“Do you want my brother?” Ollie seemed oblivious to what Jonas was attempting to do. Just like Caleb, his concern was more for his brother than his own happiness. Jonas felt intensely ashamed of himself for putting his wants and desires above all else.
“I am not here to discuss that with you.” McBride closed his eyes and rested his head on the back of the chair. He couldn’t appear any more relaxed if he tried.
It wasn’t a no or a yes. It was a nonanswer that left Jonas feeling empty and tired. “Are you going to let him kill me?”
“No.” McBride didn’t hesitate. “Two wrongs don’t make a right, so I don’t see how three will, either.”
Again, a curious expression crossed McBride’s face. He seemed lost in yearning and then sharply determined to hold himself away from that which he longed for most. In the split second of time the look owned McBride’s face, Jonas understood that, though McBride might want Caleb almost desperately, he wasn’t about to break the law to have him. But it was deeper than that. McBride wasn’t going to break his own code. Jonas realized that more than any law of the land, McBride held to a law of his own that was far stricter and more rigid than any crafted by the Genetics Board.
“What if there was a way you could have him?”
“You steal one brother with an illegal and morally objectionable bloodbond and then you attempt to barter with another brother for my complicity?” McBride looked Jonas in the eye, dipped his attention to his glass, then raised it back until he was peering intently into Jonas’s gaze. “Either you’re a very light touch when it comes to booze or you think I’m a fool.”
“I don’t think you’re a fool. I think you’re a good man who knows what will happen to Ollie if I’m parted from him.” Jonas sought now to engage McBride’s compassion.
“I know what will happen. I think it’s what killed my father.”
Jonas stiffened.
“He was withdrawn, moody, unable to leave the house, and everyone said he refused to feed.” McBride lifted his hand, cutting Jonas off. “Right. He would feed only from your neck and you only fed from the seven—no, wait—six Morgan brothers. Something about that just never rang quite right in my mind.”
“Your father was very ill, but he wasn’t languishing from a denied bloodbond. I would have been ill, too.”
“Oh, I didn’t say he had a bloodbond with you.”
“If not me, then who?” Jonas had never understood McBride’s father or his sudden and terrible illness.
“I don’t know. I probably won’t ever know.” McBride settled back in his chair and closed his eyes.
“And you’re not driven to find out the truth?”
“To what end?” McBride didn’t move anything other than his mouth.
“But, well, you’re his son.”
“And there’s nothing I can do to save him now.”
Baffled, Jonas sat on the couch, sipping his drink, wondering just what kind of a man this son of his previous companion was. In all his travels and his wide circle of friends and acquaintances, he’d never met anyone even remotely like McBride.
“Tell me one thing, Jonas.” McBride cracked open one eye, pinning Jonas to the couch. “Did you ever love him?”
“Your father was very kind, but what we had wasn’t like that.”
“So the answer is no.”
“No.” Jonas darted a quick glance at Ollie, who looked so uncomfortable he might have bolted except he waited on his master’s pleasure. “I enjoyed his company, but I didn’t love him. When I came here, to your father’s tallos farm, I was already in love with Ollie.”
“And you are without a doubt the worst thrall I’ve ever seen.” Again, both of McBride’s eyes were closed, but there was a peculiar smile on his face. “You haven’t let Ollie speak hardly a word. You’re in charge, and you always will be.”
Jonas blanched and looked at Ollie, who shook his head.
“It’s difficult with you because you and Jonas are—” Ollie cut himself off.
“Equals.” McBride nodded. “Jonas and I are equals, and you’ll always be a slammer, Ollie. Sadly, you’re a slammer bound to a landed gentryman. You two have made a hell of a mess that I’m not sure how to clean up. What irritates me is that I shouldn’t have to clean it up.”
Jonas and Ollie sat silently holding hands, waiting for McBride to speak. There was no point in doing or saying anything until he made up his mind about what he wanted to do.
“Ah, hell. You two really do love each other, don’t you?”
“Yes.” Their answers overlapped.
“Then there really is only one way to solve this.”
Jonas’s hand tightened on Ollie’s when McBride opened his eyes and looked right at him. “You’re going to have to become my companion, Jonas. It’s the only way out of this mess.”
Chapter 13
“It’s not unusual for a son to step fully into his father’s shoes.” McBride stood on the porch of the big house three days after he’d discovered Jonas in Ollie’s house. They had forgone a huge party, but the populace had showered them in gifts anyway. The presents were practically tumbling off the table in the foyer, but now his slammers and the thralls he’d given to them were grouped around. “I didn’t know what I was missing until I met Jonas.”
Jonas was as McBride’s side. He was dressed impeccably in shades of purple while McBride had opted for blue. They made a deceptively perfect couple. There were some shocked gasps among those men he worked with in the sheriff’s office, but a few secretive smiles and some well-timed innuendos had everyone in Woven Spire County believing McBride had fallen in love with Jonas at first glance. Quite the opposite was true, but that was something no one would ever know. Only he, Jonas, and Ollie knew the truth. And that was the way things were going to stay.
McBride looked at the faces of his slammers, finding their reactions were mostly happy for him. Ollie played the part of the wounded lover perfectly, but it was the shocked horror on Caleb’s face that would stay with McBride throughout his life.
In a matter of three days, the necessary paperwork was filed, the official announcement was made, and McBride was forever after joined to Jonas. Gifts and well-wishes had been trickling in since, but most were delivered via electronic servants. Only Quintus came in person, and only to deliver news about the Larsden case. Although, to be fair, no news really wasn’t news.
Caleb stood with the others to hear the announcement, but once it was made, he turned on his heel and walked away. His back looked tight and his stance was that of a gravely wounded warrior who would never let anyone see that he’d been dealt a killing blow. McBride ached for him, but he showed nothing. In a very short while, McBride had become an adept liar. He found the role uncomfortable, but it was the only way to save Jonas’s life and to prevent him and Ollie from suffering the tortures of separation.
McBride had also put a permanent block between himself and Caleb. Only in his own heart did he admit that was his true goal with the entire charade of taking Jonas as his companion. Keeping Jonas and Ollie together was important to him, because he did understand why they had done what they’d done, but he would not allow himself to follow in their footsteps. Now that he’d publically claimed Jonas, there couldn’t ever be anything between him and Caleb.
Caleb hated Jonas so much that he refused to even look at McBride now that McBride had claimed the man as his mate. Perhaps Caleb knew the truth, that McBride really didn’t want Jonas, but the fact that he had saved Jonas by claiming him made McBride untouchable in Caleb’s eyes. Caleb wouldn’t kill Jonas now. But more importantly, he wouldn’t welcome McBride into his arms, or try to push him into his bed. This was the final block that ended what might have been.
McBride was relieved in part that he didn’t have to fight off Caleb’s advances anymore, but he realized that what he’d done hadn’t changed his longing one iota. Lust still pulsed through his blood, but if Caleb left him alone, McBride was hoping that his needs would fa
de in time.
After the well-wishes of his slammers and thralls, McBride and Jonas entered the big house. They kept the house well lit and made sure to stay near the windows so that anyone watching would see they were simply a normal couple. They ate, drank, talked, and even feigned a brief romantic encounter in the parlor.
“I don’t quite know how to thank you for what you’ve done.” Anyone looking at Jonas from a distance would see his face tilted up worshipfully toward McBride’s.
“I had to protect Ollie.” McBride’s other reasons were his alone.
“You understood how much in love we are.” Jonas stroked his hand down McBride’s chest. Since he still wore his dark blue shirt, he felt nothing but some pressure. For all his delicate beauty, McBride didn’t find Jonas attractive, not the way others did. McBride always had liked big men, and Jonas was almost the total opposite of that.
“I do understand that you and Ollie are in love, but I didn’t want bloodshed on my land, and I didn’t want Ollie to suffer more than he already has.”
“And me?” Jonas leaned in a little closer.
McBride lowered his head as if he were kissing his neck, but he was simply whispering in his ear. “I don’t care about you, Jonas. I think you did wrong by my father.”
Jonas moved back just enough so they were looking at one another. His blue eyes were enhanced by the purple of his jacket. “I did everything I could to help your father.”
“Yet he died anyway.” McBride eased apart the buttons on Jonas’s shirt, exposing the cluster of vicious scars on his neck. “Are any of these from my father?”
“No. He refused to drink from me.”
“Not according to the butler and the valet.”
Blue eyes widened, and it was clear Jonas was going to scrabble backward, so McBride eased his hand around to the back of his neck. He pinched lightly, holding him in place. “Don’t you dare flinch away from me. Remember that we’re putting on a show.” McBride didn’t bother to look toward the open window. He knew without seeing that Caleb was watching. Each touch he made on Jonas was cutting Caleb, and McBride ached for that, but they had to stop before they became like Jonas and Ollie. Those two would have a happy ending, but there would only be trouble and pain for McBride and Caleb if they consummated their relationship. This, what he was doing with Jonas right now, would be the final crushing blow that would push Caleb away forever. It was the most unforgivable sin that McBride could commit in Caleb’s eyes.
“Your father wanted that thrall.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. He found out he was for sale, and he asked me to buy him.”
“Did he drink from him?”
Jonas nodded and then moved closer so that they once again appeared to be in a lover’s embrace. “He almost killed him he drank so deeply from him.”
Into McBride’s mind came an image of the Larsden house. Arterial blood spray had arched across the front picture window. Crimson splashes covered everything inside, and the rich, earthy smell of copper had filled the air. Every time he thought of the crime scene, his blood hunger retreated as his belly roiled. Had his father suffered something similar to the insatiable hunger that had gripped Larsden?
“Was his blood hunger insatiable?”
“I don’t know what you’re asking me.”
“My father almost killed Zeth, the thrall, by drinking from him too often. Did it seem to you he couldn’t get enough blood?”
“He couldn’t get enough of Zeth’s blood. He wouldn’t drink mine, and he wouldn’t drink from any of the Morgan brothers.”
“But you did.”
“Yes.” Jonas gave a little nod. “All but for Caleb.”
“Why does he hate you so much? It isn’t just Ollie.”
“Caleb hates everyone.” Jonas eased back a bit. “I have to move away. My blood hunger is getting to me.”
“Too bad.” McBride reached up and stroked his finger over Jonas’s lip. It looked like a lover’s touch, but it was a way of tormenting him by stimulating his extended canines. “You had Ollie last night. Don’t try to tell me any different.”
“I did, but I hadn’t fed for weeks before I came here.”
“I thought you were down to less blood?”
“I was, but suddenly I’m here and the craving is stronger.”
That pushed McBride away from Jonas so quickly he almost tumbled off the couch. He recovered and strode across the parlor to the drapes. McBride looked out, and his gaze immediately connected to Caleb, who was standing near the front window of his home, looking toward the big house. Even from a great distance, McBride could see his anger. It had returned in full force. But he also saw Caleb’s regret for what might have been. Without acknowledging him, McBride closed the drapes.
“There. The show is over for tonight.” McBride settled in his favorite chair and removed his boots. “Is the craving stronger because you’re around Ollie?” He prayed that was the case and not that Jonas had been infected with something.
“I guess.” Jonas straightened his clothing then rose for the bar. He poured himself a drink, offered one to McBride, and poured him one when he nodded. “To our bonding.”
“I don’t want to drink to that.” McBride wasn’t proud of the lie he’d perpetrated, but he was proud of himself for protecting two men. Well, three men, if he counted Caleb. Four if he counted himself. All he had to do now was find Caleb a mate and the deal would be fully sealed. Briefly, McBride had considered giving Easton to Caleb, but in the end he decided to wait until things settled down before giving Easton to the next brother in line. Just like everyone else, Easton believed that McBride and Jonas had fallen in love and Ollie was devastated.
“Then what shall we drink to?”
“Nothing. I drink to nothing at all.” McBride lifted his glass and so did Jonas. Together, they polished off the liquor in large gulps. Since he didn’t really taste it, he had no idea what it was. Moreover, he didn’t care. He’d done right by his slammer and his father’s companion, but the truth was, he’d been determined to protect himself.
When Jonas took his glass and poured him another, McBride took it, but this time he sipped it slowly. “How do you feel?”
“I feel worried that we’ll get caught. Nervous about hiding my attraction to Ollie when others are around.”
“No, I mean physically how do you feel?” The last thing McBride needed was a repeat of Larsden.
“I really don’t understand what you’re getting at.”
“Your blood hunger. Does it feel normal to you?” McBride couldn’t tell him why he was asking. Since they still didn’t know what had caused Larsden to erupt into violence, he didn’t want word leaking out. It was unlikely Jonas would tell anyone, but stranger things could happen.
“It feels normal for when I’m near Ollie.” Jonas cradled his glass as he looked in the general direction of Ollie’s house.
“It’s only for a few nights.”
Jonas nodded. “You’ll really let him live here and cook for you?”
“It’s the only way to make this work.” McBride knew there might still be trouble.
“Caleb isn’t stupid.”
“I’m aware of that.” McBride rose, placed his glass on the table, and then began the laborious process of taking off his dress suit. Dozens of tiny buttons went down the placket of the shirt and the cuffs. When he’d asked Jonas about the design, he said it was to heighten the reveal of his body to his chosen companion. All the buttons did was annoy him. He wanted to feed, and he wanted release. If he had his way, he would have Caleb for both, but that wasn’t going to happen. What he’d done today put a permanent end to that. “I’ve got to get him a thrall.”
“Where in the world will you find a thrall big enough to handle Caleb?”
“Between your money and mine, we’ll find one.” McBride held Jonas’s gaze until he nodded his agreement. Since McBride had removed himself from Caleb’s willing arms, he had to find him another man
to fill them. It was going to kill him, but at least McBride could hold to the vow he made to uphold the law of Woven Spire.
“But what about you?”
“What about me?”
“I’m your companion in name only. Who will you have?”
McBride was touched that Jonas seemed to genuinely care about what would now be McBride’s forever alone state. “I won’t have anyone.”
“We can get a thrall and say he’s for Ollie, and he can—”
“No. I don’t want a thrall.” It was too much like what his father had done.
“But then you’ll just be alone.”
“I think that’s how it’s going to have to be.”
Jonas looked utterly tortured.
“Let it go, Jonas. Things are the way they are. We all have to make sacrifices.” Moreover, this would be his punishment for what he’d already done with Caleb.
“But I don’t understand why you did this.” Rather than drink, he swirled the liquid around in his glass, peering into it rather than looking up at McBride.
“I get to have peace on my land. I get to have a great cook under my roof. I get to know that I did the best I could to protect the men I inherited.”
“Surely, there must be something in all of this for you?”
“Surely, there must, but it’s mine alone and it will stay that way.” McBride had no intention of letting Jonas into his secret inner world.
“It’s Caleb, isn’t it?” Jonas met his gaze without malice. “Never mind. You wouldn’t tell me even if it was. Just like your father, you are a closemouthed man.”
McBride confirmed his assessment by cupping his second drink and polishing it off. He set his empty glass on the tray. “We should go up now.”
Ollie Morgan [Seven Brothers for McBride 3] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) Page 9
