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Tomorrow, he’d tell Max there was nothing left to fear. He’d have the full protection of Zander’s clan going forward—a very formidable thing indeed.
Chapter 7
Max woke up by degrees, sensations filtering in one at a time. Warmth, that was the first thing—a soft heat pressed up against his chest and legs. The heat moved up and down, a steady rhythm. Scent next, male skin and a certain cologne Max associated only with Zander. Birds singing somewhere outside the house, faint and barely detectable.
When Max’s brain passed that last tipping point, taking him from half awake to fully conscious, his eyes snapped open.
Fuck a duck on a cracker, he was sleeping next to Zander!
How the hell— Wait, they were still in the living room. Max had no memory of how the movie ended, so he must have fallen asleep at some point. Had Zander arranged them like this? He must have. They were far too comfortably situated for this to be an accident.
His eyes went up to Zander’s sleeping face, mind spinning madly—or trying to. It was hard to function without caffeine. Max was getting a lot of grinding noises as the gears failed to turn. Zander looked so innocent in sleep, somehow younger and not as mischievous. Tousled, thick black hair not held back with gel, full mouth slightly parted as he breathed. How was this man so effortlessly beautiful? His arms were lax around Max but even in sleep, he held him close.
Zander had come to Max when he’d needed him most last night. Not asking a single question, just giving him quiet comfort and support without demanding anything in return. Max was so thankful he felt his heart burn with the emotion.
Max hadn’t come into this contract expecting to be cherished. Used and abused, yes. Cared for, protected, adored—no. He wasn’t braced for this. Sometimes, he felt like he was free-falling, only to be told he had to change directions. He didn’t know what he was supposed to do, how he was supposed to act, around a man who was the very thing he feared. Moments like these, where Zander held him close with such tender affection, only confused him further.
Coffee. He needed coffee for this morning, clearly.
Carefully, he got a leg over Zander and managed to climb over the man without either waking him up or tripping straight to the floor. Minor miracle, that. Max pulled the blanket back over Zander before tiptoeing over to the kitchen and starting the coffee maker. Watching it brew, he tried to organize the chaotic state of his mind. It felt like different thoughts were currently ping-ponging around in there at sonic speed.
The events of last night had faded into something tolerable, something he could handle. It was mostly the connection to his past that had so disturbed him. Now, in the light of day, he could think of those assholes from last night without flinching. He wanted confirmation they hadn’t been let loose after what they’d tried to do.
Turning, he looked toward the couch, even though he couldn’t see Zander from here through the back of it. What had he even been doing there? Max hadn’t expected him on campus so soon. Whatever the reason, Max was thankful he had been there. Both he and Chase would have been dead if he’d arrived a few minutes later.
Terrifying as last night had been, it had crystalized a few things in Max’s mind.
One, he had nothing to fear from his vampire. Even at the height of his anger, Zander had been careful to be gentle with Max. He’d not even raised his voice. That kind of control over his temper was damn impressive.
The other thing made obvious last night was that somehow, at some point in time, Max had decided Zander was trustworthy. He had no idea when his brain had come to this conclusion, but there was no denying it.
He trusted Zander completely, which meant he had to trust what the man said to him too. Zander had been blatant in his affection toward Max.
Truth tell, Max kind of liked the attention.
He wasn’t sure what to do with that feeling, either.
Coffee. Coffee was his only prayer of making sense of any of this.
Max poured coffee, threw in some cream and sugar, and the first sip promised processing power. Bless the magic beans that promoted life and goodness. Bless it.
The other obvious thing after last night was that Zander was powerful. Not just as a vampire—although what he was capable of felt awe-inspiring in a terrifying sort of way—but he had powerful connections. The way he disappeared two vampires with a single phone call was telling. Just who was his sire, anyway? The name Fernando meant nothing to Max, but he apparently needed to ask some questions.
Zander stirred on the couch, sitting up and stretching both arms over his head before looking around. The way he lit up upon seeing Max was so automatic, so genuine, it reminded Max of a golden retriever spying its favorite human. What was he supposed to do with this dangerous puppy, seriously?
“You’re up.”
“How astute of you.”
Zander cackled at Max’s sarcasm and bounced over to him, coming in close to card hair away from Max’s forehead. Max refused to lean into his caress even though part of him wanted to. Zander’s concern was heartwarming.
“How are you this morning?”
“Better than last night.” Max set his cup down on the island, meeting Zander’s eyes levelly. “I’ve got questions for you.”
“I bet you do.” Zander’s smile faded and he seemed to find it hard to look at Max for a moment. “I’m sorry, I know I scared you last night—”
“At no point last night was I scared of you.”
