AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I was already out of the water, Alpha,” Pisces admitted, settling on the other half of the small sofa. He brazenly rested his left arm across the back and leaned toward Peter. “Because I scented you at the show.” Pisces reached out with his right hand and skimmed his forefinger along Peter’s jaw, causing the hairs at his nape to stand on end. “And I needed to find you.” He issued a soft scoff as his smile turned wry. “And here you are, and you know about us, don’t you?”
Peter forced his voice to come out steady as he confirmed, “I know you’re a shifter. Although I don’t know what kind you are.”
“Bottlenose dolphin.” Pisces raked a heated gaze over Peter, causing his blood to heat in his veins, warming him from the inside out. “You were at the show. I damn near botched the whole show when I scented you.”
Surprise filled Peter even as he fought the rush of desire he felt caused by Pisces’s proximity. “Really? You were there, too?”
“Yep,” Pisces confirmed. With a chuckle, he admitted, “Scenting our mate for the first time can be distracting as hell.”
“Sorry,” Peter murmured because it seemed like the right thing to do. “Didn’t mean to.”
“I’m not sorry,” Pisces countered, even as he slid his hand up to cradle Peter’s jaw and leaned toward him. “I’m fucking ecstatic.”
Peter knew Pisces intended to kiss him. His intention was obvious. Feeling his pulse spike, Peter instinctively licked his bottom lip in anticipation.
Pisces groaned softly before settling his lips over Peter’s. The warm press of his mouth against Peter’s own drew a quiet whimper from him as his mind began to shut down. Peter felt Pisces gently nip his bottom lip, asking for entrance, and he couldn’t resist opening.
When Pisces dipped his tongue into Peter’s mouth, the shifter’s flavor exploded across his taste buds—deep, rich, and masculine. Returning the kiss, he pressed forward, searching for more. Pisces didn’t disappoint, sliding his hand to his nape so he could direct the kiss and deepen it.
All too soon, Peter heard not just a knock on the door, but the sound of a deep voice clearing his throat. The noises were better than a bucket of ice water. Peter yanked back, panting harshly as he stared in shock at the guy—shifter—who’d just about made his brain melt out of his ears.
Feeling a wealth of embarrassment flood him, Peter glanced around furtively. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d reacted to someone so viscerally. Peter had certainly never made out in front of anyone before. While he didn’t consider himself a prude, he felt that such displays should be done in private.
As Peter swept his attention over everyone, he spotted various expressions. His buddy, Waylon, was relaxing back on the sofa he shared with his lover, Colton, and he was grinning broadly at him. Eban was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, and he smirked at him.
Kaiser was probably the one who’d cleared his throat, but he wasn’t looking at them. Instead, he was focused on the pair standing in the doorway. Peter recognized the huge dark-skinned male as Dare, another enforcer, glancing between Peter and Pisces with confusion in his eyes. The pale-blond with him appeared amused even as he arched one brow in silent question while focusing on Pisces.
Pisces lowered his left arm from the back of the sofa and tightened it around Peter’s shoulders. Drawing him closer, he claimed, “He’s my mate.” Then he winked at Peter and asked, “So, what’s your name, cutie?”
“P-Peter,” he replied, still reeling from the undeniable pull he felt to the man next to him. “Peter Silverman.”
“So nice to meet you, Peter,” Pisces claimed, and Peter finally understood the expressionsmoldering. The heat in Pisces’s eyes practically sent him up in flames. “I can’t wait to get you alone so we can get to know each other better.”
With the innuendo in Pisces’s tone, Peter knew exactly whatgetting to know each other betterwould entail.
Feeling overwhelmed, Peter blurted, “I think we need to date first.”
Pisces blinked once, twice, and the unmistakable look of disappointment flittered across his features—there and gone so fast that Peter would have missed it if he hadn’t been staring right at him. Then Pisces smiled as he nodded once. “If that’s what you need, Peter.” He teased his fingertips along his opposite shoulder soothingly. “You’re my mate, and I’ll give you whatever time you need.”
Peter felt a measure of relief mixed with disappointment, which confused him to no end.
Doing his best to dismiss it, Peter whispered, “Thanks.” He tore his gaze away from Pisces and focused on Alpha Kaiser. After swallowing to get moisture into his suddenly too-dry throat, Peter stated, “So, uh, I guess I need to talk to you about vampires.”
* * * *
Vampires? Why does my mate need to talk about vampires?
That had been Pisces’s first thought the prior day when he’d first met Peter. Listening as his mate explain what he and his partner had begun running into on the streets as paramedics, he’d felt a wealth of protective worry surge through him. Considering Peter requested a date before spending much time with him, Pisces had wasted no time in agreeing to hunt the streets for said rogue vampire.
While Peter’s request completely sucked—after all, he knows about paranormals and mates—Pisces tried his best to seem understanding. At least tracking had given him something to do that evening.
He’s my mate. I’ll give him the time he needs.
Pisces visited the four locations Peter had indicated where they’d picked up the bitten and traumatized victims. All three were inside alleyways around the corner from clubs. They weren’t in seedy sections of town, but they were dimly lit areas with parking lot lights that had been broken. There were also garbage bins and trash obscuring the scents.
Still, Pisces was able to pick up hints of the blood, dirt, body odor, and a dark iron-heavy scent that didn’t have to do with the blood. In the last place Peter had picked up the woman, there was also the lingering scent of fear, which was understandable. The sickly-sweet tones of sadistic arousal had damn near turned Pisces’s stomach.
Great. He’s not just feeding. He’s getting off on traumatizing his victims.
