Page 37 of The Death God
“As for sex, if you’re taking it that far, they couldn’t even jerk off without an audience, so…” He grimaced. “But sex isn’t the biggest problem, they’ve had sex. Lots and lots of crappy, unwilling sex, the mechanics of it doesn’t frighten them. Or didn’t frighten Jaki at least. I guess it all depends on what they’ve been through. But it was more reluctance than fear, and zero expectations of it feeling good. He offered to suck me off for letting them stay here in the castle without blinking.”
Gregory jerked as if hit. Had Thanatos done something similar, he would’ve been furious. “What the fuck?” Then he remembered Thanatos falling to his knees when Gregory had followed him into his room.
“They’ve lived a different life. Sexual favors and predictions are their only bargain chips. And blowjobs are getting off easy for them, or so Jaki has told me. Better to offer a blowjob than to have to endure worse.” Something deadly crept into Rufus’ eyes. “I wish I could kill every fucker who ever touched him.”
Right. Gregory took a calming breath and tried to focus on his situation. “What is it that scares them then?” Thanatos was no blushing virgin, but Gregory had still figured the sex act would be the biggest hurdle.
“Same as with anyone. Powerlessness.” Rufus shrugged. “They still depend on us. We’ve freed them from the house of horrors, but we haven’t given them any say in life. I won’t ever let Jaki go; I don’t care if it makes me a bastard, but the others? They might want to leave.”
Leave? Ice curled around Gregory’s heart. Thanatos couldn’t leave.
“Meet someone, start a family, buy a house in the suburbs, have a mind-numbingly boring office job.”
Gregory stared at him. “Why would anyone want that?”
“They’re human, or close to at least. We’ll continue to live while they fade away.”
The ice didn’t only curl around Gregory’s heart now, it was piercing it. “No. I’m keeping him.”
Rufus laughed, a loud, deep, belly laugh. “You hate him, remember? You didn’t want to save him when he was bleeding out.”
Shit. “It’s the mate bond.”
“There is no mate bond, stupid. There hasn’t been a mate bond for the last six weeks.”
“There is. I feel exactly like I did right after—”
“Yeah? Where is he now then? Follow the tug in your heart and tell me. Is he in the basement, in the kitchen, in his room?”
Gregory was about to say kitchen, but it was because he believed he was in the kitchen since he planned to cook. He couldn’t feel him. He hadn’t been able to pinpoint his exact position before either, but he had been able to say in which direction he was. He couldn’t now. If he had, he wouldn’t have needed to walk around and look for him these last few days. Fuck, there was no bond. “I don’t know.”
Rufus nodded. “Jaki is there.” He pointed across the room. “Not close to the house, but not as far away as the woods.”
Gregory pressed his lips together. “So?”
“You’re feeling what you’re feeling because you’re feeling it. It has nothing to do with giving him blood.”
“Fine.” He wanted a fucking psychic, one who predicted people’s deaths. He could admit it. To himself at least.
Rufus grinned. “What are you going to do about it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t treat him like a hook-up in a bar. We live together.”
“So?” He was starting to sound like an obstinate teenager.
Shaking his head, Rufus gripped his shoulder. “Either you step away before you do any harm, or you jump in intending to build something that lasts.”
Chapter 13
Thanatos tasted the green beans. According to the recipe, it was a good side dish to Cajun chicken. In all honesty, he didn’t know what made a dish Cajun and what didn’t, but he’d mixed the green beans with fried bacon, garlic, and pepper, and it was the best green beans he’d ever had.
It didn’t say much, since pretty much everything he had tasted since he came here was the best version he’d ever had.
Jaki walked in. “Is there anything I can do?”
“No, I think it’s all done.” He had chicken, rice, beans, bread, cheese, and salad. He’d asked Gregory if there was any wine to go with the chicken, and he’d gone to fetch a few bottles in the basement. The table was set. They were ready.
