Vincent rushed over to her. "Here, let me see it."
Terri hesitated, then raised both hands and forced herself to open her fingers and reveal the wound, then flushed with embarrassment. It had hurt like the devil, but was really just a small cut she saw with self-disgust. She'd reacted as though she'd lost a limb.
"Sometimes the smallest cuts are the most painful," Vincent commented, as if he'd read her thoughts. He was examining the wound, and the small bit of blood leaking from it, with a fascination that was a little unsettling. Especially when he suddenly inhaled, as if smelling a wildflower.
"Vincent!"
The crack of Bastien's voice made both Vinny and Terri jump in surprise. Retrieving her hand, Terri turned to smile uncertainly at her host. He didn't even notice the effort, let alone appreciate it. His eyes were focused on his cousin.
"Hello, Bastien. Rough half hour at the office?" Vincent teased lightly. Then he gestured to Terri. "She cut herself slicing celery. I was just looking at it for her."
Bastien immediately started forward, his expression softening with concern. It was a relief to know the blood he'd smelled upon entering the kitchen hadn't been from a bite. That scent, combined with the way the two had been huddled together, had led him to think Vincent had bitten Terri. He was glad he was wrong. "Is it bad?"
"Fortunately, no." Vincent stepped aside to let him take his place examining Terri's cut. "A bandage should take care of it. I'll go see if we have any."
Bastien was aware of the other man slipping from the room, but merely clasped and lifted Terri's hand to examine the injury for himself. Much to his relief, his cousin was right and it wasn't a bad cut. It was small and shallow enough that it didn't even really need a bandage, but the smell of the few drops of blood that had slipped from the wound was strong enough that Bastien was almost heady from it. He supposed it would have been worse for Vincent, who hunted at night so had yet to feed today. Which meant Bastien probably owed him an apology. He had just ingested a bag of blood, yet was hard pressed not to stick Terri's finger in his mouth and suck away the small bit of blood. Yet, Vincent had been managing to resist, despite likely being ravenous.
"It should be fine, but I'll go see how Vincent is making out finding that bandage," Bastien said gruffly. He released her hand and left the kitchen quickly, fleeing the temptation in search of his cousin. He found Vincent in the office at the back of the penthouse, prowling like a hungry tiger.
"I didn't bite her," he said at once. "We were just talking about you."
"I know. I'm sorry," Bastien began; then he paused and blinked. "About me?"
Vincent relaxed and nodded. "She likes you, Bastien. I mean really likes you. But there's something else there. Some fear is keeping her from giving in to her feelings. She may not be an easy conquest."
"I don't want to conquer her, Vincent. She isn't a foreign country with riches I covet."
"Then what do you want from her?"
Bastien was silent. He didn't know the answer. He hadn't been this fascinated by a woman in a long time, perhaps ever. He didn't even remember feeling this drawn to Josephine. He certainly had never felt so comfortable with the woman he'd always considered the love of his life. There was something so natural about Terri. She expressed what she felt with a distinct lack of concern for what people would think; she didn't bother to try to act as if she knew something when she didn't, lest she look foolish. Terri was honest and accepting and made Bastien feel as if he could be himself around her, as if that was enough.
He wanted to be just as honest in return. That was a feeling he was constantly fighting, afraid that if he revealed the facts of his vampirism, she would shun him as Josephine had.
"That's a risk you'll have to take eventually, if you want a serious relationship with her. This is a new era, though. Vampires are 'in' right now. Terri might not react like Josephine at all." Vincent didn't bother to try to hide the fact that he'd been reading his cousin's mind. Wrought with turmoil as he was, Bastien hadn't remembered to guard his thoughts. "Can you read her mind?"
Bastien shook his head. He'd tried while shopping that afternoon and hadn't been able to read a thing.
Vincent nodded solemnly. "You'll have to tell her eventually. Perhaps Kate can help you. They're cousins. Terri might take it better from her anyway." Vincent moved to the door. "I'm going out for a snack. Enjoy your night."
Bastien watched the door close behind his cousin, then stood unmoving for several minutes. He felt restless, empty, hungry. That last thought had him crossing to the locked fridge in his desk to retrieve a bag of blood. He popped his teeth into it, ingested it quickly, then tossed the empty bag away in disgust. It didn't help what ailed him. Bastien still felt empty. Blood wasn't what he was hungry for. What he yearned for. What he really wanted was someone of his own. Someone to complete him. He wanted to belong to someone. To someone who could accept his differences and embrace him with them. He wanted unconditional love. More to the point, he wanted Terri's unconditional love.