Chapter 1
Eric
What washedoing here?
I double-checked to make sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me, but even in the dim light of the club, it was obviously him. I’d recognize his slightly crooked nose anywhere. His cheekbones sharp enough to slice through glass. The tilted smile that made him appear as if he was always smirking rather than full-on smiling. Hell, I could even make out the small scar that split his left eyebrow.
The only thing I couldn’t make out was his scent—there were just too many different smells stacked on top of each other. Sweat, beer, perfume, deodorant, hints of vomit and urine, and above it all, the rich, metallic scent of blood. It filled the air, pulsing just like it pulsed through the veins of the humans writhing on the dance floor. Enticing me, drawing me in.
My gums ached as need pooled low in my gut.
Not arousal, buthunger.
Hunger for the humans.
Hunger for the blood that could be mine within less than the blink of an eye.
But I didn’t want just anyone’s blood. I didn’t want to taste just anyone.
I wantedhim.
Have wanted him for the past four years, ever since I first got a glimpse of him at freshman orientation.
“You okay?” Bennie asked, a feral grin on his face. The blue lighting of the club illuminated parts of his face while casting deep shadows over other parts. His eyes gleamed, as did his teeth. He looked like a predator on the hunt.
And he was.
Just like me.
“Yeah.”
Taking my eyes offhimwas hard. Everything inside me rebelled against it. There was so much that could happen if I didn’t watch him. This wasnota safe environment for him. He didn’t know what he was in for.
Drunk humans were the least of his problems. Oh no, there were things far worse lying in wait, biding their time until the perfect moment presented itself…
“Found a snack for the night already?” Bennie asked, following my gaze. His eyes zeroed in onhim, a hungry want flickering over his face.
I snarled, my hands balling into fists.
“He’s not a snack. Donottouch him.”
The “or we’ll have a problem” part went unspoken. The mere thought of Bennie touching him made me see red. Literally. The anger crept in, a vicious feeling pumping through my veins, overriding every reason.
“Okay, okay.” Bennie raised his hands in a placating manner, sensing the turmoil within me. “Chillax, dude. There are hundreds of snacks freely available, and I have zero desire to behave like a jealous toddler and try to steal what’s yours.”
His words calmed me down a little, but they didn’t help with the worry and anger simmering below the surface. What was he doing here? He lived on the other side of town, far away from this dirty, grungy place. He had no business being here, though Bennie was the least of my worries. He was a friend, a brother.
Oh, I’d hated him at first, had blamed him for what had happened. But after months of him dealing with my anger, I reluctantly had to admit that it had been nothing more than an accident. A sucky situation, and a guy trying to right what went wrong.
But there were others. Other vampires, ones who wouldn’t skip having a bite of him just because I said not to.
“You want to dance with him? Have a little fun in the bathroom before you take him out back?” Bennie asked, waggling his eyebrows at me.
“He isnota snack,” I repeated. I had no intention of touching him. He didn’t belong in this world. He belonged firmly in the human world. He had no business seeing the ugliness that lay beneath, like the vampires and the werewolf packs fighting each other over the ever-decreasing land available.
His only concern should be which of his middle schoolers was spreading mean rumors about whom.
Bennie shrugged, his eyes flickering rapidly. He was older than I was, and way faster at clocking other vampires.
