by Lexi Blake
“He’s hurt,” I objected because a good portion of his calf was missing and I didn’t care who killed Mitchell Roberts as long as he was dead.
Dev ignored me and took the knife. He went to his knees in front of Wyatt and held the knife over his head.
“Take the heart,” Daniel said, directing Dev. “It’s tradition.”
I watched as Dev brought the knife down and ended Mitchell Roberts’s life. He carved up the chest with brute strength, and his hands were covered in blood by the time it was over.
“I don’t have to eat it or anything?” Dev asked, and I could tell he really was interested in the answer.
“I wouldn’t advise it.” Daniel walked toward me, and I thought he was going to go to the pond behind us.
Daniel always tried to hide that savage part of himself. He would wash off the blood and change his clothes and pretend he hadn’t ripped someone’s heart out. He would walk back to me and tell me he didn’t love me and order me into a sithein for my own protection. I waited for him to walk past me like I didn’t matter.
Covered in blood, fangs out and eyes gone to blue, Daniel walked up and went to his knees before me. Shaking, he put his arms around my waist and pulled me to him. Daniel buried his head in the valley of my chest and listened to my heart beat.
If I backed up for even an instant, I knew I would lose him. He was offering me all of himself—Daniel, the good, the bad, and the beast within.
If I hesitated, he would walk away and never open himself to me again. He would go to this Tamara person, and he would love me from afar because he wouldn’t feel worthy.
There wasn’t even a tiny piece of me that hesitated. I threw my arms around him, holding him close. I didn’t care that he was covered in blood or that his fangs grazed my skin. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held him to me like he would disappear if I didn’t. He held me tight but finally his head turned toward me and I leaned down and kissed him, tasting blood and feeling fangs. I kissed him with all the love I had.
“I don’t blame you for Joel, Zoey,” he said quietly. “He was twenty-three years old and I talked him into following me. He should have been in grad school, drinking beer and trying to figure out how to spend the rest of his life. I killed him, Z. I did it.”
“Danny, you didn’t mean for him to die,” I replied, aching with his pain. “This is war and people are going to die. All we can do is fight and try to make their deaths mean something.”
“I tried that line of reasoning on him,” Dev said tiredly.
“What if I get you killed, Z?” Daniel asked, stating finally which fear was pressing him now.
I looked down at him and sighed. “Daniel, you either love me enough to take that risk or you don’t. I’m going to die someday. I can take your blood every day and I’ll still die on you. Are you willing to throw away the hundred and fifty years we could have together because one day it’s going to end? If you are then walk away now, baby. If you love me, be brave enough to risk losing me.”
“I’m not going to hide myself anymore,” Daniel said. “I’m tired of it and I think that it’s more for me than it is for you. Can you love me, Zoey? Can you be with me as I am now?”
“I don’t want you any other way,” I said fiercely, meaning it. I wouldn’t change him.
“I’m sorry, Z,” Daniel said. “Please forgive me. I was being a coward. I won’t do it again. I promise.”
I kissed him soundly in reply.
Daniel got to his feet and his face was back to normal. He walked to Dev and gave him a hand up. “Dev, I promise I won’t try to leave again. I’m sorry.” He was even more hesitant with Dev than he’d been with me.
“See that you don’t.” Dev limped over to my other side.
“Daniel,” I said, my voice going hard. “I want that woman out of my house.”
Daniel nodded, and now he was the one avoiding eye contact with me. “She’ll be gone in the morning. You should know I would never have really performed the ritual with her. She was for Joel. I won’t…would never take another companion. I meant to send you to the sithein and never let Marini know you weren’t with me.” He looked at Dev. His mouth was a flat line. “You’ll tell Marcus he can take his offer and go to hell.”
Dev shrugged. “It will be like it never happened.”
Relief flooded me, but now I was worried about something else. “I really expected Lee to show up. I thought he would be able to hear me.”
Daniel suddenly seemed deeply interested in his feet. His head moved in that “little boy caught with his hands in the cookie jar” fashion. “We kinda got into a fight after you left. I’m sure he’ll wake up soon.”
“You beat up my bodyguard?”
“Well, he was acting like he was your dad or something. He was bossing me around and telling me what to do. Dev, sit your ass down so I can fix your leg,” Daniel said. Dev sat down and pulled the fabric of his pants apart, giving Danny access to the complete horror that was his leg. “He was worse than your dad, actually. He called me all kinds of names and threatened to stake me if I didn’t follow his advice.”
“What did he tell you to do?” I asked, wondering what Lee considered love advice.
Daniel bit a chunk out of his wrist and spat it on the ground. He wasn’t discreet. He wasn’t gentle. He was seemingly making good on the promise of not hiding anymore. “He told me I should go find you and get down on my hands and knees and beg your forgiveness.”
Daniel dripped the blood over Dev’s leg, and my faery prince sighed as the pain receded.
“Which you did,” I pointed out.
“I’m sure he’ll be thrilled. Once he wakes up,” Daniel shot back, satisfied Dev’s leg was healing. “Flex your foot. It’ll be fine. You need more to heal your back and that face of yours. Zoey will cry if you have a scar.”
“Maybe she’ll think I’m tough,” Dev offered.
I shook my head. Dev didn’t need scars to prove his manhood. “No, I won’t. Fix his face.”
“We’ll need to go back to the tent,” Dev replied. “We don’t have a cup here.” When Dev took Daniel’s blood, it was passed to him in a cup or a thermos.
Daniel took a deep breath and came to a decision. “That’s not how I prefer it, Devinshea. I would prefer you took it from me, unless you find that distasteful.”
Dev went still and just for a moment, there was a weirdly vibrant tension that went through my men. “I find very little distasteful, Dan, and you know that.”
Daniel sat behind Dev and offered him his wrist. Dev put his mouth to it and took that precious blood. Danny’s eyes closed. It’s pleasurable for a vampire to share blood. It was a big step forward. I watched my boys and couldn’t help but think it was really kind of hot. Neil would love this. It would feed his fantasies for a month. I was having a few fantasies of my own.
“Zoey?” Daniel asked, his blue eyes lit with mischief. I could never hide when I was turned on from him. “Don’t get that in your head, baby.”
Dev released Daniel’s wrist, having drunk his fill. He looked between the two of us, figuring out what Daniel was talking about. “Not going to happen, Zoey.”
I shrugged. We had a hundred and fifty years or so. Lots could happen especially now that Daniel wasn’t going to hide anymore. I was willing to wait. “Fine. Can we go back to the camp now? I need to get cleaned up.”
“No,” Daniel said firmly. “We have a meeting with McKenzie.”
“Daniel, I’m half naked, more than half, actually.” I didn’t want to walk around the forest covered in blood. It was usually a bad idea.
Daniel strode to me and picked me up, cradling me in his arms. “We’re closer to the big house than the tent. Dev, can you follow? Is your leg fine?”
Dev took a couple of tentative steps. “More than fine.”
Daniel nodded and began to stride through the woods. “You’re coming with me to the meeting. You look sweet and vulnerable. Any alpha male worth his salt will look a
t you and be outraged at the thought of someone trying to hurt something so soft and pretty.”
Dev smiled, a savage light in his eyes. “Yes, it will put McKenzie in a bad position. His wolves attacked the ones trying to help him. He can’t take the high moral ground. We’ll walk into the meeting with the advantage.”
“That was my thought,” Daniel affirmed.
“Excellent play, Your Highness.” Dev tipped his head as the big house came into view.
“I learned from the best,” Daniel returned.
“Your Grace?” A voice called out. “Is that you?” John McKenzie stepped out onto his huge wraparound porch, a fierce frown on his face.
Daniel strode forward. “Yes, His Grace is here, though he’s alive no thanks to your wolves. My wife nearly died as well. Can I trust you enough that we can clean up here before we leave?”
I kept my mouth shut because Daniel obviously had a plan.
“Leave?” McKenzie shook his head. “The ritual is tomorrow. We have the meeting tonight.” He gasped a little as Daniel stepped up and he caught his first real sight of me. “What the hell? Zack called and said there might be trouble. What happened?”
“Your wolves happened. And there will be no ritual tomorrow.”
McKenzie’s face hardened. “I think His Grace might have something to say about that.”
Dev inclined his head toward Daniel. “His Grace defers to his partner, His Highness. I follow my king and my partner in all things. We’ve allowed you to think that I’m an equal partner in our endeavors, but the truth is I serve at the leisure of my king and queen, as all royal advisors do.”
Daniel let me settle on the floor, still holding me close but reaching out to Dev, pulling him into our circle. “You’re more than my advisor. You’re my partner, Dev.”
“I am content to allow you to make the decisions, Daniel.” Dev practically radiated peace and serenity. “So long as they are the right ones.”
Daniel chuckled ruefully, his arms tightening around us. He was back to serious when he looked to McKenzie. “I will not allow my precious blood to be harmed. We’ll leave in the morning.”
McKenzie’s hands immediately came up. “Your Highness, I’ll find out what happened.”
It was the first time he used Daniel’s title with what sounded like respect.
“Mitchell Roberts and his betas happened,” Daniel replied.
McKenzie cursed under his breath. “Just come inside, Your Highness. You’ll be safe here. I assume you killed Roberts.”
“And his son and beta.”
The alpha nodded, walking to his door. “I should have killed them myself. Please, Your Highness. Come inside and clean up. Let’s talk. I’m ready to listen.”
Daniel finally relented. Everything had gone exactly as he’d hoped.
McKenzie showed us to the guest suite and promised that we were safe here and a meal would be ready for us when we were finished cleaning up.
The minute the door was closed, Dev sent a satisfied smile Daniel’s way. “That went well.”
Daniel’s hands were in fists at his sides, but his voice remained steady. “Yes, it did. Go and clean up. We need to move fast. The alphas will be here soon.”
Dev pulled his shirt over his head, dropping it aside. “Come on, Zoey. We can shower together.”
Daniel’s arm went around my waist. “Not tonight, Dev. Tomorrow, she’s yours. Tonight, I’ll take care of her.”
With a short nod, Dev disappeared into the bathroom. The moment he heard the shower come on, Daniel pulled the robe off my shoulders.
“Can you forgive me, Z?” He shifted me around and his fangs were out. “Really forgive me? You have to know I wouldn’t have touched her. I will never touch another woman. All of my life, past and future, is for you. You only.”
“I forgive you. Always.” Even when I’d worried he was going to leave me, I couldn’t leave him. “We’re your family, Danny. We won’t leave you. We want to face all of this together.”
Daniel sank to his knees in front of me. His hands went to my breasts, and I was pretty sure I was about to get slammed on the bed, but instead he leaned forward and I shivered a little as he licked a long path along my breasts. I couldn’t help it. I tried to move away. I had blood all over me.
Daniel held me firmly, his eyes still glowing.
“Don’t move, Z,” he commanded in a low growl. His beast was close to the surface, but he wasn’t fighting it. “I’m not going to hurt you. The blood’s still good and it tastes like your skin now. It tastes really fucking good.”
He dragged his tongue across my chest with a sensual groan.
“Okay.” I’d promised him I could handle the vampire stuff. I stopped moving and let him surround me, holding me in place while he seemed to devour me.
He gripped my ass as he started licking a path down my torso. “You want a vampire? I can give you one, baby. I sent Dev away because he’s covered in his own blood and I really like his blood, Z. I really wanted to lick that off, too.”
It was an admission he would never have made before tonight, though I knew it. I’d watched him feed from Dev and while he held himself back, I saw the way he closed his eyes and savored the blood. Daniel was a vampire. What had he expected? He was going to be a connoisseur. He generally preferred female blood, but faery blood was different. It was unique, and I had a feeling Daniel wasn’t going to hold back in his appreciation any more. I looked forward to his next session. Daniel was going to prove to be every bit the hedonist Dev was. I seemed to attract them.
Daniel continued his long slow cleansing of my flesh and I gave over to my vampire.
Chapter Twenty-Six
The day of the fertility ritual, I woke up with a smile on my face because I was in bed with every man I loved. I snuggled down in the soft mattress with Danny’s hand wrapped around my waist, perfectly confident that it wasn’t Declan this time.
After the successful meeting with the alpha wolves, we returned home and relieved Sarah and Felix of their body-warming duties. Dev slid in on one side of Neil and I took the other. Daniel slipped in behind me and curled his body around mine.
While Dev immediately fell asleep, Danny had spent the hour before dawn cuddling and paying particular attention to my neck. He ran his nose around it, sniffing and breathing in deeply. He kissed and licked it with long strokes of his tongue. His fangs grazed it, drawing little lines of blood he lapped up. He’d sighed contentedly before he dropped off to sleep, and I knew he’d wanted to play like that for a long time. It was weird, but nothing about it wasn’t pleasant, so I figured I would just have to get used to the fact that Danny had a perfectly normal-for-a-vampire preoccupation with my neck.
Neil opened his eyes a little and smiled at me, his face soft. “Morning, Z.”
My heart skipped a beat because I was so happy. “Good morning, Neil. How are you feeling?”
His lips curved up in a naughty little smile. “I think I’m in heaven. I’m so sorry to tell you this, Z, but it’s what I suspected all along. Dev’s gay. He’s really in love with me. He was using you all this time to get to me. Hope you’re not too upset.”
“Is he cuddling you?” I tried not to giggle too loud. Dev couldn’t help it. He was a cuddler. He almost always ended up wrapped around me. If there was something warm in bed with him, he was going to be pressed against it by the end of the night. Today Neil was the lucky one.
“He’s spooning me,” Neil admitted with a happy sigh. “Oh, and he suddenly seems happy to be doing it.”
“Did he just get his morning friend?” I asked, and Neil confirmed it with a grin. It was right on time. If Dev followed his usual morning routine, I was in for a good laugh.
Dev sighed and cuddled closer to Neil.
“Hey, baby,” Dev said, his voice sleepy and his eyes still closed. He ran his hand down Neil’s side and then sat straight up in bed, probably realizing I wasn’t as muscular as Neil. “Shit. I thought…I’m going to take a sho
wer.”
Dev stalked out of the bedroom as Neil and I dissolved into laughter.
“Stop being mean to Dev.” Daniel pulled me firmly against his thighs. Dev wasn’t the only one with a morning friend. “He can’t help it. He’s a pervert.”
“How do you explain this, then?” I asked, wriggling my butt against that glorious vampire cock of his.
“That’s a perfectly normal reaction to waking up next to my superhot wife,” Daniel replied. “I would use that on you, too, if we didn’t have guests.”
“Don’t mind me,” Neil offered.
“Maybe you can call Tamara.” That was now my go to whenever I wanted him to feel guilty.
“And just like that, it’s gone,” Daniel grumbled, sitting up. “Great, Z, now I have an off switch.”
I gave him a tart look because if he hadn’t wanted me to lob that grenade his way, he shouldn’t have given me such awesome ammunition. He did look mighty fine in his boxers, though. God, I loved that six-pack of his. I gave him a grin to let him know I was only teasing. I forgave him and hoped he’d finally learned that Dev and I wanted to share whatever fate had in mind for him.
He leaned down and kissed me, nuzzling my neck. “I’m going to sleep in the coffin. It’s too loud out here. Too many damn people. If I put in earplugs and close the coffin, I think I can get some sleep. Wake me up before you leave for the ritual. I don’t want to miss that.”
Danny walked to the door and gave it a cautious look.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, hoping we weren’t about to be attacked again.
“I’m just pretty sure Lee’s going to jump me sometime in the near future. Tell him about the begging, Z. You tell him I begged politely and maybe we can avoid another fight.” Daniel turned and I heard him say, “Morning, Sarah,” as he left the room.
Sarah did a double take as she entered. She was carrying a bag and a large picnic basket. “Great, Daniel can daywalk now and nobody told me.”
“I knew,” Neil said.
I threw my hands up. “Well, it’s supposed to be a secret. We won’t be keeping it for long if Danny just walks around the house in his underwear, scratching his belly in the middle of the morning.”