Watching Out For Fangs (The Cloverleah Pack Book 7) (6 page)

Chapter Eight

Vadim woke up feeling refreshed and initially shocked when he noticed a long, extremely warm body pressed up against him.  Before his brain fully engaged he thought he was dreaming about being back with Edward, but just as quickly that idea passed. Edward had been a lot smaller, human and he had not been a snuggler in any way shape or form. Josh, his brain supplied helpfully. He was in his true match’s bed and the wolf shifter didn’t appear to understand the concepts of personal space. Something else Vadim figured he would get used to now he had decided to stay. For some reason the thought didn’t bother him as much as he thought it would.

His stomach grumbled and while he knew he could go a while before having any more blood, Vadim’s thoughts turned to food. Josh would need to eat regularly to keep him sustained, and although Vadim hadn’t eaten regular food for about a week, he figured he could cook something for them both. He tried to wriggle out of the tangle of arms and legs that seemed to have evolved naturally through the night but Josh seemed reluctant to let him go, even in sleep. Finally Vadim grabbed the pillow he’s been laying on and pressed it into Josh’s arms, his lips involuntarily pulling up as his shifter immediately buried his nose in Vadim’s scent and kept on sleeping.

Vadim was still smiling when he eased out of bed, grabbing a towel to snag around his hips. He was going to have to get in touch with his mother and or Ivan, his butler and get some clothes sent to him. While he was only a bit taller than Josh, he was a lot broader across the shoulders and he figured anything Josh might have for him to wear would be a tight fit.

That might not be a good idea
. While the coven probably realized he was gone by now – surely one of the guards would have noticed – Vadim didn’t want the coven’s attention brought back to Cloverleah. His mother would have guessed where he had gone, and could probably send him some things, but he didn’t trust his butler as far as he could throw him. Maybe he could get one of the Fae to zap him something to wear until he had time to get some cash and sort out some banking. Given his dislike of people and crowded situations, he had become a master at online shopping. Of course it would help if he knew his new address.

Making his way to the bathroom, Vadim took care of his needs, ignoring his morning wood as he always did. While he wasn’t averse to the idea of sex with the stunning man still asleep in the bed they had shared, he knew Josh was going to want to claim him, and that would mean doing something he hadn’t done for centuries – bottom. Given his age and status in the vampire world, most men he had been with had been happy to be on the receiving end of things. Vadim preferred it that way because it allowed him to make a getaway when he needed to. Giving up control was something else he would have to add to the list of things that were going to change in his life. Sometimes. Maybe. At least long enough for a claiming bite, he reassured himself. It wasn’t as though he needed to make a habit of it.

The ever present feeling of dread and anxiety that had been part of his physiology for so long was missing though and Vadim caught himself actually humming as he pulled together a simple fry up in Josh’s kitchen. Although he shunned people as a rule, Vadim did have staff to feed his blood donors so he very rarely got to cook for himself. While he still liked the foods from his home country, Vadim could whip up a mean bacon and eggs and as there were plenty of both in the small fridge, Vadim got to work. His research on wolf shifters had mentioned that they ate a lot, probably because of the energy it took to shift. Vadim made a mental note to get in some steak too – Josh’s blood had been delicious but had a few vital proteins missing – evidence that his mate hadn’t been eating properly. Vadim’s grin got wider at the thought of the things he could do to increase his young wolf’s appetite.

/~/~/~/~/

The ringing of his cell phone was the first thing Josh registered as he was pulled from sleep. His missing mate was the second and for a moment his heart plummeted. But then his nose caught the scent of frying food and he smirked. Who knew the uptight vampire could cook? The phone rang again and Josh’s stomach tightened – it was his mother’s ring tone. Knowing there was no point in ignoring the call, Josh reached over, and snapped up the offending instrument, hitting the screen a bit harder than he should have done to accept the call. Luckily, or not depending on how you looked at it, the screen didn’t break.

“What took you so long to answer? What if something had happened to one of your sisters or to me? What are you doing in that god-forsaken pack of yours?”

“Good morning to you too, mother,” Josh said politely. “Has something happened, or are you calling to ask about my day?”

“I know how you spend your days,” his mother snapped back. “Ignoring your family is what you’re doing. When are you going to stop this nonsense and come back to San Antonio?”

Josh swallowed his huff of annoyance.  Every week it was the same. His mother would rail at him for not answering the phone quickly enough. Then she would want to know when he was going back to his home pack and then…

“It’s too hard here without a man around the house,” his mother whined. Yep, right on cue.

“Mother, there are over fifty men living on pack grounds, I am sure one of them can do whatever you need around the house. All you have to do is ask Scott or Damien and you will have all the help you need.”

His mother sniffed. “I’m not asking for help from them. That would make me look weak. You need to come home,” she said. For some reason she hadn’t taken to Scott like most of the pack had, even though he was Alpha Mate. The only reason she didn’t say anything to anyone except Josh was because she was shit scared that Damien would kick her out of the pack. She liked the idea of being in the biggest pack in the States.

Josh closed his eyes, imagining for a brief moment what it would be like if he went back home. His mother had hated that he had been one of Damien’s enforcers, but the money had been good and it was a prized position in the pack. He guessed that now he had left, his mother had nothing to lord over the other women who lived on pack grounds.

“I’m not coming back, Mother,” Josh said reminding himself he had to be firm. Fortunately he’d had a lot of practice. “I have told you that a million times before. I’m happy here in Cloverleah. This is my home now.”

“But your sisters need so much and I just can’t…” His mother was back to whining again and Josh waited knowing what was coming next. One…two…three…

“Rebecca broke her IPad and needs a new one, and Jolene is growing out of her clothes so fast. There’s just never enough money and I shouldn’t have to cope with it all. You’re my son, why can’t you help?”

And there it was, the real reason for his mother’s call.  She only ever rang when she wanted something and Josh resented the fact that the woman was perfectly happy to sit at home and let others run around after her. She was only 48 years old, she looked 25 and was a trained nurse. There was no reason why she couldn’t work, even if it was just for the pack. But she could never be bothered, feeling it was beneath her to have a job in the pack, and she absolutely refused to work with humans.

“I sent you money last week mother, and that will have to last the month. I explained all this to you before as well. If Rebecca can’t look after her things properly then it is about time she got a job, and there was more than enough money in the last lot I sent you to cover some new clothes for Jolene. It’s not as though you pay utilities or rent – the pack pays for all that.”

One…two…three…

“You have no idea how much it costs to raise pups. You wait until you have some of your own, then you’ll see - all the sacrifices I make just to keep your sisters clothed and fed, with absolutely no help.”

His mother was so predictable.  Despite living in a predominantly gay pack, she refused to accept that the chances of Josh getting married to a woman and having pups were non-existent. Josh just wished the way she slagged off the money he did send her, as though it was absolutely nothing at all, would stop hurting him.  He looked up as he heard the bedroom door open and Vadim came in, awkwardly carrying two plates full of food.  That wife and pups were even more non-existent now, he thought, smiling at his mate.

“Mother, I have to go…”

“What? You don’t have time to talk to your family, the woman who raised you? You haven’t even asked how Rebecca and Jolene are doing. How could you be so rude?”

“Mother, you rang me because you wanted more money. Money I don’t have. I can’t send you anymore until I get paid next month. If I ask about them then that is just going to give you more excuses to ask me for something I can’t give you. So this conversation is over. Now if you will excuse me, I am going to have breakfast with my mate.”

Josh gave his screen a satisfying tap, ending the call. He dropped the phone on the side table, and took the plate Vadim held out for him.

“Thanks,” he said, sitting up so that there was room for Vadim to join him on the bed. He was starving and the crispy bacon with fried eggs and warm buttered toast was just what he needed. He tucked in quickly, surprised to see that Vadim’s plate was almost as full.

“I didn’t know that vampires ate real food,” he said, then wished he hadn’t. What a dorky thing to say. Vadim wouldn’t have cooked himself something if he wasn’t going to eat it. Josh felt his face flush and wished again, this time for the ability to turn back time – five minutes would do.

But Vadim didn’t seem worried. “I don’t have to eat as often, or as much as you shifters or humans might, and I do need blood to survive, but I have grown to love certain foods over time. Bacon and egg sandwiches for breakfast is a definite favorite. Of course meat will be off the menu for me now.”

Wow, his vampire was sharing something with him. How cool. But what? No meat?

“How come you don’t eat meat? You’re eating bacon.”

“I take it you don’t know a lot about vampires,” Vadim said, still looking as unflappable as ever. How a man could look so intimidating and yet so god-damned sexy all while eating breakfast was beyond Josh, but Vadim seemed to pull it off effortlessly.

Josh shook his head, his mouth too full of food to answer without spraying his mate with crumbs, and even he wasn’t that dorky. When he swallowed, he said “Jax told us about the blood debt, the poison and that the only thing that can cure it is the blood of a vampire. I know they are freaking hard to kill, and that the myths about not being out in the sun and being affected with holy water and crosses is bullshit.  But apart from that, no.”

Vadim nodded, taking another bite of his food. Josh did the same – it was tasty and cooked to perfection, which was another positive tick in the mate box as far as Josh was concerned. The two men ate in silence, but Josh didn’t feel uncomfortable or that he needed to talk. If anything, it seemed almost normal, although having bacon and eggs with his vampire mate was anything but normal for him.

Vadim waited until he finished eating, and then took Josh’s plate, popping it on the bedside table along with his own. Vadim seemed to be going over something in his head, and Josh didn’t want to interrupt. Maybe he should get up, have a pee, putting some clothes on would be a good idea. Now his stomach was full, Josh had other hungers that needed fulfilling – claiming his mate was at the top of the list, but he’d settle for a pee and a wash at least for now.

But then Vadim held his arm up, indicating…double wow, Josh hoped he had hidden his surprise. He slipped under the arm, nestling his head on Vadim’s broad chest. The vampire didn’t run as warm as wolf shifters did, but the muscles would make any shifter proud. Josh settled, feeling safe, calm and unbelievably horny. Hopefully his mate wouldn’t want to talk for too long because there was also the Cloverleah pack morning kiss tradition to explain. Josh hoped Vadim would be on board with that. They hadn’t shared a kiss yet and Josh found himself wondering what Vadim’s mouth would feel like under his.

/~/~/~/~/

Vadim had so many questions for his mate, especially after hearing Josh’s side of the conversation on the phone. He had learned his true match had a mother and sisters and he wondered why Josh chose to leave them with his home pack. He also realized that his initial thoughts about his mate’s economic situation were right. Vadim didn’t care about money. He had more than enough to last a million lifetimes and he had thought of letting Josh know just how rich he would become once they were properly mated.

But Vadim had also had several lifetimes picking up on body language and the importance of tone. Josh didn’t have a good relationship with his mother, and clearly the woman was taking advantage of her son. So he’d suppressed his growl and his offer of money, and waited for Josh to finish his call. It was nice sharing a simple breakfast with the man – still half tucked under the blankets, only his delicious torso on display. One of the reasons why Vadim liked bacon so much was because it would help block the scent of Josh’s blood. He was craving another taste.

However, Vadim hadn’t forgotten how good his mate had been to him the night before, and knew he had a lot of explaining to do about who and what and why. The least he could do now was explain a bit more about vampires.

“Vampires are a bit different to other paranormals and we don’t come into our gifts until we are in our mid-twenties,” Vadim started. “Up until that time we live as humans, eating regular food, just stronger and faster than any non-vampires. When we change we can compel others, we stop aging completely, have even more speed and strength which increases with age and we learn to control aspects of our body like blood flow. The change is difficult – we develop our claws and fangs, which hurts like hell, but because we have such an overwhelming need for the blood necessary to complete the change, most vampires have to be chained up for a week or more as they learn to feed without killing their donor. It’s not so bad now, but in olden times it could be a brutal experience.  Using blood bags is more common now, for new vampires.”