AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Zander stopped mid-sentence, eyes snapping back to Max’s. “What?”
What was Max supposed to do with this empty head? “Zander. I fell asleep in your arms last night. You really think I could do that if I didn’t trust you?”
It clicked, and when it did, Zander’s expression was joy personified. He bounced once in place, so giddy he couldn’t seem to contain himself, then snatched Max up in a hug. Max hid a smile against his collarbone, wrapping both arms around those strong shoulders. It felt good, admitting that out loud. Like he’d been carrying around a heavy weight and was finally able to set it down. Keeping his guard up around this man had been too hard.
“You’re making me so happy this morning.” Zander squeezed once, then made a noise that suspiciously sounded like a purr.
Max pulled back just enough to see his face. It was hard to ask, but this felt like the right moment. “From the beginning, you’ve been trying to win my trust. Your methods have been both outrageous and consistent. What I’ve never understood is why. Even from the first night we met you were like this.”
“From the first night, I understood the quality of the man in front of me. You were terrified on that stage, literally shaking, but you stayed. All to save someone dear to you. Your courage, your loyalty, were breathtaking. The only thing I could think of when I looked at you was what it would take to become that to you. The person you cherished most.”
Max couldn’t think of a single word. Is that what Zander saw when he looked at Max? An incredible man he wanted? Most people looked at Max and saw damaged goods, or a snarky architecture student. Not…that.
“I’m not asking for you to return my feelings.” Zander’s smile turned a touch sad, wistful. “I just ask you give me the chance. I won’t hurt you, my Max. I’d cherish you the rest of our lives.”
Max didn’t have the words or courage to explain that Zander tempted him sorely. If he could entrust his heart to anyone, it would be this man, who had made Max his first and only priority. He wanted to respond to Zander in turn, take away the insecurity clouding the man’s eyes.
Zander was so focused on never hurting Max, but Max felt the same way about him. He didn’t want to return all of Zander’s generosity with ill grace. These feelings were just overwhelming. He needed to work through a few of them before he overloaded.
Max couldn’t keep looking at Zander—his heart was going to explode at this rate. He hugged Zander back to him, hiding his face against his collarbone. “You don’t need to walk on eggshells around me. I know I’m safe with you.”
“Is that a yes?”
“I still think you’re crazy, but do as you like.”
“That’s a yes.” Zander pulled him in tighter. Relief and joy were clear in his voice. “You truly do make me so happy.”
Drawing back a little, Zander looked at him with a half-serious, half-delighted expression. “I’m putting certain protections in place so you’re never in that kind of danger again. My sire has offered you a signet ring for protection. If anyone dares approach you again, the ring will tell them precisely which clan you belong to. They won’t dare hurt you.”
“That’s one of my questions. Who is Fernando?”
“One of the most powerful mafia bosses in North America,” Zander said bluntly.
Max hadn’t expected that answer. His jaw dropped, and he spluttered, “Mafia.Seriously?!”
“Yup.”
“But you’re not mafia.”
“No, I’m a legit businessman. Most of the clan are. We just have the other side of the clan that does the shady shit.”
Welp. That explained how Zander had disappeared two vampires last night. No further questions or explanations needed. “Those two…they’re dead, aren’t they?”
“Very dead. My sire was livid. He’s very protective of his children—and our lovers—so he handled them himself. You won’t need to worry about them ever again.”
“I kind of figured. Just based on what you guys were saying last night.” Max was not overly bothered. The world was safer without them in it.
“Speaking of things said last night…you said something.” Zander’s teeth tugged lightly at his bottom lip in an uncertain gesture. “Can I ask?”
Max wanted to talk about this as much as he wanted to streak through a mall naked. After everything Zander had done for him, he owed the man the truth, if nothing else. “You want to know why I said that to Chase, about feeding them both.”
“I do, but I won’t force you to talk about it.”
Max sucked in a breath. Blew it out. Didn’t feel any better for the motion but started talking anyway. “When I was fourteen, I almost died at a vampire’s hands.”
Zander went motionless, his eyes locked on Max. Funny, how he could be so still, yet give the impression of a volcano building toward eruption point.
It was hard to talk about even now, so Max stuck with the facts, the bones of it. “I was walking home from a friend’s house near sunset when someone grabbed me from behind. It happened so fast, I have no real memory of leaving the road. I was just in an alley all of a sudden, his fangs in my neck, and no matter how I struggled, he wouldn’t let go. He drained me to the point that I passed out. I was told later that a neighbor spotted me as she went to throw her trash out. He’d left me next to a bin. She called an ambulance, put pressure on the wound, saved my life. It took far too many units of blood and a week in the hospital before I even got the strength to move.”
