Dre’s fangs started sliding down again, which caused Sammy to interfere. “You’re right, Barion. We are afraid. I’ve never loved anybody as much as I love Dre. The mere idea of him not being my forever chills me to the bone. I’m constantly torn between finally finding out and never wanting to know. Don’t you get it? Even if we make it work should I not be his mate, it would never be what it is at the moment, that blissful ignorance, the pure love untainted by the realities of the world. That’s what we’re clinging to. And since we’re both mature adults, we decided to put a limit on it.”
Dre slung his arm around Sammy’s shoulders, pulling him close. Only then did Sammy realize that he was shaking. It felt good to be comforted, to be held like he was the only thing in Dre’s world that mattered. Dre surely was the only thing that mattered to Sammy, especially in this moment.
“I’m sorry, Sammy. I didn’t mean to upset you.” Barion sounded a bit contrite. “It’s just that seeing you two together gives me so much hope for finding my own mate. I understand why you’re hesitant to find out, but from my point of view, you’re wasting the gift Fate has given you. Don’t be afraid. You were made for each other. Even if you should not be Dre’s mate, which I highly doubt, you will find a way and it will be perfect for you two. Staying in this limbo won’t get you anywhere.”
Sammy sighed and snuggled closer to Dre. “It’s okay, Barion. We know that as well.” He twisted his head to look at Dre. “Perhaps we should go home and talk about it?”
Dre nodded. “Seems like a good idea. Thank you, Barion, for the invitation. I’ll give you a call as soon as we know.”
“You’re not angry?” Barion sounded meek.
“No, brother, we’re not angry. I, for my part, am just not sure what to think.” Dre smiled a bit sadly.
Sammy touched Barion’s hand briefly. “It’s the same for me. We’ll talk soon, okay? Especially about the abysmal order you have to your library.” He winked.
Barion huffed in relief, and with a last wave goodbye, Dre brought Sammy back to his kitchen.
Chapter Twelve
“Wow. That was intense.” Sammy turned in Dre’s arms to snuggle his face against Dre’s pecs, something they both enjoyed immensely.
“Yeah, it was. I’m sorry. Barion can be a handful, and he has zero respect for other people’s personal space.”
“Really?” Sammy winked. “I got the impression that he’s the picture of restrained and collected…not meddling at all.”
“Which is why I waited so long to introduce you. If I had done this sooner, you’d have run screaming.” Dre kissed him lovingly.
“I like to think I would have never run from you, Dre. There’s something about you that draws me in. Perhaps I would have made you work for it a bit more, though.” Sammy played with Dre’s fingers while saying this, clearly teasing him.
Sensing Sammy’s inner turmoil, Dre decided it was time to stop with the pussyfooting. “Do you really want to talk about what just happened at Barion’s or are we sticking to the initial plan?”
Sammy sighed deeply. “I want to stick to the initial plan. I really do, but it just doesn’t make sense, does it? Barion’s right. We’re just procrastinating.” He leaned back in Dre’s embrace, meeting his gaze full on. “Let’s grab the devil by the horns and do this?”
“You do know there’s more than one devil and that they don’t necessarily have horns?” Dre lifted one eyebrow. Sammy swatted at his arm.
“Don’t try to distract me—and I didn’t know. But let’s stay focused here.” He shuddered. “What’s going to happen now? How exactly does this work?”
Dre caressed Sammy’s cheek with his knuckles. They had discussed this before, but if his hopefully soon-to-be mate needed to go over it again, Dre wouldn’t deny him. Especially since it helped calm his own nerves as well.
“We’re going to have penetrative sex for the first time. Ideally, I’m going to take you from behind because of the whole knotting thing—and the bite, of course.” Dre gave Sammy what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “When we both reach orgasm and my knot starts to swell, I’m going to bite you here.” Dre ghosted his fingers over the crook of Sammy’s neck, leaving goosebumps in their wake. “While I ingest your blood, my venom is pumped into your system. If you aren’t my mate, you will experience a light drowsiness and the bite will heal just like every other flesh wound you ever got.”
Sammy caught Dre’s fingers in both his hands and looked at him with a suspicious glint in his eyes. “And if I am? Somehow I’m getting the feeling you’re trying to tell me something by not telling me.”
Dre sighed. They really were in tune with each other. Damn! “If you are my mate—which I’m pretty sure of, by the way—the poison will react with your blood and start reshaping your body so you can become my mate. That process is…uncomfortable.”
Sammy raised a brow. “Uncomfortable? Did I miss something?”
Dre winced. “Uhm, I may not have mentioned it before. Very…and painful. I’m sorry.”
“You’re doing a great job selling this to me,” Sammy grumbled. “I mean, seriously, I don’t get it. If I’m not your mate, there aren’t any problems, but if I am, I get tortured? Were all the paranormal romance books I’ve read wrong? I want my money back!”
Dre did his best not to smile at those last words. He had a feeling smiles were counterproductive at the moment. He took the route of downplaying mixed with a reasonable explanation. Sammy’s brain was scientifically wired, after all.
“The pain doesn’t last long, only a few minutes. Afterward it’s bliss. I promise. And the books aren’t wrong per se, just inaccurate and selective in the information they provide. It’s a bit like with pregnancies. If there wasn’t all that talk about how wonderful it is to hold a baby in your arm, no woman would ever get pregnant. And if it weren’t truly wonderful, no woman would get pregnant twice or more often. Just treat this as a form of slightly misconstrued advertising. The rewards are even greater than described, but getting there takes a few sacrifices.”
Sammy stared at him for so long that Dre was half-afraid he would tell him to forget about it all. Then all of a sudden, he started to laugh.
“You’re the worst salesman ever, Dre. Has anybody told you that?”
“Not yet.”
“Rest assured.” Sammy chuckled some more before he turned serious again. “Okay, let’s do this. I’m warning you, though, that if this isn’t as great as you claim it to be, your ass is toast.”
Dre felt a relieved smile tugging at his lips.
“Whatever you say, mo grah thu.”
Sammy took Dre’s hand and led him to his bedroom. They had spent time in there so often during the past week that it no longer felt strange to Sammy. Instead, his heart rate started speeding up and his cock took an interest. It had already learned to expect pleasure from the combination of Dre and the bedroom.
“Do you think we need The Guide to Successful and Satisfying Sex with a Paranormal?” Sammy was so nervous that the idea to have something in written form to cling to was more than a bit appealing. Dre kissed him on the top of his head.