Page 49 of Soren

Gabe

Gabesethisweightsback on the rack with a grunt, removing his headphones and pausing the medical podcast he was listening to. Soren had taken one look at his phone and his choice of workout entertainment and had declared him “the most boring human in the world,” but there hadn’t been any real bite to the comment. Especially considering how he’d stayed in the garage and ogled Gabe shamelessly for the first half hour of his workout.

The heated look in the vampire’s eyes had almost been enough to make Gabe stop lifting weights and opt for an entirely different method of raising his heart rate… But he really needed the endorphin rush of some proper exercise. The swirl of anxiety in his stomach had been building ever since Soren’s confessions about his past. Soren’s ex…

The thought of someone out there wanting to hurt Soren.

Fuck.

What Gabe really needed was a run—something long and grueling to leave him wrung out and exhausted—but Soren didn’t want him leaving the house. It was clear Gabe wasn’t the only one feeling anxious.

They’d been holed up at Danny’s for the past few days—Gabe had been given a rare full weekend off, and Soren had convinced him to call out sick today. But playing hooky from work wasn’t helping his nerves at all, and he definitely couldn’t keep it up without running into trouble. He wasn’t sure what they were going to do the next night, when he was scheduled to work again.

Ugh. Hereallyneeded a fucking run.

He was just considering another set when the doorbell rang. Gabe quickly wiped the excess sweat off his forehead with his towel, exiting the garage back to the main house and heading toward the front door.

He was intercepted by a blond blur.

Soren was at the front door before Gabe’s eyes could even adjust. The vampire glanced back over his shoulder at Gabe with a frown. “Go into the kitchen.”

Gabe laughed in disbelief at Soren’s paranoia. “It’s just our takeout,” he argued.

“The kitchen, Highness.” Soren narrowed his pale eyes in warning.

Gabe sighed but complied anyway. It was weird. Gabe had always been tall and strong, even more so after he’d started using exercise to deal with his anxiety. So he’d never had a partner actprotectiveover him before. The weirdest part was how nice it felt. Gabe was so used to people expecting him to take charge, to take care of things. He thought he’d found satisfaction in being considered strong and capable. But here was this little brat of a vampire treating Gabe like he was something precious. Something breakable.

Gabe hadn’t felt cared for like this since his dad had died.

He was finishing chugging a glass of water when Soren entered the kitchen, hands laden with Styrofoam takeout containers. Truly a ridiculous amount of food, considering one of them didn’t even need to eat. But Gabe had learned Soren loved excess in all things, even unnecessary human food.

He realized he was staring when Soren eyed him warily.

“What are you making moon eyes at me for, Highness?”

Gabe grinned innocently from his spot at the kitchen table. “No reason.”

“Hm.” Soren set the food on the table, passing by Gabe to grab silverware from the drawer.

Though it was subtle, Gabe didn’t miss the way Soren leaned in and inhaled deeply as he went by. Gabe protested immediately. “Don’t. I’ve been working up a sweat. I must smell vile.”

“You never do, Highness,” Soren replied absently. “You always smell good. Clean.”

Something warm unfurled in the pit of Gabe’s stomach at the casual words. Soren had been…softer…since their disastrous night out. Still a snarky brat, of course, but he’d been grumbling a lot less about Gabe cuddling him, and here he was even saying spontaneous, borderline-sweet things without immediately retracting them.

Living with Soren, sharing this time with him, was like finding out the tiger he’d been so wary of was actually a house cat. Like, a super fancy,exotichouse cat for sure. Maybe a Savannah. But not exactly the dangerous predator Gabe had feared.

It was all making Gabe feel some kind of way. Bratty, “keep you at arm’s length” Soren was tempting enough; protective, “actually letting you close” Soren was fucking irresistible.

“Can I have a kiss, then?” Gabe asked as Soren returned with the silverware.

“Needy human,” Soren teased, leaning in anyway.

Gabe took immediate advantage of his proximity, pulling the vampire onto his lap and wrapping his arms around him.

Soren protested. “Ugh! You’re still all sweaty, and I’m wearing silk.”

He was. With them staying entirely at home the past few days, Soren had committed fully to his loungewear aesthetic. He had on a dark-blue silk pajama set that was severely testing Gabe’s ability to keep his hands to himself.

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