Page 18 of Until Forever Comes
“What happened with the shifter?” Ted asked, sounding anxious. I wondered whether he was trying to change the topic and take Miguel’s attention away from Ralph. If so, it worked.
“He isn’t your concern.” Miguel’s tone held a note of warning.
“This was the third time he showed up in as many days,” Ted said. “I just want to make sure he’s been dealt with so we don’t have any more surprises.”
“I took care of him,” Miguel said.
“If any wolves go sniffing around looking for him, they won’t come close to here, right?” Ralph asked. His voice was raspy and weak, but I recognized it. “Where’d you dispose of the body?”
He barely got the last word out before I heard an “oomph” sound followed by coughing and whimpering.
“Okay,” Ted said. “I think Miguel made his point. The sun’s coming up soon. I’m turning in.” I heard footsteps and mumbled words, and then Ted spoke again. “Miguel?”
“Yeah,” my mate answered.
“Do you need my help with, uh—” He paused. “—with anything?”
“Yeah, you can keep fucking Ralph the hell away from me. I shouldn’t have let him walk out of here. He messes with me again, and no matter how much you ask, I won’t give him another chance.”
“I know. Thank you. He just… he was worried. We were all worried. You always feed so much, and until this town grows, we need to be careful.”
“I know that!” Miguel said. “I’m older than you, Ted. I don’t need a school lesson on blending in.”
“Well, you haven’t been blending,” Ted answered in a voice so low it was almost a whisper. “If anything, you’ve been feeding more than usual since we got here, not less. You can understand why Ralph thought you’d gone feral.”
“I was hungry.”
Ted snorted. “You fed enough to fill three vampires for months. That was just today. And you said you were still hungry.” He was quiet for a beat before continuing. “You had me scared, Miguel. I thought we’d lost you.”
“I wasn’t feral,” Miguel sighed. “I was hungry.”
“You don’t look hungry.”
“Do I look feral?” Miguel retorted.
“No,” Ted answered.
“Good. Then it’s settled. I’m turning in.”
I heard Miguel’s footsteps coming toward me. I recognized his gait by sound alone.
“Let me know if you want some company,” Ted said, his suggestive tone making my hair stand on end.
I couldn’t hold back my growl. I clenched my hands into fists at my sides and my entire body stiffened, fixin’ to pounce out of the room and eliminate the threat to what was mine. A key turning in the lock tore me out of my jealous haze. I stepped down one stair to leave room on the landing for Miguel.
He opened the door just wide enough to slide into the room, and then closed and locked it behind him. I opened my mouth to say something about Ted’s offer, but Miguel’s lips over mine stopped any words from coming out. He tangled his fingers in my hair and I whimpered into his mouth, melting against him, submitting completely.
We were both breathless when he finally pulled back. He held his pointer finger in front of his mouth and shook his head, telling me without words that I needed to keep quiet. The space was large and there was nothing filling it, so any noise we made ricocheted off the walls, echoing loudly. We started walking down the stairs and hadn’t taken but a few steps when Miguel scooped me up in his arms, and held me tight against his chest.
I gasped in surprise and he gave me a self-satisfied smirk, curling up one side of his lips, his gaze pure sin. That expression should have been frightening, but instead it made me hard, made me squirm. With a knowing gaze, Miguel lowered his eyes to my groin and licked his lips. Then he started moving across the room, his feet not making a sound.
Faster than I would have thought possible, we were at the end of the room. Miguel opened another door and took us through it. Then he squatted down and set me on a soft mattress, kissing my forehead before standing back up. I put my knapsack down and squinted, my gaze following him as he closed and locked the door and then lit a candle.
Oh, Lord. Miguel in candlelight. My stomach dropped.
“So,” he said, slowly pulling his shirt out of his jeans, “when I told you to come down here, you took that to mean that you should sit at the top of the stairs and eavesdrop?”
Whether he was expecting me to answer, I couldn’t rightly say, but it wasn’t going to happen. Not when he was slowly pushing each button on his shirt through the buttonhole, exposing smooth, brown skin and rippling muscles. I reckoned the fact that I was able to keep my tongue in my mouth and drool off my chin was an accomplishment.
