His to Protect by Alice Cain Read Free Book Online

Adrian said as he
reached for Tyler's hand. "This is my brother, Gavin. You met him the
night William was murdered." Tyler shook his head, but didn't say
anything. "My brother is bossy and rude and on occasions a serious pain in
the ass, but he knows even more about vampire fledglings than I do. Logan is in
good hands."
    Tyler didn't look convinced, but eventually
nodded when Logan moved closer to the man now sitting on the edge of the bed.
Logan reached for Gavin's hand before settling down beside him and going back
to sleep. Adrian sensed Tyler's confusion at his friend's strange behavior, but
he didn't protest when Adrian put an arm around him and guided him into the
main bathroom.
    "Is he still… Logan?" Tyler asked
very quietly as Adrian closed the bathroom door and then turned his attention
back to Tyler's wounds.
    "In most ways," Adrian said with a
quick nod. "It'll take time, but he'll adjust to life as a vampire soon
enough."
    Adrian moved the gauze away from Tyler's
wound and inspected the angry bruises already blossoming around the puncture
marks. They looked damn painful and guilt assailed him once more. He'd watched
Tyler trying to type on his laptop yesterday, but all of the tiny cuts on his
fingers had obviously made it quite painful. Guilt had slammed Adrian then.
Knowing he could help Tyler and was doing nothing about it went against every
ideal he owned. The problem was that it meant revealing a side of himself that
he usually preferred to keep hidden.
    "How soon?" Tyler asked skeptically.
    "The change into a vampire takes several
weeks. A lot of fledglings act like difficult teenagers at the beginning. The
forgetfulness is concerning, but certainly not unheard of. His mind and body
are going through massive changes, but most vampires quickly regain the
personality and maturity they possessed before being turned."
    "So he'll still be the quiet and
helpful friend I've always known?"
    "Probably," Adrian said, "with
a few minor changes. It's impossible to go through something so life altering
without being a little bit different afterward."
    "I suppose you're right," Tyler
said with a sad smile. Adrian doubted Tyler would get through this experience
unscathed, either. "How long will it take before Logan can stay awake
through the night?"
    "Several more weeks, but he should
sleep a little less each night." Adrian pressed gently against the swollen
edges of bite wound. "Does this hurt?"
    "Not really." Tyler was obviously
lying. He wasn't able to hide the wince as Adrian lifted his arm and inspected
the raised bruises on his pale flesh. Logan's saliva had only partially healed
the broken skin, but it clearly wasn't as strong as it would be. Soon, the new
vampire would be able to bite a human without leaving any marks whatsoever, but
for now the bruises on Tyler's flesh looked quite painful.
    Guilt washed through Adrian again. He could
help heal them right now. He wasn't embarrassed to be who he was, but it wasn't something he usually shared with strangers. Although, if
he was truly honest with himself he'd admit that he was already beginning to think
of Tyler as his, so they weren't exactly strangers. Maybe it was time to tell
Tyler while the man still had a chance to walk away.
    "Give me your hand," Adrian said,
accidently slipping into his Dom personality. Tyler seemed to recognize his
tone, his eyes darkening with arousal as he shivered noticeably. Showing
absolute trust in him, Tyler lifted his arm and placed his wrist in Adrian's
hand. Not his fingers, not his forearm…his wrist. The way a good sub would do.
    Adrian groaned as images of buckling his
leather cuffs onto Tyler's slender wrists weaved a path through his brain. What
would happen afterward had his cock growing really, really hard.
    Apparently he hadn't been imagining Tyler's
submissive personality. Add that to his fiercely protective nature and
willingness to help his friend no matter what the personal cost and it was a
heady combination.
    Adrian