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.The man wastemptation incarnate.The urge to claim him was strong.Instead,Christian grabbed his hand and guided him back to the booth.Thatsmall taste of his doe wasn t nearly enough to satisfy the hunger inhim.The nectar was still on his tongue as they climbed the stairs.Now he had to figure out how to get Minsheng to donate a drop ofhis blood.This was going to be near to impossible.Christian slid intothe booth, bringing Yasuko in beside him.With a mate on each sideof him, he watched the partiers below and worked out in his head howto approach tasting Minsheng.The man was anything but receptive.The coolness coming off ofhim was enough to freeze-dry anyone on the spot.Christian leanedback, tossing his arms behind him to rest on the back of thehorseshoe-shaped booth.Yasuko scooted a little closer, his body barely touchingChristian s, but enough to make his presence known.Minsheng, onthe other hand, scooted away an inch.He had a feeling that he wouldhave to tackle these two one-on-one to get anywhere. Christian s Menace 39When they were near each other, the tension was thick enough tocut with a knife.Minsheng s aura was practically begging to be nearYasuko.Too bad his head was stopping it.He smiled when Yasuko sshoulder brushed into his side, the small human smiling shyly at him. Your wine, prince. A young one sat the glass down filled withthe crimson essence his species needed to survive.The vampiresmiled at Christian s mates. Would they care for anything to drink,prince? Christian looked down at Yasuko. If they wish. Do you have milk? Yasuko asked.The vampire stared at his mate strangely, quickly masking it whenhe saw Christian glaring at him, daring him to laugh. Yes, youngprince.I can get that for you. Ice water, please, Minsheng said from the other side of him.Christian was pleased that Minsheng had manners.He may be gruff,prickly, and stubborn, but at least he had manners.The young one rushed off to gather their drinks.He knew gettingthe milk was going to take some doing.He d have to have it stockednow that he knew his mate preferred it.Christo came to his booth, sliding in but keeping a distance fromMinsheng. I just wanted to remind you of the job we have to takecare of outside. Ah yes, the rogue bodies.He had forgotten about those. Whenmy mates are otherwise occupied. Christo gave him a knowing nod.Christian would keep that sideof being who he was as far away from his mates as possible.He maybe a vampire, but he didn t want his mates looking at him like he wasa monster. What job? Minsheng asked, blowing all hope out of the waterthat Christian could be discreet about it.Lying wasn t an option hewanted to participate in.These two were his mates, and nothingshould be held secret from them.But he could downplay it. 40 Lynn Hagen Rogues invaded my club tonight.I have to deal with them in alittle while. Kill them, Minsheng said matter-of-factly.Christian wasstunned.Christo wore the same look on his face was well. Kill them? he asked his prickly mate. Why not talk with them,reason with the vampires? He was curious about his mate s way ofthinking.Was he coldhearted? Was there no hope for Minsheng?Even as the prince of the vampires, Christian only killed when it wasnecessary. I learn from Zeus.No talk to them.They not listen.Best to killthem. Minsheng had reverted back to his broken English whileChristo was among them.It was a pity.His mate was extremelyintelligent, and he hated to see him hide it. And you, Yasuko? He turned to his doe.Yasuko shook his head, looking at everyone at the table beforelowering his eyes.He was clearly telling Christian that he didn t likemaking life-and-death decisions, and from what he learned, his doedidn t like making decisions period.Christo cleared his throat, looking from one mate to the other.Christian smiled and then gave the introductions. Christo, this isMinsheng and Yasuko.Gentlemen, this is Christo, my second incommand.If you ever need me and I am not around, he is the one youseek out along with my third, Isla, no one else. Christo smiled at the two. Hi, Yasuko said in a friendly voice. Hello. Christo chuckled.Minsheng gave a curt nod toward Christo.A tough case indeed.The young one brought his mates drinks, setting a tall glass of milkin front of Yasuko and handing the ice water to Christo to pass to hisother mate.Yasuko took a long drink, licking his lips and wiping his mouthwith the back of his hand when he sat the glass down. How old areyou, Yasuko? Christian inquired. Christian s Menace 41 Twenty-five, he answered. You? He turned to Minsheng. Twenty-seven. His mates hid their ages well.He would have put them both attwenty. You? Yasuko asked as he stared up at Christian from under hislashes.He could see Christo curling his lips in to hide his smile.Hewas one of the few who knew. Too old, I m afraid. Christian dodged answering straight out.This was neither the time nor place to reveal any of his secrets.* * * *Christo slid from the booth and walked down the stairs, going insearch of Isla.Shocked couldn t even begin to describe how he hadfelt when the prince walked in with the two human men.In the four hundred years he had served the prince, he had seenChristian take many lovers, male and female.And when he said seen,that was exactly what he meant.They d even shared a few.But Christo had never seen the look Christian held in his eyeswhen looking at the pair.Utter devotion and love swam in the darkmurky depths
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