Page 7 of Blood of the Damned: Thorn
“It explains nothing!” He waved his hand about dramatically. “Nothing makes sense since…” he blushed and the scent of arousal filled his nose—which was not his alone—at where his mind wandered.
Movement behind Thorn brought Ledger’s gaze up and he swallowed hard at the sight of the man towering behind him.
As handsome as he was, Ledger got a sense of a wild animal not quite contained in the suit the man wore. The cut fit his broad shoulders perfectly, suggesting it was handmade for him. The blue of his eyes was much darker than Thorn’s, but there was no mistaking the family resemblance.
Thorn rose and turned before the man spoke.
“Are you planning on staying outside all afternoon? If you are, I’m going to have to kick your ass if I have to talk to that moaning fucker Amano again. Four times he’s called for you. What happened with…” his gaze flicked to Ledger, and he caught the surprise and a hint of fang. “You bit him!”
Being unable to see Thorn’s expression didn’t stop Ledger from feeling the frustration and slight embarrassment at his brother's statement. “This is not a conversation to be had right now.”
Shapely brows arched as the man looked between them. “Is that so?” A light of amusement danced in his eyes.
“Brother, seriously.”
Ledger felt Thorn’s frustration increase before he felt a physical barrier form between him and his mate. It was as if a shutter had come down in his mind when he focused.
“Hey, why did you do that?” he questioned aloud, pissed even when he’d wanted to find a way to block his thoughts from Thorn.
Thorn glanced from his brother, his scowl smoothing out. “What, Sweetling?”
Ledger felt at a distinct disadvantage, and it increased the pissedoffness he felt. “That mind block thingy you just did. Don’t play dumb with me.” He got out of the car, needing to at least be able to be standing for this conversation.
“What… oh fuck,” came the voice of another man, who looked identical to the one grinning at Thorn.
Thorn’s scowl was back. He reached out for Ledger’s hand, entwining their fingers together. Ledger felt a strange sense of completion, just from that one simple action. Like a jigsaw piece that completed a picture. Ledger might not have all the answers he needed, but this feeling was one he didn’t want to live without.
It scared the fuck out of him.
“Dacian, Calvert, this is Ledger Rain, my dhampir. Sweetling, these are my twin brothers, Dacian and Calvert.”
It didn’t matter he’d already guessed they were twins, or how proud Thorn was, it was the word dhampir being bandied about like it meant something important that irked him.
“There’s thatdhampirword again. Does someone want to tell me what the hell it means? In fact, does someone want to tell me what the heck y’all are? Because I don’t think you're vampire bats!”
Chapter Two
Thorn
The two vampires in front of him didn’t need to speak for him to know what they were thinking, or feeling for that matter. That, of course, wouldn’t stop them from voicing their opinion, and no matter how hard he stared at Dacian, he felt his brother's determination to have this discussion now.
“You didn’t explain anything to him… before you bit him?” Dacian asked, reeling from the shock of that revelation. It was impossible to miss, regardless of their vampiric bond.
Thorn wasn’t sure what it said about him when he had no regret about claiming Ledger. Okay, maybe a little at their mating being in a dirty alleyway. The desire was unparalleled to anything he’d ever experienced and there was nothing that would have prevented him making his claim. The claim his brothers could clearly see marking Ledger’s throat, because of the open-neck shirt that was missing several buttons, and had blood on the collar.
“Explain what?” Ledger asked cautiously.
On the trip to the vineyard, Ledger’s mind had been an open book to him, and he’d followed his panicked thoughts, trying to figure out the best way to approach them. This was unfamiliar territory for him, too. He was unprepared for a situation like this—though how anyone could prepare, Thorn couldn’t fathom—where desire and hunger became the sole focus. For a vampire of his age, those things had become easily managed through practiced restraint.
It was laughable how easily that restraint had been removed by his dhampir. And he tried to express that through his bond with his brothers, mindful of how easily Ledger felt him blocking him. “I think we should go inside and talk.”
Ledger shook his head, though he didn’t release Thorn’s hand. “I’m not going anywhere until you explain what I’m missing. And I want you to tell me what you are because I’ve seen nothing with those big ass, beautiful wings before.”
“You winged out!” Calvert questioned, in an unrecognizable voice. “To the heavens, in public? What were you thinking?”
“He wasn’t thinking clearly,” Dacian interjected, his amusement increasing by the second. His gaze swept over Ledger. “Though I can clearly see why.”
“Get your eyes off my dhampir immediately,” Thorn snapped, his fangs dropping and his eyes changing color. His fingers tightened, preparing to move Ledger out of the way, only he had ideas of his own.
