Page 32 of Fated Mates and How to Seduce Them
Ian blinked at him. Say what, now?
“He’s firmly pansexual. All are welcome, and he is more than happy to sample. People think he has a type because when he first started college, all the attractive, elite kids flocked right to him. Benedict had the same problem his first semester. Look, they’re used to brownnosers, okay? They just have different methods of dealing with them. Benedict politely ignores them. André plays the game. He’ll fuck ’em, enjoy the company, and then leave when it becomes a hassle. He was never serious about any of them, which is what people misinterpret.”
Meaning…Ian shouldn’t judge based on what André did before. He had noticed André would go home with just about anyone at the bar, but, well, he’d figured it was the alcohol talking or something, as otherwise André had always been surrounded by models, peers hailing from multigenerational wealth, and people from influential families.
“You”—Felix pointed to him with a growing smirk—“are in a league of your own. André has never in his life chased after someone. He went to Benedict for advice because he was so stumped on how to approach you. It was as funny as it was cute. The manmopesbecause he can’t get your attention every day. It’s the best cheap entertainment. And I know for a fact he hasn’t been with anyone since the night you saved him. Man’s been hooked since day one.”
Ian felt floored by Felix’s words. “Wait, seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“Am…I really so different?”
“Incredibly so. Did you think he puts this much effort into people on a regular basis?”
“All I know is what I’ve heard—that he has a short attention span with people. I work at a bar, and I’d see him pick up someone there every week. Plus, I know how he’s acted on campus. The way he first approached me, how he asked me out to dinner so suddenly, fit the pattern.” Ian rubbed his forehead,feeling a headache brewing. A lot of pieces he’d thought slotted together were suddenly up in the air, unsure of where to land. “I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, for him to grow bored of me.”
“Wow. I actually pity André right now.” Felix said this, but he was undoubtedly laughing on an internal level.
Ian sat with these new facts for a second. André was pansexual? So he wasn’t attracted to a person’s looks but to their character? It made more sense, then, why he wanted to date Ian. Why he’d grown attached so strongly. It was a relief for some part of André’s behavior to finally make sense.
“Has he…really been moping?” Ian couldn’t imagine it.
Felix rolled his eyes expressively. “You would not believe the moping. If he’s not moping, he’s planning out his next step so he can have time with you. Sometimes he’s so unbearable I hit him with the couch pillows.”
Now this Ian could picture. “Felix, this is just a vibe I’m getting, but…are you and André like brothers?”
“Oh, totally. We grew up together. His parents raised me because mine are beyond shitty. The relationship started out good. My parents worked for his father, so we were playmates since diapers. But my parents didn’t actually want to be parents, and around the time I turned fifteen, the Castors took custody of me. I was raised in their house ever since. André is the bratty little brother I never wanted and am stuck with anyway. That said, I know if shit hits the fan, he has my back. And vice versa.”
That would make sense of how Felix spoke and handled all of this. He acted like someone looking out for his little brother’s interests.
Ian dared to ask a question that had been plaguing him. “André said his parents didn’t mind when you and Benedict got together?”
Felix snorted. “Ha, no. I expected trouble because my reputation was as bad as André’s, but…Mom reassured me. It was fine, she just wanted me and Benedict to be happy. I think it relieved her when Benedict finally made a move. She had been on the verge of taking a clue bat to him. He ended up turning me about six months into us dating, too, so I’m fully a member of the Castor clan now, as well as his boyfriend.”
That was the perfect opening to a question Ian had struggled with since the night of the storm, and Felix seemed the only party he’d be able to ask. Swallowing around a dry mouth, he asked, “Do you ever have, I don’t know, second thoughts? About being turned?”
Felix waved this concern away. “Pfft, perish the thought. I realize it looks bad because we’re both young, but again, I know this man better than myself. I can’t begin to regret choosing him. Rather, I’m relieved, because now death won’t take me from him. A human’s lifespan is too short, and I couldn’t imagine leaving him alone. I felt happy as a clam the day Benedict turned me. Only drawback is he can’t feed from me anymore, although we do tend to be bitey during sex. Vampire thing, y’know.” Felix paused to accept his coffee from the waitress.
She delivered Ian’s with the same efficiency before leaving again.
Felix almost took a sip before his eyes sharpened on Ian. “Shit. Of course, you’re worried about their parents. Okay, no, Ian, seriously—you have nothing to worry about. André’s parents are absolutely not homophobic. One of the things they donate a lot of money to is LGBTQIA+ youth centers. Plus, vampires don’t tend to have homophobes. Only the newly turned might take issue, but the older vampires do not give a shit. Okay? Not an issue with them.”
“André said I didn’t have to worry, but…I guess I needed to hear it again from another source. You might have beenan exception to the rule, considering how close you are to the family.”
“Eh, yeah, I can see why you thought that. I’m not, though. Trust me, if you come to meet the parents, they’ll welcome you with open arms. They’ll be excited André finally stopped playing the field.”
Ian would have felt the same in their shoes. It didn’t address the fact he was a broke orphan, though. Felix also came from a wealthy family; he wasn’t in the same boat as Ian. Still, this conversation had been reassuring in many ways. Like a millstone cast off his neck, allowing him to breathe more easily.
Felix leaned in again, eyes knowing and sympathetic. “André’s overwhelming without meaning to. I can see why you hesitated, but Ian, trust me on this. You’ll never have a better boyfriend. Benedict and André are alike in this, thanks to their parents. When they devote themselves to something, they are a hundred and twenty percent invested. It’s not a leap of faith. André is ready to catch you if you choose to fall for him.”
I think I’m half in love with him already. Ian didn’t dare say that aloud. He wanted to think about everything Felix had said first.
“Thanks. For talking to me like this. I needed it more than I realized.”
Felix splayed his hands, a bright smile in place. “I think it’s only fair, considering how you helped me.”
“Can I walk you somewhere? To class or something?”
