, you never know when I’m coming for you.”
“With a box of blood for helping watch over me, right? That’s what you forgot to add to it, right?” Finn says with a grin.
“Yes, if it smells like rat poison it’s just a new flavor,” I assure him. “Finn, be safe.”
“I will be. You’re literally going to be back in like an hour. I’ll be fine.”
“You have that shotgun I gave you?”
“Not on me. But I have two guns. My tranq gun and my regular gun.”
“Hmm… Fine.”
I grudgingly back away as Finn stares at me longingly.
He has this way of making you feel like you’re abusing and torturing him while trying to keep him safe. It’s not a good look on him and I try to tell him as much. Thankfully, work has been relatively boring. Mostly mundane, everyday things. But I’m glad that there haven’t been any more attacks on the VRC. While we’ve dug into the people who attacked him on the bus, we’ve been unable to come up with anything that relates to Finn. Maybe that means by next week Finn will be back out in the field with me.
“Where’s Orin?” I ask as I walk into the bedroom I’m sharing with Finn while stuck at Orin’s. While the house is a mansion and has everything in it one could ever need, I’m still looking forward to going home. I’m not used to relying on or living with others. Before Finn, I hadn’t lived with someone for probably fifty or more years. And living with them was just out of convenience.
“He’s taking Aria and her boyfriend out in an attempt to regain his trust,” Finn says.
Uh-oh. “Is that why he was asking places I’ve taken you for dinner?”
Finn slowly lowers the shirt he’d been folding. “Oh no. What’d you tell him?”
“The place where we had our first date. I mean… you enjoyed it, so I’m sure it’ll be fine,” I decide.
Finn’s eyebrows arch. “You think… Orin taking a human who is terrified of vampires to a vampire-only restaurant will be fine?”
“I didn’t know he was taking the human there. He just asked for a nice place that you’ve enjoyed!”
“Oh my god. My sister’s going to be alone for the rest of her life.”
“It’s fine.”
“Ah, yes, I’m sure.”
I grin at the thought.
“Oh my god, you’re evil.”
I drop my bag and rush over to him before scooping him up. “Now would someone who’s evil love you the way I do?” I ask as I carry him over to the bed.
“Yes! You threatened to murder Karsyn today because he hit you with an eraser.”
I grin as I lay him down on the bed. “Tomorrow I’ll shiv him when no one is looking.”
Finn starts laughing as he pulls me onto the bed with him so I’m kneeling over him. �
��Please don’t. Shiv a bad guy or something. Take your anger out on someone you don’t like.”
“I don’t like Karsyn.”
“You like Karsyn!”
“Let’s stop talking about that annoying creature while I’m wanting to kiss you,” I say, mouth hovering over his.
“Then kiss me,” he says, lips upturned into the perfect little smirk. I lower myself until my lips press against his. He murmurs something as he pushes into me, mouth parting enough that I can feel just the brush of his tongue.
My fingers slide up his side, over the top of his shirt until I reach the very top button and begin undoing it. Even though we’ve been with each other for months and have known each other longer, I can tell he’s still a little uneasy being naked in front of me. I’m not sure if it’s because of me, or if he’s still just uncomfortable with himself. But it doesn’t matter how much time it takes, I’ll get him to understand that he’s gorgeous just the way he is.
I kiss a line down his chest as I reach the final button before sliding the shirt off his shoulders. He leans up and helps me pull the shirt free before dropping it on the ground.
“Orin isn’t going to barge in here and throw me out like they do in the teen movies, right?”
Finn snorts as he grabs for my shirt. “I’d think you could use your dog senses to hear when he’s home.”
“I don’t have dog senses!”
“I’m sorry, bat beacons.”
“That doesn’t make sense!”
“If you take your clothes off, everything will make sense,” he teases.
“At least that’s one thing you’ve said that I agree with.” I finish the final button before shrugging out of my shirt and dropping it on the ground.
“Turn around and bend over as you push your pants down.”
I stop what I’m doing and raise an eyebrow. “Why are you so weird?”
He looks aghast. “Because I’ve asked you to show me your booty? You ask to suck on my blood and lick my wounds and I have to be A-Okay with that but the moment I ask for a booty shot, oh my god, so weird.”
My eyes narrow since I feel like quite often he’s the one asking for me to bite him. “You make me sound abusive.”
“You are, for withholding the booty.”
What have I come to? What has happened to me? “Fine.” I turn around, unbutton my pants and push them down. “Happy?”
“No… I can’t say I am. That was… just sad. Where was the pizazz?”
“My butt has no pizazz,” I remind him as I turn around and take his pants before pulling them off so he’s naked before me.
He reaches for me and I know it’s a way to cover himself with my body. I’m not unaware of his tricks, so instead, I stay just out of reach. The prostheses remind him of a horrible time in his life, and I understand how hard it has to be to not think of that time when he’s faced with them. But I want to erase all of that, remind him that he can think of the good instead. So I slowly kneel between his legs, pushing his artificial leg up and letting my fingers slide from his hip, down his thigh to where the cap connects to his leg, before drawing my fingers over the cold metal to his toes. I know he can’t feel it, but I still want to touch every part of him.
I slide my hand down his other leg, then up his thigh before both hands reach his stomach.
“You’re gorgeous.”
“For having hawk eyes your vision kind of sucks. But I’ll love you anyway,” he teases.
“Maybe it’s your attitude that sucks. Ever think of that?”
Finn looks thoughtful. “Are you… are you using vampire puns on me?”
Now I’m downright confused. Interacting with this human generally leads to confusion. But I feel like kissing him might just solve everything, so I go for that. His fingers move down my chest to my waist as I draw away from him.
I reach down as my hand trails a line over his hard cock, but that’s not where my attention is just yet. His hand finds my hair and his fingers tighten, like he’s figured out what I’m doing. I push his right leg up enough that his knee is bent and run my fingers over him. I can feel the blood running through his leg. I kiss the spot before sucking on his skin, making him groan as his fingers tug lightly on my hair. I run my tongue around his pale skin, anticipating the taste of him. It’s more than just blood. It’s a closeness I’ve never shared with others on this level. Even after being alive for as long as I have, I’ve never let anyone close to me like I’ve let Finn.
I sink my fangs into his thigh and a moan immediately escapes him as blood fills my mouth. But it’s more than just the blood. While the bite drives Finn into some type of ecstasy, it does something to me as well. It connects me to him in a way I never imagined, and it fills me with the desire to make him mine. His grip tightens as the sweet taste of blood fills me, and I marvel that his blood tastes different from others. The more I drink it the more I’m consumed by it. I can’t imagine anything greater than this, especially when it makes him writhe beneath my touch. But I know I can’t take too much. Grudgingly, I pull my fangs free and run my tongue over the two slits in his skin, licking away any stray drops of blood.
Then I look down at Finn who seems to be lost in the desire of it all. And that’s when I take his cock into my mouth, making his hips push forward and his lips part.
“Fuck… Marcus…” he whispers, and I suck down on his length.
He groans as I run my tongue over him before swirling it around the tip. My left hand draws a circle around the base as my right finds my own cock and begins to stroke it. He’s already close; my bite seems to do that to him. He seems to lose himself to it, but I love the way it makes him squirm and moan beneath my touch. The way it connects me to him in a way I never thought possible.
I hollow my cheeks before sliding my free hand down to his balls and rubbing over them gently. He grabs the sheets, balling them into his hand as he groans and bucks his hips into me. As he comes, I swallow him down while my hand quickens on my own cock. He tugs my hair, trying to pull me off and when I do, his mouth crashes with mine as his hand finds my cock. I moan as he pulls me over the edge, cum hitting his bare stomach.
When we finally break away, we’re both panting. Finn reaches over and grabs a tissue before wiping the cum off his stomach.
“Why are you so addicting?” he asks.
“Me?” I ask in surprise. “You’re the addicting one.” I drop down on my side and run my hand down his arm closest to me, which is his artificial one.
“It just doesn’t bother you at all, does it?” he asks as he flexes his hand, fingers bending and opening.
“Your humanness? Yeah, I mean, every now and then I look over at you and I just can’t help but cringe. Sometimes I even pity you. Like… how would it feel to not be able to punch through a wall? And what about the vampire glare? What if I couldn’t make people cower with a look? It’s disgusting. How do you live with your tiny body?”
His glare turns into daggers. “We’ve already gone over this. My body wouldn’t get any bigger if I was a vampire.”
I wince. “Ooh, yeah. Is this what you call rubbing salt into the wound?”
“I’m gonna rub some salt into the wound,” he grumbles.
I squeeze him to me, refusing to let him go anywhere while just enjoying every moment as I hear his laugh.
Chapter Fourteen
MARCUS
“What’s going on?” Finn asks as I rush back to my desk.
“Another body found, this time on a bench at the bike trail.”
Tomorrow would have been a week and Finn’s been very excited about proving to Orin that the two threats we had were now gone and the people were now behind bars. But with this…? I suppose I won’t know more until I see the body.
He opens his mouth and I can tell he’s thinking about asking to go, but he takes a deep breath and nods. “Be careful. Let me know what’s going on when you hear, please.”
I reach for his hand that’d clearly been heading toward h
is jacket and squeeze it. “Be safe yourself, here.”
He sighs but nods. “Of course. I’m like the definition of safe. Brooks wouldn’t even let me open a can yesterday.”
Brooks turns to us. “You were ‘opening’ it with a knife aimed at yourself.”
Finn just pretends that Brooks doesn’t exist while giving me a huge smile. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” I say before giving Brooks a look that clearly means “You watch him even if it costs you your life.”
He just waves me off, so I head toward the door and get into the car before driving across town, back in the direction of our home. I park near the university, since the body was found closer on that side of the town. Once out, I walk down the trail that has tape closing it off. It’s weird heading out without Finn. I used to insist on working alone, but now that I’m used to Finn, it feels strange to go anywhere without him. Hopefully, he can start working with me again soon.
When I reach the scene, I’m the first one from VRC there. The rest are first responders and police. The other members of my VRC team will be here shortly after they gather everything they need.
“What do we have?” I ask as I walk up.
A female officer by the name of Gates gives me a polite smile. “Morning, sir. Not much at the moment.”
The body is sitting up on the bench, back straight, like she’s ready to jump up. Her brown hair is braided with a ribbon and the dress she’s wearing is covered in frills and lace. Without needing any more information, it’s clear the killer is the same as the one who murdered the woman who was found in the river.
We arrested the wrong guy.
Well… wrong for this. He might still have been the one who killed Perez, but he also claimed to have murdered Tonya Everest.
We have a killer on our hands. One who wants to be noticed. Wants us to see what he’s done. And he’s clearly multiple steps ahead of us.
This is not good.
FINN
I slide into Brooks’s office, needing to ask him a question, but when I hear him on the phone, I hesitate.
How to Elude a Vampire (VRC: Vampire Related Crimes Book 2) Page 12