Page 50 of The Vanishing
He kisses Haruka underneath his chin as he whispers, “I’ll take care of it in the morning. Sleep, panther.”
Haruka is already passed out, his breathing slow and even. Nino shifts so that he lies against his side. He closes his eyes, and soon, he joins him.
* * *
The followingmorning is muggy and hot. Cicadas are buzzing loudly outside, their mating calls reverberating within the hallways of the estate as Nino walks. He readjusts his summer robe, tying the belt tighter. He needs coffee.
Running his fingers through freshly washed hair, he steps into the kitchen. “Hey, Jun.”
“Good morning.” The charming vampire is sitting at the kitchen table in his usual seat near the open patio doors. He waves a deep blue half-shell fan near his face. The color of the fan matches the large traditional pattern printed on his white button-down. Junichi is nothing if not stylish, his choices always bold, unapologetic in nature.
“I thought you were coming later. Why are you here so early?”
“I like to spend time with my favorite purebred couple.” Junichi grins. “Being in your presence melts my old, jaded heart.” He places a hand on his chest, dramatic. Nino chuckles.
“Jun, you’renotold.”
He bats his dark eyelashes. “I’m older than the two of you. Where is his highness?”
“Sleeping.”
Junichi stops fanning, his onyx eyes wide. “Through the whole night?”
“Yes.” Nino fills his coffee cup to the brim. He needs a bigger mug. Maybe two.
“Well, that’s amazing news. Maybe things will get back to normal? I hear the local elementary school has been having a hell of a time. None of the little ones have been sleeping at night for the past month. You know their natures are very sensitive to him.”
“Really?” Nino sits down at the table across from Junichi. “I mean, I definitely feel the unrest, but I’m with him all the time.”
Junichi leans with his elbow on the table, cradling his chin in his palm. “We all feel it. Sora said the twins haven’t slept at night in two weeks. Between that and her strenuous hospital shifts, she said she might drop them off here if Haruka doesn’t stop this—see how much he enjoys them when they’re bouncing off the walls at three in the morning.”
Nino takes a long sip of his coffee. When he’s finished, he sighs, relaxing his shoulders. “He does like them a lot…” The image of an excitable Amon showing off his toy shark while sitting on Haruka’s knees flashes in Nino’s mind. He’d watched the gentle interaction, awestruck. Something within his mate had brightened—like a dense fog lifting or a locked chest opening. Haruka had been so content and singularly focused on the small boy, as if everyone else in the room had ceased to exist.
“Do you like kids, Nino?”
“I don’t know… I don’t dislike them. I haven’t ever given them much thought. Honestly, I didn’t know if I’d ever be bonded. Thinking about anything past that seemed pointless.”
“Well, seeing as you’ve reached this milestone, maybe it’s time to start thinking about what else you might want?”
“Hm… maybe. Do you want kids someday, Jun?”
“Hellno.”
“Mail call.” Asao walks into the kitchen, a small stack of letters in one hand and a delivery box the size of large book in the other. Nino beams, excited as he stands from the table to relieve his manservant of the package. He takes it over to the counter.
Junichi smiles. “Hey, old coot—”
“Watchit.” Asao points, grinning.
“How do you feel about some little vampires running around here in the future? More monsters for you to take care of.”
Asao shrugs. “It’d be fine. Haruka wanted that when he was little, anyway.”
Nino stops unpacking the shipping box, blinking up at Asao. “He did?”
“Yeah. He made a pitiful little declaration right after his father died. He said that when he bonded with Yuna, he wanted to have a big family. He’s an only child, you know? So with Aika and Hayato passing, it left him pretty damn lonely. But Yuna didn’t want any part of that so… end of story. He’s never brought it up again—at least not to me?”
Both Asao and Junichi look at Nino, making him swallow hard. “He hasn’t said anything to me either.”
