Page 24 of Soren

He had followed Gabe into sleep not long after. Soren didn’t need as much as the average human, but he hadn’t gotten any at all the past few days. He’d been wandering the city at night while Gabe worked and staying close during the day while Gabe slept.

Soren had been on edge ever since getting that text, but instead of sending him running like it logically should have—like it would have in the past—it had left him feeling…protective.

Protective of his human.

Hishuman.

Soren hadn’t actuallyplannedon seducing Gabe last night. Hendrick’s text had left him feeling conflicted over his grand seduction. What was the point, if at any minute, Soren would be forced to run? But he hadn’t been able to resist touching Gabe. The human usually had his defenses up so high around Soren. To see him melt like that from just a simple massage…

The man was clearly touch-starved.

When Gabe had been holding himself so stiffly, Soren had worried their relationship had regressed. That Gabe was afraid of him again.

The thought had hurt more than it should have.

Soren still had very vivid memories of the year before when, finding out what Soren was, Gabe had thrown him out of his hospital room, calling him a monster.

The human had become more accustomed to their kind over the past year—he didn’t have a choice, really, when his only brother had become one of them—but Soren had still worried that underneath it all, Gabe feared him.

That normally wouldn’t bother Soren. He usually took pleasure in frightening big, strong men. The type that would have pushed him around before finding out he was stronger and faster than they would ever be. But, for whatever idiotic reason, he didn’t want Gabe to feel that way.

Probably the same idiotic reason Soren couldn’t seem to leave this town. The same reason he’d been drawn to this man from the moment he’d laid eyes on him. The same reason Soren kept accidentally referring to him ashishuman.

Not going there.

Soren had been there once before. He’d tried his hand at belonging to someone, and it had caused him nothing but pain.Continuedto cause him nothing but pain.

But when Gabe had melted so beautifully under Soren’s touch, he hadn’t been able to resist taking it further. To see just how close Gabe would let him get.

And Soren had gotten very close indeed.

Just thinking about it had him nuzzling deeper into the warm, hard body underneath him. Gabe had his arms wrapped tightly around Soren. As if, even in his sleep, he didn’t want him to get away.

Soren should have felt trapped.

He didn’t.

For reasons beyond just the obvious: that he was ten times stronger than the human and could escape quite easily if he wanted to.

Something hard was poking into Soren’s stomach. He wiggled against it experimentally.

He really should get up. Leave this human alone for good. Continue on his way. He thought about the other two texts he’d received since the first.

Looking for you, my angel.

You know you can’t hide from me.

But the usual fear was blunted; it was hard to stay focused on the bad when the good was so close. When the good smelled so goddamn amazing. Soren didn’twantto get up.

And Soren was an expert in doing exactly what he wanted.

He hadn’t gotten a proper taste last night. Was Gabe’s cock as delicious as the rest of him?

But one night of touching wasn’t blanket permission, so instead of scooting down Gabe’s body, Soren scooted himself up. He nuzzled his nose behind Gabe’s ear, inhaling more of that delicious scent. Gabe stirred beneath him.

“I want to taste you,” Soren whispered into his ear, licking around the rim.

“Hm?” Gabe’s sleepy mumble sent desire shooting through Soren. It was the kind of noise only a lover would hear. Intimate. Soft. Sweet.

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