Bound in Blood (Broken Bloodlines Book 3) -
Bound in Blood: Chapter 26
Standing in front of the open fridge, I’m impressed at the vast array of groceries Axl managed to source for us earlier today. The shelves are practically groaning under the weight of thick-cut steaks, racks of fresh lamb, gallons of milk and juice, and a couple dozen eggs. There are enough fresh fruits and vegetables to keep our girl’s energy up for days, not to mention an array of sweet treats and pastries stacked on the counter. From the smirk on his face when I asked him how he managed to get all this stuff with no money, I figure he bit the store clerk and left them in a bite-induced state of euphoria as he took what he wanted.
We have no idea how long we’ll need to stay, but at least we can keep Ophelia well-nourished while we’re here. Tonight, I am going to cook up a feast. After all the toe-curlingly awkward and unpleasant dinners we’ve been subjected to over the past few weeks, we deserve to sit down and enjoy a meal together. I still don’t know much about what the professor has been through, but I’m sure he will appreciate a nice slice of normal.
“Do we have coffee, Malachi?” Alexandros asks, and I spin around to see him sitting at the kitchen table. With him bare-chested in the bright light streaming in through the window, I get my first good look at his body. His shoulder and the tops of his arms are lined with thick red welts. How much must they have hurt for the marks to still be seared on his skin now?
“They do not hurt. Ophelia has healed them well.” He peers over his shoulder at his back. “I suspect most of them will not even scar.”
“I forgot you can still read my mind, even without our bond. Well, I didn’t forget, so much as … You never used to read our minds very often before.”
He rests his chin on his clasped hands. “And I did not just now. Your eyes were drawn to the marks on my body, and your sadness and guilt were too acute for me to miss.”
Of course he read my emotions and not my thoughts. And I know he would hate my pity, although that’s not what I’m feeling. Still, I change the subject. “You want coffee? I’m sure I saw some in the pantry.”
He hums softly, that sound he makes when he’s deep in thought, but not in a bad way. Humming means good thinking. “Actually, it can wait. There is something much more important to take care of.”
My curiosity is piqued. More important than coffee? “And what’s that?”
“Come here.” His tone is low and commanding, and if not for the fact that he appears more serene than I recall ever seeing him, I would be convinced I’m in some kind of trouble.
I obey him without question, and he spins on his stool so when I reach him, I’m standing in front of him. “Closer,” he orders.
I step between his spread thighs, and the sides of my bare knees brush against the linen pants he’s wearing. He must have rustled them up from one of the closets. My heart is hammering against my ribcage, and adrenaline courses through my veins. He’s going to put our bond back in place, and I’m excited and nervous in a way I’m not used to. So much so, my entire body is trembling in anticipation.
“A kitchen is not the ideal place for this. Would you like to go somewhere more private?”
I shake my head, eager to get this done with so we can get back to the way we were before. I’m not entirely myself when he’s not a part of me. Our bond was—no, is a huge part of who I am. Without it, I am somehow less whole. “Here is good.”
His lips curve into a smile. “You are always so sure of me, Malachi.” He traces a fingertip over the pulse in my neck. “The most sensitive soul I have ever turned.”
My instinctive growl surprises me, but it makes his smile grow wider. “That is not the insult you believe it to be. My daughter Alyria was sweet and sensitive too. She loved horses. Would rather spend time with them than most people she knew. I saw her in you the day I found you.”
Sadness and shame form a thick knot in my throat. I had my service revolver and one bullet with me, and I rode out of town on Mabel, my beloved mare, intending to go to the woods where there would be nobody to stop me from taking my own life. Plagued by memories of my fallen comrades being blown to pieces, of the pleas in their dying eyes as they clung to me, I couldn’t stand to live a day longer. Until Mabel stepped in a hole and broke her leg.
Her pained whinnies as she lay on the ground tore a hole in my heart, and I couldn’t bear to leave her to suffer. So I offered her all I had left to give—my single bullet. When he found me, I was weeping over her still-warm corpse.
“That is nothing to feel ashamed of, Malachi.” His voice is gentle and soothing, and I close my eyes, letting it wash over me. “Horses are loyal creatures. They have served man, vampire, witch, and demon for as long as anyone can recall. Perhaps she gave her life so that I might replace you.”
That thought brings me comfort. “So you could save me?”
He skims my throat with his fangs, and a shiver runs down my spine. “Or perhaps so that you could save me.”
Before I can ask him what he means, his teeth pierce my skin and I’m hit by a blinding, breath-stealing wave of pure ecstasy. My knees buckle, but he holds me up, enveloped in his tight embrace. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and cling to him. I’m lost to the whole moment, aware that I’m whimpering like a puppy but unable to care. And right as the euphoria hits its peak, then comes the lightning. Raw and powerful, it races through my bloodstream, lighting me up from the inside. And I feel invincible. A wolf instead of a puppy now, I tip my head back and roar his name.
Yes, Malachi. Take back what is yours. His voice resounds within my head, and I sag in his arms, relief and the last flickering embers of ecstasy fizzling through me.
When he’s done feeding, he gently suckles the wound on my neck until it’s fully healed.
I missed you so much, I tell him.
He cradles me in his arms, the same way he did he when he found me over a century ago. I missed you too. More than you will ever know.
After I open my eyes, I replace the strength to stand on my own two feet again. “What did you mean before, about me saving you?”
His eyes narrow, and he brushes the backs of his knuckles over my cheek. “I always loved Xavier and Axl in my own way, Malachi. But it was not until I found and turned you, a boy who sacrificed the only thing he had to end the suffering of his beloved horse, that I was able to recall that such pure selflessness exists in this world. You allowed that part of my heart to beat again, Malachi. Even if it did not beat with the strength it should, it was you who reminded me it was still there. You are one of the most incredible souls I have ever known, and I thank all the stars in the universe and all the demons in the netherworld that I found you.”
Fuck, I’m gonna cry. In fact, I already am. He brushes away the tear that drips down my cheek.
“Shit!” Xavier’s voice is a welcome reprieve from the intensity of the moment. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I was—”
“It is okay, Xavier. Malachi and I have recemented our bond.”
Xavier flashes me a smile that makes his blue eyes sparkle. “Yeah?”
I mirror his grin and step out of the professor’s embrace. “Yeah. Get over here.”
He saunters over, flicking his dark hair out of his eyes, and wraps me in a bear hug. He smells of sex and Ophelia. And Alexandros. A slightly surprising, if not entirely unexpected, development. The sexual tension between those two had to give at some point.
Xavier slides his hand into my boxers and squeezes my ass hard as he trails his lips over my neck. Goosebumps skitter along my forearms, and I groan. He’s such a fucking tease.
Alexandros pushes back his stool. “Do either of you know where Axl is?”
I shake my head. “Haven’t seen him since he dropped the groceries off a little while ago.”
Hey, bro, where are you? Xavier asks. Alexandros is looking for you.
Out is his clipped reply.
My gaze locks with Xavier’s, and I groan inwardly. Can we not all play nicely for a single day? Half a day even?
Xavier rolls his eyes. Out where, numbnuts?
Just out. If he wants me bad enough, he can come replace me.
I narrow my eyes at Xavier. Don’t repeat that.
“You do know I can hear the two of you, yes?” Alexandros claps us both on the back. “And even if I cannot hear Axl, I can guess his reply. I will replace him. Go and take care of Ophelia.”
Well, that’s an order he doesn’t have to give me twice. I’ve been desperate to take care of her since we got here last night. It’s been far too long since I’ve tasted her. Fucked her. Felt her soft lips around my—
“Enjoy yourselves, boys, but remain alert at all times.” Alexandros’s warning stops my train of thought. “Anikêtos and Elpis will need to replenish their energy stores at some point today and will not always be here to guard the house. And whilst my mind is sharp enough to detect intruders before they arrive, Giorgios has fooled me before.”
Yes sir, we reply in unison.
As soon as he’s gone, Xavier pushes me back against the counter and trails his hands down my abs. “Being bonded to the professor again makes you look so fucking hot, Kai.”
“I was already hot,” I remind him.
He chuckles wickedly. “Yeah, you were. But I really fucking want you.”
I arch an eyebrow at him. I want him too, but I enjoy pushing his buttons a little. “Have you not had your fill already today?”
He shakes his head, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “Not nearly enough. I’m hornier than a fucking mountain goat.”
“And exactly how horny are mountain goats?”
“No idea.” He shrugs. “Not as horny as me.”
Laughing, I grab the back of his neck and pull his face to mine so I can capture his lips in a bruising kiss. There’s something about Alexandros’s bite that has me all fired up too, and I can think of no better way to sate this thirst than with Xavier and Ophelia. An image of him fucking me while I’m inside her pops into my brain. It is so fucking good to be back.
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