He kissed his forehead, breathing in his scent, which now held undertones of Thorn’s. “Come on, Sweetling, wake for me. We have much to talk about.”
Ledger’s eyelids fluttered for a few seconds before he groaned and his eyes slitted open.
“So not a dream then?” he murmured in a way that suggested he hadn’t quite decided if that was good or bad.
The feeling caused a knot to form in Thorn’s gut. “No, not a dream.”
Ledger raised a hand and pushed at Thorn’s chest. “I need some… space.”
Despite getting why, it hurt. Thorn sat back on his heels, resisting the urge to rub at the center of his chest.
Ledger scooted his bottom up the sofa until he was sitting, increasing the gap between them. He ran a hand through his dishevelled hair while he stared at Thorn. His thoughts were more closed off than they’d been, and Thorn resisted prying. “Vampire. You were serious?”
Thorn had to respect how Ledger didn’t shy away from the conversation that had caused his dramatic faint. He nodded slowly, thinking about where to start. Given the mostly incorrect way modern society viewed things, anything he said was just going to sound ridiculously far fetched.
Shifters believed they were superior to those who could not shift into their animal form. It was total nonsense. Non-shifters came first. If they checked their historical facts properly, they’d know this.
Thorn should know, he’d been around to see it with his own eyes. Explaining that was impossible, so he hadn’t tried. Now he needed a way to talk about it so he didn’t make his dhampir faint again.
“Winged vampires originate from Roman times. We were described as having the bodies of crows, the wings specifically. Roman mythology then turned us into a kind of nocturnal bird that fed on human blood and flesh.”
Ledger’s eyebrows shifted up his forehead, reaching for his hairline, as his lips parted and no sound came out.
“We don’t eat human flesh, never have. But it all adds to the drama of the story told. As you can see, we aren’t birds. We also aren’t bats, but suggesting to those under a thrall that we were allowed for us to go undetected and left us free to roam as we pleased.”
More lip flapping got Thorn continuing, but with a growing sense of dread that he was making things worse rather than better. “There are vampires without wings, but they aren’t pure bloods. My kind descend from a true mated pair, a vampire and their dhampir. Like you and me.” For now, he decided to leave out the fact that a dhampir was usually female. His mate was having another freakout and Thorn found himself on his ass as Ledger pushed him out of the way to get off the sofa and stomp.
Thorn rose slowly, unhurt but concerned when Ledger went to the door without saying anything. “Where are you going?”
Ledger glanced over his shoulder, the honey color of his eyes having bled to red gave Thorn a shot of adrenaline fueled desire.
“I need… fuck knows…” He threw up his arms and spun back around. “I can’t gather my thoughts… your scent… outside… if we went outside, it would be better.”
Want you so bad it hurts!
Impossibly fast, Thorn had Ledger up against the door, his hand around his throat, the other ripping the clothes from his body.
“I want you too,” he whispered, crushing Ledger’s mouth and taking him with a wild abandon he’d resisted in the alleyway.
Small hands ran up the side of his face and into his hair, gripping tight.That’s it, take me.
Yes.
Wild and wet, he could taste Ledger’s blood at the ferociousness of the kiss. Ledger lapped at his fangs and mewled deliriously, thrusting his hips like he was fucking Thorn.
Wanna bite you. Need to taste you. Fuck, I need to be naked.
Each demand drove spikes of lust through Thorn’s control until he wasn’t sure what was happening. Everything became a blur as Thorn gave in to Ledger’s demands and felt his teeth sink into the flesh at the base of his throat. The sting of pain heightened all of Thorn’s senses and the overwhelming vortex sucked him. Reality ceased to exist beyond his dhampir.
Chapter Three
Ledger
Ledger lay prone on the Persian rug, chugging in air, cum and sweat drying on his cooling skin. He couldn’t solely blame Thorn for his current state. He still had one sock and a shoe on but other than that, he was naked and a certified mess. He ran his tongue over his teeth. His mouth held the faint tang of copperbut one thing was for sure, he had no regret. Not one fucking ounce when it came to craving the man—vampire—lying next to him.
He twisted his head to look at Thorn. His chest barely moved, otherwise he was still. His eyes were closed, and his dark hair was standing at odd angles. The wings hadn’t made an appearance this time. Why was that?
“I used them to shield us the first time,” Thorn said, answering Ledger’s unspoken question. His eyelids opened and he glanced at Ledger. “You’re disappointed.”
