He was about the size an average human man, so it seemed safe to assume he was the turned vampire Nolan was mated to. I was pretty sure Maverick had said his name was Oren.
A tear escaped down my cheek, and Maverick eased me into one of the chairs. He sat down close to me, draping his arm over my shoulders. “The Alpha’s mate is just the Alpha’s mate.”
“Sounds sexist,” I murmured, silently wiping away another tear.
“The Alpha’s mate is male as often as female,” he countered. “Not sexist.”
“And technically, the pack is calling you the Alpha’s Vampire, so it’s a moot point for you anyway,” Nolan said.
“That might be even worse. Maybe I should send a strongly worded message to everyone.Please just call me Bloom.”
“Don’t let Maverick catch you calling me anything but Bloom or you might lose your headwould be a lot more effective,” the Alpha put in
“Well, I don’t want to scare them.”
“Werewolves aren’t often scared by emails. Even the strongly worded kind.”
The men were trying to keep the mood light, and I appreciated it. Even if it didn’t really work.
“What’s he saying to her?” I asked.
Rhone hit a button on the wall, turning the sound on momentarily.
“The bloodlust never fades. You can sate it temporarily, but you’ll never function the way a born vampire does. Vampirism is a part of them. It’s an illness for you.”
Rhone hit the button again, shutting off the conversation.
The daggers Maverick was glaring at him told me my Alpha didn’t want me hearing the worst of it. I smacked his arm lightly, and earned a rumbly sigh.
I wiped away a few more tears. “How long has she been lucid?”
“Gets better every time,” Rhone said. “Only five minutes the first time I fed her. Ten the second. Twenty the third. We’re nearing an hour, this time.”
My eyes widened, and I looked at Rhone. “You’ve let her bite you that many times?”
“It’s the most effective way to stabilize a turned vampire,” Nolan replied for him. “When they start losing control, you just cluster feed them. Not a big deal for a werewolf.”
“It seems like a big deal.” I dried my face with my sleeves.
Nolan shook his head. “They only take a little blood every time. It’s not bad. Mostly just some wrestling. Maybe some fucking. It’s fun, when you’re mated to them.”
My eyes flicked to Rhone.
He wasn’t mated to her. They hated each other. So why had he volunteered to feed her?
His expression didn’t leave my best friend, and his shoulders were tight.
Maybe he was worried she would lose control again.
“Don’t feel bad for Rhone.” Nolan’s scent changed slightly. Something about it relaxed my shoulders a little. Rhone’s, too. “Like I said, it’s fun.”
“He doesn’t even like her,” I pointed out.
“I can pin her down in a fraction of a second, and she can feed from me almost as fast. It’s fine,” Rhone said, still not looking my way.
“Our werewolves are curious about vampires. I can think of about three dozen in the pack just off the top of my head who would jump at the chance to try feeding a turned vampire,” Nolan said. “I’ve had to knock the sense into a few of them who’ve asked Oren to bite them for experience’s sake. When Harper’s stable, she’ll have plenty of options.”
Rhone said flatly, “She’ll only be feeding from me.”
