Page 61 of Deck the Skulls

Rissa wanted to laugh and say something witty, but all she could do was slump sideways and let Anatoly guide her gently to lay on the bed next to Zan.

The vampire was quick to pull the condom off Zan and clean them both up. Then he tucked them under the sheets before turning off the lights and joining them.

“Enjoy your nap,” he whispered as Rissa drifted into sleep. “I’ll wake you up soon for round two.”

***

Anatoly

Anatoly could feel the sunrise was getting close. He’d exhausted his flock by spending the night either engaging in sex or talking. After the second round of sex, Rissa had become energized. She’d asked endless questions about his past, and he’d told her as much as he could remember. His childhood andyoung adulthood were so long ago that many of the memories had faded.

He remembered being turned, but the year after that was only a jumble of hunger and violence. He hated telling her about those times, but then the topic turned to meeting Zan and the story was far happier.

Now it was almost dawn, and both his flock were fast asleep. Rissa was curled against him with one arm flung over his chest and a leg over his thighs. Zan was spooning her from behind and had one arm draped over her hip and resting on Anatoly’s belly.

He hated that any moment now he was going to succumb to the day and be unable to move. It was bad enough when he was alone and had no one to protect, then Zan entered his life, and he felt helpless. Not that Zan couldn’t take care of himself, and this wasn’t medieval Europe, where dangers lurked around every tree.

Now he had a human in his flock. Her fragility made him want to lock her in the building during the day. Rissa would never stand for it, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have the impulse.

So far, she’d resisted his efforts to get her armed guards during the day. Even Zan sided with her. His next step was to adopt a wolf pack, like Kimble had done. Then the pack would be eager to look after his flock. It was too bad Lobos Gris was already unofficially claimed by Tobias, or Anatoly would've pulled Mikey aside and made him an offer.

Rissa made an annoyed sound in her sleep. Looking down, he noticed a lock of hair was falling across her face and tickling her nose. Careful not to wake her, he pulled it back. She made a little snuffling noise as she adjusted her head, but never woke completely up.

Bringing his hand down to his chest, he placed it on top of hers while glancing at the nearby window. The curtains were pulled mostly closed, but he could see a sliver of the world outside.

At first, he didn’t believe what his eyes were telling him. It couldn't be true!

“It’s daylight!” he exclaimed, startling both his flock awake.

“What?” Rissa mumbled, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

Anatoly stumbled out of the bed and flung open the curtains. He could clearly see the sun bathing the world in the familiar early morning golden light.

“It’s daybreak!” he said, pointing to the window.

“Hey, you shouldn’t be near the window!” Rissa protested, then shook her head. “Duh, I forgot they’re treated.”

“Oh shit, this is amazing!” Zan said, wonder flowing from him. “How is this possible?”

“It’s daytime,” Rissa announced with equal awe. She was finally waking up enough to understand the gravity of the situation. “You’re up and walking! How did that happen? Did you buy some fancy magic spell or something?”

“It’s you!” Anatoly said, returning to the bed and kneeling at her side.

“Yeah, sure,” she said with a smirk. “Me and my magic pussy made you more resistant to the sun.”

Zan laughed and grabbed them both in a hug. “You joining his flock did this,” the shifter explained. “You’ve made him stronger!”

“No kidding?” Rissa said, nestling into the hug. “That’s great! I’m glad I’m giving you guys something. Otherwise it’s like I’m getting all the advantages from this soul bond thing.”

Anatoly flooded the link with his happiness and love. “No gift you could ever give me will ever equal having both of you in my flock.”

Together they watched the sun rise over top of the nearby buildings, falling asleep sitting up and holding each other tightly.

Chapter 20

Rissa

“I like the decorations!” Luis said as he walked into Joy, formally known as Sanguine, and took a seat at the bar.