Blood Ties (Book 3 of The Blood Bond Series)

13. Hot

Quinn woke up with warmth wrapped completely around her. Her head was still nestled on a soft, fragrant pillow, one that smelled vaguely of clean aftershave and mint. It took her a moment to remember she was on the opposite end of the country than normal, and she blinked her eyes opened, looking down.

Large hands were clasped around her waist, and she remembered that she had fallen asleep in Adam's bedroom and in his bed. In the light of day, everything they'd talked about the previous night seemed less scary, and she realized how silly she'd been then—frightened of things that probably wouldn't come after her, supernaturals that were most likely just as scared of vampires as they were of other species. Being frightened of something or someone different was never going to be something that went away. Anything with a mind would want total control, which was fine in and of itself, but was not attainable by any stretch of the imagination.

Anyone who said new experiences were the best experiences was either lying to themselves or was truly a brave individual.

"Adam?" she mumbled in a croaky voice and started to pull herself upright. His arm was like a lead weight, and she had to shove it off her side a bit before he was waking up and looking up at her as she sat upright, partially still covered up by thick blankets. A yawn worked up her throat, and she blinked sleepily at him and gestured to his arm, which was still clutched around her side. "Ya mind? I'm human, so I still do irritating things like pee and stuff."

Adam rolled onto his back, letting go of her while looking up at the ceiling before back at the alarm clock on his side of the bed. His. He already was sharing the room with her in his head. He hoped for much longer than just last night. God, he hoped. Mentally, he was already wondering what his mate wanted for breakfast, and from the sounds of it, everyone was already awake, though they probably had gone to bed a little earlier than they.

He smiled and sat up before rubbing his eyes sleepily. For a year at least, he hadn't slept this well. Worry about his mate, what she was doing and who she was doing it with, had consumed him. Having her here and willing to start fresh was healing something inside him, and he walked out into the hallway just as his father was passing by.

"Hey, Pop." Eli stopped and turned around, his eyebrows lifting on his forehead as he took his son in. He lifted his head as if he smelled something and smiled.

"She slept with you, didn't she?"

If Adam had blood in the way humans had blood, he would have flushed a deep crimson. "In the same bed, yes, but we just talked. I told her a little bit about the supernatural world. I think it scared her, so I brought her in here because she didn't want to be alone." He paused and mirrored his father's grin. "She did agree to a redo. She wants to start over as if the kidnapping never happened."

His father was happy, but still looked grave. "That's excellent, Adam. It shows that she's feeling something toward you, but you still have to be supremely careful, son. Tread lightly and think before you act. One more thing that you fuck up could lead to disaster. It's both good and bad that she agreed to this so quickly. Fresh off something like this, she could just be waiting for you to mess this thing up. Best thing I can tell you is to comfort her, keep her happy and safe. After a while, she'll realize that you truly are looking out for her and don't mean any harm. I think to some extent she knows that already, but with the way you kidnapped her, she's bound to be a little cautious out of the starting gate. You say something, you do it. Promises kept always. In the meantime, is there anything I can do?

Adam nodded his head. "Yeah. I was thinking the first thing I should do is to give her back her cell phone. She's probably anxious to speak to her parents again and get in touch with the university. If I want her to trust me, trust all of us, I think that's the first step."