Chapter 4
Severin
I whimpered. I bloody whimpered.
Who was I?
The scent of Felix was so alluring I had to get closer, and when I did. Gods. The best smell ever overrode his blood. Arousal. I did not need to know how badly I affected him. Now it would be that much harder to keep my distance from him.
Closing my eyes, I forced myself to step away from him, distancing myself enough to breathe in air that was not filled with the best smelling blood I had ever smelled, or the arousal that leaked out of Felix like a faucet.
“I um, I will leave you to it,” I rasped, my tone way too needy for my liking.
I did not wait for his response, just dashed out of the room and back to my private bedroom to breathe in the clean and boring air.
When I had found my center, I mentally slapped myself.
What if Felix felt uncomfortable by my nearness?
Hell, I had sniffed his throat, like I had some kind of right to do so.
I had to hope his sweet smell of arousal meant he would not leave the castle, but remain with me. Where he now belonged.
No human had ever smelled that enticing before.
I had never even found them appealing. Only the need for survival had forced me to deal with them.
But Felix was different. I had read his blood was highly rated in delicious taste, but this was otherworldly.
Had others not been as fond of his blood as I had become just from the scent, I would have believed him to be my fated.
But as it was, his blood was not only pleasant to me, it was for others, too.
So he was not meant for me. Even if a part of me felt like he was.
Vampires found their fated by tasting their blood, it would cause both the vampire and the fated to become aroused during feedings, something only fated pairs could share.
I found myself looking forward to tomorrow where I would taste Felix for the first time.
Even if a part of me would be disappointed to find he was not meant for me.
Tracing my tongue over my left fang, I breathed through the ache in them. They wanted blood. And more importantly, Felix’s blood. But not just that, they ached to pierce his neck, to sink into the delicious skin I had the pleasure of sniffing just a few minutes ago.
I needed a distraction before—against my better judgement—I would prowl my way back to Felix.
Grabbing my phone, I dialed Peter.
“Is he dead?” he greeted, his voice teasing.
I sighed, already regretting calling him. “No. But I might still be in trouble.”
That seemed to surprise the teasing out of him. “How so, brother?”
This was both humiliating and way too personal for how I normally spoke with Peter.
We came from a time where emotions were not addressed.
Where men had to be men. But I knew Peter would have my best interests at heart.
And even with his teasing personality, he was, and always would be, my best friend.
“His scent affects me,” I admitted.
“His scent? Well, I should hope so. He is one of the most expensive feeders the company has.”
I groaned. “I was aroused, Peter.”
“Oh.” The blatant surprise in his tone had me laughing. This was all so confusing.
“Yeah, oh. I have not even tasted his blood, yet I find myself aching for him. In more ways than for his blood alone.”
“Have you not felt this before now?” he questioned.
“Have you?” I enquired back. This was not the norm for me. Far from it. But if it was for Peter, then perhaps Felix truly was not meant for me.
He sighed. “No, I cannot say that I have. How does he feel about you?” I knew he meant if I smelled fear or arousal from him, the only two emotions us vampires could scent on someone. The predator in us needed to know only those two scents.
“Aroused,” I whispered, not truly daring to speak such things aloud. Not that I feared Felix would hear them, I just simply was not used to speaking so lewdly with my brother.
“Then maybe you need to take a break for the rest of the day. Come tomorrow, you will feed and then you will know.”
That sounded easy enough. “I can do that.”
“Where is he now?”
“He is in the kitchen, eating some dinner. Why?”
“Because I still need to grab the contract after he has signed it. Might as well be today.”
“Do you not trust me alone with him?” I asked, my tone harsher than normal.
“I do. I simply wish to help you out, brother. Let me deal with the signature and tell him goodnight. You can see him tomorrow.”
I hated to admit he was right, even if it was a rare occurrence. “Fine,” I relented. “I will take a bath and get some rest.”
“I will be there in ten minutes,” he replied, hanging up before I could bid him farewell.
He had his own castle on the other end of town.
Both of us had to be near one another, but still needed our space.
It came in handy living so close, but I had to admit to myself that I would prefer we shared a house.
We had done so for many centuries, it only changed when I became less enthusiastic about life in general, or as Peter had called it, depressed.
Locking my bedroom door, I retreated to my bathroom, thinking over that word again, depressed.
I knew Peter spoke the truth. I had lost the simple joy of living, and with immortality cursing me to never know the end, it made me feel…
stagnant. Felix was the first ray of light I had seen in centuries.
Maybe fate had sent him here to bring back life to my dead heart. One could hope.
With the tub at the perfect water level, I gingerly stepped into the water and breathed in the lavender soap I loved. It reminded me of my mother, Anna. She had been the best mother a child could hope for. If only she had survived the transition.
I leaned back and closed my eyes. Hoping that Felix’s blood would be everything I hoped it would. And if a fated bond snapped into place, then I would welcome it with open arms.