by Dakota Dawn
As he gulped in harsh breaths of air his brothers, Caleb and Drake, misted into his room looking ready for battle.
“What’s wrong?” Drake shouted as his body became solid.
The possessive beast in Tristan reared up. All it could focus on was protecting his newly found mate. His fangs extended and a menacing growl vibrated from his chest. Tristan’s benevolent side knew his brothers didn’t pose a threat, but right now the angry beast was in control.
Drake’s gaze quickly took in the situation. “Holy shit!” He grabbed Caleb and bellowed, “Retreat.” They both turned to mist and disappeared as Drake got Caleb out of the room.
As soon as they were gone, the riotous creature within him calmed. Conlin whimpered, and his heart dropped to his stomach. The sight of his mate shaking with fear speared his soul. His fangs returned to their place in his gums. With supernatural speed, Tristan released Conlin and caught him before he could fall to the bed.
A startled gasp emitted from his mate as he settled them under the covers. Wrapping Conlin in his arms made the beast in him purr contentedly.
“You never have to fear me, Conlin. I know I scared you when my possessive side took over, but with time I won’t be quite so possessive. At least not around my brothers. Drake is the stockier one and Caleb is the slender one. You’ll meet them later.” He stroked Conlin’s shoulder and loosened his hold a bit. The combined efforts did the trick. Several minutes into the soothing touch his mate’s body became soft as he relaxed.
While Tristan calmed his mate, he listened to Conlin’s blood. The flow revealed much. Earlier it had sung a lusty siren’s song. When his beast had shown itself, Conlin’s blood had pounded with fear. Now the flow revealed that his mate was starting to relax. Their hungry mating had forever bound them. Conlin was destined to walk beside him. They would share all of life’s ups and downs. Tristan couldn’t be happier.
The remembrance of how he found his mate brought a frown to his face. He had to know everything that was going on in Conlin’s life.
Chapter Three
Overwhelming emotions circulated viciously through Conlin. He’d just had the raunchiest sex experience of his life and he’d loved every second of it. Something magical had clicked inside him during their lovemaking. Yes, lovemaking. A primal and somewhat feral part of him wouldn’t call it a random fuck.
He had been irresistibly drawn to Tristan from the moment he’d seen the man. When Tristan’s brothers had appeared out of thin air, he’d been scared to death. Two bloodthirsty vampires could have drained him in no time. The menacing growl that Tristan had released was the scariest sound Conlin had ever heard. He hoped he never heard it again. Thank goodness his brothers had heeded the warning and left so quickly. He was sure blood would have been spilled if they hadn’t.
Thinking of brothers, Conlin wondered what Darrin was doing. Was his stomach cramping from hunger? Where was Ghost? His own belly hurt as he worried about his brother and friend. The calm he’d started feeling as Tristan caressed him was quickly leaving. He had to get blood to his brother.
Just when he was about to tell Tristan he had to leave, Ghost appeared in the room. He shot to a seated position on the bed and clutched the sheets in a death grip.
“How’s Darrin?”
“Good, now. All’s clear. Come in Darrin. I’ve found him,” Ghost called over his shoulder.
The doorknob turned and in rushed Darrin. His little brother’s jaw dropped when he fully took in the scene. Darrin’s green eyes surveyed the bed and both of them. Tristan’s hand had clamped on Conlin’s arm a second after Ghost had appeared. Darrin stared at Tristan’s hand and pain filled his expressive eyes.
Darrin moved closer to the bed and Tristan hissed and bared his fangs. Conlin watched in horror as Darrin dropped to his knees and raised his hands.
“Please. Let my brother go. You can have me instead.” Darrin’s worried gaze darted to Conlin.
He moved to go to his brother, but Tristan’s grip tightened. “Stay,” Tristan commanded in a voice that made even Ghost blanch.
Conlin’s heartbeat raced and his stomach flip-flopped. A wave of dizziness assailed him. He couldn’t just sit there and let his brother be killed or tortured. He had technically broken into Tristan’s business many times. The vamp had a right to be really pissed.
In what looked like nothing more than a dark cloud of movement, Tristan got up and dressed. When the cloud stopped, the vamp was standing over Darrin.
Ghost squeaked in surprise. He watched as Ghost’s gaze went from Darrin to himself and then to Tristan. Determination replaced the fearful shock on Ghost’s face. The spirit charged Tristan.
Tristan raised a large hand and growled. Ghost went sailing through the air and right through the wall as well.
Conlin couldn’t handle anymore. He leapt from the bed at the same time Tristan’s brothers misted into the room.
Their gazes swept the room. Drake moved in behind Darrin’s kneeling form and placed his booted foot on the back of Darrin’s neck. In a quick move he pushed Darrin down flat on his stomach.
Anger flooded through Conlin. Waves of fury crashed over him. In a crazed state Conlin flew at Drake.
Tristan growled and grabbed Conlin by the back of the neck. He struggled to free himself.
“Enough,” Tristan bellowed so loudly the windows shook.
Conlin wasn’t having any of it. He clawed at the hand holding him in place. The grip never loosened, much to Conlin’s frustration.
“Conlin, stop, for heaven’s sake. Don’t give them a reason to kill you.” Fear dripped from each of Darrin’s words. His brother’s gaze shifted to Tristan. “Please. I’ll do anything you want. Just don’t hurt my brother.”
Ghost suddenly appeared in front of Tristan and yelled, “Boo!”
Tristan loosened his grip for a second, and Ghost pulled Conlin free. The lights flickered, drawing the attention of Tristan’s brothers. Ghost clamped onto Darrin and screamed, “Move.”
Conlin’s heart ached. A part of him didn’t want to leave Tristan. He looked back in time to see Tristan’s eyes go from gold with threads of green to pure red.
“Oh shit,” he cried out.
Caleb held out his hands, and in a flash Ghost was pinned to the wall.
Drake tossed Darrin to the ground and jumped onto his back. All Conlin heard was a swoosh of air as Drake fisted Darrin’s hair and pulled his head back sharply. Conlin screamed when the light bounced off a vicious-looking blade that Drake held to Darrin’s exposed neck.
Tristan pinned Conlin’s hands behind his back and growled in Conlin’s ear. The sound struck something in him. His insides melted. He desperately needed to make Tristan happy, but he also longed to save his brother. This situation was fucked up.
Looking up into Tristan’s eyes, he said, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have broken into your blood bank. Darrin needed blood, but wouldn’t hurt any humans to get what he needed. He was dying.” It suddenly struck Conlin that Tristan and his brothers could possibly help his brother learn how to survive as a vampire. They all looked very healthy. Each brother was at this moment dominating him, Darrin, and Ghost.
Hope bloomed in his chest. He looked up to see that Tristan’s eyes had returned to their beautiful golden-green color.
He swallowed hard. “Will you help my brother?”
A small smile curled the corners of Tristan’s lush lips. “Yes, as long as he’s willing.”
“Oh, he’s willing,” Conlin replied and stared at his brother. “Aren’t you, Darrin?”
“I’ll try,” came Darrin’s softly spoken response.
“He’s not strong like me. Your help won’t hurt him, will it?” God, I hope not. Tristan and his brothers didn’t seem mean. So far they hadn’t been cruel, but they had proved that they were capable of controlling anything that happened. Even Ghost was held in some sort of invisible force. Conlin knew that had to be killing his friend.
“Drake, Caleb, take our gu
ests to the great room. I’ll meet you there in a moment.” His eyes touched on all three of their guests. “We have a lot to talk about.”
“Understood.” Drake nodded at Caleb, and they both misted from the room with their nervous, captured home invaders.
Conlin’s throat thickened at the realization that his family had broken into a vampire’s home to get him. The attempt had failed, but it was the thought that counted.
“Get dressed, Conlin. I can’t concentrate with you naked. You three have a lot of explaining to do.”
Heat rushed to his cheeks. He liked the idea that his body distracted Tristan. The huge vamp’s sure as hell distracted him. His balls tingled when he thought back on their lovemaking. Conlin had a hard time zipping up his jeans. The shirt he’d had on was ruined. Using it as a rag, he wiped off as much of their release as he could. Thinking of the sex they had just had brought his penis back to life. Glancing at the front of Tristan’s jeans, he was happy to see the hot vamp was having the same problem.
“Stop devouring my package. I don’t have time to properly mate you right now.” As soon as he had his shoes on, Tristan laid a hand on Conlin’s shoulder. “Let’s get this over with. I need you back in my bed as quickly as possible.”
Conlin startled when he saw his body turn to mist. His stomach turned inside out as they traveled from Tristan’s bedroom to the largest room he’d ever been in.
At the sight of the clean lines of the room, he relaxed. No one in their right mind would kill a person in a clean room like this. He looked at the three menacing brothers, and his stomach flopped. Raising his hand to his neck, he touched the area Tristan had bitten him. Pulling his hand back, he inspected it. No blood. Conlin’s heart raced as he realized they could drain him without making a mess.
“Calm down, Conlin. We are just going to ask you a few questions.” Tristan ran his hand soothingly down Conlin’s back.
Darrin frowned at Tristan and then switched his gaze to his brother. “You reek of sex. Did he force you to have sex with him?”
Heat flooded Conlin’s cheeks. “No.” He looked down at his chest and remembered all the semen that had splashed on it tonight. “I didn’t get a chance to clean up.” Without thinking, he looked at Tristan and asked, “Should I go clean up?”
Sexy lips twisted up in a grin. “No. Get used to smelling like sex. I like my scent on you. It’s also a warning to the others that you’re taken.”
Before another word could be said, he watched as a stocky man misted into the room followed by another. Both men sniffed the air.
The stocky one headed toward them while the other one took a step back. Brown hair floated around his shoulders as he prowled to them. He sniffed the air and raised a brow at Tristan. The man’s black eyes narrowed on Ghost for a second before locking on Darrin.
The man boldly walked up to Drake. “Is this the man who’s been breaking into the blood bank?”
Drake snorted. “We’re looking into it, Booth. I’ll fill you in as soon as I know what’s going on.”
“Since I’m in charge of the blood bank, I’d like to be part of the interrogation.” Booth’s dark eyes smoldered at Darrin. As if sensing fear, he hissed and showed his sharp fangs to Darrin.
Conlin watched as Darrin flinched. His brother was too softhearted. Fighting was against his nature.
“He couldn’t have done it. He’s too pathetic.” Booth eyed Ghost and then him. Conlin narrowed his eyes and glared at the man.
Tristan tightened his grip on Conlin’s upper arm. He tried to shake it off. “Try talking to me like that, asshole.” He hated it when people were mean to Darrin.
Booth bared his fangs, and in a flash Tristan released Conlin and had Booth pinned against the wall. Fangs extended, Tristan warned, “Don’t ever threaten my mate again.”
To his delight, Booth paled to match Ghost’s natural coloring.
In a garbled tone, Booth replied, “Sorry, boss. I thought he was just a thief you’d been playing with.”
Tristan shoved Booth’s head into the wall, cracking the wood. “Now you know better.”
After clearing his throat, Drake offered, “I think we should do this somewhere else.”
Conlin looked around and noted that a small crowd had gathered. Thick arms wrapped around him.
“My private living room,” Tristan ordered.
His stomach flipped as once again he was transported to another place. Clean lines caught his attention. If they were going to die at least it would happen in a nice room. Needing time to get out of this situation, he asked, “Is it all right if I talk to my brother and friend?”
“Yes, but don’t try to leave the room,” Tristan answered in a dark tone.
* * * *
Tristan watched as the three moved to the furthest corner of the room. Ghost hugged Conlin and Tristan felt his blood heat up.
“Is this a good idea?” Caleb asked. The volume of his voice was too low for a young, hungry vampire to hear.
Drake grinned. “If they are as green as I believe, we are about to learn a lot about them.”
Tristan agreed, he tuned out the other sounds in the room and focused on their guests.
“What the hell’s going on, Conlin? Did he force himself on you? Be honest,” Darrin said in a soft tone.
“No.”
“We were worried out of our minds while you were getting laid. You should have called. Why didn’t you call?” Darrin demanded.
“I couldn’t,” Conlin responded.
“Why?” Ghost asked.
“Because.” Conlin crossed his arms across his chest.
“This is not like you at all, Conlin. That guy is scary and mean. Don’t defend him. Tell us why you didn’t call,” Ghost ordered.
Tristan had to hold back the beast inside him. No one ordered Conlin around, except him.
“I was tied up, okay.”
“No, it’s not okay,” Ghost said loudly.
Tristan’s hands curled into fists. He really wanted to kill that awful spirit.
“Keep your voice down, damn it,” Conlin whispered harshly.
“Do you think they can hear us?” Ghost asked Darrin.
“I don’t know, maybe. I’ve always been able to hear better than most people. Since I don’t know any other vampires I don’t know if we all get better hearing or not.”
“Just to be on the safe side let’s keep our voices down,” Ghost floated in until he looked like he was connected to his friends.
“Agreed,” Darrin stated.
“How are we going to get out of here?” Ghost asked.
Tristan’s wild side wanted to get hold of Ghost in a bad way. He forced the beast back. His possessive side wanted to retrieve his mate and tie Conlin to his bed forever.
“Keep it together, bro. I want to hear their plan,” Drake whispered.
“I can handle it.”
“Yeah, like you did with Booth,” Caleb tossed out.
Tristan hissed at Caleb and was annoyed when his brother grinned. Conlin tapping his fingers nervously against his side drew his attention back to his mate.
“What are we gong to do? Do you think they’ll just let us walk away?” Ghost asked with a touch of hope.
“Can you get any vibes from them, Darrin? Any clue as to what they intend to do to us?” Conlin asked his brother.
“No. Why should I?”
“Because you’re one of them?” Ghost said the words as if Darrin were stupid for not figuring it out.
“Do I look like one of them?”
They all three turned and looked at Tristan and his brothers. All Tristan could think about was how cute his mate was. A nudge to his side had him looking at Drake. His brother raised his eyebrows, and Tristan snapped to attention.
“Are you three finished talking?” he asked innocently. He knew damned good and well that they weren’t done talking.
“Not quite,” Conlin let his brown gaze travel down to Tristan’s crotch.
His ma
te swallowed hard and then tore his gaze away from Tristan’s body and back to his brother. He was dying to get his mate back in bed, but right now they all needed to know what was going on with Conlin’s family.
“Okay, you’re as tall as them, but nowhere near mean enough looking,” Ghost stated.
“Tristan is cute,” Conlin added.
“Yeah, in a dark scary way, not. Snap out of it, Conlin. That blond giant could kill you in the blink of an eye,” Ghost bit out.
“Could, but didn’t. I think we should give them a chance. They look healthy. What if they could teach Darrin to thrive, not just barely survive,” Conlin responded.
They all glanced back at the brothers. Tristan was having a hard time not smiling. A quick glance at this brothers proved that they were having trouble themselves. Conlin and his family were so innocent it was almost painful. The more they talked the more he wanted to wrap Conlin in his arms and shield the man from the world.
“You have a point, Conlin. They do look healthy,” Darrin agreed.
“That could be because they eat people like you, Conlin. I don’t think we can trust them,” Ghost said.
Tristan really didn’t like Ghost at all. If he could, he’d throw the foul-mouthed being into the light…or hell’s fire.
“I want to give them a chance,” Conlin said and then folded his arms over his chest and stared at Ghost.
“Your little mate is cute as a button. He’s what, five three or five four, and he’s so much feistier than his little brother. How tall do you think Darrin is? Six feet or six feet one?” Caleb inquired.
“Six one,” Drake answered confidently.
“Would you two stop,” Tristan snapped.
“You have to admit it’s interesting to watch the shorter older brother fight so strongly for his soft-hearted, taller, little brother,” Caleb added.
“Yeah, and their ghost friend is protective,” Drake observed out loud.