Shit.
What if he nicked Simon?
He tried to pull back, but Simon held him in place, kissing him like he was trying to crawl inside Charlie's skin. Like he could somehow undo everything he'd done if he just pressed close enough, held tight enough.
The taste of blood sparked on his tongue—definitely from a cut, Charlie's fang had caught Simon's lower lip. The flavor hit Charlie's system like a drug, making his whole body light up with need. He whimpered, and tried again to pull back, but Simon's grip turned almost bruising.
"Don't," Simon growled against his mouth, and then he did something that short-circuited Charlie's brain entirely—he deliberately pressed his cut lip against Charlie's fang, letting more blood well up.
Charlie made a broken sound, his hands fisting in Simon's shirt hard enough to tear the fabric. He surged forward, knocking Simon backwards onto the floor. Simon let him, pulling Charlie down with him until Charlie was sprawled on top of him, their bodies pressed together from chest to hip.
Charlie had never felt predatory before, but something about Simon's blood on his tongue and Simon's hands pulling him closer made him feel the need to feast.
"Sothisis what it takes to make you go wild," Simon said against his mouth, and he sounded happy, satisfied, like Charlie going feral was what he'd wanted all along.
But that wasn't right. Simon had wanted him to be a monster so he couldstakehim with a clear conscience. Not so Charlie could lie on top of him, fangs out, drunk on a few drops of freely given blood.
"I don't understand you." Charlie pulled back just enough to see Simon's face. "You hate vampires. You hate what I am."
"I don't hate you." Simon's hands had found their way under Charlie's shirt, fingernails dragging along his spine hard enough to leave marks. "I hate that you exist. I hate that you're good. I hate that you're making me question everything I've ever believed."
"Then why?—"
"Because I can't stake you." The admission seemed torn from Simon's throat. "I've tried to convince myself I could. Tried to make you into something worth killing. But you're not." His hands tightened on Charlie's waist, holding him in place. "You're the only truly good person I've ever met and you're a vampire and that's breaking my brain."
Charlie stared down at him, this dangerous hunter who'd killed over a hundred vampires, who was currently underneath Charlie looking destroyed by his own confession.
Charlie had wanted a lot of things since being turned. To be human again. To stop craving blood. To belong somewhere, anywhere, with someone who didn't think he was a joke.
He hadn't dared to let himself wantthis.
But now Simon's thumb was stroking along his jaw, warm and real. "I'm not leaving," Simon said firmly. "Stop thinking I'm going to leave." His hand slid down Charlie's back, steadying him, grounding him, and then stopped abruptly. "What is that?"
Charlie's mind was still foggy from the kiss, from the taste of Simon's blood on his tongue. "What's what?"
Simon's hand moved lower, and his expression shifted to something between disbelief and exasperation. "Charlie. You have a tail."
"What?" Charlie twisted, trying to see, and sure enough. There it was, a rabbit tail had sprouted just above the waistband of his sweatpants. Fluffy and white and absolutely ridiculous. "Oh my God."
He scrambled backward, face burning. "I didn't…I don't know how…"
"You partially shifted." Simon sat up. "While we were kissing."
"I'm sorry!" Charlie's hands went to cover the tail, which only made things worse because now he was actively aware of it. It twitched. "I guess I just… I got…"
"Overwhelmed?"
The word came out oddly gentle, and when Charlie looked up, Simon's expression had softened into something that wasn't quite a smile but wasn't judgment either.
"This is so embarrassing," Charlie mumbled, still trying to hide the tail that absolutely would not shift back. "I'm literally a disaster. I can't even kiss someone without turning into Bugs Bunny."
"Peter Rabbit," Simon corrected.
Charlie blinked at him. "What?"
"Bugs Bunny is a rabbit who walks upright and eats carrots. You're more Peter Rabbit. Small, nervous, gets into trouble."
"Are you seriously critiquing my rabbit form right now?"
