Page 33 of Moonstruck
Asa had done that. Asa had marked and claimed him and bred him, and it was the single most intense moment of his life, which was a lot when he held it up against the pile of bodies he’d left in his wake.
Asa grabbed Kleenex and gently wiped Zane’s face, then kissed his forehead. “Go to sleep, Lois.”
For once, Zane didn’t argue, just rolled to face away from him. Asa sighed. Was their ceasefire over that quickly?
Zane reached behind him then and grabbed Asa’s hand, pulling his arm around him before burrowing back against him. Asa curled his body around Zane, marveling at how perfectly they fit together.
When Zane started snoring softly, Asa buried his nose in his curls, finally letting sleep take him.
Zane woke to the sound of Asa’s voice. He pried his eyes open to find the sun blazing through the window and Asa sitting naked on the bottom corner of the bed, his phone pressed to his ear. He forced his gaze away from perfectly toned back muscles to give a stretch that sent his joints cracking. He was sore everywhere. He felt like a sneaker that had been tossed around in the dryer. Every part of his body ached, including his ass.
“—start local, then expand outward.” Asa listened to whoever was on the other side of the line for a moment. “We already know about Henley. I want to see if August’s and Lucas’s school had a similar ring.”
Zane forced himself to his feet. Asa turned at the movement, his heated gaze dragging over Zane like he had a right, a claim to his body. Zane pointed to Asa’s bathroom, heading for the door before he said or did something they’d both regret. He left the door cracked as he emptied his painfully full bladder, all sense of shyness dissolved after the night they’d had together.
But, honestly, he just wanted to eavesdrop on Asa’s conversation. If he was right, there was a story there. How much of a story, Zane wasn’t sure, but enough to earn him a byline in a decent paper.
Wow. One good fuck and, suddenly, you’re willing to give up your dreams of being a star journalist to beg for scraps over a story people will forget about in a day or two? Weak sauce, bro. Very weak.
Zane ignored his brother’s snide tone. He didn’t know what the fuck he would do about the Mulvaneys.
Liar.
He was lying. He was. This was why his mother thought he was a loser. As much as he wanted a big story, a byline, celebrity status, he craved something more. Attention. Attention he’d never get from his own family. Attention Asa lavished on him without a second thought.
He heard Asa ask, “So, they were happening in other schools? Fuck. Tell August and Lucas I need to meet with them at lunch. And let them know I won’t be alone.”
So, it was true? Those suicides weren’t suicides at all but…accidents? That just seemed too convenient. Five deaths, five year increments—that seemed a strange coincidence. Except, it wasn’t every five years if Gage had been involved. Because he’d died in a different year at a different school.
Zane stood at the door, listening. “Oh, and tell them not to tell Dad about my…friend.” There was a brief pause. “Fucking Jericho. Yes, he’s a friend. I’ve got it handled. Just please keep it to yourself.” Another pause. “Thank you. Hey, have you heard from Avi?”
Asa’s voice was almost childlike, tinged with hope and something else. Zane got it. He couldn’t really put a name on it, but it was probably the same catch in his heart that came when he thought about Gage. Zane would give anything to have a real conversation with him. The real Gage, not his imaginary version.
Zane probably shouldn’t cut Asa slack simply because they both shared a similar attachment to their siblings. But Asa was awkwardly close to his brother, like Zane had been with Gage. Asa might be the only person who understood Zane’s complicated relationship with his own brother. His dead brother. Who he still talked to like he was alive.
Zane turned away from the door, moving to the sink to splash some water on his face. But stopped short when he saw his reflection.
Yikes.
Zane rolled his eyes as said brother’s voice rattled around in his head.Shut up.
If you didn’t want me here, I wouldn’t be, so blame yourself.
Zane ignored the logic. He had no interest in facing his own psychological demons today.
You called me a thrill seeker, but I think you’ve got me beat. You really chained yourself to a mass murderer’s bed. That’s like shackling yourself to a rabid dog. Honestly, you look like you were mauled by a rabid dog.
Gage wasn’t wrong. His eyes were swollen and red ringed. There was an obvious bite mark on his shoulder, a dozen hickeys on his neck, and bruises in the shape of Asa’s hands. They were everywhere. His hips, his upper arms, even his throat. He didn’t even remember Asa’s hands being in those places.
He probably cut off your oxygen supply. I hear that can cause memory loss.
Fuck all the way off. Seriously.
Zane turned, looking back at the mirror’s reflection over his shoulder. The bite marks on his neck and shoulder were nothing compared to the numerous deep bite wounds on his back, his ass, and his thighs, or the nail marks along his sides. He racked his brain but couldn’t recall any specific bite or bruise. They all blurred together. Once Zane had made the decision to put those cuffs back on, it had all gone hazy.
“The things I’m going to do to you.”
That was what Asa had rasped in his ear a second before he’d turned Zane’s whole world upside down. But he didn’t remember pain or fear. He remembered a warmth pooling in his belly and spreading throughout his limbs. He remembered Asa’s ragged, panting breaths in his ear, the way he growled and snarled and even purred as he took what he wanted, driving into Zane’s body with a ravenous need that should have scared Zane but hadn’t. It had made him feel wanted, desired…seen.
