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But if they left, who was going to protect their adorable scientist?
They couldn’t leave him alone. It wasn’t safe. He and Wyatt could protect him all hours, day and night.
“You’re not leaving,” Bel whispered.
River released the breath he hadn’t realized had become trapped in his lungs and leaned heavily against Bel. The vampire wrapped his arms around River, pulling him in even tighter. “You can read thoughts now?”
“Just emotions.”
“Yes, what was that about?” Wyatt chimed. He hit the signal before turning onto Bel’s lonely street. There were only a couple of houses on the block, and they were all widely spaced apart and blocked from view thanks to all the trees.
Bel stiffened, so River grabbed one of his hands and started to caress his palm and fingers, trying to massage away the tension.
“I really can’t read your thoughts, at least not as humans,” Bel answered. His tone lacked its usual enthusiasm and happy-go-lucky eagerness, and it cut River deeper than he’d expected. “It’s the same as what we talked about in the lab last month. I can feel your emotions, and the longer I’m around you both, the stronger the connection is getting. It’s like an echo of what you’re feeling. Happy, sad, guilty, angry, worried. It’s quite similar to the emotions I can feel from Rafe, but that’s our weird twin connection. We had that even when we were humans.”
“And when we’re wolves?” River asked. He didn’t mind that Bel could feel his emotions. He loved that Bel had a connection to him and Wyatt in some way. But if he knew what they felt, didn’t that include their desire for him? Both he and Wyatt had smelled the same lust on Bel, could practically lick it off his skin like a frosted sugar coating. Why was he doing nothing about it?
“That’s…that’s more complicated.” Bel turned his hand over, giving complete access to River. He relaxed and rested his head against the werewolf’s. “Most animals tend to think in images or needs. Food. Safety. Shelter. With you and Wyatt, it’s a tangle. The thoughts don’t come through as clear because there are emotions tied up with them and then, I’m guessing your thoughts are still human even while in wolf form. And human thoughts are always more complicated. Can you understand me when I’m using my powers?”
“Oh, yes. It’s very clear,” River said.
“Then why the hell didn’t you listen to me that night, after the fight with the MacPherson clan, when I was trying to get you to leave?”
River tried not to laugh at Bel’s indignant tone, but he knew the man could feel his amusement.
“We were waiting to see if you’d command us,” Wyatt replied. “It’s like I said that first night. You don’t command or force your will. Your touch, it’s gentle and nuanced. We want to follow you, want to please you.”
“Oh…but why did you listen to Rafe and that stupid shooing motion of his?”
River didn’t bother swallowing his laughter that time. Rafe had looked like an idiot.
Wyatt turned the car into Bel’s driveway and tapped the door remote so he could pull the vehicle into the open spot in the three-car garage. “We thought it would be easier to speak to you alone, so we left.”
Bel snorted. “Rafe has given me so much shit since that day, claiming to be a great wolf whisperer.”
“We could talk to him if you want,” River suggested.
The hand River had been touching captured his and squeezed. “There’s no need. Rafe was just being an ass. It’s what he’s good at.” The words were wrapped in equal parts affection and frustration.
Wyatt threw the car into park and turned off the engine. “He has every right to be angry with us.”
“Maybe. I just know if it was Philippe he was protecting, he’d have done the same thing.”
“Give him some time,” River added. It was a shame they were at the house. He was still wrapped in Bel’s arms, and the vampire was feeling pleasantly relaxed, if a little sad. Part of him wanted to tell Wyatt to back up and drive around for another thirty minutes.
But it would be best if they went inside, made something to eat, and tried to get their minds off the debacle at Marcus’s house. With a little time and space, maybe they’d be able to come up with a new solution to this problem.
“I have promised to protect you both, and I’m keeping that promise. Whether you are with me one more night or a thousand nights,” Bel announced in a low but firm voice.
The keys jingled in Wyatt’s hand before he twisted around to look at them. “I believe you. But we need to find an answer that doesn’t increase the danger to your family.”
Bel released River and opened his door. “Maybe. But even if you and River weren’t staying with me, I still believe the Variks would be the main target of this power-hungry vampire.” He climbed out and stood aside as River followed behind him. His worried expression softened as River rose out of the car. “Trust me, I would understand if you wanted to look for somewhere safer to live. While I’m promising to protect you, I’m sure you were only thinking of a werewolf threat. Not the insanity that the vampires are trying to bring down on us.”
