Bloodlines (80 page)

“It’s okay,” Victor said under his breath, going still, his hand rubbing over Randall’s stomach. “We’ll go as slow as you need. Just tell me when, Randall.”

Focusing on his breathing, Randall dropped one hand from Victor’s arm, going to grasp a tight hold on Victor’s hip. “It’s okay,” he breathed, staring up at the ceiling. “I’m okay.”

He felt Victor’s fingers trace lightly over his stomach, then up the side of his cock, grasping it lightly. Randall arched into the contact as pleasure started to spark at his nerves again. Victor still wasn’t moving, just gently stroking him, coaxing him back to full arousal. A low groan rumbled in Randall’s chest, and he pulled Victor closer, muffling another low sound as Victor slid deeper inside of him. The rub of his cock pressing inward, the friction and the heat, was slowly melting away his tension.

“Victor,” he murmured, keeping his eyes closed, not wanting to accidentally meet Victor’s eyes. But that jump of fear again, soothed away by Victor’s touch, and then another long stroke, and Randall was wrapping his legs more firmly around Victor’s waist.

As if knowing exactly what Randall wanted, Victor leaned in and captured his lips in a hungry kiss. “Still okay?” Victor whispered, rocking his hips so slightly that Randall could barely feel it at first.

The ache had faded into heat and need, and Randall didn’t so much answer as moan, leaning up to kiss Victor again, hand sliding up to fist in his hair, pulling him closer. He bit Victor’s lip, his jaw, growling his want into his skin and the dip of his collarbone. God, yes, he was okay. He was more than okay. Any worry was gone now, any hesitation lost in the drag of Victor’s cock, the friction that felt like it was sinking into his bones.

Victor paused again, making Randall give a groan of need—but then Victor did something Randall had not been expecting. Victor
growled
. It was a tentative little sound, unsure and thready. It was also
incredibly
hot. Randall growled back, surging upward to pull Victor into a hard kiss, hooking one leg up farther around his waist, as if he could simply tangle himself around Victor completely.

Snarling under his breath, biting Victor’s lips, his jaw, Randall rolled upward into him, all but begging for more. And Victor obliged, only too happy to do so, rocking into him with smooth thrusts that took Randall’s breath away. Their mouths met in a clash, teeth catching on lips. When Victor lost all of his hesitation, he started fucking Randall hard, braced over him and panting against his jaw, one hand shakily wrapping around Randall’s cock.

Randall was howling, he was sure. His hands were digging into Victor’s back, meeting him thrust for thrust, gasping with every deep slide of Victor inside of him. It was like riding a wave of white heat, of endless sparks against his skin. Randall wasn’t sure where he began or where Victor ended. Their bodies were moving as one, writhing in pleasure, dancing in an endless, gasping reach for something more.

His second orgasm felt even better than the first, crashing through him, making him latch his teeth into Victor’s throat and bite down as he came. Victor continued to move against him, low gasps and stuttered moans leading to a near-incoherent growl of Randall’s name as he reached his own pleasure, trembling above Randall.

Victor slowed, then stopped completely, his muscles still shivering in the aftermath. Randall curled his arms around Victor’s waist as Victor settled on top of him, their breaths coming at the same time, heartbeats pounding.

“I have no words,” Victor managed, tucking his lips into the curve of Randall’s neck.

“Now that is new.” Randall tightened his hold around Victor, rubbing his thumb along the line of Victor’s spine. “I think we should get some kind of award.” All he could think of then was how badly he wanted to look into Victor’s eyes. To see him fully to know if the satisfaction he felt on his own features was mirrored there.

Randall sat up a little, braced on an elbow, and Victor rolled off him to sprawl on his front next to him. Randall frowned as he looked around the room. Victor’s pants were tossed over the edge of the bed, so he reached out, pulling them toward him and rifling through the pockets. Finding Victor’s phone, Randall held it up over him, looking straight into the camera, not changing anything about how he looked—utterly spent, completely satisfied, disheveled and loving every inch of it.

“Your turn,” he murmured, nudging Victor, who lifted his head from the pillow to reveal half of his face. Victor looked into the camera, a mess of red-blond hair and one visible blue eye. Randall took the picture and sprawled out next to him, both of them meeting the camera’s gaze without fear. One of Randall kissing Victor, just because of the look on Randall’s face as Victor pressed his lips to Randall’s throat. All things they couldn’t see themselves, set down into digital imprints.

Settling back beside Victor, head on his shoulder, Randall showed the photographs to him. “You look incredible,” Randall murmured, placing a kiss onto his chest. And he did. There was a lightness in his gaze, an amazing languid power that made Randall’s breath catch. “I could stare at this all day.”

Victor gave an agreeing hum. “Likewise. Next time we should set up a video camera.”

The idea made Randall snort a laugh, dismissive only for a moment. Then he gave Victor a considering look and curled up further around him. He took another picture, this time of him, a close up of his eyes, of lips swollen from Victor’s kisses, a smile curving across his face. “I think that is an excellent plan,” he said, handing Victor his phone. “Maybe I’ll make a video just for you. I have some ideas, now. You can watch it after you leave.”

“Now
that
is a good idea,” Victor said. His eyes had fallen closed, and he rested his cheek on Randall’s shoulder. Randall had to smile fondly—nonwolves seemed to get so tired after sex, he’d discovered, and it was strangely endearing. Right then Victor looked like he wanted nothing more than to drop off into sleep, so Randall shifted accommodatingly, getting them comfortable.

But before Victor was lost to the world, he seemed determined to do one last thing, even though his movements were sluggish with contentment. Victor smoothed a palm over Randall’s hip, dragging upward to rest fully over the scars scattered across Randall’s collarbone, his hand a warm weight on Randall’s skin.

And it didn’t hurt. Whatever lingering memories of fear and pain and helplessness were, for the moment, washed over with the present. Victor’s touch had branded him far deeper than any vampire could bite. For now, Randall felt no part of himself caught in that hell. His Beatrice truly had led him out into heaven.

The pale light of the moon and stars painted the sky outside the room. The doors of the balcony were open, and Randall could hear the lake lapping lightly against the shore, the soft sigh of the wind through leaves. He was surrounded by everything familiar, by the scent of him and Victor combined, and it was the most at home he’d ever felt. As if all of what he knew
home
to be had just been magnified and expanded. His pack had gotten bigger, fuller, and it felt like this was exactly as it should be.

Victor was leaving in the morning. Randall shouldn’t be so attached to the idea of falling asleep in his arms. And yet he was.

One more picture, then. Not for Victor. For himself. Victor half-asleep, strawberry-blond hair spread across the pillow in a messy tangle, Randall’s darker head pillowed on his chest. The two of them, tangled together, like nothing on earth could find a way to pull them apart.

R
ANDALL
WAS
dragged out of sleep by a knock at the door, a muffled laugh, and Victor groaning, “Jed, for the love of God, go away.”

“I know you stole my lube, you sex fiend.” Jed was battering on his door, head poking around it to grin widely at them both. “Kinky, professor.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” There was a distinct dry tone in Victor’s voice. “Do you want it back?”

“Nope. That was my extra supply. Just want all the dirty little secrets. Come on, breakfast, and we can have the sex talk over pancakes.”

Randall buried his face deeper into the pillow, trying to figure out why all these people were in his bedroom.

Except it wasn’t his bedroom. Bleary, he lifted his head and stared around, hair completely in disarray, totally confused. Very slowly, he woke up enough to remember what had happened. Victor. Victor was in bed with him. They were tangled up together, legs entwined. A smile eased across Randall’s face, and, with a grunt of protest at the whole
waking up
thing, he dropped a kiss on Victor’s shoulder. “Hey,” he mumbled. “What time is it?”

“I have no idea. Let me look.” Victor was without his glasses, but he attempted to peer at the clock on the bedside table. After a few moments, he said, “I still have no idea.”

Randall decided he didn’t care that much. He pulled Victor in for a kiss instead, winding his arm around Victor and nuzzling in close. “Hey,” he whispered again, more quietly. “Good morning.”

Victor turned into his arms, draping himself over Randall’s side. “Good morning,” he replied, eyes still closed, a smile at the corners of them. “Did you sleep well?”

Surprisingly well, actually. Randall blinked and stretched, biting back a yawn. “For one of the first times since Cairo, I think I did.” He was more than a little shocked. Nuzzling into Victor’s neck, Randall peppered kisses along the softly reddened marks he’d left the night before. “How about you?”

Victor seemed more interested in wrapping his arms around Randall, getting comfortable, like he wanted to go right back to sleep. “Very soundly,” he replied. “Better than I do at home.”

“Well, maybe you should stay longer.” It was more than Randall would have suggested any other time, but he was still aching from the night before in the best possible way, they were all wrapped up and warm in each other, and it was so easy to whisper the words against Victor’s skin. He eased kisses along Victor’s collarbone. “Anthony’s appointment is later today. Just stay over after our dinner tonight.”

Giving a hum of agreement, Victor said, “Excellent idea. Do we need to get up right now?”

Randall really did have to squint at the clock then, attempting to get the numbers in focus. Nine in the morning. “The appointment is at noon,” he yawned, half sprawled out over Victor. “And it’s an hour and a half drive. So we have about a half an hour before we need to get up and start getting ready.”

“Then how about we sleep more?” Victor sounded like he was already halfway there, his cheek resting on Randall’s bicep. “That sounds good.”

“Mmm.” Randall contented himself with scraping his teeth lightly on the inside of Victor’s arm. “We should sleep.”

They drifted back into that hazy, warm space that lay halfway between wake and sleep. Randall’s fingers slid in with Victor’s, and he curled up closer, letting himself relax. Until, of course, there was a pounding at the door and a very loud, very strident voice calling, “Okay, lovebirds! Ten minutes before I come in and start pulling off covers.”

“Fuck off, Jed,” Victor shouted back. Even half-asleep, Randall was startled at his cursing. Apparently Victor only did it when he didn’t have the brainpower to think of better words.

“Yes, Jed, do go fuck yourself,” Randall agreed with a low growl. “We’re sleeping.”

“Nine minutes!” Jed was apparently not threatened at all. Jed’s fist slammed several more times into the door, jerking Randall out of that pleasant doze. “Redford’s making breakfast. Get your fornicating asses over there.”

Victor muttered something under his breath that even Randall’s ears couldn’t catch, but the mattress shifted a moment later as Victor hauled himself up with a grunt. Randall felt a hand on his shoulder, rubbing gently. “Jed’s probably right,” Victor sighed. “Up we get.”

Rolling over, Randall just studied Victor. The morning light was streaming through the windows, bathing everything in a soft golden glow, lighting Victor up like some ancient god. “You are so beautiful.” Randall reached out, letting his fingers trail along Victor’s arm. “I’ve never seen anyone half as gorgeous as you are.”

Victor smiled down at him and teased, “Well, you do have your glasses off. I’m probably just a big blur to you.”

Randall struggled to sit up, grabbing said glasses again and shoving them on. “Nope,” he declared, tugging Victor back onto the bed with him, kissing his shoulder. “You are simply beautiful.”

“You really are a shameless flatterer,” Victor replied, braced on his hands to lean above Randall. He ducked down to give Randall a kiss, lingering, but sadly not as long as Randall wanted it to be, before Victor got himself out of bed. “Come on, Randall. Don’t tell me I’m somehow more a morning person than you are.”

“I just suddenly have a very good reason for lying around in bed all day,” Randall returned, sticking out his tongue. But he got up to wrap his arms around Victor from behind, nuzzling his nose into the nape of Victor’s neck. Sighing, he bit lightly at the soft skin there. “You need to go take a shower before I decide I really can’t keep my hands to myself.”

“Is that supposed to
deter
me?” Victor gave a quiet laugh, leaning back against Randall. He smoothed a hand over Randall’s arm, every inch of his body language speaking of content. Burying a smile in his shoulder, Randall couldn’t help saying it.

“I love you,” he whispered. He just said it, hanging it out there like some hopeful prayer. He shouldn’t have said it yet, maybe. He should have waited. But Randall felt strangely impulsive, like he couldn’t bear to keep it inside. The emotion was too big for him to live with it inside his skin.

Victor’s reply was low but utterly without hesitation. “I love you too.”

After a low breath, Randall murmured, “Hold still.” He fumbled and found Victor’s phone, holding it out in front of them, taking a picture so that Victor could see his expression. So that he could see Victor’s. Turning it around, he stared at it, at the pure joy in his expression, at Victor’s sleepy-eyed content.

“I think I might have to start password protecting my phone,” Victor huffed, bemused. “There’s a few interesting pictures on there now.”