Bound in Blood (8 page)

“One of them had a gun.” Chris’ eyes widened as he remembered. “He shot you, but…”

“Fortunately for me, he missed,” Carlos said.

“He did? Well, of course he did, or you wouldn’t be here now. Good thing he was such a lousy shot.”

“I must apologise to you,” Carlos said quietly, stroking Chris’ cheek. “If I had listened to you and let you order a cab, this would not have happened.”

BOUND IN BLOOD

J. P. Bowie

51

“But you couldn’t have known they’d be out there.”

“After you told me about the red-haired one being in the bar, I guessed he would be there with reinforcements, but you see, Christopher, I wanted you to know that I would do anything to protect you. My foolish pride in wanting to act the macho man for you put you in danger. I am so very sorry.”

Chris took Carlos’ hand and brought it to his lips. “You have nothing to be sorry for.

Without you, those men would have most likely killed me. If not tonight, then some other night when I’d let my guard down. I thank you, again, for saving me.” He smiled shyly up at Carlos. “And just so you know, I really like that you want to protect me.”

Their lips met in a kiss so rapturous Chris felt as if every part of him, body and soul, had been captured and held in that long searing union of flesh on flesh. As Carlos gathered him in his arms, Chris’ mind exulted with the thought that everything he’d ever wanted was right here, embodied in this one man. His headache suddenly gone, he felt an erotic vitality course through his body.

Wow
, he thought,
what this guy does to me
.
I might have been laid out in the alley earlier, now
I feel like I could take on all those guys by myself—well, maybe with Carlos by my side.
The thought made him chuckle against Carlos’ lips, who drew back slightly to squint at him.

“You are amused?”

“Only by my own stupid thoughts.” Chris kissed Carlos quickly. “You hold me and kiss me, and I feel like I could take on anyone who gets in my way. I had a vision of you and me knocking the shit out of those guys in the alley.”

“I believe you could do just that,” Carlos murmured, his lips brushing Chris’. “You are stronger than you think.”

“I sure feel it right now.” Chris grinned as he flexed the muscles in his arms. “It must be something you’ve done to me.” He tugged at Carlos’ shirt. “You gonna get nekkid and get in this bed with me?”

“Your wish is my command.” Carlos stood and stripped off his shirt, exposing his magnificently sculpted chest to Chris’ admiring gaze.

“Jeez, but you’re hot,” he whispered, raising himself to a kneeling position on the bed so he could wrap his arms around Carlos’ waist and nuzzle the smooth, hard flesh with his lips. He licked his way from Carlos’ navel up the centre of his hard torso to his left nipple. He BOUND IN BLOOD

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took the tiny nub between his teeth and nipped at it before laving it with his tongue. Carlos’

body tensed and shuddered from the sensation, encouraging Chris to trail his lips across Carlos’ smooth chest to take the other already hard nipple between his lips and tease it with the tip of his tongue. Carlos’ arms tightened around him then he was lying on his back, Carlos leaning over him, the beauty of his body filling Chris with a desire so intense it was almost a hunger. Shaken by the need he felt coursing through him, Chris’ startled gaze met Carlos’ dark, lust-filled eyes. As one, they moved together, their mouths meeting and blending. With low moans of longing, lips parted, tongues searched and caressed, overwhelming both men with the urgency to claim one another, to possess and mark the other as his own.

Carlos’ eyes burned fever bright as the craving for Chris’ blood became almost uncontrollable. His lips moved to Chris’ throat. The sweet aroma of rich, young blood filled his nostrils, inflamed his senses. The vampire’s primal need to satisfy his hunger ripped through him. His fangs extended.

No
!

With a guttural cry, he tore himself from the young man’s arms, turning quickly away so that Chris could not see the tortured expression on his face.

“What’s wrong?” Chris reached out to grip Carlos’ biceps. “What did I do?”

“Nothing.” Carlos let the hunger ease from him before he could bear to look at Chris. “I am sorry,
querido
,” he said quietly, touching Chris’ worried face with his fingertips. “I’m afraid my emotions were running a little high. I was afraid I would hurt you.”

“Hurt me?” Chris took Carlos’ hand and pressed his lips into the palm. “I would never believe that to be possible. “ He turned a trusting gaze on Carlos. “You would never hurt me.”

Calmer now, Carlos pulled Chris into his arms and kissed his lips gently. The blood lust had receded from him, leaving him with a longing to simply hold Chris, to caress the smooth skin under his hands and to make love to him all through the night.

BOUND IN BLOOD

J. P. Bowie

53

Frank Sanders couldn’t forget the humiliation that had been heaped on him and his friends the night before. It had been bad enough the first time when the kid had sprayed that goddamn pepper in his eyes. That had hurt like hell for hours. Just as well he’d managed to get away before the cops had shown up.

Well, he was going to get those faggots if it was the last thing he ever did. No way was a pair of pansies going to get away with beating him at his own game—
no fucking way
! And what the hell had Billy been ranting about? The idiot yelling that the big guy was some kind of monster with sharp teeth. What a dickhead. Frank hadn’t seen any sharp teeth. All he’d seen was the big guy kicking the crap out of five of his buddies, guys he’d always considered tough—until last night.

Well, he sure as hell couldn’t rely on them anymore on account of two of them had concussion, one a broken collarbone, and they weren’t exactly thrilled at the way things had gone down. He just wished he could remember exactly what had happened at the end. Try as might, the last few seconds of the fight were a blur. He remembered a gunshot—two in fact.

The first one he could have sworn hit the big guy right in the chest, but there had been no blood so he couldn’t have been hit, right? The second shot had hit the kid. He was sure of that—or was he? If he’d been hit, how had he gotten away? How had they
both
gotten away?

Damn, but he just couldn’t remember.

“Fuck it,” he snarled under his breath. He was going to have to think up some other way of getting at those fags. Chances were the big guy couldn’t be with the kid all the time.

They had to work, didn’t they? And he knew where the kid worked. All he had to do was make sure that huge security guy didn’t see him. He’d recognise him for sure—Frank’s red hair was a little hard to miss. Well, he’d think of something, and when he did, both those cocksuckers were going to pay—big time!

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54

Chris did a happy dance after he put down the phone. The mechanic at the service station had called to say his car was finally ready for him to pick up. Yeah! Now he didn’t have to worry about getting to and from the club at night, even if Carlos wasn’t around to escort him up the alley—although he had already decided that wasn’t going to happen again.

He’d told Carlos next time—a cab. Only now, it would be his own car, and besides, he just had five more nights to work there.

“Which reminds me,” he muttered. He had to remember to ask around if anyone wanted the job. Maybe Joey? But he really didn’t want his friend working in that dump, and maybe running into that red-haired jerk and his friends.

Man, you’d think after Carlos had beaten the shit out of them
—
twice
—
they’d give it up
!

He smiled as he thought of Carlos and how wonderful their night together had been. It all seemed to just get better and better. Even the trauma in the alley couldn’t get in the way of their lovemaking. As scared to death as he’d been when he’d seen one of those guys carried a gun, all of it, and them, was forgotten when Carlos held him in his arms and kissed him with such incredible passion.

And last night had been different somehow. After Carlos had recovered from whatever had brought about his fear of hurting Chris—how could too much passion have hurt him?—

it had been wonderful, but
different
, in a way he couldn’t quite fathom, almost as if
he
himself had been different. The physical side of their lovemaking had been spectacular every time.

Carlos was a consummate lover, passionate, yet tender, demanding, yet giving, and always infinitely loving. Chris had never known anyone remotely like him, had never experienced such a tidal wave of sensuous emotion—and last night, all of it, every kiss, every caress, had been even more fantastic, if that were possible.

The memory of their time together had Chris getting hard. He was just about to stroke himself when the shrilling of his cell phone brought him from his sensual reverie with a jolt.

Oops, his mother.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Hello, Chris. How are you?”

“Fine.”

“How did the exams go?”

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55

“Pretty good, I think. I should have the results next week. Oh and I’m getting my car back today.”

“Good, that means you can drive up to see us this weekend.”

“Uh, I might have plans.”

“You
do
have plans, Christopher.”

Oh, oh.
Christopher.
Now he knew she was upset. Funny how the way she said it was so different from when Carlos did. He said it like a caress; his mother more like an accusation.

“I do?”

“You’re coming home to visit your mother and father,” his mother said tartly. “We haven’t seen you in over two months, and your father wants to talk to you about setting up an office for you here for when you do our accounts.”

“Oh, about that—” Wait, he couldn’t just tell her about his job offer from Carlos over the phone. “Okay, Mom.” He hoped she hadn’t heard the long sigh he’d just heaved. “I’ll see you and Dad Saturday morning.”

“That’s better. We do miss you, you know?”

“Miss you too, Mom. See you on Saturday.”

Chris put the phone down with a feeling of irritation. True, Carlos hadn’t said anything about getting together over the weekend. Chris had just assumed they would. Now instead, he’d have to drive to Santa Barbara and face his parents’ disappointment when he told them about his job offer. He could just imagine the opposition and the questions.

Who is this person? How did you meet him? How do you know he’s legit?

I don’t know, Mom and Dad. I just feel that he’s an honest man. But what’s more important,
he’s terrific in bed, and I can’t wait to spend every night right there with him.

Yeah, that would go down a treat.

Heaving another sigh, he punched in his friend Joey’s number. “Hey, Joey—wanna take a trip with me this weekend?”

BOUND IN BLOOD

J. P. Bowie

56

Carlos awoke from the deep sleep of the vampire, instantly aware that Chris needed to talk with him. Covering his nakedness with a robe of dark-red silk, he picked up the phone by his bed and dialled Chris’ number.

“Hello, Christopher. It’s Carlos.”

“Hi!” The genuine pleasure in Chris’ voice made Carlos smile. “I was just thinking of you,” Chris said in a rush. “I don’t know if you had plans for the weekend, but I’ve been summoned to my folks’ place in Santa Barbara, so I’m afraid I’ll be out of town for a couple of days. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not.” Carlos quickly hid his feeling of deep disappointment so that it was not reflected in his voice. “Although I have to admit I will miss you, very much.”

“And I’ll miss you, Carlos. My mom insisted I come up. They want to talk to me about putting an office somewhere in the house for me—you know, for when I do their accounts.

I’m still trying to think of a way to tell them I’ll be working for you, so they won’t be upset.”

“Ah, there is no need to upset them. The work I will have for you can be done in a few hours a day. There will still be time for you to take care of their business.”

“But they’ll want me to move back home.”

Carlos smiled as he heard a distinct whine creep into Chris’ tone. “That is something you must work out with them,” he said quietly. “I’m sure you can persuade them that with today’s technology, most everything can be conducted via the internet.”

Chris managed a light laugh. “That’s a good point, but you don’t know my mom. She hates the fact I live in LA. I’m taking my friend Joey with me for moral support. They’ve known him since we were in junior high together, and he can be very persuasive—especially with my mother. She thinks the sun shines out of his ass—not that she’d put it quite that way, but you know what I mean.”

“I think so.”

“So can I see you tonight? I’m not working.”

“Yes, if you don’t mind meeting a few friends of mine. We’re having a glass of wine at a little restaurant on Santa Monica—La Fortuna. Do you know it?”

“Uh, yeah,” Chris replied. “I know where it is. Your friends won’t mind?”

“Not at all. Shall I pick you up at your apartment, at say, eight o’clock?”

“That’d be great. See you then.”

BOUND IN BLOOD

J. P. Bowie

57

“
Hasta la noche
—until tonight.”

Carlos put the phone down and wondered if what he had just done was a wise move.

Obviously, if his relationship with Christopher was to continue—and he wanted that very much – then he would have to be included in some aspects of Carlos’ life. There was no need for Chris to know everything, not yet at any rate, and Carlos could be certain of his friends’

discretion. Ron, Jean-Claude’s lover and the manager of La Fortuna, was still mortal, yet they had a successful and committed relationship, despite Ron’s brother and
his
lover’s tendency to arrive on Ron’s doorstep from Portland without warning.