Blood Deep (Bound in Blood Book 1) (6 page)

“Call me vamp or twink again, Jacob, and I’ll show you just how much bite I have.”

Jacob couldn’t hold back his groan as cool lips grazed against the pulse point of his neck. Puffs of air circled the sensitive shell of his ear, but it was the hint of sharp teeth at his neck that rendered him boneless. Even before Jacob had fallen into this particular line of work, his neck had always been a sensitive spot for him.

He wanted to run to escape the feelings coursing through him just as much as he wanted to give in and ask for more. His indecision was unfamiliar and paralyzing until Patrick made the decision for him, pulling away so abruptly that Jacob whined softly before he could stop himself. The shock of losing the pressure of Patrick’s body left him feeling oddly bereft and Jacob opened his eyes locking onto the vampire’s shocked and appalled expression.

He leaned his head back against the wall and let out a groan.

He was so fucked.

Chapter 4

“Fuck, I am so sorry Jacob. I didn’t mean to…I’ve never before accosted anyone like that. I don’t know what happ—“

“Is the grocery store close?” Jacob asked, his voice deceptively calm. He saw Patrick’s expression melt from concern to relief, but kept his comments to himself. He was too busy trying to keep his body from leaking the evidence of his intense arousal.

“Yes. It’s one more block down.” Patrick hesitated for a moment before turning away and stepping out of the small enclave he had so swiftly pushed them into. No one on the sidewalk batted an eye at the two men as they rejoined the small crowd of people.

Jacob might have appeared outwardly calm, but one only had to put a palm over his heart or focus in their hearing to discover its furious pounding. He was forcing his breathing to remain relatively quiet even though it made his lungs burn.

This time, the tension between them was sharp and heavy with what had just transpired. Jacob swore he could still feel every inch of where Patrick had been so tightly pressed against him. It was frustratingly addictive. They hadn’t even designated the parameters of their client, worker relationship and already the lines were becoming blurred. It also brought up another point in terms of their nightly arrangements.

“Do you sleep?”

“What?” Patrick didn’t pause in his steps, but he did glance over. Jacob could almost feel that gaze like a caress against his still keyed up skin.

“I saw that you only had one bedroom, obviously. Most of my other clients had a bedroom and bed designated for me because they didn’t sleep, but your bed looked recently slept in,” Jacob said with a shrug. “I didn’t want to assume anything so I figured I’d ask.”

“Oh, that’s…” Patrick trailed off as they reached the store.

“Is this where we’re going?” Jacob asked looking up at the sign on the front of the building.

Patrick nodded in answer though his attention remained on the other man. “It is, and the answer is, I do.”

Jacob blinked. “You do?”

“I do, sleep.”

Patrick turned away then as if his answer embarrassed him. Jacob stood still for a moment, before widening his stride and catching up with him.

“Hey,” Jacob reached out until he could wrap a hand around the vampire’s thin wrist. “Are you embarrassed about it? If you don’t like my questions, you can always tell me to shut up, you know.”

Patrick looked at him a moment, before shaking his head with a small smile.

“It’s quite alright. I don’t mind your questions.” He walked over to the shopping carts and pulled on out. “It is actually quite refreshing to have someone ask me things rather than just assume based on whatever rumor they’ve heard that day.”

Jacob nodded. He could understand that. Most times when people looked at him they assumed quite a bit as well.

Straight.

Jock.

Asshole.

Well…that last one might actually be completely accurate. He did have his moments and he was more prone to solving things with aggression than conceding defeat; at least outside of the bedroom anyway.

“So the answer is yes, I do sleep. I’m quite fond of it actually.” Patrick rolled the cart over to the fruits section and waited for Jacob to catch up.

“Oh yeah?” Jacob asked coming to stand beside him. He was surprised to see that Patrick was actually a few inches shorter than him. Back in the alley, they had seemed much closer in height. Then again, he hadn’t exactly been thinking straight.

Patrick shrugged. “Yes. I find that I get a lot of my story ideas from my dreams…or my nightmares.”

“Huh,” Jacob said in response. He wasn’t expecting that.

“What?”

“Nothing, really. I just wasn’t expecting that. Most humans assume you guys don’t sleep anymore let alone have dreams or nightmares,” Jacob answered. He walked over to the shelves that contained packaged fruit. “Or if you do, you probably dream of blood and death and biting the necks of the innocent.”

Patrick let out a bark of laughter. A few people near them turned to see what was going on, but turned back to what they were doing when they saw nothing of interest. Jacob smiled as he selected a container of strawberries.

“Well, most vampires I’ve met don’t sleep, nor do they dream of blood or the necks of any innocents.” Patrick snorted. “Truthfully, the majority of my kin tend to look down on those human traits. Most consider us having evolved beyond the need for anything from our human lives.”

Now Jacob snorted. “No offense, but most of your brethren are dicks.”

Patrick chuckled. “None taken. I find I quite agree with you in that regard. As you could probably tell, I’m not really a part of the vampire in-crowd.”

“I figured as much by how uncomfortable you were at the club,” Jacob said. He walked over to the bananas and looked them over with a discerning gaze. “Why is that anyway?” The question was framed lightly, but when Jacob glanced back over at Patrick, he could see that the vampire’s shoulders were tense.

“Let’s just say I disagree with many of my kind’s more…carnal pursuits.”

“Like drinking human blood whether fresh or otherwise?”

Jacob’s question stopped Patrick in his tracks. “How did you—“

“You ordered off the vegetarian menu even when I offered you the real stuff for free at the club. Most vamps don’t do that. They either go straight for the All-American meat menu or at least go for meat as an appetizer.”

Jacob’s voice was flippant, but his mind was going everywhere at once. Why did he feel the need to push Patrick’s buttons like this? It was as if he needed to see how far he could go before Patrick pushed back.

“I stopped drinking hu—I stopped, a long time ago.”

“Why?”

Patrick paused. “I thought you said you didn’t believe that I don’t drink human blood. Why so willing to believe it now?”

“I believed you then,” Jacob replied. He picked up a few bananas and placed them in the cart.

“So you just want to give me a hard time then.” Patrick sighed and shook his head. “You really do have a death wish.”

Jacob smirked. “We’ve all got to die sometime.” He looked at Patrick. “Though not all of us stay dead the first time I suppose.”

Patrick met his gaze for a moment before pushing by him with the cart. “I guess not.”

“Do you miss it?”

“Do you miss it?”

Patrick stopped. That was a question that no one had ever before asked him, not even the fans who came to his book signings.

“Every day.”

He wasn’t sure why he’d even bothered to answer. Most vampires he knew, Gabriel included, would have laughed in Jacob’s face at the thought of missing their human lives. To be a vampire was akin to being a god surrounded by a sea of weak and wanting mortals. Most of those who mourned for their previous human lives didn’t last long in their new vampiric ones quickly succumbing to grief and despair and then finally, immortal death.

“So why did you never…” Jacob trailed off. Patrick looked back in time to see Jacob draw his finger across his throat.

“I’m more afraid of what comes next than what I have to deal with now.”

Patrick’s answer seemed to surprise Jacob, but the other man nodded as if in agreement. “Understandable. Not much out there about the vampiric version of heaven or hell.”

“I would assume that heaven is off the menu for us,” Patrick said. He turned away and resumed walking. The conversation was becoming a bit heavier than he wanted to delve into in the middle of the grocery store. These were things he often thought about when he was alone in his study, but never had he come close to finding an answer. Jacob seemed to realize the conversation was over as he simply caught up to Patrick and continued browsing the shelves.

“Get whatever you want,” Patrick said. “It’s all on me.”

Jacob grinned. “You might regret that, but okay.” He walked ahead picking up items as he went.

“I somehow doubt that,” Patrick said under his breath as his eyes were drawn to Jacob’s tight ass. He allowed himself a moment to gaze in hunger before picking up the pace and hurrying after him. They spent a little while longer, Jacob stalking the aisles with a gleefully determined look on his face while Patrick walked dutifully behind him. Occasionally he would hear whispers floating in his direction.

‘Look at him, following a human.’

‘He’s always been a disgrace, but that is taking it too far.’

He tried to ignore them all and simply enjoy the moment of having someone to provide for. As much as Patrick talked about not minding his daily solitude, he truthfully had never imagined being alone for his entire life.

Then again he never imagined joining the ranks of the undead either.

“Patrick?”

Jacob’s voice startled him and he realized that they had gotten to the checkout counter. A tired looking cashier stood in front of him with her hand out.

“Right, sorry.” Patrick reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He opened it quickly pulling out the first card and handing it to her.

“Don’t you want to know the price?” Jacob asked.

Patrick shrugged. “It’s fine. I doubt you bout out the entire store, and even if you did, I can afford it.”

Jacob snorted before crossing his arms. He didn’t say anything else as the cashier passed back the card and receipt. He moved back and pulled the cart over to the exit. “I suppose we don’t need this either? You could probably carry all the bags on your own, couldn’t you?”

Patrick blinked. “Well, yes of course I could.” He reached into the cart and pulled out all of the bags pausing at the weird tension that seemed to be rising between them. “Is something wrong? Did I say or do something to upset you in there?”

Jacob’s silence put him even more on edge. He wasn’t accustomed to receiving the silent treatment. Whenever Gabriel was angry with him, he made sure Patrick knew it.

Jacob dropped his arms. “It’s fine.”

The walk back to Patrick’s apartment was far tenser than it had been previously and Patrick found himself glancing at Jacob. If not for the tension, he might have commented on Jacob’s beauty in the light of the late afternoon. Instead, he remained quiet matching the other man’s quick and determined pace and playing back everything he’d said in the store to find the source of his mistake.

When they finally reached the apartment and the door was firmly closed behind them, Patrick found himself speaking. “I’m sorry.” He walked through the living room and into the kitchen. He could hear Jacob walking behind him. “I’m not quite sure what I did, but—“

“Then why apologize?” Jacob asked. Patrick placed the bags on the counter before turning to face the other man. He wasn’t expecting to be pushed back against the counter. “You apologize before you even know what you did. You buy food that you won’t even eat.”

“I could eat it if that made you happy.”

Jacob narrowed his gaze. “That’s not the fucking point, Patrick. What is it that you want from me? You don’t drink human blood, but you invite me here as your…assistant.” Jacob spit that word out like it offended him.

Patrick didn’t understand why Jacob was so angry, and the once again robust scent of the man’s blood was sending his head spinning. He needed to regain control of the situation before it—

“What are you doing?”

Patrick swallowed loudly as he looked down at Jacob’s smirking face. “Isn’t it obvious?” Jacob’s deft fingers were quick, undoing the button and zipper of Patrick’s pants revealing—“No underwear? You are such a naughty little vampire.”

Jacob dropped quickly to his knees and Patrick winced at the hard sound of him hitting the floor. An inferno of heat gripped Patrick’s sensitive prick and he clenched his jaw tightly at the feeling. He’d of course had human partners before this, but those experiences seemed to pale in comparison to having Jacob at his feet with his rough hands pulling Patrick’s cock from between the folds of fabric. Patrick groaned as hot puffs of air caressed his hardening cock. Never before had he gotten hard this fast before. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say Jacob wasn’t a human.

“Veela.” Patrick groaned out loudly as wet heat surrounded the head of his sensitive dick. He groaned again when the wet suction went away and looked back down to see Jacob laughing.