Page 84 of Roman

Danny pondered that for a second. Their mate bond had been solidified? Had there been some sort of ceremony Danny had missed out on while he’d been unconscious?

“You must be hungry,” Roman said, his tone strangely cautious.

Danny was, in fact. Hungry in a way he hadn’t really felt before.

It wasn’t the gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach he was used to feeling at the end of a long shift without a chance for a lunch break. Or rather, that was there, but there was also a…buzzing under Danny’s skin. Like an internal itch that needed to be scratched.

And then the pieces were coming together. Danny had been bitten, drained to the point of death. His body, which should be broken, was feeling shiny and new. His mate bond was properly in place. And he was hungry for something other than food.

Danny focused inward, not on his connection with Roman but on himself. Danny could feel it, pulsing under his skin, now that he was paying attention. There was a whole new presence there. It was hungry, definitely—animalistic, even—like all Danny’s baser instincts given their own voice inside his head, their own entity inside his body.

But the new presence wasn’t raging or feral or any of the other things Danny had been warned about a new vampire feeling. It was relatively…calm. Soothed by Roman at their side. Danny could even feel that new part of him calling out to Roman’s restless demon, trying to calm him in turn.

“I’m a vampire.” He said it out loud, needing to hear it.

Luc hadn’t killed Danny. But he’d turned him.

Danny wasn’t human anymore.

He looked back to Roman, understanding the worry in his vampire’s eyes now. It wasn’t about Danny’s injuries. It was about Danny’sreaction.

“I’m sorry.” Roman’s voice was barely above a whisper.

“Why?” Danny asked. “You didn’t turn me.” A troubling thought came to him. “Did you—did you not want me to turn after all? Were you hoping I would stay human?”

Roman was shaking his head before the words were fully out of Danny’s mouth. “He took away your choice, Danny. You were not yet ready. You needed more time, and he took that away from you.”

“He did.” Danny nodded. “That was very rude of him.”

Roman’s bark of laughter in response to Danny’s blasé reply seemed to surprise even him, but his expression immediately shifted back to concern. “I am so sorry, mon amour. I did not get to you in time. I did not protect you as I should have. I failed you.”

Overwhelmed by the depth of Roman’s self-blame, Danny reached out and grabbed his hand, pulling the vampire out of his chair and into the bed beside him. “Shh. Shh. None of that. You’re not going to hold yourself responsible for Luc’s actions. We’re just…not going to do that.”

Roman grunted in response, unconvinced, but he let Danny arrange him so he was lying on the bed next to Danny, close enough that their sides were touching and Danny was able to rest his head on his vampire’s shoulder.

Holy hell, his mate smelled good. So good. Danny could make out so many nuances to Roman’s scent that he hadn’t been able to before—each spice its own distinct note.

Vampire senses, hell yeah.

Danny’s hearing was heightened too. He could make out Gabe and Soren whispering together downstairs. Someone must have picked up Gabe from the hospital after all, then. That was good. Danny pushed down thoughts of his brother’s possible reaction to Danny’s less-than-human state. Now was not the time. Danny focused on his other senses instead. Everythinglookedsharper too. The sunlight coming through the window was even causing a bit of an ache behind his eyes, though nothing unbearable.

He wondered if his taste would be sharpened too. Which made him think of tasting the yummy-smelling vampire sitting right next to him. Would Roman let Danny lick him all over and compare the difference?

No, not the time.Focus, he told himself.

Danny cleared his throat. “I feel pretty good. Considering.” That was putting it mildly. The fatigue Danny had been feeling for—well, basically for years now—was fully gone for the first time. He hadn’t even realized how foggy it had made his head until it was gone.

Would this clearheadedness last though? “Am I going to get worse than this?” he asked. “I’m hungry, but I’m—I’m okay. I don’t feel like Mr. Demon is going to take over and get all snarly or anything.”

“No, you should not worsen,” Roman answered gently. He had started nuzzling his chin against the top of Danny’s head, as if once he’d gotten permission to touch him, the vampire couldn’t get enough. Danny couldfeelthe satisfaction his mate’s demon was getting from the physical contact. So cool. “New vampires usually wake up feeling already out of their minds. They then gradually improve and settle. They eventually devolve again, but that can take centuries. I think it may be the bond. I have never met a bonded pair, but I think maybe having been turned when you had already found your tethered soul… There must be benefits we had not considered.”

“So cool.” Danny said it out loud this time.

“You think so?” Roman’s voice was hesitant, almost shy.

“Duh,” Danny answered. “I’m a freaking magical creature, Roman. How is that not cool?”

Roman huffed a small laugh into Danny’s hair. “I thought maybe you would be a bit more…put out?…having your choice taken away.”

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