Page 34 of The Death God
“You’d cause us food poisoning.” Could he cook? He’d had time to learn, so most likely.
The slap on his ass made him yelp.
“Ass.”
“Yes, a very nice one. Bitable.”
“You will not bite my ass.” Thanatos pushed away from him enough to look at his face. Gregory was grinning widely.
“Oh, I think I will.”
Thanatos snorted and rolled out of bed, surprised to find himself reluctant to do so. Maybe Gregory had a better bed than he had. He hadn’t slept this well in…ever. “Do you have a special bed?”
“Yeah.”
He studied it. It looked like a normal bed. “What’s different about it?”
“It’s mine.”
Thanatos scowled.
“Why don’t you spend the night in it? With me.”
Looking at Gregory as he got out of bed, Thanatos considered it. “Why?”
“Then I’m here if you dream, and it’ll help with the scent. We have to pretend to have been together for months. We need the scent.”
The urge to say no was overwhelming, but he wasn’t afraid of the bed. Nothing bad had ever happened to him in a bed. Harsh white walls scared him, tables with sharp edges, and blood dripping on beige linoleum. Not soft mattresses.
“No blood.”
Gregory, who had bent to get his shoes, jerked back up into a standing position and stared at him. “What?”
“No blood. If I sleep here, you have to promise not to bleed me.” As if he could stop him if he wanted to.
“Jesus fucking Christ. Pain is not something you have to worry about. I’m not into blood play—” He gestured at a pile of blades near the bed. “—or whatever it is you’re picturing.”
Thanatos was confused. “What’s blood play?”
“When you cut your bed partners for the fun of it.”
Pursing his lips, Thanatos looked at the blades again. “Is it a vampire thing? It would take me a long time to heal if you cut me.”
Gregory rubbed a hand over his too-pretty face. “Jesus. No, it’s not a vampire thing. Though blood and vampires go hand in hand, so maybe they’re more inclined. I don’t know.”
Maybe cuts wouldn’t hurt as much as kicks and punches. “No dripping blood.”
Gregory was in front of him before he could blink, his fingers digging into his shoulders. “I need you to understand something.” He was looking right into Thanatos’ eyes, so he nodded.
“I’m not gonna cut you, I’m not gonna make you bleed, I’m not gonna make you hurt in any way. Got it?”
Thanatos whispered a yes because it was what Gregory wanted to hear, but things always hurt.
Gregory took a step forward, forcing Thanatos to take one back, then he repeated the action. Soon, Thanatos stood with his back against the wall in the small room.
Gently encircling his wrist, Gregory moved his hands to his chest, and Thanatos flattened his palms against the solid wall of muscle. Gregory was lean, but there was so much strength there.
When a hand landed on his hip, Thanatos jumped and searched Gregory’s eyes. He wasn’t sure what was going on, but there was an intensity that had his heart speeding.
