Page 60 of Life Blood
Cole glanced at me, “I don’t think any of us have it in ourselves to do that to him, but we will if we have to. We don’t know if he’ll start having withdrawals or try to fight everyone. It will be in his best interest to sit in a holding cell until his brain resets.”
“When do you think the witch doctor will be here?” I half laughed, “Witches aren’t really high up there on my list of favorite supernatural things.”
“And a vampire who drinks your blood while doing other things to you is?”
“Now, I just feel like a whore.”
“I'm serious,” Cole said. “And don’t ever call yourself that again. It’s natural for you. The vampire does this so you enjoy them feeding on you as much as they enjoy taking your blood. I would have honestly imagined your first response as a human to be fear.”
“Yeah, apparently I wanted to get laid so bad, I wasn’t afraid at all,” I said sheepishly.
Cole placed a hand over mine, “It’s good that you weren’t afraid of him, and it wasn’t because you wanted to get laid. Logan told me how serious you were about helping us. Stop thinking you did something wrong. You had sex with him because of the endorphins that are put off by the vampire. My cousins and I have always had power over that. We choose whether or not we want to have sex while feeding. Other vampires can’t resist the urge. We always have been able to turn that off and just feed. Logan said feeding on you overpowered him, and now we’re here.”
“Fine,” I finally conceded, “You seem to have a lot of control over me being here, maybe I should just stick around you for now.”
Cole’s smirk made me think he was putting on a good front, and I fell for it. “Let’s just play it all by ear. The smell of your blood has left the house, and all the others will be home tonight. Zac reported that the town is clear of any scouts Enzo may have put out. While the witch doctor is examining Braden, my best suggestion is to hang with the female vamps if you can tolerate them.”
“I’ll do whatever I need to do.” I let out a sigh of relief, “So that means we don’t have to leave town?”
Cole nodded, “Yes.” He glanced up at me while pouring wine over the food he was sautéing, “It also might make you feel better if you showered up. The chlorine can only cover up so much of your scent.”
The way he eyed me, I wanted to crawl under the bar counter where I sat, “Good idea,” I said, maintaining my confidence.
“I’ll see you when you’re done.”
Without a second glance, I left the kitchen and headed up the stairs to my bedroom. What did I do? How stupid could I be? I waltz into these guys’ lives, think I can do whatever I want with whatever power I had over them, and as usual, I screw it all up. This had to stop, and I would learn more about my place with these vamps by following Cole’s lead.
Chapter Twenty-Four
After I showered, I decided to take a walk around the lodge to get some fresh air and take in the scenery. As I walked around toward the back side of the house, I heard angry voices coming from the back patio, and I couldn’t help but tiptoe and listen in on the conversation.
I knew it was about Logan and me, and the first voice I heard was Braden’s. I felt relief bubble up in me that he was well and he was on his feet again, but that relief did not last long once I heard the anger in his voice.
“This is fucking stupid, Cole!” he growled.
“You know this is most likely the only way to get her blood muted in your system,” Cole yelled back.
“She’s a Life Blood, that blood was meant for us. The last time I checked, it was a good thing to have it in our bodies,” I heard Zac say.
“It was good until Logan decided to test the stormy fucking waters with her,” Cole lashed back. “I still can’t believe you let it happen.”
“I was trying to show her what we really were. Fangs and all the bullshit that scares humans off. I didn’t think it would go down like it did.” Logan’s voice was firm, but I heard the regret in it. “And fuck all of you if you think I’m going to drink from another vampire again. We’re lucky that I don’t—”
“Shut your fucking mouth,” Braden snapped. “You knew better. None of us were to touch her. None of us are excited about the fact we have to share her, and you just dive headfirst into bed, drink from her, and fuck her. Did you pull this shit because you knew if I weren’t out of commission you wouldn’t have survived sneaking her off like that?”
“Give me a break, I’m not afraid of you, Brade…get over yourself.”
“Braden!” Cole and Zac said after I heard a whoosh sound.
“Let him go. It’s the blood in their system that is causing this. This is the shit we have to fix. This is why you both are feeding off of one of the girls tonight. Preferably right now,” Cole demanded.
“Val can go suck a dick, I’m not touching her,” Braden snapped. “Why don’t you go drink from one of them, Cole?”
“I don’t have to dilute the lifeblood in my system, so fuck off.”
“What did the witch doctor say about this mess?” Braden asked.
“He’s looking for a more powerful sorcerer who could probably help, someone who knows more about the history of that coven with the Life Blood.”
