Page 90 of Bound in Blood
MARCO
Marco woke up to whispering.
Low and conspiratorial, interrupted by an occasional soft laugh.
Quiet enough that even with his vampire hearing, he couldn’t make out what was being said three feet from him. Which felt… purposeful. Marco cracked his eyes open, squinting at the dim light filtering in through the curtains. The bed felt warm, and his limbs were still heavy with sleep, but there was something missing. Something he’d gotten used to having over the past two weeks.
Logan had shifted away from Marco fully. He was, it appeared, curled up against Mateo, their heads pressed together, murmuring in each other’s ears.
Logan laughed softly, causing Mateo to smirk, fingers ghosting over Logan’s bare shoulder as he listened to whatever Logan was whispering back.
Marco frowned.
It wasn’t jealousy… it never was. He didn’t compete with Mateo for Logan’s love, because he didn’t have to. Logan loved them both freely, completely, in a way that Marco had only ever dreamed about. Marco had never known that kind of balancebefore, never known what it was like to share something so wholly, without fear or resentment.
And that was why this particular moment was… concerning.
Because Logan and Mateo conspiring together, without wanting Marco to hear, could only mean one thing.
Trouble.
Marco cleared his throat, shifting his weight slightly as he inched closer to Logan, ready to steal him back from Mateo the second they got done conspiring his demise.
“Whatever you’re planning, if it’s illegal or immoral or any combination of the two… please don’t.”
Logan and Mateo startled, both heads jerking up to look at him, like they hadn’t even realized he was awake. Guilty.
Mateo recovered first, smirking lazily as he stood from the bed, reaching over and smoothing a hand through Logan’s curls. “I’m going to get the blood bags from the kitchen,” he said, far too casually for Marco’s liking.
Logan looked back up at Mateo, nodding quietly. He still looked a bit like he’d gotten caught with his hand in the metaphorical cookie jar. Mateo used his grip on Logan’s hair to tilt his head up, catching his lips in a lingering kiss. “You two think you’ll be okay?” he asked, looking between Logan and Marco in a way that Marcoreallydidn’t like.
Logan nodded, and Mateo’s gaze lingered, unreadable, before he finally stepped away. Not before swiping something small off the nightstand and placing it into Logan’s palm, however. Something Logan quickly curled his fingers around, concealing it from Marco’s view.
Marco narrowed his eyes, but Logan turned toward him and smiled so genuinely that it was hard to stay too suspicious. Whatever it was, itprobablywouldn’t be too bad. If it was, they wouldn’t be so obvious about it.
“You kids have fun,” Mateo said as he strolled toward the door, throwing one last knowing glance at Logan before shutting it behind him.
The moment the door clicked shut, Logan shifted closer to Marco, exhaling slowly.
“What was that?” Marco asked, arching a brow.
Logan tilted his head, all wide eyes and mock innocence. “I don’t know what you mean, darling.”
Darling?Marco wasn’t buying that for a second. He shifted up onto his elbows, just as Logan moved toward him again, settling in his lap, still completely naked from the night before, like this was the most normal way to start the day.
Marco’s hands instinctively found Logan’s waist, steadying him. “Are you sure about that,amore mio?” Marco asked slowly, suspiciously, as Logan ran his fingers lightly up Marco’s chest. “Mateo awake before the sun goes down is more than enough evidence that something’s going on, but?—”
Marco paused as Logan held up the hand holding the mystery item Mateo had handed him a moment ago. Slowly, he uncurled his fingers, a wicked grin spreading across his face.
A bottle of lube.
Mateo had handed their mate a bottle of lube, then practically skipped out of the room with the instruction to ‘have fun.’
Oh.
“Didn’t think it was very fair,” Logan said, scooting backward in Marco’s lap until he was straddling his thighs, “That you only got my mouth last night.” He uncapped the bottle of lube, and Marco’s breath hitched.
Oh, fuck, Logan had hisfullattention now. Sitting in Marco’s lap, bare legs spread over his thighs, the grin on his face so wicked it should come with a warning label. Still, Marco had to ask, “Mateo’s idea?”
