But Jeremy’s eyes were still wet, the corners of his mouth seemed ready to tug upward into a smile, and his gaze kept drifting toward the living room. I understood the sentimentexactly. After so long alone, Nicolas had his brother back. And, I supposed, so did Thierry.
I had sensed the tidal wave of emotion that had crashed over my vampire at seeing his brother—the realization that they were going to be brothers again, that he wanted to try, at least. There was no sense pretending I hadn’t felt all of that from him.
Somehow, I was picking up on Nicolas’s emotions. It didn’t make rational sense, but the rules of reality as I had always known them had flown out the window the day I met him. And though it was confusing and unsettling, I wouldn’t have traded it for anything.
“I’m guessing Nicolas is your first experience with the supernatural?”
“Mostly,” I said. “But I guess I’ve had memories my entire life of being someone else. I thought they were just weird dreams…”
Jeremy’s gaze snapped to mine, and his brows rose. “Wait. You’re an old soul?”
“Jury’s out on that,” I said with a shrug. “That’s what Nicolas thinks.”
“How was he when you guys first met?” Jeremy asked, frowning. “How did you get past all the killing?”
“I didn’t know about it at first. I just found out recently.”
“How long have you two been together?”
“About two months, I guess.”
“That tracks,” Jeremy said thoughtfully. “That’s about when Thierry and I first met.”
“Oh,” I said lamely. “It seemed like it had been longer.”
But wait—how were those things connected? Why should it track that Nicolas and I had met around the same time Thierry and Jeremy had?
“We’re blood-bonded,” Jeremy replied, before I could ask the question I really wanted to know. “So basically, we’re in eachother’s heads all the time.” His lips split into a grin. “It speeds up the getting-to-know-you process.”
His strange words drove my questions out of my mind. Instead, I asked, “What’s a blood bond?”
Jeremy’s smile faltered and then vanished. “Wait—what, exactly, has Nicolas told you?”
I frowned toward the living room. “Not enough, apparently.”
“Have you shared blood with him?”
I thought back to Eric’s attack. Nicolas had given me his blood to save my life.
“He’s given me his blood,” I said. “I was dying.”
“I know the feeling,” Jeremy replied with a nod. “Vampire attack?”
“Ex-boyfriend.”
“Must have been one hell of a breakup. And now you’re sensing Nicolas’s thoughts and emotions?”
I stared at him, surprise tearing through me. “How could you know that? I haven’t said anything yet. I thought I was going crazy. Or maybe I was imagining it.”
“The same thing happened to me after the first time Thierry saved my life. I was picking up on his thoughts and feelings loud and clear, even when I wasn’t trying to. Of course, that got way stronger when we sealed the bond.”
“The bond,” I repeated, staring at him.
“Yeah,” Jeremy said, abruptly uncomfortable. “You know what? I’ve got a big mouth. I ought to let Nicolas explain it to you. It’s probably not my place.”
I considered pushing him to say more, but he was right—I wanted to hear this from Nicolas, not Jeremy.
“It’s weird he hasn’t explained the rules to you,” Jeremy said, frowning. “Maybe his humanity isn’t fully back yet or something.”
