Thirst (Hellish #4)(30)

Baptiste’s throat swelled. He knew that feeling well. “You’re not alone. I won’t let you be. You’re my family now. I’ll never leave you.”

Evan pressed his head to Baptiste’s chest, snuggling close. It’s okay if you do. Everyone goes away eventually. Accepting me as I am is more than anyone else has ever given me.

With his arms wrapped around Evan’s neck, Baptiste hugged the wolf close. Maybe when Evan fell asleep, he’d pop over to Sweden and castrate a wolf. Anger with Bleidd gave Baptiste something else to focus on. No one hurt the people he loved. He urged Evan off his lap and settled on his side next to him. They snuggled together, letting the sun and breeze wash over them. They felt connected in a way he hadn’t experienced in a long time. There was an odd tug at his heart when he held Evan.

Baptiste pressed his ear to the ground. Heimdall, Eirik’s father, was said to be able to hear every blade of grass as it grew. Baptiste wondered if Eirik could hear his heart beating in the first place they’d made love. He was weak when it came to his mates. As his fingers ran through Evan’s fur and his eyelids grew heavy, memories of a different cuddling session overcame him.

A feather brushed along Baptiste’s jaw. Damn, the things Kallus had done with that feather. They’d mastered the art of making love without touching. Long ago, they’d learned to stroke and penetrate with inanimate objects—to be in the right place to taste the other’s cum. They’d figured out how to kiss with only a magic-infused sheet separating their lips—how to make love with their cocks brushing and that same sheet slipping between their bodies.

Now here they were—Baptiste’s back against Eirik’s hard chest. That sheet keeping Baptiste safe as Kallus played footsie with him beneath the covers. That goddamn feather brushed his cheek. Fuck, they were his version of heaven. Kallus might be a demon, but he looked like an angel. The man was so damn beautiful. Baptiste’s throat swelled each time he looked at him.

“I love you,” Baptiste said, not bothering to whisper. Eirik always slept like the dead. He knew they wouldn’t disturb him.

“I love you too.”

Baptiste’s heart skipped a beat at Kallus’ claim. It didn’t matter they’d been together forever. Their feelings were stronger because of the length of their union.

Kallus shifted, pillowing his head on his arm before settling back down. “You knew I was inside you the moment I possessed you, didn’t you?”

It was funny. He would’ve thought, that after a thousand years, they would’ve talked about everything there was to talk about. They never spoke of the time Kallus possessed him before they fell in love. “Yes, I knew.”

“Why didn’t you expel me?”

Baptiste settled deeper into the safety of Eirik’s arms and thought about the question. “I guess, growing up in my religion, we’re taught nothing, or no one is completely bad or good. Maybe we’re more so one or the other, but that’s something that’s determined by our expectations and experiences. You didn’t feel bad. Like me, you felt lonely.” A smile pulled at Baptiste’s lips. “I’d always been shy and odd, but with you inside me, I didn’t feel that way.”

“You’re the most courageous person I know,” Kallus said, taking him by surprise. “Most people hear the word demon and freak. You had one inside you and chose to embrace the power.”

Heat filled Baptiste’s cheeks. “It didn’t hurt that you drove me to do some extremely delicious things to my body when we were alone.”

Kallus sucked in a deep breath. Heat filled his gaze. “You’ve always been amazing. I wanted to feel everything while inside you. Your every response was mind blowing. Still is,” Kallus said, inching closer. He made sure the sheet covered every place they touched before cupping Baptiste’s erection through the blanket. The demon’s overheated skin had Baptiste sucking in a breath.

Eirik’s cock stirred behind him, as if their lust penetrated his dreams. Baptiste chuckled. “We’ve woken the beast.”

A wicked smile touched Kallus’ lips as his body became like smoke. “I say let’s dredge up some of that kink and play with Eirik. Together, I’m willing to bet we could convince him to do anything.” Baptiste absorbed Kallus, taking him inside before rolling and palming Eirik’s dick. Together, they could do anything, even own a god.

A tear rolled from the corner of Baptiste’s eye before falling into the grass below. He wished the memories would stop coming. They only served to remind him of all he’d never have again.

Evan turned his head as if he smelled Baptiste’s tears. He licked Baptiste’s eyes, as if trying to kiss them away. A chuckle escaped Baptiste. Maybe he would never be happy again, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t help Evan.

“How do you feel about going on a trip?”

I’m with you wherever you go.

“Good. We’ll have so much fun seeing the world.”

Evan settled back down with his head on Baptiste’s chest. I loved Sweden. Everything about it was beautiful. The water. The trees.

The wolf named Bleidd, Baptiste silently added to Evan’s list. A smile pulled at Baptiste’s lips. It was good Evan felt that way since that was exactly where he intended to go.



It had been two weeks. Two of the longest fucking weeks of Eirik’s life. He’d always known there was a good reason he didn’t piss off Baptiste. When the man dug his heels in, there wasn’t a damn thing he could do. He stared at the sunlight streaming through the window, casting a glow across the comforter of the bed he shared with Kallus inside Dante’s house. Since they had nowhere else to go, the vampire had taken them in. They were both sick at heart. Their suffocating emotions filled the room. Kallus didn’t sleep. In truth, Eirik didn’t need to sleep either, but he still enjoyed doing so. It was an escape. His brain would go elsewhere, creating new places or revisiting old ones. His mental connection with Baptiste had strengthened since their recent blood exchange. Even though Baptiste had him blocked from finding or speaking to him, it seemed when the man slept, the memories that unlocked inside Baptiste’s head bombarded Eirik. He couldn’t stop waiting for each one. They had so many amazing memories together, he’d forgotten more than he remembered. But he was taking Jonathan’s clue to heart. He could still feel Baptiste’s love, and he was the type to stay somewhere he could be close to their best memories.