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His finger moved across the rows upon rows of books, lines of worn spines and loose stitching. Romance novels and comics tossed in between the old leather-bound treasures, a small sample of what the rest of the manor was like, in his opinion. Finally, he settled and pulled one out, and stepped over towards the warm fireplace. Jayden swung his legs over the back of a plush chair and landed on the overstuffed cushions with a huff.
Prying open the cover, he flipped through the first few pages of introductory paragraphs and settled deep in the cushions to read in the quiet study. The fire popped in random intervals, and joined into a peaceful melody with the low hum of electrical lights, creating an ambiance that was welcomed and appreciated to the hunter.
Cadenza had left on a trip a few days ago, dragging along a whining Laurance who had left a quick peck on his cheek and an “I’ll be back soon,” with Jayden. Leaving him in the Zvahl manor with the company of the elusive Kenmur and the stacks of dozens of lifetimes of collecting stuff cluttering and living in each of the old rooms. So he had retreated into the libraries of the place which was an easy way to pass time quickly, considering all the interesting things this house offered.
Of course, nothing could be more interesting than the man he now had shared his bed with several times now, but Laurance was clever despite his mannerisms. No records of himself or his sister other than a few old portraits were left to find around the family home. But Jayden could reach down into his pocket and tug out something the two had missed in their thoroughness.
An old diary was written by none other than the last human, like himself, who held the affection of one of these immortal siblings. This unknown ‘Lucinda’ was a funny woman herself if the things she wrote were a perfect testament to her character. But Jayden couldn’t deny that her insight was valuable when a certain someone decided to keep quiet and avoid questions about his past.
Jayden returned to his newfound novel, and focused all he could on the unusual story, fish people living on the land were definitely a unique choice of subject matter. The room was comfortable and the sunlight streaming in improved the setting, and he got lost in the pages.
It was only when he closed the covers and pulled out his phone to check the time did he realize how long he had been in the room. The sun was as low as the dying fire, and the only source of light anymore was the table lamp that he apparently had turned on earlier. Jayden stood up and dusted off his pants, and returned the book to the expanse of shelves. He stepped out into the hall quietly, closing the heavy wooden door behind him. The line of beautifully decorated carpets, from the middle east according to Laurance, guided the dark-haired man towards what could once be considered the servants’ workspace.
The kitchen floors were cold, but so was the fridge which meant the apple he had pulled out was crisp and as fresh as the day they bought it. Regular food was only bothered with because of the two humans who either did live here or practically did. A small buzz came from Jayden’s phone and he pulled it out, chewing the fruit down to its core.
A text from Asher flashed on the screen, a simple “Where the hell are you?” lovingly sent from his brother.
Jayden replied with a “Laurance’s” and left the kitchen for the main hall and the staircase leading upstairs.
“You’ve been there for two days. How long does a night last with you two?”
“Why do you care again? Don’t you have something more important to focus on?”
“WE have something more important, especially now since Melissa might have a lead.”
Right. Melissa. The huntress from the Lycan Family who was extremely invested in the two brothers’ current task of tracking down a minor vampire lord for some unknown reason. The one who was reputed for her excellent skills in the field, only outmatched by her now-dead brother. That Melissa.
“Ten bucks and a drink says it’ll get us nowhere.”
“I’ll take that bet jackass. Have some faith in her won’t you?”
“Until Miss Bloodhound finally finds something useful, never.”
“How the hell do you have a boyfriend again? Especially with that attitude,”
“I’m attractive and you’re a prick. I’m clearly the better option out of the two of us.”
He ditched the conversation in favor of opening the bedroom door and falling over on the four-poster bed, flinging decorative pillows and blankets everywhere on the floor. Jayden couldn’t bother to pick them up, instead, he tossed his boots and shirt to join the bedding on the floor as he sunk into the layers of soft fabric.
If there was something to be sure of, it was that Laurance had a killer taste and a flair for the dramatic. But least the bed was infinitely more comfortable than some of the stuff he’d seen tucked away in dressers and closets. How he had managed to accumulate only the strangest collection of clothes Laurance hadn’t explained yet.
The bed was comfortable and the night was long. He had barely pulled some of the covers over himself by the time his eyes were heavy.
He was woken up by cold hands shaking him until the sleep left him, leaving only a wide awake and cranky Jayden behind, “What the hell?!”
“Sorry! But I wanted to say hi as soon as I got home,” Laurance leaned down and kissed him in apology, “You mad at me?”
Jayden sat up and looked over at the immortal currently looking awkward and sheepish just… standing there next to the bed, “I’m annoyed you jerk, now get in here so I can say hi back,” He yawned and stretched, trying to clear his head.
He smiled at that, and sat down on the side of the bed to take off his regular clothes, “So you weren’t too bored cooped up in this old haunted house, right?”
He shrugged and leaned over to help unzip the back of Laurance’s shirt, “I managed, but it’s less creepy with you around.” He let him tug the shirt over his head before running his fingers across his warm-toned skin, even if it was ice-cold.
A sigh responded to the touch, and Laurance fell back and landed his head on Jayden’s lap. Long waves of auburn hair falling across the sheets like gentle strokes of ink. He stretched and turned over to lay on his stomach, cushioning his chin with bronzed forearms. The smooth motion invited Jayden’s hands to wander around and comb through the glossy hair.
“So how was your mysterious trip?” He took a large portion of hair and began weaving it together with practiced hands.
Laurance kicked his legs, “The most abysmal thing I’ve ever experienced if you can believe it!”
“Oh really?” He cocked a smile and set the plait down, starting a new one closer to Laurance’s slender face, “Several hundred years of life and a short business trip was the most awful thing you’ve done?”
“You don’t believe me than you jerk.” He threw one of the fluffy pillows directly at Jayden, square in the face with an “Oof!” In return.
“Well, what could have possibly made this so horrible, so awful that you would complain about it?”
Laurance turned his head to look at Jayden, blue eyes shining with only a trace of red that he could barely pick out in the glimmer. “You really want to know why it was so terrible? Maybe the reason is that I missed you the entire time.”
The hunter looked carefully at the beautiful man draped across his legs and thought about the words now hanging in the air on a delicate string. “I really matter that much?”
Those blue eyes glittered and wrinkled with a smile, “Of course my dear, I love you more than the heavens themselves can keep contained.”
Laurance stretched out some more and sat up to curl into the crook of Jayden’s arm, who wrapped his arms around him and brushed away a few stray hairs from his face. “I love you too, even if I can’t match the lyricism of that confession.”
He reached out and held Laurance’s chin with his forefinger and thumb, bringing him close to give a kiss. The vampire returned it with sharp fangs barely nicking his lips. They stayed like that, a quiet exchange of love between them.
Eventually, it broke and Laurance rested his head on Jayden’s bare chest.
Jayden could feel his own heartbeat thump more clearly than ever, as the two lay there in the thick and warm layers of blankets.
Laurance traced a finger across his chest, following the defined lines of muscle stretching all over, “You really are a handsome devil you know that?”
“You never seem to let me forget it.”
“Can you blame me? Such a pretty face was the reason I wanted to meet you in the first place.”
“I remember that night too, In case you thought I didn’t,” That evening was clear in his head, even if the events that took place after they had left the bar weren’t so much.
Jayden was drinking his fill that night, only to be approached by a glittering Laurance. He remembered the gold bangles he had worn then and the way they jingled as the pair had moved across the floor in fluid, unanimous motion.
Sure that night was just one night, that had quickly turned into desperate calls in the middle of the night for one another. With either one or the other longing for something to have, for various reasons. But that too had become coffee dates and dinners by the beach. Small tokens of affection left on each other’s doorsteps and sweet nothings whispered for hours.
Asher thought it ridiculous, seeing his brother fall in love with one of his one-night stands, and a creature he was trained to kill no less. And he kept telling him to leave it and move away from it all but, Jayden was never very good at listening to his brother’s advice.
And so now here they were, lying together in a quiet house. With only a crescent moon hanging in the sky for company. Funny how things seemed to work out between them, wasn’t it?