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The trailer doors stood open for them, Ronan and Chase hovering as they loaded Zander inside. The EMTs smoothly shifted Zander over to one of the gurney beds smack up against the wall, and then stepped back once he was transferred, giving Max room to come in closer. Max did so but didn’t know what to do at this point. Use a scalpel to open his wrist? Could he coax blood down Zander’s throat that way? Even as he thought, he used a towel sitting nearby to dry Zander off as much as possible.
Ronan came in behind him, looking over Max’s shoulder. “Why the hell isn’t he healing?”
“He’s undernourished,” Franklin rapidly explained. “He hasn’t fed from Max, and Max said he’s only had a blood bag in the past two weeks or so.”
“Shit.”
Max made a mental note to get proper feeding instructions for his vampire later. For now, “What can I do? Coax blood down his throat somehow?”
“Forced feedings don’t normally go well—” Franklin cut himself off. “Oh, he’s waking.”
Zander’s eyes fluttered open, his expression pained. Max hated seeing it but wasn’t surprised. His entire body must be aflame with pain signals right now.
Well, fortunately, Max had the fix. He leaned in, hand cradling Zander’s face in preparation for lifting him up, wet hair cold against his skin. “Zan. Feed from me.”
Somehow, Zander managed a smile. “No, sweetheart, it’s okay. Just give me a few—”
“Zan.” Max had never felt closer to hitting a person in his life. “This is not up for debate; I’m not asking. Feed from me.Now.”
Zander paused, evaluating his expression. “You, um, look mad.”
“I am furious. I will explain exactly why—at length—later. For now, feed from me.”
“I’d not argue, bro,” Ronan drawled. “You don’t want to piss off your lover. And I don’t put much past your Max.”
“Um,” Zander started, but immediately winced. “Yeah, okay, fine. A little. Max, give me your wrist. That’s easier right now.”
Max didn’t care where Zander bit as long as he did it. He did mentally brace himself for the pain as he shucked his jacket and put his wrist against Zander’s mouth. This would hurt like a bitch, but if it got Zander back on his feet, it was worth it.
Zander didn’t just sink his fangs in like expected. He licked Max’s skin instead, which…weird. Strangely pleasant, like a tingle of warmth spreading over Max’s skin, but still weird. Zander made three passes with his tongue before delicately biting.
Which…didn’t hurt. Huh?
Max wasn’t so high on adrenaline that pain was meaningless, so what was going on here? He only registered pressure at his wrist. It didn’t hurt one bit.
Franklin kept a careful eye on both of them. “Max, all right?”
“Yeah, I’m…fine.” Max was still staring at his wrist, in Zander’s mouth, with bemusement. “I expected it to hurt but it doesn’t.”
“At all?” Franklin blinked at him, then stared down at Max’s wrist too.
“Not at all. I feel the pressure of the bite, and the sucking, but…no pain. Is that normal?”
Ronan was the one who answered, his tone ruminative. “Not exactly. Our saliva is supposed to act as a topical anesthetic, to make feedings bearable for humans, but some people react stronger to it than others.”
Oh. So he was one of the lucky few? Strange, as that hadn’t happened the last time. Then again, Zander had explained that a Glutton’s entire physiology was messed up, so that could be it.
Zander drew back with a sigh, eyes closed in relief. Max retracted his wrist, applying pressure, but he had doubts. Had that been enough? Zander had only fed for maybe fifteen seconds. That was, like, six mouthfuls maybe. Which didn’t sound right to Max. Unless the more powerful vampires didn’t need to eat as much?
A wet sucking sound, like something popping back into place, filled the air and Zander flinched. “Shoulder. That was shoulder. Owww.”
Franklin had no sympathy. “Maybe next time you’ll not be so neglectful of your own body. Or refuse to feed from Max. All right, how to get you home so you can recover better. Max, what did you drive in?”
“One of his sportscars.”
“Not the best thing to put him into right now.”
Ronan lifted a hand. “I brought my Rover, let’s use that to get him home. Max, can you drive the car back?”
