Chapter 33
Eric
Ididn’t want Finn anywhere near CRAVE. I wanted him as far away from the whole shitshow that was Ambrose trying to kill us as possible. He’d been abducted once. I wouldn’t be able to handle it again.
But here he was, his fingers laced with mine as we followed Bennie up the steps to Aries’s office, his face grim. Even a week later, he was still dealing with the remnants of his concussion. The headaches were getting better, but they were still there.
Which, apparently, was completely normal. And the rational part of me knew that. But the part that saw each and every wince when he turned his head too fast or the lights were too bright or a fucking car honked outside just wanted the pain to finally be gone for good.
“I wonder what he wants,” Finn mused, running a hand through his hair.
I gave him a tight smile. “Probably nothing that couldn’t have been a simple phone call.”
But Aries didn’t do simple phone calls.
And I suspected he wanted to check in on us. No. Me. He probably wanted to subtly check in on me.
So maybe Finn’s insistence on accompanying me was a good thing. That way, Aries could see for himself that we were solid.
Finn squeezed my hand.
“Don’t let him get to you,” he whispered when we reached Aries’s office door.
I won’t, I thought, but Bennie opened the door before I could actually say it.
When we entered, Aries was standing in front of the windows, looking down at the bustling crowd beneath us. He was wearing a loose white button-up shirt with puffy sleeves paired with snug black jeans that made him look a bit like a pirate.
He turned around with an indulgent smile, holding a wineglass filled with blood.
For dramatic effect, Finn would say. He was convinced Aries was putting on a show.
I thought he was just a showy motherfucker. Older vampires tended to have a flair for the dramatic.
“Good to see you,” he said, his smile polite, but it turned warm when he zeroed in on Finn. “Ahh, how are you, little mate?”
Finn snorted. “Little mate?”
Aries shrugged. “Coming up with a nickname for you is hard.”
“Then use my fucking name. And I’m fine. I still get headaches, but after a week on the couch, I’m almost back to normal.” Finn gave me a pointed look that bordered on a glare, and I ducked my head.
Okay. I might’ve been worried about him.
But in my defense, he’d just been kidnapped, injured, and could’ve been killed. I thought it was perfectly sensible that my instincts were still a bit rampant.
And as much as Finn hated being coddled, he’d let me do all the fretting and worrying.
He thought I didn’t know that he sent me on random errands just to make me feel better, but I did.
I’d figured it out after he’d sent me grocery shopping for the third time in two days, demanding I bring him ice cream again, even though our freezer was filled to the brim.
I’d still gone along with it.
Because he’d let me in again. Because he cared about me. He cared about my feelings and had tried guiding them in a productive direction.
And of course, I’d also gone along with it because I couldn’t deny him anything. Which was another reason he was with us right now.
“That’s really good to hear.” Aries took a sip of his wine, letting out a satisfied little moan as he swallowed. “And you’d probably like to hear the newest developments regarding that nasty former clan head of yours, correct?”
Bennie nodded.
He stepped up next to Aries, posture rigid.
I didn’t like that.
In the last week, he’d slowly become his joking self again, but a tension remained. The knowledge that Ambrose was out there, probably biding his time, was fucking him up badly.
“As we discussed, I sent the remaining fledgling back to Ambrose, so he could tell him about their combined failure and issue a warning that should he not stop any and all attempts on your life right this instance, his behavior would have dire consequences.” He sighed.
“But Ambrose has always been an arrogant fool. I’m afraid he’s getting senile.
Of course, he’s quite young for that to happen, but still. He’s rotten.”
“What do you mean?”
Aries pursed his lips.
“I’m afraid he killed the fledgling.”
I shrugged.
So what?
He’d taken Finn. As far as I was concerned, he’d forfeited his life the second he’d even come up with the plan of hurting my mate.
However, Bennie and Finn both sucked in their breaths.
“Do you know for sure?” Bennie asked, voice tight.
“Yes. With absolute certainty. Ambrose sent me his head in a box.”
Fuck.
Finn flinched, his eyes widening.
“What… what does that mean?”
“It means,” Aries said, eyes flashing with real anger, “that we’re preparing for war.”
Finn pulled me into the elevator, staring vigilantly at the front door of his apartment building until the elevator doors closed.
My stomach dropped as I remembered the last time we’d been in here, the night Bennie had been attacked. The night Finn had figured out that I wasn’t just his boyfriend, but his stalker too.
The last time we’d been in here, the tension had been tangible. The anger had radiated off him, and I’d known he knew before he’d even opened his mouth. I’d known an explosion had been imminent, but I’d had no tools to defuse the bomb.
This time, the air around us held a weird electric tension too, but I knew Finn’s anger wasn’t directed at me. He was upset, yes, but not because of anything I did.
Unfortunately, that knowledge didn’t help my baser instincts. I was still worried I might lose him again. Couldn’t help but remember the way I’d stood outside his door, unable to move because the pain had been so overwhelming.
Finn squeezed my hand, and I looked up to find him smiling at me. He took a step toward me and reached out, combing his free hand through my hair.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he whispered, the gentleness in his voice soothing, helping my chest expand. “But I’m not going anywhere, okay? We’re fine. I promise. But I need to pack a few things.”
I nodded.
“I know.”
I closed my eyes, reveling in the soft caress of Finn’s fingertips brushing along my neck.
“I mean, if I’m to stay with you indefinitely, I probably even need to pack more than a few things.”
I froze.
“What?”
Had I heard him correctly?
Finn let out a teasing laugh, his fingertips dancing up my neck until they found my cheek and gently cupped it.
“Eric. You’re preparing to go to war with Ambrose’s clan.
They already tried taking me once. As much as I hate to admit it, I know I’m not safe here.
And I know you wouldn’t be able to stay away if I were to stay here.
You’d be out there on that fucking roof every night—which would put you at risk.
And I don’t want that. I love you. That means I want you safe, just like you want me safe. ”
My heart soared, the last shreds of emptiness in my chest vanishing as light filled me from within until I was about to burst.
“You love me?”
I’d heard that correctly, hadn’t I?
Finn laughed, his thumb brushing over my cheek.
“I do. It’s way too early to say that, but… we said we’d be honest with one another. So, that’s how I feel.”
“I love you too,” I whispered, brushing my lips against his. He tasted like Finn. Like home. “So, so much.”
The elevator dinged, and Finn stepped back, pulling me with him, a wide smile on his face. A smile I’d put there by loving him. The way I’d been wanting to for years and years.
“Come on. Let’s get my stuff packed, and then I want to go home.”
I followed him with a goofy smile on my face, already planning the next steps.
Finn probably wouldn’t be able to take much of his stuff today.
But we could go through his belongings and figure out what he wanted to take.
Then we could return tomorrow or the day after with Bennie in tow—hell, maybe even Aries since apparently we were allies now—and pick up the things he wanted to keep.
Then we could donate the rest, or Finn could put it into storage, or whatever he wanted.
And then… then he’d be living with me.
The thought was crazy.
A little over a week ago, I’d thought he would never talk to me again, and now he was moving into my house.
Finn unlocked the door and led me into his apartment.
The air was a bit stale, but that was to be expected.
Fortunately, there were no other scents. No one had been here while he’d been gone. No fledgling, no vampire, hell, no human. Not even a rat.
Well… fortunately, no rats.
“Do you want to, I don’t know, watch a movie while I get a suitcase ready?” Finn asked, nodding at the tablet still poised on his coffee table. His cheeks were an adorable shade of red, somewhere between a ripe strawberry and a rich vermillion. His heart was beating quickly too, and his scent…
I grinned.
Oh, he smelled all sweet and enticing, his scent intensifying, sharpening by the second as I kept staring at him.
“Maybe…” I started, allowing my vampire side to shine through, my vision slowly bleeding red, “we should give your place a proper goodbye.”
Finn’s breathing hitched. His cock plumped behind his jeans, a burst of precum soaking his underwear.
He was so on board with my plan.
I grinned, letting my fangs drop.
Fuck.
His heart skipped a beat, his chest heaving.
Was it a good idea to go full vampire on him? It was a gamble—but it paid off.
“Fuck,” Finn swore, then flew across the room, throwing himself at me at full speed. If I hadn’t been a vampire, we’d be on our way to the ER with matching concussions right about now, but I just steeled myself and caught him, my hands gripping his ass as he wrapped his legs around me.
Wait. Concussion. Yes. I needed to be careful.
So I was.
I carefully carried him over to his bed. And I didn’t throw him on the mattress, no matter how much I ached to.
I was also careful climbing on top of him, making sure I was holding most of my weight.