STORY EXCERPT

Ollie gaped at him. “Wait, why should we do that? That’s supposed to happen between lovers.”

François tightened his lips. If they were to live together, they had to do it, by his standards. There was nothing wrong with it. On top of that, Ollie was quite adorable. “Then we’ll do that, as well.”

“No way,” Ollie shouted. “I offered you my help. There’s no need to go that far.” He flinched when François raised a brow in annoyance. The purpose had been to help someone, but this happened instead. He didn’t know how to feel about all this. The only thing he could do was to shut down his mind about it. If he took the time to process all of this, he would go insane.

He became numb.

François reached out and slid his hand along Ollie’s jaw. He dragged his sharp nail down Ollie’s neck, until he stopped on the hem of his red T-shirt. His finger slid halfway inside. “Why not?”

Ollie grabbed François’s wrist and moved his hand away. “I should be the one asking. Why should I accept it? We met a few minutes ago.”

“Because I want to,” François said firmly. “Even if you’re a regular human, I’m becoming attracted to you. It’s only natural that you offer yourself to me.”

What the hell was going on? Ollie stared at him. “This is insane. Are you like a little animal that gets attached to the first living thing they see? Like I said, I just wanted to help you. Besides, I…like someone else, a human like me. You don’t have the right to interfere.” The last part was a lie. He’d ended a relationship on good terms two months ago. His ex-boyfriend had other things in mind for his future. “Oh, and it’s a woman. I’m not into men.”

François narrowed his eyes with suspicion again. “My powers aren’t back completely, but you look quite nervous. I can feel it. Are you lying?”

Ollie took a step back. François took one forward, the piece of dangling chain clanking against the shackle. “I don’t have to answer,” he said, averting his gaze. François grabbed his jaw and made him look at him. Ollie winced. He’d always been a poor liar, especially under pressure. “Okay, I don’t like anyone right now. That doesn’t mean I have to be with you.”

“It does,” François said and moved his hand away. “It’s settled whether you like it or not. You will be mine, Ollie. I can feel it. Nothing you say will change that.”

Wasn’t there a manual on how to deal with vampires? Ollie sighed. Why him? Perhaps all he needed to do was make François lose interest. The vampire seemed like a fickle man…creature, or something. “It won’t happen. That’s all I have to say to you.” Ollie turned his laptop off.

“It will,” François said. “Now, I need you to get me more water. Some food would be good, as well. I don’t rely solely on human blood.”

Ollie frowned. “I’m not your butler. You’re a guest and a stranger in my apartment, so you should behave like one. If you want something, ask. You don’t own everything here.” That was exactly what he needed, a frightening vampire treating him like a slave. No way would he allow that to happen, let alone marry him. It wasn’t because of François’s good looks that he would bend over and ask for his mercy.

“Can you feed me?” François asked. “If not, you can’t stop me from taking whatever you have.”

ADULT EXCERPT

Ollie searched everywhere and there was nothing online about François. That was unexpected. No one was talking about the incident. He leaned back against his desk chair and crossed his arms. For some reason, he felt a presence in the room. When he looked over his shoulder, François was standing behind him. Ollie jumped, the chair falling backward. “Damn it, François. You scared me!”

“Over five hundred years,” François said, approaching Ollie.

“What about it?” Ollie rested his hand on his chest. His heart was pounding. “Don’t scare me like that again. It’s weird enough that nothing about the club’s incident is on the internet.”

François held Ollie’s hand and led him out of the study room. “Five hundred years.”

Ollie frowned. “Why are you saying that again? Where are you taking me?” Something was up with François. The vampire not telling him anything was making him anxious. “Hey, I’m talking to you.” He followed François into his bedroom. What was going on?

François closed the door behind them before he laid Ollie on the bed. “You have no idea,” François said.

“Say it already,” Ollie almost shouted. “Did something happen with Duke and Ellius?”

“It’s not that,” François said. He crawled onto Ollie, moving smoothly, similar to Duke and Ellius. “It has been over five hundred years since I last had sex. You have no idea how much I’m about to burst. Just the thought of you…”

Ollie stared at him for a long moment. “And you want to use me again?” he asked with a scowl. “Whenever you need something, you come to me. I chose to help you, not to be your servant.”

François tilted his head. “You’re not my servant. I was talking with Duke and Ellius—”

“Yeah, you must’ve had an interesting conversation,” Ollie said. “If you want anything else, go ask them. I’m sure they’ll give you everything you need, including this. I’m not here for your personal use before you go on your merry way, understand? Don’t use the excuse that you’re my husband or some other ridiculous reason to get what you want.”

“It’s not an excuse. I do see myself as your husband.”

Ollie sighed. He’d had enough. This stubborn vampire wanted to take things too far. “How so? If you call yourself my husband, what do you know about me? I know nothing about you either.”

François slid his finger along Ollie’s neck, and Ollie moved his hand away. “Don’t be like this, Ollie. What I know when it comes to you has an explanation that I can’t tell you,” he said as he unbuttoned his black shirt.

Ollie glanced down a few times at François’s strong torso. “What are you doing? I never mentioned we could become intimate like this.” He averted his gaze from the vampire. Why did he have to be attracted to François? He was almost at his limit the more attention François gave him.

“I know how you love and hate me at the same time,” François said, drawing Ollie’s attention. “Ollie, I’m a Grand Prince. By the second time I drank from you, I knew how you felt about me. Before, I could only sense your heartbeat. At the third time, I can now sense even more. You desire me, don’t you?”

Ollie froze. Before he knew it, François was completely naked on top of him. He looked down at François’s enticing body until he saw the vampire’s hard cock. “I…” He paused, looking away. “I don’t hate you. I just don’t like how you do certain things, and you don’t care about it. It’s frustrating.”

“I didn’t know humans want a lot of attention like vampires do,” François said. “If that’s what you want, I don’t mind that in the least. But if I want something, I’m getting it.” He grinned and peeled Ollie’s shirt over his head. “Your heartbeat is like music to my ears.”

Ollie nibbled on his bottom lip. He didn’t know what to say. François knew everything. He shuddered as François slid his finger along his neck. The further they went, the hotter he got. His breathing became heavier when François took his pants off. “It’s the afternoon.”

François leaned down and licked one of Ollie’s nipples, causing him to jolt. “After many years, the time of day doesn’t matter to me. I need you.”

Ollie’s mind spiraled out of control at François’s last words. Was the vampire doing it on purpose? “You’re saying that because it’s going to benefit you in the long run. I remember that.”

“You know that’s not how I feel. Tongue out,” François said. He grinned, his fangs showing, when Ollie opened his mouth with hesitation. François slid two of his fingers into Ollie’s mouth. “The more you lick them, the better you’ll feel in a minute.”

How had things come to this? Ollie lapped his tongue against François’s fingers. François brushed his nail against the sensitive roof of Ollie’s mouth. Ollie let out a quiet moan. He stared as François growled under his breath. Did that turn François on?