Aiden glared at his friend, but there was no real fire behind the look. “The area I prefer for hunting will allow us to move without catching much notice from the humans, but other vampires tend to lurk there as well.”
“Ahhh…King Aiden prefers to escape their notice.”
“If you’re going to be this sort of helpful, I’m happy to leave you behind.”
“No. No. I’ll play along. But maybe I should tweak my appearance as well.” He stripped off his jacket and tossed it into the passenger seat before pulling his sweater over his head. The cream color made him into too much of a beacon in the darkness, and he didn’t want to ruin its softness if they found trouble. Underneath he wore a plain black T-shirt tucked into his slacks. Placing the sweater into the car, he pulled on his leather jacket.
He looked up to find Aiden smirking at him. “Feeling appropriately dangerous now for hunting?”
Ronan pointed at his friend across the roof of the car. “You understand just as well as I do the importance of looking the part when you’re out hunting.”
“Uh-huh,” Aiden muttered as he pressed the button on the key fob to lock the doors. “Come along, dangerous man. The hunting grounds are still several blocks away.”
There was no stopping his huge grin as he walked beside Aiden across the parking garage to the stairs leading to the street level. This man—away from his family and the trappings of his new station—felt more like the Aiden he remembered. Not that the other man he’d met was bad. He just felt stifled, as if he were being hemmed in by obligations, duties, and maybe even the worries of his family. It was nice to get Aiden away from all of that so they could spend a little time together.
They walked several blocks in relative silence, but it was surprisingly comfortable. It was only when they reached an area where the buildings looked more rundown and the streetlamps were more often broken than not that Aiden grew more cautious. The shadows moved here and there, as both humans and vampires watched them pass.
Aiden’s posture changed, his shoulders tensed, and his steps turned silent. The hunter was out, looking for his prey. Despite his broad shoulders and strong arms, there was something sleek and pantherlike about Aiden. Ronan was surprised that he found the man even more sexy, but he almost wished he were still human so he could be Aiden’s target just once.
“I should have asked. Do you need to feed?” Aiden inquired softly.
“I was careful to feed before coming into your domain. I wasn’t sure if the new lord would permit me to hunt here. Unless I find a bit of trouble, I should be fine for at least another three weeks.”
“Let’s hope you stay out of trouble.”
“Do you have any suggestions for keeping me entertained?”
Aiden rolled his eyes. “I think your companions from the Ministry might have some plans for you. I have no doubt they have some plans for me.”
Ronan clenched his jaw to hold back the words. He wanted to warn Aiden, but was it the wisest course? Could he do something about Mara and Michael on his own? Yes. But that wouldn’t stop the machinations of the Ministry. And Aiden really deserved to have a choice in the matter. It was his life, the lives of his family, on the line.
“Do you wish to discuss the Ministry? I’ve finally learned of their plans. You should know.”
Aiden stopped and glared at the ground for a second. “Will my family come to harm tonight if we don’t discuss it?”
Ronan paused, surprised by Aiden’s question. He clearly expected some dark plot, but he wasn’t demanding answers. “No, I honestly don’t believe they will.”
“Then, let’s not discuss the Ministry tonight. We can talk more tomorrow. I would like one evening…”
“To forget. To be a normal person again,” Ronan supplied.
Aiden smiled broadly, revealing a perfect set of white fangs. “Well, a normal vampire.”
“Is there any way I can help you hunt other than to stay the fuck out of your way?”
Aiden snickered and started walking again. He scratched his jaw for a second as he glanced around. “Actually, if you don’t mind serving as bait. I’ve spotted a rather violent fellow that will do nicely. But it’s easier if I sneak up on them. Don’t want him to see me before I can get my fangs sunk.”
Ronan chewed on his bottom lip as a new thought occurred to him. It was dangerous, and nearly every vampire would claim that it was incredibly stupid. But trust was often born out of a person taking a chance and trusting the other person first.
“You…you can’t wipe their memory?” Ronan asked cautiously.
His friend stopped sharply and looked over at him. He waited for a heartbeat and shook his head once. “You?”
“No,” Ronan replied quickly. “But I can do something else that will be of use. Where’s your prey?”
Aiden was clearly more than a little wary. Ronan’s heart was racing at the thought of what he was about to do. But he still nodded when Aiden motioned with his head across the street toward a darkened alleyway.
“He’s alone and definitely armed. I can’t smell drugs or alcohol on him, but his thoughts are noisy and consumed with violence. I’d like to put him out of commission for at least one night.”
With a grunt, Ronan stepped into the lead, boldly crossing the street and striding down the sidewalk toward the alley. There was a scrape of a shoe on pavement from the shadows as if the man was preparing to jump them as soon as they passed. But they wouldn’t be passing by.
Before they even reached the alley, Ronan was hit with the awful waves of sweat and body odor wafting off him. He didn’t want Aiden touching this foul creature. He preferred to think of Aiden sipping his blood from a fine crystal glass in the comfort of his home, but no vampire could survive forever on bagged blood. They were all driven to hunt eventually. Something about getting blood straight from the source sustained them the best.
Ronan swept into the alley and grinned to see the man had a wicked blade already clenched in his hand. The human never had a chance to speak. Ronan held up his left hand and calmly said, “Sleep.”
“What…” the man breathed. He wobbled a little on his feet, taking an unsteady step backward.
“Sleep,” Ronan repeated.
The man blinked slowly once, and then his eyes didn’t open again. He started to collapse to the filthy ground, but Ronan caught his arms, holding him upright. Aiden swept around him, taking the man from Ronan and pinning him to the wall. The look Aiden threw in his direction made it clear that his friend was not happy with him.
“Feed. I’ll keep watch,” Ronan brusquely instructed before turning to face the alleyway so Aiden could have some privacy.
Ronan folded his arms across his chest and stared out at the empty street. He tried not to hear the small whimper the man made, likely the moment Aiden’s fangs sank deep. He also tried not to hear each hungry swallow as the blood rushed down Aiden’s throat. Fuck, he was an idiot. Didn’t matter. He wanted to feel Aiden’s lips on his skin, wanted to know what it was like to have Aiden’s fangs in his flesh, the feel of his tongue sliding along his throat.
But to what end?
From the dance, he thought there was a good chance Aiden was still attracted to him. But Aiden wouldn’t risk his family for him, and Ronan had no desire to put the Variks in harm’s way. If anything, Ronan would be happy to protect the Variks if it made Aiden happy. Not that his sons wanted anything to do with him. And they had yet to learn anything about his true past.