Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 65856 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65856 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
Huli opened his hand and glared at the crumbs covering his hand. He brushed them off and snagged another cookie out of the tin. He didn’t immediately eat it but stared at the round cookie with the rainbow speckling.
“Yes, I made a youthful mistake with Min. I saw her as a means I could use to get what I wanted faster. My intention was never to put Gege in danger. He…is my everything. Since I’ve given up so many years to be worthy of him, I’m now willing to give up my life to keep him safe.”
Chen sighed long and loud. “Fuck you, Huli.” He loudly thrust his hand into the tin of cookies, grabbed one, and stuffed it into his mouth. Huli was pretty sure he’d never seen anyone eat a cookie as angrily as Chen did at that moment.
“What did I…”
“Xiao Dan is a powerful, two-thousand-year-old vampire who is surrounded by a clan of other two-thousand-year-old vampires and a dragon. He doesn’t need you to die protecting him,” Xiang cut in. “What he needs is someone who is going to make him happy. That’s what he’s been looking for. What he’s been waiting all this time for. Are you going to be that person for him?”
For the first time, he actually felt a little hopeful while in the presence of these two annoyances.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you for hurting him,” Chen whispered.
Huli’s heart clenched, and his head snapped up to stare at the tall vampire. “Hurt him?” He’d hurt Gege? He’d never tried to hurt his sweet Xiao Dan. Nothing in this world could make him…
Chen narrowed his eyes on him, his expression icier than his magical gift. “Every time you disappeared, Xiao Dan was sad. He tried to hide it from the rest of us, but I could always see it, and there was nothing I could do to help him. He never knew if he was going to see you again or if he was just some plaything that you used each time you were bored. When you were with him, he was happy, but I dreaded your eventual disappearance, breaking his heart.”
“No,” Huli whimpered. Xiao Dan had admitted to missing him during their separation, but he’d never mentioned this deep sadness or that he’d been afraid of Huli never returning. Of course Huli came back to him. Returning to Xiao Dan was the only thing he had to look forward to in all the world.
All that hard work and years apart had been done so they could be together. So he could be Xiao Dan’s proper mate. He’d never wanted to cause sweet Gege any pain.
“But I didn’t realize that you left so that you could be…more,” Chen finished awkwardly. “You made a sacrifice that I think could have broken any of us. Did you ever tell Xiao Dan why you were leaving?”
“Yes, but I could never tell him how long I would be gone. Only that I promised to return so long as I was alive.”
“The past doesn’t matter anymore,” Xiang said. He frowned at the tin of cookies and slapped the lid on it. “The present is the one thing that matters, like how much Rei is going to kill us for eating most of his treats.”
“And Min. We need to deal with her,” Chen added. He brushed his fingers together, knocking off the crumbs. “Huli, do you have any ideas of where she could be hiding?”
The fox chuckled softly as he followed Xiang to the pantry. His eyes skimmed the various containers, boxes, and bags until he finally spotted a box of salty thin crackers. He had some sweet; now it was time for something salty. “Min isn’t hiding.”
“What?” Chen asked.
Huli walked out of the pantry with his new snack. He’d barely gotten the box open when a hand reached over his shoulder and dove in, snagging a bunch.
“You mean she’s close to the manor?” Xiang shoved at least four crackers into his mouth at once.
What happened to vampires not needing food to exist, especially after they got to such an advanced age? It was clear living with a fledgling vampire, an elf, the cats, and a dragon had fixed their stomachs and turned on long-dormant urges.
“What I mean is that she’s not hiding because hiding means she’s got something to fear, and Min’s not afraid of anyone.” Huli clutched the box of crackers close to his chest as he walked around the island to resume his seat, not that he honestly believed the expanse of counter would keep Xiang from stealing more. “No, I’m sure she’s busy hunting humans while she searches for an opening to steal Xiao Dan’s soul.”
He watched as Chen and Xiang stared at each other for a second, their brows furrowed and their expressions twisted in concentration.