Page 5 of Kidnapping Their Third

“It’s like a fated mates thing?” Cora asked.

Pike startled. “How do you know that term?”

Cora gave him a wicked grin. “You don’t read many romance novels, do you?”

Her relaxed posture and sexy smile made blood rush to his cock. The moment he’d stepped into the apartment, his inner bear had screamed at him to wrap his arms around her and rub his scent all over her. It was hard to constantly fight the urge to touch her, but this little exchange made it a thousand times worse.

Shifting uncomfortably, he cleared his throat. “Uh, I guess not. I don’t know if the fated mates in your books are accurate, but it’s a term we shifters use too.”

“If you’re his flock, then why isn’t he getting better?” she asked.

Pike sighed. “He was. When he rescued me, he couldn’t talk at all. Now he can say a few words.”

Cora asked the next question in a rush of words. “Do you guys have sex?”

He’d been expecting a question along these lines. “We fool around a little, but he can’t get an erection.”

“Why?”

Pike shrugged. “Same reason he struggles to talk. Since he spent so much time being feral, it’ll take time for him to recover.” Suddenly, he felt tired. Slumping forward, he put his elbows on the table and rested his head in his hands. “I’m not enough. I’ve never been enough to bring Kimble back.”

He felt a touch on the top of his head. Looking up, he found Cora stretched across the table, her expression full of kindness. “I know you’re doing everything you can because that's who you are. Tell me what else is going on.”

When he pulled her hand off his head to hold it in both of his, she didn’t try to pull away. The touch felt good and made his inner bear stop screaming so loudly.

“I can’t get him enough food,” Pike admitted.

Instead of her features twisting into disgust, she looked intrigued. “You mean blood? Can’t he take from you, or do vampires kill when they feed?”

“They don’t need to kill. The evil ones might murder people, but that's because they like it,” Pike said. “He won’t feed from me because he’s afraid he’ll hurt me. There’s a taboo among vampires about taking blood from their flock. They’ll bite for pleasure, but not to feed.”

“What about other people, or shifters?” she asked.

“Vampires have this ability called thrall that allows them to put people into a trance-like state. When someone’s under thrall, they’ll do anything the vampire wants. That way, the vampire can feed, and the victim doesn't remember anything. Kimble can’t use his thrall so the victim might fight and end up getting seriously injured. We can’t let that happen. He can’t hunt for his food, so I have to buy it.”

“You can buy blood?” Cora asked.

“Yeah, but it’s expensive,” Pike explained. “After rent, almost everything I earn goes to keeping Kimble fed, but it’s never enough. Nothing I do is enough. I called in an order on my way here and that wiped out everything I had. My credit cards are all maxed out, and I don’t even have enough to make rent next month. If I’m evicted, I don’t know how I’ll keep Kimble safe from the sun. I know my parents would be willing to help, but I don’t want to burden them any more than I already have. They do well, but they aren’t rich.”

Cora nodded with sympathy, then glanced over at the closed bedroom door. Pike watched as her features hardened and she looked back at him.

“If you have Kimble, why’d you go out with me too? Was I someone to have fun with until your vampire boyfriend could get it up again?” her words sounded harsh, but her severe frown softened, and her lower lip quivered a little.

Pike shook his head violently, grasping her hand tighter. “You’re my mate. My bear knew the moment we met.”

“How can I be your mate if you’re already with Kimble?”

“It means you’re meant to be in his flock with me. It’s really common for vampires to have a flock of two or three.”

For a moment, Cora looked relieved, then schooled her features into skepticism. “So a flock is more than one person, and you think I’m both your mate and part of his flock?”

“Flocks are sacred to vampires. That’s why he killed Vincent and carried you away. He probably wanted to carry both of us, but he wouldn’t be able to fly with my weight yet. He only wants to protect both of us, but he’s so weak and struggling with his mind that there isn’t much he can do. You could be the key to bringing him back to his full self…” He let his sentence end in an implied question to see how Cora would take it.

“I’m not sure if I want to be in this flock, or even with you anymore.”

Her words made him want to howl with pain. His distress must have shown on his face because she was quick to keep talking.

“Fuck, you look like I told you I killed your puppy. I’m not saying no, okay? This is a lot. I need time to process.”

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