Chapter one

Axel

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

The noise of my phone buzzing over and over again wakes me up. I rub at my eyes, trying to push away the groggy feeling threatening to pull me back under. I look at my phone, alertness coming to me so quickly it threatens to make my head spin.

"Fuck," I whisper under my breath, sitting up straight and grabbing my phone. Dakota's name flashes across my screen and I quickly click the big green button, answering his call.

"Dakota? Is everything okay?" Dakota is a shifter I'd met a few years ago. He works in the emergency room so I've bumped into him from time to time. Understandable in my line of work.

"Axel. I'm so happy you answered." His voice is stilted and he sounds out of breath. My stomach sinks.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he says carefully. "Well, nothing yet."

"What does that mean?"

Dakota lets out a long breath and I'm already standing up and switching from my pajamas to some normal clothes. "Someone's dumped a body here."

"Fuck," I murmur and if I had a beating heart, I know it would be racing right now.

"Yeah. The thing is, his mouth is smeared with blood and I can smell the change happening. When he wakes up, he'll be turned."

"Double fuck." As quickly as I can move, which is pretty fast being a vampire, I change my clothes and head out my front door. I'm already on my way to the hospital before Dakota can finish filling me in.

"Something tells me he was planted here. I know you mentioned blood bags going missing recently. I have a feeling this is somehow related."

"Triple fuck. I don't know how many more fucks I can give you but what the fuck? I really need to get in contact with a hunter or something."

"I don't mean to alarm you further," Dakota says and I just barely keep myself from groaning. There's more? "But this man is a hunter."

"Oh for Fate's sake. This is worse than I thought."

"I'm just glad I found him before he woke up. I'm not sure I would have been able to stop a baby vampire who's experiencing blood lust for the first time."

"I'm here," I tell Dakota, slowing my pace to something more human-like and making my way towards the back doors, by the ambulance bay.

Dakota meets me outside and we both hang up our phones. "Did you drive?"

"I--" I rub the back of my neck. "Okay, so I didn't think that far ahead. I just needed to get here as soon as possible and running was faster."

"And how do you plan on bringing this guy back to your house?"

I give Dakota a shrug. "I guess I'll just carry him."

Dakota stares at me for a long moment before his lips are curling up into a small smile. He shakes his head at me, like only a dad could do. "Come on then."

I follow him into the hospital towards the morgue and a shiver goes down my spine. I come here quite frequently. I'm in charge of the local blood bank. Ironic for a vampire, but what better way to make sure the local vampires are fed ethically. I make sure the humans are all taken care of before using any extra for us.

"Here you go," Dakota says, patting the black body bag that's laid out on the table. There's a couple of blood bags in there as well for you both because I'm sure you'll need it when he wakes up."

I carefully scoop him up into my arms. I take a deep breath and freeze. Something about his scent is raising my hackles, forcing my body to tense. I push that aside for now. My first priority is getting him out of here, getting him somewhere safe.

"Hey, Axel? Please take special care of this one."

I nod at Dakota. "I promise," I say with a smile before heading through the halls, careful not to be seen. Once outside, I use all of my energy to navigate the streets towards my house as fast as I can. Thankfully at this time, there's barely anyone out and around. I'm able to get this guy back to my house without an issue or incident which I'm thankful for.

Once inside, I lay him down on my couch, making sure he's as comfortable as possible as the transformation continues to happen. It's in that moment that I realize with a start that I have no idea who this guy is. I don't know even know his name.

I run my fingers through my hair before getting to work. I pull the baby vampire free from the body bag, making sure the blood bags are safely on my end table where they won't fall and break. It wouldn't do either of us any good if this guy woke up inside the body bag and freaked out. I need to try to make his waking up as gentle as possible. That'll help with all the heightened sensations he'll be experiencing.

Once the body bag is out of the way, I let my eyes wander over this man. He has dark hard, dark stubble, full lips. His body looks strong and fit, no doubt from being a hunter. But there's something else, something tugging at the back of my head.

I walk away in order to clear my head, making quick work of getting a washcloth. When I come back, he's still not stirring. As carefully as I can be, I wipe the blood away from his throat. Whoever did this left this man a mess. His blood is along the side of his neck and shoulder, his mouth is covered in someone else's blood. I'm no hunter but if I were, I would promise to fuck over whoever did this.

Changing someone like this is unthinkable. It's disgusting and cruel.

A fire burns inside my chest as I clean this man. I'm not a violent person despite being a vampire but there's something about this situation that boils my blood with rage. My fangs drop down and a hiss wells up inside of my throat. But I push it down.

What is that smell? It smells so fucking good.

I use the cloth along this man's mouth, cleaning the blood away. Once he's clean, my hand lingers, touching his cheek, just above his stubble. His skin is ice cold. The change is happening. The vampirism is taking. Soon he'll be awake.

I touch my own chest, sitting down on the end table in my living room. Something is compelling me to stay put and watch over this man. I've done this before. I've helped baby vampires get on their feet. But this is the first time I feel so attached. The feeling is instantaneous and overwhelming.

There's something about this one that's making me care, making me want to make sure he's safe and happy and taken care of. There's something going on inside my chest that I can't quite explain or understand.

"What is it about you?" I whisper to this unconscious man, letting myself reach out and run my fingers through the man's hair. I pull back, clenching my fist. I need to control myself. He's unconscious for fuck's sake.

There's movement. His fingers, they're twitching. Any time now.

For some reason, I find myself excited with anticipation. If my heart was beating, I know it would be fluttering about with nerves. Why do I feel like a school boy with his very first crush? What the fuck?

His hand twitches again. I take a deep breath and freeze. His scent, it's changing as the transformation is finishing. He smells so good. Fuck. Like lilies swaying on a cool summer day. I breathe the scent in deeply, letting it wash me away for a moment.

Holy shit.

All of the pieces start clicking into place. The feeling in my chest, his scent, my need to protect him. Oh gods.

The man before me finishes his transformation just as the life changing realization hits me full force. He opens his eyes, looking straight at me. My true mate is officially a vampire.