by Stormy Glenn
“Huh.” Ranz scratched the top of his head. “I wasn’t real sure about you when Fallon talked to us about you joining our…uh…gang, you being hu—not being a biker and all. But, maybe I was wrong.”
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Kane smiled. This whole human and vampire thing would take a little while to get used to, and it seemed not only he had to do that.
“What does Fallon need?”
“Is there somewhere that we can talk privately?”
“My office is just down the hallway.” Kane pointed the way and then started in that direction, grabbing on to Samuel’s hand to take the man with him.
“Uh, dude, Samuel can’t come.”
“Excuse me?” Kane growled as he turned to pin his eyes on Ranz.
“It’s nothing personal, Kane. I swear. Samuel just hasn’t been accepted into the gang yet, and what I have to say is for gang members’ ears only.”
“Then we have a problem because I don’t go anywhere without Samuel.”
“Kane, really,” Samuel said as he tugged on his hand, trying to pull it away from Kane’s. Kane just tightened his grip. “It’s okay.
This is how things are done. I’m not a member of Fallon’s gang. Until I am accepted, there are certain things that can’t be shared with me. I understand and it’s okay.”
“No.” Kane wasn’t budging. He crossed his arms over his chest and just stared at Ranz until the man sighed deeply, his shoulders slumping.
“Fine, he can come.” Ranz shook his fingers at Samuel. “But if a word of what I have to say leaks out, I’ll know who to come looking for. And believe me when I tell you that you won’t like it if I have to come looking for you.”
Kane’s left eyebrow lifted a fraction at the threat he could hear in Ranz’s voice. That would never do, not where Samuel was concerned.
“Touch a hair on Samuel’s head and you will find just exactly how feral this human can be.”
“Kane, no!” Samuel whispered quickly, grabbing at Kane’s arm.
“You can’t say that. It can be seen as a challenge.”
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There was such worry and fear in Samuel’s voice that Kane couldn’t help but look at his lover. “Baby, you need to calm down.
Ranz and I are just feeling each other out. I’m sure that he understands exactly where I am coming from.” Kane raised his eyes to look at the big biker. “Doesn’t he?”
Ranz chuckled. “I hear you, man.”
“Good.” Kane grabbed Samuel’s hand and pulled him down the hallway toward his office. Once inside, he walked around behind his desk and sat down. Kane was a little surprised when Samuel walked behind him and just stood there behind his chair, his hands coming down to rest on Kane’s shoulders as if the man was guarding him.
It was sweet.
Kane might not be a vampire, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t seen his share of action. He hadn’t always owned a bar. There had been a time in his past when he had run with a rougher crowd. He had done things he would much rather forget. But at least the things he had done had given him the experience he needed to live in Samuel’s world.
It also gave him an appreciation for a sweet man like Samuel.
Kane reached back and settled his hand over one of Samuel’s, giving it a little reassuring squeeze. He didn’t know if it came from the bond he had with Samuel or what, but he could feel Samuel’s panic like it was his own.
Kane concentrated on sending peace and calm to Samuel, hoping that the bond went both ways. Samuel slowly started to relax, and his emotions became less chaotic—right up until Ranz closed the office door and turned to look at them with a wary expression.
“What’s wrong, Ranz?” Kane asked.
“Fallon was attacked.”
“What?” Kane shouted as he jumped to his feet. “Is he okay?”
“He is for the moment. He’ll need a few days to recover, but he should be up and around in no time.”
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Kane’s brows pulled together in an angry frown. “Who attacked him?”
“We don’t know. Fallon was out by himself. He does that occasionally. We don’t like it, but we accept it.” Ranz shrugged. “I guess sometimes he needs to get away from all of the responsibilities of being an alpha.”
“Was he in our territory?”
“Yes, and that’s what has us worried. Vampires aren’t supposed to cross territory lines without the alpha’s permission, and these guys definitely did not have Fallon’s permission. As far as we can tell, this was a totally unprovoked attack.”
“How bad is Fallon?”
Ranz’s slight snarl was enough to tell Kane how bad off Fallon was before the man even opened his mouth. “It’s bad, man. Whoever attacked Fallon was definitely vampire, and they weren’t trying to challenge him. They were out to kill him.”
“Where is he now?”
Ranz’s eyes slid to Samuel. “Um…”
Kane clenched his hands. “Look, jackass, I’m not trying to find out where he is so that we can betray him. I just want to know if we need to bring him here instead of letting him recover in some roadside motel. The rooms upstairs are a lot more hospitable than a by-the-hour dive.”
Ranz’s eyes snapped back to Kane. “He’s safe, but I’d feel a lot better if we could bring him here. He’s not as protected as I would like right now.”
“Fine, then bring him here. I’ll make sure there are rooms available for you all upstairs. Does Fallon need a doctor?”
Ranz snorted. “And just where are we going to find a doctor that wouldn’t flip when he was called in to treat a vampire that needed more blood than the average human has in his entire body?”
Kane’s eyebrows shot up. “More blood than the average human has in his entire body?”
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Ranz chuckled as he nodded.
“Man, we are so going to need a bigger fridge.”
Ranz’s head cocked to one side, his confusion showing in the pull of his eyebrows down over his face. “A bigger fridge?”
“You guys drink a lot of blood.”
“Yeah.” Ranz still sounded confused.
“I knew you all liked your meat very raw, but I never knew it was because you drink blood. I just assumed you were weird, which you are.” Kane shrugged. “When I get word that you all are coming in, I send Toby down to the local market to buy a shit load of raw meat, and you usually eat every damn last thing I buy. If you are staying here indefinitely, then my current fridge won’t hold all of the raw meat and blood I need to feed you guys.”
“Okay, I guess that makes sense.”
“With Samuel here, I will need to purchase a bigger fridge anyway. As much as I don’t like it, he can’t always feed from me. I need a place to store bagged blood for him.”
Ranz’s eyebrows shot up as his eyes flickered to Samuel. “You let Samuel feed from you?”
“Of course I did. He belongs to me and it’s my duty to see to his needs, all of them.”
“I’ve never heard of a vampire feeding from someone he is bonded with. I didn’t even know it was possible.”
Kane chuckled. “Don’t knock it until you try it. It can be pretty intense.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so, dude.” Ranz shook his head rapidly. “I have no intention of bonding with anyone. I prefer to get my blood from the source, but not the same source I fuck.”
Kane smiled and gazed back at Samuel as he remembered the pleasure that had ripped through his body when Samuel fed from him.
Just jerking off, it had been the most intense orgasm he had ever experienced, and he couldn’t wait to experience it again. “You have no idea what you’re missing out on.”
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Kane’s grin grew even bigger when Samuel’s face flushed.
“I’ll take your word for it.” Ranz reached into his back pocket and pulled out hi
s wallet. He started counting out several hundred dollar bills before setting them on the desk before Kane. “This should cover the cost of the fridge.”
“No.” Kane shook his head. “I don’t need your money.”
Ranz rolled his eyes. “Dude, just take it. Fallon would have a shit fit if he knew you were buying a fridge just to accommodate us.
Besides, Samuel will be part of the coven just as soon as he swears fidelity to Fallon. And then this will be a coven fridge.”
Kane chuckled again, already going through his list of contacts in his mind, trying to figure out who to call for a wholesale supplier of raw meat and bagged blood. He was pretty sure that he had just added steaks to his bar menu. It would be the only way to hide the reasons why he was buying so much raw meat.
He didn’t have a clue how to hide the bagged blood.
“Go get Fallon and bring him back here. I’ll make sure the rooms upstairs are ready by the time you get back. And I’ll send someone out to get some raw meat for you all. It might take me a little while to get the blood.”
“Dude, you almost sound like the alpha.”
“Well, I’m not,” Kane quickly said. He wanted no part of being responsible for Fallon’s coven. “I just know what needs to be done.”
As far as Kane was concerned, the only person he wanted to be responsible for was Samuel, and he was definitely the man’s alpha.
Samuel screamed to have someone take over his life and keep him safe, and Kane was just the human for that job.
“Samuel, I want you to stay downstairs and man the door like normal,” Kane said as he turned to speak to his lover. “Toby will give you any assistance you need. I’m going to head upstairs and get rooms ready for Fallon and his boys.”
“Yes, sir.”
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Kane leaned up and kissed Samuel and then patted his ass. “Go on, baby. Go help Toby get the bar ready for tonight. I’ll come join you when I’m done with what I need to do.” Kane smiled as he watched Samuel walk out of the room like he had just been given a direct order from his alpha that only he could follow.
“How do you do that?”
Kane frowned, turning to look at Ranz in confusion. “Do what?”
“Control him like that?” Ranz waved his hand toward the door Samuel had just walked through. “He’s a vampire. We are some of the most volatile creatures out there and yet he practically purrs when you give him an order. And you’re not even an alpha.”
“I’m his alpha.”
It was as simple as that for Kane. Granted, he hadn’t known that that the whole alpha thing was even possible before meeting Samuel and Fallon and the other vampires. He hadn’t even known what an alpha was. But he knew what he was, and he was dominant. He always had been. And now, he knew that it meant he was Samuel’s alpha.
“Dude, Samuel can’t have two alphas.”
Kane smirked because he knew that Ranz couldn’t even conceive of the idea of a vampire being submissive. The man had so much testosterone swimming through his body that he was practically drowning in it.
“He can have two alphas, and Fallon knows this. I suspect that Samuel does, too.”
Ranz scratched the side of his head. “Just how does that work then? What if Fallon gives Samuel an order that you disagree with?
Whose orders does Samuel follow?”
“Mine.”
“And you really think Fallon is going to agree with that if Samuel joins his coven?”
“I would hope that Fallon would never give Samuel an order that would go against my orders or put him in danger. That is my main
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concern. Samuel is a big man, but he is in no way a fighter. I don’t think he would ever go after a person unless someone he cares about is in danger.”
“Meaning you?”
“Meaning me.” Kane smirked for a moment and then became more solemn. “I know you don’t understand it but Samuel is the type of man that needs direction. He wants someone to love, and that will love him in return, protect him even from your violent world.”
“And you believe that you are that man?”
“I know I am.”
Ranz shook his head as if he didn’t believe a word of what Kane was saying, or at least he couldn’t understand it. “Whatever floats your boat, dude. Just make sure you really know what you are doing if you ever go against Fallon. He’s a dangerous man when crossed.”
Kane gave Ranz a hard, cold-eyed smile. “So am I.”
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Chapter 8
Samuel was anxious. His gaze continuously went from the door he was manning to the stairs at the beginning of the hallway that led to Kane’s office. He hadn’t seen Kane since he had walked out of the office, and that worried him. He didn’t know if he had missed Kane going upstairs or if the man was still in his office.
And he didn’t know if Kane was unharmed.
He knew he wasn’t supposed to know what Ranz came to talk to Kane about. With the way that Kane had challenged Ranz, Samuel was worried the two men might have started fighting.
Ranz had looked unharmed when he walked down the hallway, certainly not like someone that had just been in a fight. But Ranz was a predator. He could end Kane’s existence with the swipe of one claw.
And Samuel hadn’t seen Kane at all.
His anxiety was growing with each passing second. He was trying to do as Kane had instructed and man the door, but it was getting harder to stay where he was as the minutes ticked by and there was no sign of Kane. If Samuel didn’t see him pretty soon, he’d say to hell with Kane’s orders and go find the man.
No matter how much his stomach clenched at the idea of disobeying Kane.
Samuel knew he’d be the laughing stock of the coven if anyone discovered how much disobeying Kane upset him. Vampires were supposed to be the predators of the world, the ones at the top of the food chain.
They were not supposed to be submissive.
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And yet, Samuel had never been happier than he was when he gave up control to Kane. Maybe that was something he would need to talk to Fallon about once the man recovered. Fallon seemed like someone that was well versed in the world, both the human world and the vampire world. He might have insight into why Samuel was so comfortable giving Kane dominance over him.
Hell, Samuel craved it.
It wasn’t just his need to let Kane dominate him that Samuel hungered for. He needed to make sure that Kane was happy, and Kane seemed to be happy when he dominated Samuel. He seemed to especially love it when Samuel called him sir, which Samuel had no trouble doing. It just seemed like the way to address the man.
Samuel checked the IDs of three more people before he couldn’t stand it anymore. He waved at Toby and waited for the man to reach him. “Have you seen Kane?”
“Yeah, he’s upstairs.”
“Is he okay?”
Toby shrugged. “I guess. I mean, he seems a little stressed out, but Kane kind of gets that way sometimes, especially when stuff with the bar gets to him. He really needs an assistant, man, someone to take care of all of the little shit. He doesn’t relax enough, you know?”
Samuel closed his eyes for a moment as relief filled him. Toby didn’t seem in the least bit concerned, so maybe Samuel was seeing danger where there wasn’t any. He knew his smile was a little wobbly when he opened his eyes and saw Toby looking at him strangely.
“I’m just worried about him,” Samuel said by way of explanation.
“He works too hard.”
That answer seemed to satisfy Toby. He nodded and waved his hand back toward the bar. “I need to get back behind the bar. Is there anything else you need?”
“No, I’m good. I just wanted to make sure Kane was okay.”
“It’s cool, man.” Toby turned and started to walk away, but paused and glanced back over his shoulder. “It’s good that yo
u’re
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here, Samuel. Kane needs someone that worries about him. God knows I’m tired of doing it, and it’s a full-time job.”
Samuel smiled, a real one this time. “I have no problem taking over the job. I think I’m uniquely qualified for it. I’m crazy about Kane.”
Toby chuckled. “Go for it. Just don’t come running to me with tears in your eyes when Kane drives you insane, because it will happen. The man doesn’t like to listen to anyone except himself.”
Samuel smiled to himself because he knew just how accurate Toby’s words were. He knew that Kane had given his fidelity to Fallon, but he suspected there would come a day when the two men butted heads. They were both too stubborn to be agreeable with each other forever.
“Hey, Toby,” Samuel called out as the man started to walk away,
“can you get one of the other guys to relieve me pretty soon. I’d like to go check on Kane in person.”
Toby waved his hand in the air but didn’t bother looking back.
Samuel assumed that the gesture meant that Toby had heard him and would do as he asked. Samuel just hoped it was soon. As much as Toby’s words relieved him, he wouldn’t feel totally better until he saw Kane with his own eyes.
Samuel turned back to the door, ready to take the next person’s ID, but fear lodged in his throat instead, stealing Samuel’s very ability to move, let alone breathe.
“Hello, Sammy.”
Samuel’s heart hammered in his chest as he stared up into the cold, calculating eyes of his brother. “What are you doing here, Jared?” Samuel was shocked that his voice sounded somewhat normal when he was quaking with fear inside.
“I’ve come to enjoy this wonderful bar of yours.” Jared’s dark green eyes lifted to survey the bar. A small smirk began to cross his lips, growing with every second. “This looks like just the place me and my friends like to hang out. Isn’t that right, boys?”
