I particularly didn’t want to learn about vampire feeding. However, Wade needed to and as the one who would ultimately be responsible for him, I needed to know these things as well.
Jaxon led us to the upper level where we sat on a high-backed sofa with arms. It was basically like a fancy booth without the table attached to it. In front of us was a circular table about the height of a coffee table.
Within moments of taking our seat, a waitress appeared. I hadn’t even seen her walk over. One moment it was just us, then bam. She was there. Creepy.
“The usual for me and a bottle of red.” Jaxon glanced at Wade and added, “And someone nice and pretty for our new friend.”
I frowned, not comfortable with ordering a person for Wade to drink from.
Before the waitress left, Drew held up one finger. “A water for me.”
She glared at him for a long moment until Jaxon said, “That’s all.”
There was power in his voice that seemed to make the woman snap in line and do as she was told. I eyed him. “Are you like the leader of them?”
He nodded once. “I’m the master vampire of this area.”
That made sense, especially from the way the other vampires acted around him. And the fear that had rolled off of Leo when I’d forced him to tell the truth. I met Wade’s gaze. “How are you?”
He shrugged then scanned the crowd of the club. “I’m dead.”
“Undead,” I corrected in a flat tone. “What happened? And don’t tell me you were turned into a vampire. I already know that much.”
I didn’t care if my tone was a little too firm. I’d worried about him for days. At least he could’ve called me. But maybe he just hadn’t been able to. Maybe he’d been scared.
“A vampire followed me home the night I left your house. He asked questions about you and why you were there. He didn’t make sense. He went on about necromancers coming back to turn them into slaves.” Wade made eye contact with me and frowned. “You don’t turn people into slaves, do you?”
I stopped myself from rolling my eyes at him. Sure, Wade knew what I was and accepted me for all my weirdness, but we’d never gone into great detail about necromancers or witches. He’d never asked. “No. I don’t turn people into slaves. I don’t even control my ghouls.” That was an understatement.
Jaxon added, “But you can.”
He was not helping. “Yes, I can, but I don’t and won’t unless I absolutely have to.”
Wade relaxed. “The vampire insisted I knew something. When I told him to get out of my house and to leave you alone, he went crazy. We fought, but he was too powerful. I remember…” He shuddered. “I remember him killing me. Then I woke up craving blood.”
Jaxon made a low growl-like sound. “Leo will be dealt with. Like I told Ava on the way here, Leo broke our number one rule—no killing or turning humans.”
“Isn’t that 2 rules?” I asked with a grin.
“Two of the most important rules that we will classify as one. We haven’t lived this long without discovery by making humans aware of us.” He nodded to the waitress. “Our drinks are here as well as Wade’s human.”
The human was a beautiful brunette with short curly hair and large brown eyes. She was about my height with curves that looked amazing on her. She smiled at everyone as she went to Jaxon and sat in his lap. “Hi, Jax. It’s been a while since you called on me.”
Jax caressed her cheek and smiled. “I’m old, Honey. I don’t need to feed as often. But tonight, I have a new vampire that needs to learn to feed properly.”
That was when Honey met each of our stares and stopped on Drew. “Oh, he’s handsome. Silver Fox.”
“No, no,” I said in a loud voice. “Wrong silver fox.”
Drew grinned at me like he’d just had a big compliment. “You think I’m hot.”
She stood and moved to stand in front of Wade, who had sat on the end of the semi-round sofa. Holding out her hand, she said, “Hi. I’m Honey and will be happy to service you.”
Frowning, I watched her for a moment before turning to Jaxon. “This is like a brothel for vampires? Are they paid?”
He chuckled. “In a way. But all the trusted humans who work here have the final say in who sinks their fangs into them. I take good care of my employees. And before you ask, no, Honey is not her real name. We use stage names here to protect their privacy. They do have a life outside of working here.”
I nodded and stood, then asked Drew, “Switch with me?” I wanted to be close to Wade in case he lost control.
Drew scooted over so I could sit closer to my uncle. “So how does this work?”
Jaxon explained to Honey who I was. “This is Ava. She’s a…witch and will be responsible for the newbie.”
I expected him to go into more details than that, but Honey seemed to understand what he wasn’t saying. I rolled with it. After all, what did I know? Not a whole lot.
Honey sat on Wade’s lap like she had Jaxon’s and spoke in a soft, caring voice. “You can take from my wrist or my neck. Wherever you feel comfortable.”
Wade glanced at me as if seeking some kind of permission or just some support. I took his hand and squeezed. “You have to learn to do this. Don’t worry. I won’t let you kill her.”
He picked up Honey’s wrist and brought it to his mouth. Then he bit into her flesh. She sucked in a breath then relaxed into him with her fingers playing with his hair. “That’s it. Nice and gentle.”
Honey continued to speak words of encouragement, and I was starting to see why Jaxon had called on her to feed Wade. Turning to Jaxon, I asked, “How many new vampires has she broken in?”
“Broken in?” Jaxon lifted a brow. “We don’t turn many. There hasn’t been a new vampire in this area in decades. Honey has a way with people and vampires. She can soothe their worries.”
That was interesting. I focused back on Wade, feeling like I was invading something intimate. After a few minutes, Jaxon said, “He’s taking too much. Stop him before he can’t be stopped.”
I opened up my necro powers and touched Wade’s arm. “You’ve had enough.”
He let out a growl and tightened his hold on Honey. Okay, so the gentle approach wasn’t gonna work. I put a little firmer mean-mom into my tone and my magic. “Wade, stop.”
He froze and pulled his fangs from her wrist. “I’m sorry. It was, I don’t know how to describe it.”
Honey smiled at him like he hadn’t just tried to drain her and held up her wrist. “You have to lick the punctures to seal them.”
Wade did, and Honey stood up. “Would you like me to come back before you leave?”
Before Wade could answer, Jaxon said, “No need. You should take a break and eat something.”
She nodded and gave us a little wave before leaving.
We spent another few hours there, drinking, talking, laughing, and dancing. Wade had moved. Who knew? Not me, that was for sure. Drew was a good slow dancer. Or maybe I just liked being in his arms.
Jaxon brought a few more people for Wade to drink. He was able to stop himself more easily each time he fed. Jaxon assured me it would get easier within a matter of days.