Page 58 of Accidental Blood Lust
Roman’s breath catches as he turns his eyes to Loch. “Love?”
“Isn’t it obvious? It is to me, and it’s wonderful. I was jealous before, but now I feel privileged to witness it up close.” Loch takes Roman’s hand in his. “I love him too, and someday, I know I’ll love you the same. Or maybe differently, but definitely love. You’re the mate selected for me, and Jareth, he’s the man I chose. He’s the man you’ve wanted since you met him, and now…” He takes one of my hands in his as well, stacking it on top of Roman’s. “We all get this. But first… Jare, can you forgive me? Can you… can you still love me?”
My eyes well with tears I can’t hold back, and as they streak down my face, I nod. “I never stopped loving you.”
“But can you forgive me?”
“You’re already forgiven. In fact…” I pause, wiping my face as the truth I can’t deny momentarily clogs my throat.
“In fact…?” Roman prods.
“I think it had to happen this way. If you hadn’t turned, hadn’t needed help, you and Roman wouldn’t have discovered your mate bond, and without that, maybe the three of us wouldn’t have come together like this.” I huff a laugh. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I feel the truth in these words. Allthis time I thought life was cruel and fate was crueler, but I’m starting to believe fate knew exactly what she was doing.”
Roman’s breath hitches and he nods. “My wolf’s reaction also tells me it’s true.”
Loch’s pretty face lights up in a brilliant smile, his vampiric features on full display, and instead of filling me with repulsion, fear, or anger, it makes my heart flutter in my chest. He’s beautiful.
“That settles it, then,” Loch says. “Fate meant for it to be us. The three of us. For eternity.”
My mood sours a bit. “About that… I’m still mortal. Enhanced a bit, but mortal. I’ll die.”
Roman whimpers as his arms ripple with fur, and Loch looks distraught.
“No,” Loch says. “There must be a way. We’ll find a way. We have to.”
“There might be a spell that can slow things down or extend my life a bit, but I am not immortal.”
“You could?—”
Roman clicks his teeth, subtly shaking his head at Loch, clearly sharing their thoughts. Okay, that might take some getting used to, but right now, I’m curious what Lochlan was going to suggest.
“We’ll figure something out,” Roman says and Lochlan nods obediently.
“Can we have more orgasms?” Loch asks.
I laugh at that. “Still mortal. It’s gonna take me a bit to recharge.”
“I’ll get snacks for now.” Roman slides out of the bed.
Both Loch and I are left speechless as we watch the sexy man push his wolf features back and pull on a pair of jeans. How many times have I jacked off to the fantasy of touching Roman? Now to have the man right before me is a mindfuck. And withthe man I thought I’d lost right beside me. I get to love them both. Openly.
Maybe life is sweeter than I thought.
EIGHTEEN
LOCHLAN
The three of us lie cuddled together in my bed, talking about less traumatic topics for a while and basking in the glow of everything that’s happened this morning. Or is it afternoon? Time is weird in the underworld.
I nuzzle my cheek against the petal-soft skin of Jare’s shoulder the same way I’ve seen Roman do a dozen times. I’m not sure it works the same way since I’m not a wolf, but it feels nice anyway. I can hear the steady whooshing of his blood through his body, and the predatory part of me longs to sink my fangs into the thick, pulsing vein in his throat. It’s surprisingly easy to resist the urge though, even knowing that drinking from him would ease this damned hangover. I’ll never take what Jareth isn’t offering me. I’ll never hurt him or make him feel afraid of me. I wouldn’t have anyway, but after hearing his story, I promise myself that I would rather die than ever let him see me as one of those vampires who hurt him.
Roman lies on his other side, his arm stretched across Jare’s body so his hand can rest on my bare stomach, keeping us both close. Jareth’s stomach wheezes and gurgles quietly, and Roman must hear it too.
“I can’t believe I’ve let you go so long without eating.” He kisses Jare’s other shoulder and our mate’s scent takes on a warm, contented note. Happiness. I think the scent is happiness. I didn’t know it had a scent before, but I’m going to remember it so I can make them both smell that way as often as possible.
“There’s food here. Freaky shadow demons fill the table with whatever you want,” I tell him, and Jare laughs.
“That sounds… like an experience.”
