Loving a Vampire(33)

“You’re not as strong as I, but you’ll be at an advantage. You’re not thirsting for blood. I expect you to keep my friend safe,” he said, warning her with his eyes.

“If you’re about to turn Gregory into a vampire, how can I protect him?”

He glanced back at Gregory. The other man was rubbing his hands together staring at the floor.

“If I lose control feed him your blood. I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop.”

She frowned at him. “You’ve never fed from Gregory have you?”

“No, he’s dropped blood into my cup, but I’ve never drunk from him.”

Marianna wrapped her arms around him. “I’ll protect you both. I don’t think you’ll need it. You love Gregory.”

He nodded even though he doubted himself. Squaring his shoulders he stepped closer. Gregory stood. His blond hair caught the light giving him a younger appearance.

“I never thought this day would come,” Gregory said.

Marianna faded into the background. They were the only two people in the room.

“This day was inevitable. Marianna has nothing to do about this. You always wanted to be a vampire. It was only a matter of you being ready.”

Gregory stared back at him. “Were you going to change me regardless?”

“I was giving you until you were forty-five. If you didn’t make a decision before then I was going to change you,” Augustus said.

“Why?”

“You’re my best friend. I’m tired of being alone. Do you really think I like leaving you every morning?” He turned back to look at Marianna. Her arms were folded as she leaned against the door. “She was the best thing to happen to us. You can’t deny it.”

“No, I can’t deny it. Being without either of you is not an option. I love you both too damn much.”

Augustus stepped closer. “Do you want me to do this in front of you, or behind you?”

Gregory took a deep breath. His hard muscled chest grazed Augustus’s chest. He felt the heat radiating off the other man. They were polar opposites, one hot and the other cold.

“In front. I think it’s the only way I could handle this.”

He nodded and brought his hand up to stroke Gregory’s cheek. “Forgive me for taking your life.”

“There is nothing to forgive.”

Sinking his fingers into Gregory’s hair, Augustus pulled him closer, closing the final distance between them.

Their naked chests touched, and the electricity sent a sparkle of awareness through Augustus. Sending a little prayer above, he tilted Gregory’s head to the side, exposing his neck.

The pulse thumbed at the side of his neck. Licking his lips, Augustus slowly closed in on the pulse. At first he sucked on the flesh feeling Gregory shake.

Marianna moaned in the background. The scent of arousal filled the air. Sex was not on Augustus’s mind. He needed to make sure he held onto his sanity long enough to turn his best friend.

Closing his eyes, his fangs extended. In the next breath, he struck. Gregory tensed underneath him. Holding him close, Augustus stopped him from pulling away. At first, his friend pulled away from the grip.

Their woman, as if sensing their need, spoke up. “Don’t fight, Gregory. This is what you want. If you don’t want it keep fighting, and he’ll let go and we’ll go back to how it was before. You’ll be fed, and then you can go on living in the light … alone.”

“I … don’t … want … to … be … alone,” Gregory said.

His body went lax against Augustus.

When this was all over he’d thank their woman. He needed to hold onto his sanity, and the only way to do that was to have everyone at his disposal. If he didn’t do everything in his power to help Gregory, then his friend was nothing more than a dead man.

Striking back, Augustus sank his fangs into the wound he started. Gregory’s blood wasn’t the nicest he’d ever tasted, but there was a connection between them which ran far deeper than the taste of human blood.

Marianna stepped away from them.

They were alone. Augustus held him in his arms while sucking out his blood. He heard Gregory’s heart start to slow down as he relaxed. Slowly, he held his friend in his arms until there was nothing more for him to do.

Gregory held onto him. The other man’s arms were startling strong even as he was dying.

“Augustus, you need to stop,” Marianna said.

He heard her words and forced himself to tear away from Gregory’s neck. Even with his constant suckling, blood covered Gregory’s body, and some was smeared over his own chest.

Tearing into his wrist, he pressed his open wound to Gregory’s mouth.