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Both of them were silent when I finished explaining how I ran away from Zander before I drained the poor bastard dry.
I wrung my hands out, then resumed pacing.
Finally, Brynn threw her arms around me and squeezed. I hadn’t had a hard time fighting the urge to drink from her since shortly after I turned; that should’ve been my first sign that something was up.
“I’m sorry, Miles. That sounds really shitty,” she said into my hair. She was 5’10”, so the height difference was significant.
“It does,” Tatum agreed. Her voice was… reluctant. “I have something to confess.”
Brynn let go of me, and I peered at my other best friend on the screen. Tatum’s face was dotted with freckles, her cinnamon-colored hair falling in waves around her face, and she didn’t have on a speck of makeup.
“I had a suspicion that you two were potential mates. I was pretty sure the first time he dropped off blood to you, when I saw him stare at you. With the way you stared back, I figured you would know, or at least be suspicious. Getting involved seemed like a bad move, so I stayed quiet.”
I heaved a sigh. “You didn’t know he was giving me his blood, did you?”
“No. I would’ve confronted him about it, if I had.”
“Did Rafael know?”
“Nope. He’s been trying to get the bastard on the phone since you told Tatum,” Rafael called from somewhere behind her.
She grimaced. “Sorry. We’re in a hotel room, so there’s not really much privacy.”
“It’s fine. Sebastian would’ve told him anyway.” I plopped down on a barstool, and Brynn handed me the phone. She scooted another stool right over to mine, sitting beside me. “I don’t know why he thought that was a good idea. Or what, exactly, I’m supposed to do about it.”
“You can just keep accepting the blood bags until you decide otherwise,” Tatum suggested. “Rafael can kill him if he tries to stop.”
“I can,” Rafael agreed, sitting down next to Tatum on the couch. She leaned her head against his shoulder, and I grimaced.
The sight of them reminded me of Evan, and I was so damn tired of Evan.
“If I had to guess, he fed you his blood because he was feeling possessive,” Tatum said. “He probably wouldn’t be able to stand the thought of someone else taking care of his mate.”
“I’d say the same,” Rafael agreed. “I’d kill anyone Tatum drank from.”
She rolled her eyes at him, but didn’t disagree.
The Villins were good to us, but that didn’t make them any less deadly.
“If Zander cared much—or at all—I’d think he would’ve done something or said something before.” I pushed an annoying curl out of my face. The damn thing must’ve escaped from the messy bun I tied at the top of my head earlier. “He didn’t seem interested in pursuing any kind of relationship outside of the blood bags, so I don’t think it’ll go anywhere. I have a new plan.”
Everyone waited to hear it, including Rafael. Maybe it should’ve bothered me that he had basically become a part of our girl-tribe, but honestly, I liked him. He had his shit together, and was always good to Tatum.
“I’m going to buy another freezer, and start buying blood bags for a new stockpile,” I said. They could be purchased at a grocery store in town, the blood was just notorious for being watered down. It didn’t taste great, and the price was ridiculously high, but I’d fork over the money for the sake of my security. “I’m also going to start supplementing by drinking from someone random at the nightclub twice a week. I think if I keep trying, my body will get used to the bad taste, and I can avoid vomiting it up again.
Zander’s blood was the only kind that would taste good to me, so the flavor didn’t matter.
Tatum and Rafael blinked.
Brynn sighed. “I don’t think that’s the solution here, Miles. What if it takes months before you can stomach other blood? Are you just going to puke twice a week? Won’t you needmoreof Zander’s blood then?”
“It’s a calculated risk. I have enough of a stash that I can afford a few extra bags for the sake of freedom.”
“If you really wanted freedom, you would have to seal the bond with him,” Tatum countered. “It would make him just as reliant on you as you are on him.”
“Even just letting him feed from you once would have the same outcome, right?” Brynn checked.
Tatum and Rafael nodded. “Once would be enough.”
