him right there in the kitchen. And yes, Fox was totally down with that plan.
But his expression suddenly cleared. “What happens when you’re bitten?” Winter demanded.
Fox jerked back, stunned by the strange question. “What do you mean?”
“What happens to the vampire? What does your blood do?”
“I-I don’t know. I’ve never been bitten.”
Winter frowned and took a step away from Fox, which was the wrong direction. He didn’t want to put a halt to these wonderful plans. They needed to keep moving forward. Not tap the brakes. Definitely not go in reverse.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, following Winter deeper into the kitchen. The damn vampire was not getting away from him. Not after they got this close. “What happens when you drink from a human?”
“Nothing. It’s just nourishment.” He paused and frowned at Fox, but it wasn’t a look of disappointment. Rather, he appeared worried. “But when a vampire drinks from a werewolf, we receive enhanced healing. It could even impair us as if we’re intoxicated.”
“Whoa,” Fox breathed.
“Yes, but I don’t know what happens if we bite a witch. Maybe nothing.”
“Maybe something bad,” Fox said in a whisper. He got why Winter was being so cautious. Now was not a good time for them to be experimenting with such a thing. And he never wanted to do anything that hurt Winter. Even if only by accident.
Fox’s head snapped up and he gave Winter a resolute look. “Then don’t bite me.”
“I—”
“You don’t need it to come, right?”
“No! I…it’s just a way for me to kill two birds with one stone.”
Fox grinned. The plan was on again, just with a slight adjustment. Placing both hands on Winter’s chest, he shoved him against the fridge. “Well, then I say that you drain one of your bags of blood to tide you over while I go up to your bedroom and strip naked. I’m assuming you’ve got lube—”
“Nightstand. Top drawer. Left side of the bed,” Winter answered automatically in a hard voice that only made Fox’s smile wider.
“If you’re a good vampire, you might find a nice surprise waiting in the dark in the middle of your bed.”
Winter seemed to hesitate, his breath caught in his chest and his eyes searching Fox’s face for something. Fox was desperately trying to reboot his blood-starved brain so he could think of something, anything, that would finally tip the scales in Winter’s mind. Fox wanted this, needed this.
“Yes. Go.” Winter’s sharp words almost had Fox shouting for joy.
“Ahh! One catch.” Fox stepped into Winter, pressing his body along the vampire’s so he could feel all that hard muscle and even harder cock in his pants. Fox tilted his head up, offering his mouth. “I want a kiss first.”
“I don’t,” Winter bit out like he was fighting his own desires.
“Yeah, but we’re already breaking the rules by knowing each other. This is role-playing now. We’re pretending we don’t know the owner of that cock and that ass. And if you’re going to not bite me, then I’m demanding you at least kiss me.”
Fox held his breath, waiting for Winter to shoot down his request. He might have been totally willing to cave if it meant taking the vampire to bed, but he wanted this kiss, needed to feel those lips on his. He wanted this temporary connection between them, this sweetness. Winter could pretend Fox was anyone else while his face was shoved into the mattress, but this one small moment, the vampire had to be there with Fox.
The vampire stared at him for a second, and Fox was sure he could hear his pounding heart. Just as Fox drew in a breath to crack a joke, to brush off yet another rejection, Winter lifted one hand to cup the side of his face. For all their joking and heated talk, his touch was surprisingly gentle. His thumb rubbed through the scruff on Fox’s jaw, causing the witch’s breath to catch in his throat.
Fox couldn’t close his eyes. He watched as Winter’s lips slowly descended while his eyes fell shut, his impossibly long eyelashes black against his paleness. The first touch was so light, Fox couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe. The sexy, dangerous vampire wasn’t supposed to kiss like this. He was supposed to devour Fox and suck out his fucking soul. This was so incredibly tender, it was tearing down his best defenses and leaving him desperate for more.
On a whimper, Fox pressed closer, pushing up on the tips of his toes so he could feel more, taste more. And