Sharing Sirius (8 page)

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Owen’s fingers curled around the steering wheel. He didn’t know where he was driving to, just that he couldn’t be under the same roof as Jack at the moment. He knew he was right, that Jack and Katya had to get over their differences and form a bond—it was how far the bond went that was turning his stomach and making his heart ache. He didn’t want to think about Jack being that close to anyone or having anyone else’s teeth in his skin. At the traffic lights, he almost did an illegal u-turn and went home. Grit kept him going.

After a near-death experience, Jack was wary around Vampires, especially females. It had taken a fair amount of time and trust for Owen to be able to taste his sweet dhampir blood. Would he be that generous with Katya?

He would, if only to prove that their connection wasn’t the weak link and that this weird three-sided relationship could work. Jack would do it for him. The clot in his stomach broke free and caught in Owen’s throat. This was the same sick certainty that Jack must have felt after committing to this course.

By denying what was happening to him and not facing up to his age, he had brought this about. If he’d been less of a coward and faced it head on, they could have discussed it…and that would have been better?

No. This was definitely one of those has-to-get-worse-to-get-better situations.

In the city, he drove up to a hotel, gave the valet his keys and booked a room for two nights, even though he doubted he’d be sleeping much.

What torture had Jack felt?

And Katya? Owen sat on the bed and ran his fingertips over the healing bite on his neck. She’d wanted him, he’d known that for a long time, but did she want Jack the same way? Watching a man as if he were a tasty treat worth licking from head to toe wasn’t the same as actually wanting him. He’d known plenty of hot guys, human and Vampire, who were best watched from a distance. Once they opened their mouths, the illusion was broken by either stupidity or crassness, or the simple knowledge that they were hot.

He’d also known plenty of women who were the same. When he’d been younger, he hadn’t cared. After a couple of centuries, he’d come to appreciate how much personality and heart mattered. It was why he loved Jack…and why Katya had gotten the job.

She was smart, and young, and maybe even three years ago he’d been attracted to her because the ennui was creeping closer. He trusted her completely with the band, and now he had to trust her with his lover. A smile tried to form but didn’t quite make it. They were both his lovers now.

When had he gotten so old?

Decades blurred, some of the early centuries were little more than a collection of events strung together like a badly cut film, as if he could no longer hold on to the individual memories after so many years.

Owen pulled out his cell phone and dialed William. He was sure there were other old Vampires around, but none of them lived such public lives. They were probably shut up in an old manor somewhere waiting to die or they drank enough blood to ensure a fast death in sunlight. In that heartbeat, Owen knew just how lucky he was to have Jack in his life.

“You’ve seen the review then.” William didn’t bother with a greeting. They’d moved well beyond such simple pleasantries many decades ago—even before they’d taken to each other with swords in an effort to exorcise the pain.

“I did.” How did he take away the one thing William lived for, performing?

“We’re over, again, aren’t we?”

Owen sighed. “Yes.”

“It was coming for a while.” William sounded resigned.

“What will you do?” While the love that had once existed between them had been hung, drawn and quartered, an affection had grown. If nothing else, they had shared much of their lives and they could talk about things no one else had ever experienced. They were more like brothers now.

“Don’t know. We have four months of shows to play.”

“We’ll play them. We don’t need to piss off fans.” They would go out on a high and vanish as if they never existed. It was easier that way.

“You still need to be loved by everyone.”

“And you still avoid it,” Owen countered. William had never settled down with anyone for longer than a few years. Even their relationship had burned out, too hot for either of them to handle.

“Time changes nothing. I am what I am. A half-breed nothing.” Where once William had spat the words as if they stung his tongue, today they were simple fact.

“You are at risk of the ennui.” And Owen couldn’t imagine a time when William was no longer around.

“I am part Shaman, Owen, I am fine. And you?”

“My situation is being resolved.” And he didn’t want to think about the things Jack and Katya were doing. He should go back…and what? How would him being there help? It would only serve to salve his mind, which he’d lose in the long run if this didn’t work. He exhaled softly. He had to have faith.

William was quiet for a moment. “I’m glad Jack was there for you.”

So was he. “Take care, William. I’ll tell Etienne and Aidan.”

The Vampire-Shaman half-breed laughed. “I think they will take the news fine. They have other concerns.”

“No doubt. Do you think we’ll ever get to perform again?”

There was a measure of silence. “I want to say yes, but who can say where we’ll be in another two hundred years? Maybe Vampires will be able to step out of the shadows along with all non-humans.”

“Maybe.” If that happened, they’d be able to play again without the need for secrecy—but somehow that would take some of the fun out of it. It was nice to step off stage and be someone else. “Okay, I’ll see you in two weeks,
Absinthe
.”

“I’ll let you win next time, old one.” William hung up.

Owen looked at the phone in his hand. What now? He’d given Jack forty-eight hours and there was still too many to waste. He rubbed his gritty eyes. He needed to sleep. With the launch, he’d had too many late nights and early starts. There was nothing worse than breakfast radio, except breakfast radio the morning after a gig.

He showered and then lay naked on the bed, waiting for sleep to claim him and steal some time. His eyes closed, but his mind wouldn’t rest. It created images of Jack and Katya, her milky skin against Jack’s golden flesh. Blood rushed to his cock. He ran his hand over his hardening shaft but gave up after a couple of strokes. Not because he couldn’t be bothered and the ennui was claiming even the pleasure he got from sex, but because he didn’t want to be doing it himself. Not while he thought about those two…now if those two had been watching, that might have been different story. He rolled onto his stomach, determined to sleep in the king-sized bed he didn’t have to share.

He’d never felt more alone in his entire life.

There was no way he was going to be able to wait out the two days.

Chapter Six

Jack watched the waves lap at the shore through the window. He’d designed the house to maximize the view of the water. Owen liked to see the ever-changing landscape. Today it just seemed restless.

“Owen went out?” Katya said from behind him. “Is he okay?”

Jack spun at the sound of her voice. “Yeah, he’s gone to tell the others they’re breaking up…why are they breaking up?”

“Lack of aging.”

He nodded. They’d all kind of known this would be the last album, yet it was still bad timing for Owen.

“You two are good?” she asked cautiously, as if she didn’t want to re-open the fresh wound.

What did he say? Could he tell her the truth? The words rested on the tip of his tongue, but they wouldn’t help his case. Maybe later he’d share and be able to laugh about it with her.

“Will be.” Hopefully. “You’re still a little pink.”

She examined her arm. “It’ll take time to disappear completely.”

Jack drew in a breath and released it slowly. “I wasn’t entirely honest with you before.”

Her lush lips pressed together and he glimpsed the cool businesswoman who existed beneath the beautiful exterior. “When weren’t you totally honest and what does this have to do with Owen leaving?”

He licked his lip, not sure where to start. But this time he cut straight to heart without dancing around the edges. “The last woman I was with tried to kill me once she knew I was dhampir. She thought my blood was poison to Vampires and was determined to remove my kind from the world.”

“But it’s not toxic.”

“No. That is a lie designed to keep us alive. Those who take the time to know us learn the truth.”

Her tongue traced her lip as if she was remembering the taste of the one drop of blood she’d taken. “It’s an elixir.”

He gave her a half nod. “Anyway, that was a few decades ago.”

“How many?”

“Six. Owen thinks I should get over my fear.” He brushed a strand of white-blonde hair from the side of her face. “He doesn’t want us fighting over him.”

“We wouldn’t fight.” Her fingers touched his hand and trailed up his arm.

“Yeah, we would, once the novelty wore off and the need wasn’t so desperate. I’d wonder why I’d invited you into our relationship.”

“And I’d wonder why I was sharing.” She walked behind him, her hand sliding across his lower back.

He made himself stand still. Very aware he was alone with a Vampire who knew his secret…the same as last time. There was a chance Katya could try to kill him and take Owen for herself. Would Owen have really left him so defenseless?

No. Owen trusted Katya explicitly. So he had to. It had been much easier when it was him looking on and not caught in the middle.

“Exactly,” he agreed. He should’ve put more thought into his plan, but he knew that if he’d tried to sell the idea to Owen like this, he would have crashed and burned. It was better that it was Owen’s suggestion.

“But if I wasn’t sharing?” Her breath caressed the back of his neck and drew the hairs to attention. “If I was gaining another lover?”

She walked back around to face him. “Do you want me?”

Jack let a smile creep over his mouth. That he could answer truthfully. “Yes. You are beautiful and smart and willing to take a risk.”

“Yet I can hear your heart beating double time, with an echo of doubt and a hint of fear.”

Couldn’t hide that from a Vampire. “Do you want me?”

Or was he making an idiot of himself?

“When I first started working for Owen, I used to get so jealous seeing you two together. You were so perfect together. And I used to wonder what he saw in a human. Then I realized it wasn’t because of what you were, but who you were. You are passionate about your work, about your lover. You’ve proved how far you will go for someone you care about. I want to be caught up in that.”

Jack put his arms around her and drew her close. His lips landed on hers, caressing and tasting. She opened her mouth and their tongues met. He let himself give in to the kiss instead of holding back, yet an uncomfortable doubt lingered in his mind.

Was Owen now wondering what Jack was doing and how he was doing it? Or was Owen trying not to think about it? Owen had told him to strengthen his relationship with Katya and take her to bed—and he wanted to, he was hard, his blood was hot—but it was more than sex. Somewhere he’d started to respect her for joining his fight to save Owen. And that little bit of respect had lodged in his heart. He was falling for her and that felt like betrayal.

He drew back, his hands still resting on the small of her back, and looked into her blue eyes. Now he understood why Owen had been angry and hurt about what he’d done, even though Jack had looked the other way—Owen was already in love with Katya.

“What’s wrong? Are you worried I’ll bite?”

Jack shook his head. “I trust you not to rip out my throat and keep Owen for yourself.” He even managed a small smile. “I’ve never been in love with more than one person. Have you?”

She tilted her chin to look up at him. “No. But I think it’s possible and I want to try.”

“You don’t feel any guilt?” Was that what he was feeling, or was it an uncertainty that everything would come crumbling down and leave him with nothing.

Katya shook her head. “Does Owen? What did he say?”

Even now she was concerned about Owen. It was strangely reassuring. “He wants us to be closer, to form the third side of a triangle. Apparently that’s the only way this will work.”

She nodded. “I trust him. If anyone would know, it would be him.”

“He’ll be thinking about us.”

“Mmm. So let’s not disappoint.” She threaded her fingers through his hair and drew him into a kiss that held nothing back. Her fangs slid over his lip with a slow rake that sent a tremor down his spine, but she didn’t break the skin this time and assume he wanted to be bitten. “Do you want me to bite?”

Jack swallowed. He did. But the only Vampire he’d allowed to bite him since he was almost killed was Owen, and even that had taken time. This was different, Katya was different. For saving Owen, he’d give her whatever she wanted. “Yes.”

Until he’d spoken, he hadn’t realized how much he wanted to feel her bite and put the old memory behind him. While there was no scar, no outward sign of the trauma, it was time to create a new memory. He took her hand, and after a moment’s hesitation, led her upstairs to the room he usually shared with Owen.