“Ody! I’m gonna pee!” she shouted as he carried her toward the room’s exit.
The sound of the door opening and closing reached Mano’s ears. Then everything went quiet.
He slowly emerged from the bathroom, phone still in hand, and cracked the door open. After making sure the hallway was clear, he slipped out and headed quickly to his own room.
“Ody! What are you doing? Put me down!” she protested as he carried her toward the stairs. “Are you crazy?”
“I just like messing with you,” he teased, giving her nose a playful squeeze.
“Yeah, but if I peed on you, you’d be the one screaming,” she said with a pout, and Ody chuckled.
As she turned back toward the room, Ody followed, glancing around cautiously.He must’ve gotten the chance to leave, right...?
Anna opened the door with her key card and stepped inside. Ody followed her. He watched as she entered the bathroom. Only then did he finally exhale.
His entire body loosened at once, the tension draining out of him as he dropped back onto the bed. For a moment he just stared at the ceiling.Jesus… that was close. If Anna had walked in a minute earlier…He groaned and dragged a hand through his hair, his mind flashing back to Mano pressed against the wall, the way he’d looked beneath him on the bed.
Yeah. That could’ve ended very badly.
“Dude, we thought you were dead. How long did you sleep?” Steve asked when they arrived at the pool.
“Has anyone seen Mano?” Ranya asked.
Ody felt his breath catch. “Uh… no,” he said, trying to sound casual. “He didn’t come?”
“I texted him, but…”
“He didn’t come to wake you, huh?” Antony asked with a smile.
“No.” Ody leaned back in the chair, trying to look relaxed, but his fingers kept tapping against the armrest.
“Come on. When are you two going to make up?” he added.
Ody shrugged, avoiding everyone’s eyes.
“I’ll go check on him,” Ranya said, standing up.
Ody watched her leave, a tight knot forming in his stomach.
When she entered the room, she found him lying on the bed. “Hey, babe. Aren’t you coming to the pool?”
“Do I have to?” Mano muttered without looking at her. “We’ll be going for a night swim soon anyway.”
Ranya frowned and leaned against the doorframe. “So what? You’re just going to stay here by yourself?”
“I’ll stay and watch some videos until we leave.”
“Ugh, do whatever you want,” she sighed, rolling her eyes. “I’m heading back.”
The door closed behind her and silence filled the room again. Mano stared at the ceiling as Ody’s bold words replayed in his mind. His face slowly flushed. But he couldn’t stop thinking about why he hadn’t pushed him away. Or why he had let Ody treat him like that. Pin him against the wall. Grab his wrists. Bite his neck…The neck!
He shot upright and rushed to the bathroom mirror. Tilting his head, he inspected the spot where Ody had bitten him,searching for any mark.What the hell did I get myself into with this vampire...
His gaze lingered on his reflection as his thoughts drifted back to Ody’s kisses. To the way his hands had moved down his body.
“I see you’re hard for me.”
He let out a heavy sigh, closing his eyes. His hand moved slowly over the front of his sweats, the memory of Ody’s breath against his ear making him tense.
