for just a little longer? Five minutes, maybe?"
"I would love to, but... no."
Wait a minute, he thought. There was something different about the way she was staring at him. In fact, her eyes were locked on the side of his neck and her mouth was slightly open. Then her tongue made a quick sweep of her lower lip, as if she were tasting something good. Or maybe wanting to taste something.
A bolt of mad lust shot through him.
"Baby?" he said roughly. "You need something from me?"
"Yes..." She stood up on her tiptoes and spoke into his ear. "I gave you so much when you were going through the transition that I'm a little weak. I need your vein."
Holy shit... what he'd been waiting for all along. The chance to feed her.
Butch grabbed her around the waist, popped her feet off the floor, and carried her toward the door like the weight room was on fire.
"Not yet, Butch." She laughed. "Put me down. You're barely a week out."
"No."
"Butch, put me down."
His body obeyed the command, even though his mind wanted to argue. "How much longer?"
"Soon."
"I'm strong now."
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"I can wait a couple of days. And it's better if we do."
She kissed him and looked at her watch. The one she wore was his favorite from his collection, the Patek Philippe with the black alligator band. He loved the idea that she had it with her wherever she went.
"I'll be at Safe Place all night," she said. "We have a new female and two youngs arriving, and I want to be there when they check in. I'm also calling my first staff meeting. Mary's coming and we're going to do it together. So I probably won't be back until dawn."
"I'll be here." He caught her as she turned away and spun her back into his arms. "Be careful out there."
"I will."
He kissed her deep, wrapping his arms around her slender body. Man, he couldn't wait until she came back.
And missed her the moment she left.
"I am a total sap," he said as the door closed.
"Told you." V got up off the bench press and picked up a pair of stacked one-hander weights. "Bonded males are a thing."
Butch shook his head and tried to refocus on what else he wanted to accomplish in the gym tonight. For the past seven days, while Marissa went off to her new job, he stayed at the compound and worked on how to handle this new body of his. The learning curve was steep. In the beginning, he'd had to figure out the most simple functions, like how to eat and how to write. Now, he was trying to get a sense of his physical limits to see when... if... he would break. The good news was, so far, everything worked. Well, almost everything. One of his hands was a little messed up, though not in any serious way.
And the fangs were fabulous.
As were the strength and endurance he now had. No matter how far or how hard he pushed himself in the gym, his body took the punishment and responded with growth. At meals, he ate like Rhage and Z, sucking back some five thousand calories every twenty-four hours... and even still, he was always hungry. Which made sense. He was packing on muscle like he was shooting 'roids.
Two open questions remained. Could he dematerialize? And could he handle sunlight? V had suggested holding off on both of those for a month or so, and that was fine. There was enough to worry about in the meantime.
"You're not quitting, right?" V asked as he looked up from the bicep curls he was doing. The weight in each of his hands was probably two seventy-five.
Butch could pull them that heavy now, too.
"Nah, I still got juice." He went over to an elliptical machine and got on to stretch his legs out.
Man, on the topic of juice... he was totally and completely sexed out. All the time. Marissa had moved into his bedroom at the Pit and he couldn't keep his hands off her. He felt so bad about it, and he tried to hide the need, but invariably she knew when he wanted her and she never turned him away, even if it was only to finish him.
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She really seemed to relish the sexual control she had over him. And so did he.
God, he was hardening again now. All he had to do was think of her and