Library

15. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

S eryn's visions were so intense he couldn't even drink the bagged blood he scored. He stumbled into the hotel, bouncing between visions of some semi-uncomfortable shower sex with Mitchell, whispering what a good boy he was in his ear and threatening someone about springing Mitchell from jail. And then he followed Mitchell into a warehouse. That last one was confusing, but not as much as untangling the mess in his head.

His hands shook, and he used the wall to brace himself as he made his way to the room and the mate who rejected him. It took him three times to get the card in the lock slot thing. When he finally opened the door, he found the television was on, and Mitchell was sleeping, sitting up. He clutched Seryn's phone.

Seryn shut the door before falling to the floor. Visions came in flashes, so fast nothing made sense. Mitchell and Jude. The Dragon Skulls and the club. The police station. More Mitchell. In rotation.

Seryn buried his face against his knees and tried to think of a way to make the visions go away.

"Seryn?" Was he hearing voices? That was new. "Come here, sweetheart."

Mitchell.

"Drugs." He could take drugs, make it so he didn't have to think at all. Maybe his brain would shut off. "Take drugs."

"I told you to come here, Seryn." Mitchell's tone helped.

Seryn sighed, but he stayed put. Mitchell wasn't his daddy. He didn't want to be his daddy or his mate, so he couldn't count on it being permanent, but it helped quiet the visions.

Seryn reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of blood. He chanted the spell that brought up a dome and drank while Mitchell cursed.

Mitchell struggled to get off the bed and Seryn let him because moving around was probably good for him. Seryn still didn't want to talk to him.

Each swallow gave him a little more energy. One bag wouldn't be enough. Rescuing Mitchell took a toll. But the second one would get him close to normal.

Seryn watched Mitchell as he closed the distance. He groaned as he tried to get down onto the floor, hissing in pain. Seryn almost took the dome down to help, but he didn't want to encourage the connection. His protective instincts screamed at him to do something when sitting turned out to be more of a fall.

Mitchell settled next to the dome and panted.

Seryn clutched the empty bag and gave Mitchell the side eye.

"As soon…as I catch…my breath…I'll…grovel." Mitchell leaned his head against the wall and shut his eyes.

"Grovel?" Seryn wasn't sure what that meant.

Mitchell held up a finger. "Not gonna move from this spot for a week. Just so you know."

Seryn smiled. "Should I find a bedpan?"

"We're leaning against the door. We're both stuck." Mitchell breathed deeply. In and out one more time before relaxing a little more. "It'll get messy."

Seryn chuckled. He didn't laugh very often and when he did, it was more about scaring people than finding anything funny. But he liked Mitchell's humor. As much as he didn't want it to be true, Mitchell was just about the only person who could make him laugh.

"Will you please come out of your tent?" It probably appeared as if it were a tent from the outside.

"It's a dome." Which wasn't the point, but he wasn't ready to hear more about how Mitchell didn't want to mate. He had a reprieve from the visions and wasn't ready to go back to them again.

"Why are you in there?" Mitchell whispered, frowning as if he really didn't want to know the answer but needed to ask.

"I don't want you to see me." Seryn reached into his pocket and pulled out the other bag of blood.

"I like looking at you." Mitchell's easy, flirty nature wasn't helping the situation.

Seryn sighed and decided the best response was no response. He didn't know what to say. He would have liked it if Mitchell took him seriously, but hiding inside of a dome while in a hotel room didn't exactly scream maturity, so he'd probably earned what he'd gotten.

"I'm worried about you. You looked pale and sweaty when you first came in." Mitchell had been awake? "Is that because you need blood? Because if it is, I'm ready for you to take it from me."

Seryn was so surprised by the offer, he accidentally let the dome slip away.

Mitchell sighed in relief and then cursed when Seryn began chanting again. He grabbed for Seryn's hand and ended up grabbing ahold of his wrist because Seryn held the empty bag still. "Oh, no you don't."

Seryn turned away, wiping the tears away from his eyes with his free hand. He should have pulled out of Mitchell's hold, but he liked it too much to make it stop. Instead, he turned his back to Mitchell as much as the hold allowed.

"I just need you to leave me alone for now." So, he could get his shit together was implied. Seryn was usually a lot better at keeping his emotions buried and his visions in check. Meeting Mitchell would either make or break him. It was too soon to tell.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, sweetheart. You got all my protective instincts going, so now I have to take care of you." There was only one problem with that. Mitchell struggled with taking that to the place Seryn needed him to go.

"You don't want that. Not really." Seryn had never been one to lie to himself. In his experience, doing so caused more trouble, not less. And he wouldn't lie to Mitchell either. It was all or nothing.

Mitchell rubbed his thumb over Seryn's wrist. "That's not true and not what I said earlier. Before you left. And besides that, we need each other."

He knew he needed Mitchell. That Mitchell had figured it out too made Seryn stiffen. "What did you say, then?"

"I used your phone and called Jude." The sudden subject change confused Seryn, so he waited to see what Mitchell would say next. "Jude explained how you might have thought I was saying no. But all I meant was maybe we can go a little slower. Maybe you can let me spoil you a little."

Okay. Maybe it wasn't all or nothing. Maybe they could start somewhere in the middle. "If I drink from you, it starts the bonding process."

"I know, but you need it."

"I have another bag. That should do it."

Mitchell let him go to take the bag from Seryn's hand. "You didn't bite anyone else."

"I've never done that before." The bagged stuff was easy to find if a vampire knew where to look. Well, in a bigger city anyway. All he had to do was search for a certain type of bar. Paranormals congregated just like everyone else. Bars were the center of a community. Paranormals weren't an exception. All he had to do was flash his fangs and ask the bartender. Thirty dollars later, and he had two bags of blood.

Mitchell sighed and chuckled. "So, I was jealous for nothing."

That made Seryn smile. "You always will be."

"But you let me stew."

"You deserved it." Seryn faced Mitchell again as he reached into his pocket and pulled out another bag of blood. He showed it to Mitchell, who snatched it from his hand and held it out when Seryn protested. "Give it back."

"Come closer and I will."

Seryn scooted closer, but it wasn't close enough for Mitchell, who wrapped an arm around Seryn's waist and pulled him against his side. Seryn leaned into Mitchell, relaxing.

Mitchell handed the bag over, and Seryn drank. Mitchell watched him. His curiosity was clear. "Does it taste good?"

Seryn stopped drinking to answer. "It's not bad. I'm told it's a little stale having it this way. A lot of vampires who drink bagged blood mix it with alcohol. At least at the bars, they do."

"But you don't?"

"I don't drink alcohol."

"Ever?"

"Once. My foster father made me drink until I puked. I haven't since."

Mitchell cursed. "What the fuck did he do that for?"

"It was part of his punishment. You don't want to know the other part." And Seryn didn't want to go into the gory details.

"I was in the system, too. I'm sorry you went through the abuse."

"I'm sorry you were in the system, too." Neither of them wanted to rehash their shitty childhoods.

Seryn laid his head against Mitchell's shoulder and started drinking again. It didn't take long to finish it. The full, satisfied feeling was exactly what he needed.

"Were your visions a problem when you first walked in?" Mitchell rested his cheek against the top of Seryn's head and held his hand.

"Yes." After all that blood, he was tired. He yawned and shut his eyes. "I may fall asleep."

"Maybe we should attempt to get on the bed. My ass is going to hurt if I have to stay here for hours." The way Mitchell was so open about himself was refreshing. He was in complete contrast to Seryn, who was so closed off he had a difficult time recognizing how he felt about anything.

But somehow, Mitchell had already broken down Seryn's walls. It was like a floodgate. Seryn had cried for the first time since he was a small child. It hadn't been a record he had wanted to break, but he couldn't stop the mess of emotion from churning in his gut. Or the visions.

But one of those things Mitchell helped him with. Seryn would take advantage of that for as long as he could.

Seryn sighed and stood. Looking down at Mitchell. His legs were out in front of him, and he appeared as if he were recovering from a bender. It would have been cute if Seryn hadn't known the truth behind Mitchell's injuries.

"How about I try to help you stand?"

"You might hurt yourself."

"I have vampire strength and healing. I'm in a much better position than you are."

"Can you turn me into a vampire too, then?" Mitchell smirked in the way he did whenever he was teasing. Only Seryn had a feeling he was asking if it was possible.

"Vampires are born, not made. But if we bond, you'll heal faster and be a bit stronger. Your senses will be sharper."

"So, you had vampire parents?"

Seryn shrugged because he did not know how he came about. "Two people had sex, and I happened. And I'm only assuming that much. I know nothing else about my lineage."

Seryn wrapped his arms around Mitchell's waist. His legs screamed in protest as he lifted Mitchell, but it was short-lived. Once Mitchell got his legs underneath him, he did most of the work. They made it over to the bed where Seryn helped Mitchell lie down.

Mitchell breathed heavily as if he'd run a marathon. And like before, he had to catch his breath.

Seryn took off his coat finally and put it in the chair before making his way over to the bed again. He wasn't sure of his welcome. Maybe Mitchell didn't want Seryn plastered all over him. He could need space. And with his injuries, Seryn wasn't sure where to lie without hurting him even if he were welcome.

"Come on, sweetheart." Mitchell patted the bed.

It was the only invitation he needed. Seryn climbed on the other side and under the covers. As soon as he was inside, Mitchell pulled him to his side.

"We just have to be mindful of the incision." Mitchell whispered and kissed the top of his head.

Seryn knew where the incision was and wouldn't come close to it.

"Tell me what makes the visions stop," Mitchell asked.

Seryn had to think about it because he knew what Mitchell meant, but he wasn't getting it completely right. And he didn't know if he wanted to be so honest. He didn't know if he was ready to admit the thing that actually worked, even to himself. "They don't stop. But they don't compile onto each other. So, I'll have one. Like right now. I'm having one, but I can still be in the moment because it's in the background. When they just come, it's like having a bunch of movies playing all at once. It's loud in here sometimes." Seryn tapped his head.

"That's good to know. Now answer my question." When Mitchell got all commanding and gave Seryn his Daddy voice, Seryn melted a little. His vision disappeared. His body relaxed and all he could think about was doing what Daddy said.

"You help. Your presence."

"It's more than that." So, Mitchell had figured something out. Even if he didn't know everything.

If he gave up control in that moment and Mitchell rejected him later on, it would wreck him. But Mitchell was his mate. It was a chance he needed to take. "I don't have to think. Or make choices. I just do what you tell me. When you take care of me and say I'm doing something right, my brain feels better."

Mitchell didn't respond for a long time. Before Seryn had thought that was because Mitchell hadn't wanted to give him a negative answer, but Seryn realized while they were on the floor that Mitchell needed to process the information.

So Seryn lay there with his mental fingers crossed, holding his breath.

"When I was on the phone with Jude, he told me he has a Daddy kink type of relationship with his hus—I mean mates." Mitchell ran his hand along Seryn's side.

Seryn stiffened. Would the other shoe drop? Was this where Mitchell told him it wasn't something he wanted? "It's a common kink amongst the Dragon Skulls."

For some, that was why they joined. Well, that and because they were dragon shifters, or some other type of paranormal. It was difficult for a paranormal who liked Daddy kink to find like- minded people sometimes, especially ones who also liked the comradery of a motorcycle gang.

"Is that something you're into?"

"I've explored." But it hadn't been a deal breaker, mostly because for Seryn, any experiences had always only been about sex. "I've never been in a relationship either."

"And your visions. They were never like they are now?"

"It got a lot worse after I met you."

"So, what does that mean?" That was a good question, and one Seryn didn't have a full answer for, but he might have figured out some of it.

"I think it means, if we mate…" No pressure or anything. It was just his mental health that would suffer. "…all our kinks will align."

Mitchell hummed as if contemplating that. "I haven't even dabbled in the Daddy kink thing."

Seryn could tell he wasn't averse to the thought of it though, and that made him smile. "Newbie Daddy."

Mitchell kissed the top of his head again. "Yeah, I would be. It sounds…intriguing. Maybe we could explore the idea. You know, before mating. And date, like I said before."

Seryn sighed. The dating discussion again. Yikes.

Before Seryn could respond, Mitchell plowed forward. "Before you get mad again and storm off, I need you to hear me. Are you ready to listen, boy?"

Oh. They were starting the Daddy/boy relationship right away. That was a good sign and Seryn liked what being called Mitchell's boy did to his insides. "I'm ready, Daddy."

"What are you ready to do?"

"To listen, Daddy."

"Good boy." Mitchell patted Seryn's ass and left his hand there.

The praise went straight to Seryn's cock. Well, that and Mitchell touching such an intimate part of him. It made him feel sexy.

"A relationship starts by getting to know each other, which means we date. I'm talking romance. Exploring each other. We can do all of that before we get to the mating stuff."

"It sounds like bonding, but without the biting." And Mitchell had said Seryn could bite him to feed. "If I bite you, even to feed, we'll have an internal connection. Without the sex, we won't be able to communicate telepathically, but we'll still be able to feel the other's emotions."

"Wait. What?" Mitchell sucked in a breath, as if everything Seryn had said was new information. "Jude left out a lot about the mating thing."

"Like the internal connection." Seryn smiled. "Is the idea of it bad for you?"

"Here's where my head is at. If I can read your thoughts—"

"It's more like you'll be able to tell how I'm feeling."

"That's even better. So, if I can tell how you're feeling, then the opposite is true. Which basically means you'd have a ringside seat into my head. I'm a mess up there."

Seryn chuckled. "So am I, as you already know."

"Exactly. So, I can't help but wonder if my mess and your mess will just create more of a mess or will we clean each other's space? It's hard to say."

"I want to think we'd help each other. I certainly want to take care of you. Protect you."

Mitchell pulled him in closer. "You do a great job, baby. And you're right. We want to take care of each other already. That's not a question, is it?"

Seryn shook his head. "Not even a little."

"That's all part of the Daddy stuff. For me, anyway." Mitchell seemed to come to some type of conclusion. "So how about you let me romance the pants off you for a while and give me time to get used to the mating thing? And I promise, during all the wining and dining, we'll bond. It's not a no or even a maybe. It's a yes, but let's take our time. Is that cool with you?"

"Yes, Daddy." If Seryn had his way, they would bond right away, but it wasn't just about him. If Mitchell needed time, then Seryn could give it to him. "As long as you promise."

"I promise." Mitchell kissed him again. "I promise." Seryn tilted his face up and Mitchell kissed his forehead. "I promise." Seryn moved just enough so that Mitchell could land the next kiss on his lips if he wanted. And he did want.

The kiss went straight to Seryn's heart. It was a press of the lips that lingered long enough to make promises and it was exactly what Seryn needed.

Comments

0 Comments
Best Newest

Contents
Settings
  • T
  • T
  • T
  • T
Font

Welcome to FullEpub

Create or log into your account to access terrific novels and protect your data

Don’t Have an account?
Click above to create an account.

lf you continue, you are agreeing to the
Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy.