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And it wasn’t just the revelation of sex with Jay that had him spiraling. It was the mind-blowing realization that Jay was so much more than he had seemed (and what he’d seemed to be had already been captivating enough).

Jay may have looked like a literal doll, but he wasn’t delicate; he was strong—vastly stronger than Alexei. Jay may have looked more than a decade younger than Alexei, but he had multiple centuries of life experience. And Jay may have been good and kind and the type of person who made everyone around him smile, but he also had a quite literal thirst for blood.

The contradictions only made him that much more alluring. Alexei couldn’t think of anything else.

A smirking Alicia greeted Alexei at the counter. “You know he isn’t here,” she immediately felt the need to point out, flicking the ends of her ponytail over her shoulder.

“Pardon?” Alexei feigned ignorance, scanning the café menu like he hadn’t been coming there daily for almost two weeks.

The redhead didn’t cut him any slack. “Our young Jay,” she drawled. “The one you watch oh so carefully every single day. He’s not here today.”

How fucking marvelous to realize Alexei had been about as subtle as a hand grenade in his obsession. His father would have murdered him for his carelessness.Never let them know your thoughts or emotions. Best not to have the latter at all.

And Alexei’s father never had. Let him know, that was—Alexei had no idea to this day if his father had ever even loved him. He’d never said, and he had most certainly never shown.

Alexei pulled his wallet out of his pocket to give himself something to do, keeping his face carefully blank. “I already know he’s not.”

Alicia’s smirk deepened, a dimple appearing on her left cheek. “Oh, youknow, do you?”

He tapped his card on the counter. “Americano. Please.”

Alicia blew out a breath, clearly frustrated with his reticence, but rang him up anyway. “Be careful with him,” she warned, the smirk dropping from her face as she handed him back his card.

“Hm?” Alexei didn’t usually enjoy playing coy, but he also wasn’t in the habit of discussing his love life with local baristas.

Only localJaybaristas.

“He watches you just as much” was all Alicia said, winking as she set off to make his drink.

An uncomfortable amount of warmth bloomed in Alexei’s chest at her words. Fucking hell. How pathetic he was, to be that desperate for any sign he was special to Jay.

He waited for his coffee before settling in at his usual table. He wouldn’t stay at the café for hours this time—he had a date to set up, after all—but he could linger for a minute.

He wasn’t really all that surprised when a black cloud of scowling café manager sat down at Alexei’s table.

He sipped his espresso calmly while Colin tried to murder him with his eyes alone. Alexei had been in the presence of mobsters since he’d been toddling age; he wasn’t going to be intimidated by six feet something of malnourished Colorado punk.

Intimidation tactic clearly failing, Colin leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “You know his secret.”

It sounded like an accusation. Alexei inclined his head. “I do.”

“You can’t tell anyone,” Colin warned, his fingers tapping against his bicep.

“I would never.”

Colin nodded sharply before giving Alexei a sidelong look. “Did he bite you?”

Alexei cocked a brow. “Is that any of your business?”

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Colin muttered. “Feels good, huh?”

Alexei just raised his brow again, not giving an inch.

With a sigh, Colin slouched down in his seat. “I just worry about him is all. It takes a lot of control, to be bitten and not…you know. And that’s with him not even being my type.”

To be drunk from and not fuck Jay into total oblivion was what Alexei assumed Colin was getting at. “And why wouldn’t I…you know?” Alexei taunted.

Maybe if he pissed Colin off enough, the guy would leave the table and let him drink his coffee in peace.

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