He frantically looked around for something.
The something was his coat in my lap. He pulled out his phone and immediately called his friend.
Now it was on me to place a hand on his leg, squeezing lightly in support of him. He’d talked about a bond between them, but I hadn’t imagined it to be like this. That he’d actually be able to feel if something was wrong with him. I’d thought it was more a figure of speech. Like siblings sharing a bond.
Apparently not.
“Voicemail,” Eric growled, his eyes turning red again.
I gave his thigh a squeeze, subtly trying to get his attention.
Eric looked at me.
I nodded at him.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and grabbed my hand. His was cold, which, as I’d learned from a phone call yesterday, was normal. Since vampires were technically dead, they didn’t really produce body heat the way humans did.
At the same time, they were also not poikilothermic—and no, they didn’t freeze and fall out of trees like iguanas in Florida did in freezing temperatures. And apparently it was rude to even ask that.
I thought it was a logical question.
However, apparentlylogicaldidn’t always apply to vampires.
“Call him again,” I said, nodding at him.
He clutched my hand like a vise, then raised his cell again.
“He’s okay,” he whispered, though the driver was utterly unaware of anything that was going on. He was thoroughlydistracted by the music blaring in his ears. Because the rock music I’d been listening to? Yeah, not coming from the car’s speakers, but from that guy’s earbuds. “Something happened. Bennie was… shocked. And hurt. But he’s feeling better.”
I didn’t know whether he was relaying what he’d felt or trying to calm himself or me, but just a few seconds later, his cell started ringing.
Eric didn’t even look at the phone before answering.
“What the fuck happened?” he asked, his hand squeezing mine to the point of pain.
I couldn’t hear what Bennie was saying, but I did hear Eric’smhms,ahhs, andyeses. And I did see that the tension in his body never faded. It only seemed to grow, his jaw hardening, eyes turning abysmally cold.
Finally, he hung up and looked at me.
“The fledgling attacked Bennie,” he said, eyes blazing over for a second.
I checked the rearview mirror, but the driver wasn’t looking our way.
“He’ll meet us at CRAVE, just like we planned. I’m sorry, but I think our date just turned into something different. We’ll have to talk to Aries. If you’d rather stay out of it, I can get you an Uber home.”
“Eric.” I gave him a pointed look and caressed the back of his hand to get him to lighten his hold on me. “I’m not going to abandon you. We’re boyfriends. I’m gonna be there and support you and Bennie as best I can.”
Going home.
Pah.
As if I’d even consider that.
Even though his face was laced with worry, Eric managed a small but sincere smile.
“Thank you,” he said.
I waved my hand.
