Chapter 9
Gideon
Gideon had a problem.
At least it wasn’t a ghost problem.
It was a sleeping problem. As in, where the fuck was he supposed to sleep each day as the sun crept above the horizon?
He slumped on the bench, wrapped in the deep shadows near student housing on the University of Hartford campus.
Hunting college students really was the best and easiest. It wasn’t difficult to find one that looked strong and healthy enough to donate a bit of blood.
And thanks to his young appearance, it wasn’t hard for him to blend in with the other students heading to the dorms or library with a backpack slung over one shoulder.
After the Variks had moved to Connecticut, Winter had even gotten him a working student ID in case campus security ever stopped him.
Unfortunately, the campus was a bit of a hike from his place and the nightclub, which meant he couldn’t hunt here on the nights he worked. Most of the time, he hired a ride-share to bring him up for a couple of hours, then hired another to take him home.
Hunting away from home also gave him a chance to think.
What was he going to do about Ryder and that condo?
A warning tingle on the nape of his neck had Gideon lurching to his feet and twisting.
His fangs descended, but he kept his lips pressed together, careful not to reveal them.
He clenched his fist on the strap of his bag, ready to run.
He knew his strengths, and fighting wasn’t one of them.
However, he was a quick runner, especially after having just fed.
He could run all the way to Phoenix and never be touched.
“Aren’t we touchy this evening?” a wonderfully familiar voice drawled.
Gideon relaxed, his fangs sliding away as Rafe stepped past some trees to stand beside the bench. Gideon skipped to Rafe and tightly hugged him.
“I haven’t seen you in weeks,” Gideon chided, giving his master an extra squeeze before releasing him.
Rafe sighed his usual extravagant sigh, as if all the troubles of the world rested on his narrow shoulders, but his little smirk accompanied it. “You know how it goes being the son of the king. There are always vampire troubles that need fixing.”
Gideon snorted. “And you hate being a prince among vampires.”
Rafe allowed himself to be led over to the bench. The older vampire sat first and draped his arm across the back.
Gideon paused and glanced about, his eyebrows puckering and lips turning down. “No Philippe?”
“Mon ange is monitoring Phoenix for a bit. We’ll be heading over to irritate—I mean, visit—Bel and his mongrels.”
With a roll of his eyes, Gideon dropped onto the bench, put his bag against the far corner, and leaned into Rafe, resting his head on his shoulder.
All his life, he’d been a touchy-feely kind of person.
He loved cuddling, snuggling, and hugs. His maker had broken him of that for a long time, but Rafe had helped him find it again.
Whenever he had a quiet moment with his protector and master, he snuggled in close.
Except now his circle of friends was growing. He reached out to touch Fox, Ethan, and even Bel’s sweet wolves more. They were also safe havens of tactile warmth and reassurance.
And now there was Ryder—though how he touched Ryder differed from everyone else.
“So, are you here for a nibble, or are you checking up on me?” Gideon inquired.
Rafe lifted his hand and pulled on a chunk of Gideon’s hair. “How dare you have so little faith in me, my golden dancer? I’m talented enough to do both.”
“Of course you are.”
“I might have had a small nosh on a lovely young man who’d just finished lifting weights,” Rafe confided as he smoothed his fingers over the spot he’d tugged, as if rubbing away the slight pain.
“Now that he’s taking a catnap, I’ve come looking for my golden dancer, only to find him staring pensively at nothing. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Gideon replied too quickly.
“Uh-huh. You’ve taken care of your ghost issue?”
Of course Rafe knew. The vampire had ways of finding out everyone’s secrets. Gideon just went with it and nodded. “No more ghosts. Or at least no more ghosts making noises in my place, or even Ryder’s. Sky did an amazing job.”
Rafe made a not-happy grunt. “I’ve asked Winter to keep an eye on that coven of witches. I don’t trust necromancers.”
Gideon twisted on the bench and poked Rafe hard enough in the stomach to make him curl up. “No. Sky is amazing. He’s not a threat to vampires. And he’s the only necromancer in the coven. You can’t be grumpy with all the witches because of one necromancer. Besides, you like Fox and Zelda.”
“Because I can trust Fox and Zelda,” Rafe said, wrapping his hand around Gideon’s. “Sky’s not a threat to us now, but he could be.”
Gideon pulled his hand free. “People could say the same about vampires. Didn’t we both bite people tonight?”
Rafe sighed and placed his hand on the side of Gideon’s head. He pulled him in closer and pressed a kiss to the top. “You’re right. I’m being paranoid. We’ve heard whispers of new vampires, possibly even a new clan, in the area. It’s put Father and Marcus on edge.”
Gideon sat up straight. “Do you think they’re from the European Ministry?”
Which raised a darker question: were they looking at the start of a vampire war?
“I don’t know. Not one person has given a description of the newcomers. It’s simply a vague feeling.”
A chill ran down Gideon’s spine and settled low in the pit of his stomach, cooling him in ways the cold winter air couldn’t. It wasn’t often he saw Rafe so serious. When it happened, it was never a good sign.
Rafe suddenly shook his head as if trying to clear his mind of these thoughts and forced a smile on his lips.
“But it leaves me all the more relieved that you’ve gotten so close to Ryder. Tell me, have I lost my bet with Philippe?”
For a second, Gideon could only blink at the sharpness of Rafe’s subject change. “Bet?”
“I said that it would take you at least a year to move into Ryder’s place. Philippe gave you three months. You and Ryder have been living in the building for just under a month. What’s the score?”
Gideon groaned and flopped back against the vampire, throwing his hands up in the air. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Seduce him,” Rafe answered immediately.
Gideon twisted a bit to glare up at his master. “That will not help.”
“You’d be surprised at the number of problems sex solves.”
With a shake of his head, Gideon settled on Rafe.
“Sex is not the problem. We’re very good at sex.
It’s the living arrangement that’s the issue.
I made such a big deal about living alone and being independent.
I feel like such an idiot now about wanting to live with Ryder.
Plus, you went to all that trouble of remodeling the building so there are two separate living spaces.
All the work and trouble, and I want to chuck it all in after a month. I’m such an idiot.”
Rafe shook under him. As Gideon was sitting up, Rafe tipped his head back, letting out an explosion of deep laughter. His sweet, annoying master wrapped his arms around him from behind and held him tight, pressing his cheek to the top of his head.
“My adorable Gideon. This is your problem?” That question was lost to another round of laughter.
“Rafe—”
“Gideon, move in with him!” Rafe gave him a shake.
“Or have Ryder move in with you. Either way, Ryder would be over the fucking moon. Who cares about the remodeling and all that other shit? It’s not important.
What everyone else thinks doesn’t matter.
The only thing that matters is your happiness and Ryder’s happiness.
One day I’ll sell the building and make all the money I put into it and more. ”
Living together would make things easier.
It had been two weeks since Sky had helped Elizabeth on to the underworld, and each night Gideon or Ryder made up a new excuse for why they had to sleep in the same bed.
The problem was that Gideon was running out of excuses, and they were becoming very weird and utterly unbelievable.
“But should I move to Ryder’s place? Should he move up to mine?”
Rafe shrugged. “You’ll have to talk to him about that. Both of you can stay where you are and spread your things between the two condos for all I care.”
“But what if another vampire needs a place to live? Someone who works at Phoenix or a friend of the Variks?”
Rafe kissed the top of his head while chuckling. “Don’t worry about that. We’ll cross that bridge later if we must. You figure out you and Ryder first.”
“But—”
“No buts, except for your cute one,” Rafe murmured.
“Really, Gideon. You’re looking for excuses now.
We might be vampires and have centuries ahead of us, but wouldn’t you rather spend that time with the person who owns your heart?
There is hardly a minute that ticks by that I don’t think of Philippe, that I don’t long for him.
It doesn’t matter if we have an eternity ahead of us. An hour away from him is too long.”
Gideon sat up and stared at Rafe, but Ryder filled his mind.
He missed him. They’d been apart for barely an hour, but he missed him.
He wanted to tell him about his successful hunt, about the boy and girl he saw bickering as they crossed the quad, and about running into Rafe.
He wanted to crawl into Ryder’s arms and snuggle close, covering himself in Ryder’s scent and no one else’s.
Grabbing his bag, Gideon jumped to his feet and turned to face Rafe with a smirk. “Do you mind dropping me off at my place on your way home?”
Rafe reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys. “I thought you might ask that. Let’s roll.”
Ryder didn’t even give him the chance to knock when he returned to their building. As soon as he stepped into the hall, Ryder’s door opened and the vampire stuck his head out, concern written in the lines on his handsome face.