Chapter 14
Eli stared at the windmill. There were no sails, but it was an old windmill. "You live here?" He turned to Thano.
"Yes. The main room is at the bottom, and the bedroom is on the second floor."
It was built in light stone, the roof or cap or whatever made from some black metal, if Eli was to guess. There were several windows randomly placed around the round walls.
"It's...eh...nice." He had no idea how large windmills were, but he'd imagined them to be bigger.
Thano watched him with an expressionless face.
"I have netting!" Humbert held up a roll of wire mesh. "It was by one of the wolves' dens."
Thano nodded. If they'd left it behind, they could use it.
"It will work for the chickens, but not the rabbits. They're escape artists."
Humbert gave him a disappointed look, and Eli rubbed his neck. Perhaps he simply should let the rabbits out. They'd survive in the wild, right?
"Can we build a frame? Would it keep them in?" Romeo dumped a few planks on the ground.
"Maybe. They're able to dig, but with a frame, they'll at least not bite through the mesh." Eli watched as Romeo stood close to Humbert and gestured with his hands as he explained his idea. Excitement was shining in Humbert's eyes, and Romeo grinned at him as he gestured around.
"They'll fix it."
"Huh?" Eli turned his attention to Thano.
"They'll build something for the animals. Humbert built Romeo's chicken coop. Let's go inside." Thano grabbed two of his bags and walked toward the door. Eli looked at Romeo and Humbert, but they were walking away. With a deep breath, he grabbed his remaining things and followed Thano.
They stepped right into a round room. Eli toed off his shoes and walked farther in.
The walls were white. To the right was a kitchen on a straight wall cutting off part of the circular space.
There was a four-seat table, and to the right, a couch and a coffee table.
There were no bookshelves and nothing on the walls.
It had to be hard to decorate when they were curved.
If vampires cared about decorating at all.
Across the open space, there was a spiral stair leading up to the second floor.
"I'll make room for your clothes in the closet." Thano gestured at the bags. "Which has clothes?"
Eli grabbed the two he'd filled with clothes and walked closer to Thano.
He was tense, the air was suffocating, and he didn't know how to act.
Thano appeared to be annoyed. Perhaps he hadn't meant for Eli to come here.
Maybe he'd only wanted to get him out of Last Hope for the day, not for a prolonged stay.
"Maybe I should go back."
Thano stilled. "Go back? To Romeo's?"
"What? No, to Last Hope." Why would he go to Romeo's? Did he want him to go to Romeo's? "I never meant to impose. It all happened so fast, and I only did what Alice told me to, but--"
Thano was in front of him in a blink of an eye. "Last Hope isn't safe."
"But this is your home. I shouldn't be here. I..." He took a step back. Hell, he'd brought his animals. It wasn't something someone would do if they were coming for a short visit. People were outside building coops and pens. He'd gone to the guy who'd bitten him. What the hell was wrong with him?
"Eli." Thano took his hand, and when Eli tried to remove it, he tightened his hold. "Eli?"
"Shit." His heart was banging hard. This was stupid. His home was in Last Hope. He'd given the shop key to Elijah as if he wouldn't be back. What the hell had he been thinking?
"Eli." Thano's voice was harsh, and Eli looked at him.
"You can't go back to Last Hope. Not right now at least."
"Why? I've been there all my life."
Thano gently shook his hand. "Romeo says it isn't safe for you.
People know you're in contact with residents of The Moonlight Ranch.
They've seen you talk to both Draven and Ciar many times, they've seen you with Romeo.
You got a warning because there were crows in your shop. They shot a crow outside your shop."
Eli had a hard time breathing. "Do you know if it was a crow or a...crow." His voice turned into a whisper.
"No one is missing, so unless it was a crow visiting from another territory--"
"Crows are visiting?"
Thano sighed. "Not as far as we know, but crows are...
not like other species. They're not always as concerned with rules as they should be, and they don't always think things through.
Though there are rarely any conflicts among crows.
They might peck each other when they're fighting about something shiny, but I don't know of a single war started due to crows. "
"Unless it's humans shooting crows."
Thano didn't move a muscle. "Then there will be a war."
Eli took a deep breath. "Still. I can't stay here. This is your home. I can't just move in."
"Of course you can, and you will."
Eli stared at him. "What?"
"You heard me."
"Thano."
"No, it's decided."
Eli huffed. "You're not the boss of me."
"Actually--" Thano grinned, sharp teeth showing. "--I am. You're at The Moonlight Ranch. I'm the leader. I'm saying you're staying, and I'm telling you to get your ass upstairs."
Eli gaped at him.
"Chop, chop." Thano let go of his hand and punctuated his words with two fast claps.
Eli snorted but grabbed his bags anew and started up the stairs.
* * * *
Thano walked behind Eli up the stairs. He needed to fix some food. Eli most likely hadn't eaten since the sloppy eggs Thano had made him this morning, but he didn't have anything in his kitchen other than baking powder.
"Did you bring any food?"
Eli had stopped at the top of the stairs and was staring at Thano's bedroom.
It was square. The wolves had built it for him many years ago.
They'd made the walls straight and had installed shelves for clothes and space for his suits and shoes with sliding mirror doors he could close around them.
The bed was big enough for two, and he had a few shelves with items he'd picked up over the years.
The wolves leaving the ranch had weakened them. They had no one with good building skills now, and no one who could get hold of materials. On the other hand, they had no one who challenged his every decision, so it was calmer. Less friction.
"This is...eh...nice."
Thano looked around the room. What didn't he like? "What would you have wanted to be different?"
Eli turned to look at him. "Nothing. It's light and airy, neat and...eh...I can sleep on the couch downstairs."
Thano stared. He didn't want to sleep next to Thano? An invisible hand closed around his heart. "What's wrong with the bed?"
"Nothing." Eli looked at the ceiling, then at the mirrors on the closet doors.
In one swift motion, Thano placed his palm between Eli's shoulder blades and pushed. He took a stumbling step forward, and Thano pushed again. When Eli dropped the bags on the floor, Thano shoved him toward the bed. He was careful not to hurt him, but Eli's strength was nothing compared to his.
When Eli hit the mattress face first, Thano climbed over him and straddled his back. "Don't you want to be with me?"
Eli turned his head to the side, a stunned expression on his face, but he didn't struggle.
"Are you afraid I'll bite you again? I didn't mean to, I...I was hungry, and you were so beautiful."
Eli blinked as if he wasn't sure he'd heard Thano right.
"I won't do it again." His stomach flipped as he spoke the words. He wanted to do it again. Over and over again. He wanted to rip Eli's clothes off and find the best spot, find all the spots he could sink his fangs into. He wanted him to moan and shiver in pleasure as he swallowed him down.
He forced his thoughts away from the taste of Eli's blood. "Did you bring any food?"
"Flour, eggs, and some rolled oats. I didn't have much else. I never got the butter and milk from the store. Perhaps I should have when I got the chickens."
Thano partly slid off him so he was resting most of his weight on the mattress, his nose only inches from Eli's. "You brought the chickens from the shop?"
"No, I gave them to Elijah Lucas."
"Who?"
"He has the hotel."
"Ah, yes, the one with the phone. Conal worries about him."
Eli nodded. "Yeah. He has no one, and I..." He pressed his lips together.
"You what?"
"Think he's like Romeo and me."
There was no resemblance between Romeo and Eli. Eli was tall and broad-shouldered, Romeo was not. Romeo was dark-haired, dark-eyed, and clean-shaven. Eli was not like him. "You're not like Romeo."
"Elijah doesn't have a wife or a family, and I don't think he'll ever want a wife. Not wanting a wife can be dangerous in a place like Last Hope."
"He wants you for his mate?" Thano couldn't explain the emotion filling his chest, but it made his fangs throb.
Eli snorted. "It would surprise me a great deal if he did. If he did, I'd assume it was because I was the only option." Eli's eyes grew distant. "I don't think he's attracted to me, but I worry about him." He blew out a breath. "Elijah is book-smart--"
"He likes books? He should visit Romeo then." Yes, it was better if he visited Romeo than Eli.
"I think he'd love books if he ever got to see them.
My mother was a teacher, and she always said Elijah would've been something special if he'd been born in another time.
" Eli sighed. "But Last Hope is not a place where a pretty, fine-limbed man, with hands moving a bit too much when he talks is safe.
He's never told me he's queer, I've only always assumed. I hope for his sake no one else does."
Thano wanted to snarl. This again. Romeo always talked about how Ciar wasn't allowed to touch him when they went into Last Hope.
"I'll feed you."
Eli's eyes widen. "You'll do what now?"
"Should I slaughter one of the rabbits? I don't have any meat."
"What? No!"
Frowning, Thano studied his eyes. "You don't keep them for meat?"
"I do, but I'm waiting for them to multiply more. I'm fine. I don't need to eat yet."