by Jo Penn
Realizing this had snapped Con out of his daze. He’d jerked his hand out of Tyler’s, glared meanly at the vampire and pushed past him and out of the computer room, ignoring everyone else, even the hot blond who gave a tentative smile and wave. It had made Con so angry. He didn’t want to be interested in anyone, let alone a damn vampire prince!
What did a prince do anyway? Was it like the Queen of England? Not that Con knew what she did either. Gods, this was so not what he needed, and not what he could deal with!
He had to in a way, though. Otherwise, Tyler may keep turning up everywhere Con was on campus.
“I’m not interested,” he snapped now. “Leave me alone.”
“Ah, sweets, let me take you out—”
“No.” Con kept his head down and searched through the folder. “I’m studying.”
“Studying is good, so is having a bit of fun. You’re the hottest guy I’ve ever seen, I really want to take you out, get to know you—”
“No, not interested. Now leave me alone.”
“Ouch, harsh, but I don’t give up so easily. What’s that old saying about worth fighting for?”
Did the vampire never take a hint? Or a blunt rejection? Why was he so interested anyway? Con had the social skills of a dead toad and dressed like a grunge reject. How could the gorgeous, smartly dressed, intelligent vampire who could have anyone, be so blind?
“Right, I see.” Con slapped his pen down on the table and glared at the creature across from him, who looked mildly attentive and was smiling cheerfully. That was so annoying. Why was the creature always smiling? University was a serious place! “I’m not a challenge. Get it? You’re wasting your time and mine ’cause I’m not going to say yes. So go back to your group of snotty nosed rich kids and leave me the hell alone.”
A big man sat down sideways in the chair beside Tyler. “Hey, Tyler, what’re you doing in this library?”
Tyler fixed his pale green eyes on the man. “Hi, Grey, I’m just studying with a friend. Do you know Constantin?”
Con was not a grumpy person normally. He didn’t have a short fuse—in fact, it took a lot to rouse him to temper. He tended to be overly cautious, hesitant about a lot of things, thoughtful and helped little old people across the road and with their groceries. He could smile, though he wasn’t a happy jolly person, and he could be nice but he just didn’t want to encourage Tyler’s unfathomable interest in him. Yeah, it was nice in some ways and yes, he was attracted to the vampire, but nothing was going to happen between them, it was for the best. Maybe he needed to try a different way of dealing with Tyler, as the snapping and ignoring weren’t working.
“Nope, I’ve seen him around.” The big man named Grey put his hand out across the table to Con. “Nice to meet you, I’m Grey Travers.”
Con shook Grey’s hand, head down a little hiding beneath his curls. “Con Hutton.”
Grey gave a light squeeze and removed his hand from Con’s loose grip. “Any helpful info on how to get Tyler to go out with me? I’ve been asking for weeks but he’s always too busy.”
Con actually snorted a laugh, quickly covering it up with a cough. Tyler met Con’s dark eyes and smiled.
“So how about it, Ty? Tonight? Pizza? Pack or yours? Somewhere in the city?”
Tyler turned fully to Grey and patted his arm. “Can’t, buddy, but thanks. We’ll talk soon and I’ll tell you all about why, okay?”
“Sure. Is it the ribbing the pack and coven give each other?” Grey took it well though it was obvious he was disappointed.
Con could understand why. Tyler was beyond hot. The vampire was cheerful, very social, fun, and made friends easily because he was genuine and actually seemed to like everyone. That was rare. People, at times, could have a beef with others over the smallest thing.
Laughing, Tyler shook his head. “I love the squabbles!”
“Okay, well, I’ll let you guys study. Oh.” Grey sniffed closer toward Con. “Small amount of djinn?”
Grey was apparently some kind of paranormal—they were always sniffing for scents and shit. Con nodded.
“That’s cool! You guys are fairly rare. I’m studying creature genealogy and science and we’ve just gotten to the magic-wielding creatures. It’s amazing what djinn can do. Can you teleport? Stop time? Gods, there’s a long list of gifts.”
“Djinn don’t always receive their gift until they have either mated or they’re at least fifty,” Tyler said. “Constantin’s only got a little djinn anyway, may not have a gift.”
“True. The funny thing is, what is extremely rare these days is having a human without any creature biology in their makeup.” Grey’s phone beeped and he glanced at his watch. “Sorry, I have class in five minutes. I better beat paws or I’ll be late and shut out of the lab. Good to see you both.”
Grey moved fast. Con watched the creature go, looked around checking out who else was around then studied Tyler through his curls. Tyler hadn’t asked if Con had his gift already. It kind of irked that the vampire had just taken the lead on that, but at the same time, Con didn’t know Grey and wasn’t looking to make a new buddy so it wasn’t a big deal.
Except Con did have his gift. Yeah, mostly djinn had to wait until they were older or mated, but what most creatures didn’t know was, with his kind, it depended completely on the gift itself. And Con had his since puberty when most paranormals’ gifts hit. Con’s gift came in handy and was one of the reasons why Tyler confused him so much. The vampire hadn’t lied to him and wasn’t being deceptive about his interest in Con. So to what extent did it go? How deep?
Tyler smiled. “I’m free tonight, for you.”
Sighing, Con sat up straight and pushed his hair out of his face. “I shouldn’t have been rude, I just…I’m not going to go out with you. Sorry, thanks anyway.”
“Okay, let’s talk about why—”
“Hi there, I’ve seen you around—”
“Stop.” Tyler looked up at the student beside the table, green eyes serious, and spoke so low no one else around them would be able to hear, even if they were a creature with heightened hearing. “You asked me out, I was flattered but had to decline as I’m seeing someone else. You’re fine with that. Go. Now.”
Con watched, shocked. As soon as Tyler spoke, the student who had interrupted became a statue, his expression blank. Con gaped as the student walked away as per Tyler’s instructions, and without a word. He looked at Tyler cautiously.
“Ah, hmm, okay, that’s something we should probably discuss, but not here. Please come out with me tonight, Constantin.” Tyler fluttered his eyelashes suggestively. “It’ll be fun, sweets.”
“You just—he just…you took over his mind,” Con stammered, stunned. Holy hell, there was much more to this vampire prince than his cheerful smile and good looks. And way more than Con could handle.
Sighing, Tyler nodded and leaned forward. “We can talk about that, but not here. Can I pick you up tonight—?”
“No, err, thanks, but I can’t. I have to go.”
While Con jumped up and scrambled to shove everything into his tattered old favorite backpack, Tyler kept saying he liked Con and they should talk, away from here. When Con put his backpack over his shoulder and turned away, Tyler sighed heavily and flopped back in his seat. Con was grateful the creature wasn’t going to try anything. Creatures were stronger and faster than humans and Con’s gift of telling if someone lied or was deceitful sure wasn’t going to help against creature super strength and mind control!
He made it out of the library without Tyler continuing to follow him and quickly put distance between them.
* * * *
Well, that went badly.
Tyler gathered up his laptop and placed it and everything else back in his satchel and hooked the strap over his head. He should have known better than to use his gift in front of Constantin at this stage in their relationship. And yes, he would call what they currently had a relationship, even if it was a stalkerish kind of one.
Con was long gone, probably planning to avoid Tyler even more now. He shouldn’t have used his gift, he’d just wanted time alone with Constantin to work on his mate and the interruption caused him to act without thinking first. Now he had to pay the consequences.
Damn! For a few minutes there he had Constantin’s full attention and it had been awesome! Then Tyler ruined it by freaking out his human. And to top it off, if one of his bodyguards decided to tattle to Misha, Tyler would get a lecture about using his gift on harmless creatures and exposing himself to the dangers of Renegades, hunters and anyone else who might take an interest in acquiring his gift.
After all, Tyler had a freaking amazing gift! A bit of mind control, which was basically being able to take another over just with the use of his mind. He could implant suggestions and memories, steer actions, guide and pretty much anything he liked. And he was frigging powerful in his gift, had been since his teens when he went through puberty and his gift first emerged. Tyler had quickly been taught to control the mind gift and was directed how to use it, also the morals and consequences. As Tyler had a good moral base he knew how to use his gift without interfering in others’ rights and choices. Well, okay, today he may have overstepped but man, he was so sick of trying to get close to his mate that when he finally did, and had been interrupted, he’d reacted. Not wise, though.
Arriving at the coven an hour later, he was immediately snagged by Archie Taunton and dragged into a closet.
Archie had arrived at the coven a few months ago after following his brother, Chane, who had a psycho ex-boyfriend chasing him. Archie had a unique gift that most covens would pay highly for but Tyler knew Archie just wanted to be close to his brother and settle down somewhere. Tyler was glad Chane ended up in Milson City. The very old vampire was really cool and had this fun, pissy side that Archie loved to rile up, and now Tyler got to be with one of his best friends.
And Tyler had learned a lot from Archie since the other vampire joined the coven. Archie was all for having fun, just like Tyler, but where Tyler hadn’t yet found what interested him, Archie had and showed Tyler there was lots of time to have fun while still doing something constructive. That was what kick-started Tyler into looking for what interested him and why he ended up at the university and discovered what he wanted to do, and found his mate.
“Ah, okay, you’re a best bud and all, but this is a little cozy, Archie.” Tyler grinned, squished up against his friend.
“This closet is tiny.” Archie grimaced, trying to dislodge a small handheld vacuum cleaner from his back. “I should have tried the next door.”
“Yeah, that’s where I use to hide and jump out at the wolves whenever they came to visit. Man, you should have seen their hackles rise!”
Archie grinned. “I’d liked to see that.”
“Archie, why are we squashed in this vacuum closet?”
“Oh! Shit, that’s right. Sorry, got distracted, what with being squashed and penetrated by a broom handle.” Archie wiggled to his left. “Man, that’s uncomfortable. Anyway, so Misha heard about you wooing your mate and after he argued with Ryson, who actually called Misha a very derogatory name, Xavier stepped in to calm your eldest brother down and ended up snarling at Misha also. So he lost his cool and now your mother’s here and bro, she’s planning to nab your mate and bring him here.”
Tyler was wide eyed. “Oh no! That’s not a good idea. Constantin is already freaked out after I used my gift on this guy who keeps pestering me lately. He will never accept me if Mama interferes.”
“Did you know that Misha has had your mate watched since you first told him about Constantin? He’s, like, having him protected.” Archie wiggled a little more.
“No. I thought he didn’t believe me. Actually, that would be like Misha—”
The door swung open and Misha stood there, arms crossed over his solid chest, pale green eyes glittering with annoyance. Archie gave a big, fake smile, squeezed past Tyler and made a run for it. Tyler stared after his best bud in shock. Sheesh, talk about unhelpful. He plastered a smile on his face. Misha did not look happy. Behind him, Xavier was checking his phone.
“There’s my baby!” Queen Bethany Durand tossed Misha aside with a small hand to his shoulder and dragged Tyler out of the closet and into her arms. “A mate, darling! This is wonderful news! I will have him collected and brought to the coven immediately. Do not worry, I have spoken to Misha, he will accept your mate and care for him as another brother.”
Suffocating against his mother’s neck—she was six foot and he was five foot eight—Tyler just smiled and sniffed her. His mother was kind and fierce, gentle and determined, smart and caring. She knew how to handle all of them, knocking them all into place, like Xavier when he went all arrogant and cool, Misha when he became too bossy and too much of a dictator, Syndal with her meanness and Ryson when he withdrew into himself.
And Valiant, whom their mother just doted on and protected, even from himself.
“Thanks, Mother, but we need to talk first.” Tyler stepped back and smiled at Misha. “Have you been protecting my mate, big brother?”
Misha glanced away. “I was merely having him monitored. Nothing more.”
Their mother smiled and took Tyler’s hand. “He will never admit to taking care of your mate, darling, he is still having difficulty with the fact you found your mate at such a young age.”
“M-a, I’m twenty-five!”
“Yes, darling, so grown up—Xavier, darling, it is not time for you to return to the Sanchez Compound as yet. Come, we must hear of Tyler’s progress with his mate.”
Xavier didn’t protest, his icy blue eyes fixing momentarily on Tyler and he flashed a gorgeous, warm smile before narrowing on Misha, who tossed his hands in the air and trailed after them to the family section of the castle. Tyler spent the next half an hour explaining everything to his family, telling them about the time he’d managed to spend with his mate and even that he used his gift and freaked his human out.
“Even if your human has only a minute amount of djinn DNA, he will still carry some of their traits,” Xavier murmured. “In every dealing I have had with djinn over the years, they can be bad-tempered but usually it is only when they do not get their way or someone has wronged them. Otherwise, they can be fairly even-tempered and are positive and rather ambitious, though not necessarily in the way of amassing fortunes and businesses. They are ambitious in areas they choose to be, what interests them. They do not have as much magic as other magic-wielding creatures, such as witches and wizards and fae. Their magic is very much like a vampire or shifter having gifts, with the notable exception they can use nature to their will when they concentrate.”
“Yes, that has always fascinated me. I recall an attack centuries ago by a djinn clan on a witch coven and how the djinn used natural elements to overpower,” the Queen mused. “Though fae also take power from the natural elements.”
“Yes, but they derive energy from nature. A djinn’s most notable universal gift is they can teleport themselves and a few others. The fae open portals that go from one specific destination to another. Djinn whisk themselves through time and space.”
“Cool, I wonder if Constantin will be able to do that once we’re mated!” Tyler liked that idea. Hopefully, his mate could and they’d zip to Hawaii whenever they felt like, or to Switzerland to snowboard. Even just between the covens would be good.
“No, I do not see it as cool,” Misha grumbled. “It is difficult to protect someone when they teleport themselves elsewhere.”<
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Hmm, Misha did have a point, but Tyler wasn’t going to dwell. They discussed Tyler and his mating difficulties a little longer, Tyler arguing that he needed a bit more time to win Con over and finally being granted another week before the laws governing paranormals and mates should be enforced. Sure, Tyler could see their point of view, but having actually spent a little time with Con today and having his mate speak to him, gave Tyler hope he could win his mate. After all, he did have the mate pull in his favor. That took away a lot of a creature’s resistance to their mate and mating, helping to take away any concerns and natural inhibitions.
“You must tell the human he is your mate,” Queen Bethany said gently, but seriously. “Humans may feel a pull or draw to their mate but they can fight it. As we have seen, Keeley did at first with Xavier, then with Drake. And djinn are one type of creature who do not have the mate recognition so that will not help you with Constantin.”
“I see your point. I would like Constantin to—”
“It is not up for debate, Tyler. You have had months and with the constant attention you are displaying toward the human it is placing both of you in danger.”
Frustrated, Tyler pointed at Misha. “But he has Constantin guarded and I’ve got my bodyguards. Plus, Blazh’s bodyguards are always hanging around and there are a few others at university, also. I even saw Finn there the other day with Deakin and there was like a dozen wolves protecting them.”
Misha’s brows shot up. “Finn is going to university?”
“I don’t know. Could have been Deak. I know he’s been doing a few classes in records management.”
“And wolves were protecting them but not Aston security?” Xavier was frowning. “That does not make sense…ah, unless Aston security were hidden.”
Tyler threw up his hands. “Honestly, I don’t know! I was trying to move fast enough to get into the computer room before Constantin, but Blazh had to touch a dozen things before we could move two steps!”
