After we close the Salvo case, Danny hunts me down in the office and tells me how HPD is treating Sid like royalty, which is how it should be. It was their case and, even though we helped, letting them take the collar has gone a long way to fostering goodwill and co-operation between HPD and The Task Force, which really needs a better name.

I try and not step on too many toes when we're given a case because despite the fact that my cover spent most of his childhood here, and I myself spent the better part of two decades on the island learning everything someone who calls Hawai'i home would know, I'm still a haole.

And that thought leads to me remembering that the only place I'm not considered an outsider is Wales. Although that's not entirely true these days since it has been a couple hundred years since I've set foot in the country of my birth.

I've been meaning to go for a visit; I hear that Cardiff is just beautiful these days. But my thoughts are running away with me as I realize that Danny's still speaking. Something about the Governor? Oh, right. Her visit to Rachel and Rachel reconsidering revoking Danny's visitation with Grace.

"Governor doesn't discuss her business with me." And she doesn't. Usually. This time, however, she did ask my opinion when she discovered that Stan Edwards is the step-father of Danny's daughter. "Might have heard something about Step-Stan building a new hotel, though, and, uh, you need government approval for that." I give a one-shouldered shrug as if I interfere in the lives of the rich on a daily basis.

He stops walking and places the back one hand on my stomach to get me to stop too. Turning to face him, I find his hand extended, waiting for me to grasp it for a handshake. "Thank you," he says without a single hint of sarcasm.

I just can't resist teasing him. "Let me ask you something. How far deep did you have to dig? I mean, how much of your soul did you just lose by actually appreciating me?"

He chews his tongue and I'm fairly sure he's contemplating punching me again. But all he does is wave one hand and say, "Uh, I'm measuring." Whatever that means.

"Right," I reply, searching my brain for something to say to prolong this encounter. "Maybe you're not as alone around here as you think. Danno." I try to not call him that; it's his thing with Grace but after fifty years apart I feel the need to be close to him and if that's the only way I can be, then so be it.

He snorts and spins on his heel to walk back to his office, leaving me standing alone in the hall, fighting the urge to follow him and force him to talk to me.

I find Kono and Chin in the conference room watching footage of old high school football games. Chin was one badass quarterback and I feel a tiny twinge that that was taken from him and given to a non-existent kid whose family is not native to the islands.

"Impressive, Chin," I say, leaning one shoulder against the doorframe.

"Ah, it's nothing compared to you."

"Chin, there isn't anyone in hearing distance who doesn't know that Steve McGarrett didn't really break those records."

He turns and looks at me over his shoulder. "Danny?"

"In his office." I'd really like to admit out loud that he's my Bonded Soul Mate but the memory of Danny's reaction to the possibility of Chin knowing about him has me holding back.

"Have a seat, Boss. We're about to get to that one film where Chin wasn't able to actually get rid of the ball for most of the game."

"Hush, you," Chin laughs and playfully slaps at her leg.

"As inviting as that is, I'm tired and hungry so I think I'll call it a night."

"Okay, brah." He reaches over his shoulder to shake my hand and Kono waves a handful of popcorn at me. "Call if you need anything."

"You, my friend, were just fed from recently," I remind him.

"But I wasn't," Kono interjects. I've never fed from Kono and don't plan to any time soon.

"There are enough Donors on this island, but thanks." And with that I exit the building and head home.

I spend the drive home trying to come up with a new name for the task force. Most of the names that come to mind are either juvenile or cliché and so I instantly reject them.

My thoughts turn to John and the legacy of his father's death at Pearl. John's parents moved to Hawai'i when his father was transferred to the naval base. John was born just nine months later. His mother made sure he knew that even though his heritage wasn't Hawaiian, didn't mean he wasn't a native. Being born there was enough.

And with Mary he did his best to make sure she knew that she was just as Hawaiian as those whose families are native to the islands. By calling the family Five-Oh.

"Huh," I grunt, the thought hitting me like a punch to the gut. "Five-Oh. It's perfect." Pulling my phone from my pocket, I dial Chin. "I got our new name."

"Yeah?"

"Five-Oh."

"Five-Oh? Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

"It's what John used to call our family. As in the fiftieth state. To remind us that we're just as Hawaiian as those whose families can trace their heritage back to Kamehameha."

There's a pause and it's obvious he's thinking about it. "It's perfect," he finally says.

"Great. Let the Governor know so she can get started on ordering our badges and whatnot."

"You got it, Boss." There's another pause and this time I just know I'm not going to like what he's about to say. "Don't hole up at your place with that horrible blood substitute, okay?"

"It's a small island, as someone recently reminded me." We share a chuckle at that. "I've fed too recently to be able to actually go to one of the clubs. Cloned blood is just as healthy-"

He talks over me, "But it's not, not really."

"I appreciate your concern, but I've survived for years on it. I'll be fine."

"I actually meant it for the company of other people."

"Oh. Well, thanks, Mom, but I'll be fine."

He chuckles again. "Just remember that you're not alone here." He unconsciously mimics the words I said to Danny not that long ago.

"Thanks again, Chin. I'll call if I need anything."

"You do that," and with that he hangs up.

When I get home, I make myself a goblet and carry it with me upstairs to the shower. I take my time, enjoying the feel of the warm water beating down on my body. There have been too many times over the years when I haven't been able to take a shower. And too many times when I've had to rush through my shower.

Eventually the water turns cold and I step from the shower, absent-mindedly drying off while sipping from the goblet.

Dressing in a pair of tan cargo pants and a black t-shirt, I pad barefoot down the stairs. Sitting down on the bottom step, I pull on my socks, then shove my feet into my hiking boots before heading out to the garage so I can continue working on John's car.

As usually happens when I've working on something, I lose track of time. A familiar scent brings me back to the world around me. My Mate has come looking for me, for some reason. Knowing he'll tell me what's on his mind in his own time, I turn to face him, leaning back against the side of the car with my arms crossed over my chest.

"You did more than just mention Step-Stan's plans to build a new hotel, didn't you?" Danny's voice is full of cold anger, making me long for the hothead that he usually is. What happened to the man who was laughing and joking with me just hours ago?

Apparently we're back to that. "Yes and no," I answer, turning back to finish working on the engine.

"It can't be both, Steven. Either you did or you didn't. So which is it?"

Glancing under my arm, I stare at where he's standing, vibrating in place. With a sigh, I straighten up, wiping my hands on a cloth and turn to lean back against the car. "I outed you to the Governor and mentioned Step-Stan's plans, she took care of the rest," I answer honestly with a shrug.

Anger explodes across his face. "What gives you the right?"

"The fact that you're my Bonded Mate." Does he really not get it?

"But I don't want-" He stops talking so suddenly, I'm afraid he's swallowed his tongue.

And then what he almost said registers. "Is that what this is all about?" I push off the car and stalk where he's standing. "So, back in the day when you said 'forever' what you really meant was 'for right now'?"

"No, Tey- Steve. When I said 'forever', I meant 'forever'. I just never thought that I'd be here! In fact I never wanted to be here!"

My eyes narrow on his face. "And by 'here' you mean 'here in this garage' or 'here in this relationship'?"

"Why are you so insistent on talking this to death?"

"Because you keep shutting me out!"

He throws his hands in the air and paces in a circle. "When I was young and would think of my future I never thought I'd still be alive twelve hundred and fifty years after I was born."

I want to just let him talk now that he's started but I find I can't. "You do realize how much that hurts me, right?"

He spins to face me. "So now you're a girl?"

"No, Lars. I'm Hu-" I bite my tongue to keep that word from slipping out.

He chuckles. "No, Teyrnon, you're not. Not anymore."

"Doesn't mean I don't still have feelings and emotions and that words can't hurt me."

"I didn't mean it like that."

I turn to brace my hands on the hood of the car. "You did and the fact that you're trying to backpedal now-"

"You don't get it, do you?" Suddenly he's standing right behind me, pressed up against my back. This time I manage to keep my mouth shut and let him talk. "I'll never get into Valhalla," he says it so soft I almost don't hear it.

"And that's my fault?" He presses his forehead against my shoulder. "You think I don't regret not getting to go to my people's version of the afterlife? You're not the only one who lost something they had looked forward to their whole life."

"But I didn't ask for this! And I certainly didn't ask you to join me in this hell."

With a tiny shrug to remove his head, I turn to face him. "Of course you didn't. You never asked anything from me. At least not anything I wasn't willing to give." He chews his lip and while I can still see his refusal to accept this in his eyes, the fact that he's actually listening gives me encouragement. "I may have been given to you as a gift. I may have been your slave, but you never really owned me and you know it. Everything you had, I gave with a willing heart. Even this-" I slip to my knees, spreading them wide to give me the balance I'll need. Looking up, I reach for his fly, hoping he doesn't stop me because this is something I've been dying to do since I saw him again.

Pulling the zipper of his fly down, I reach in and tug his half-hard cock out through the opening of his boxers. My mouth begins watering in anticipation of sucking his dick. Keeping my eyes locked on his face, I rub the tip along my lips before slowly sucking him in.

My eyes close in bliss at the remembered weight of him against my tongue.

One of his hands comes to rest on my head; not guiding, just resting there. Even when he had the right to force me, he wouldn't. Not unless I told him I didn't mind.

Knowing what he likes makes it easy for me to give him the best blowjob I've ever given.

Swirling my tongue around the head, I suck him deep, pulling a strangled moan from him. Pulling back until just the tip is between my lips; I dip the tip of my tongue in the slit and then run the flat of it down the side. I take my time licking him from root to tip and then am reminded he's still mostly dressed when I try to lick his balls.

Pulling off with an obscene pop, I pull the elastic of his boxers down under his balls and lean in to nose behind them, inhaling deep. Flicking my tongue out, I lick one of his balls into my mouth, sucking on it like it's a piece of candy.

Releasing my prize, I lick up around the base of his cock, nibbling a bit on his flat abdomen. Then run the flat of my tongue along the side of his length. This time when I suck him down, I add a touch of teeth.

My fingers curl tightly in the flaps of the pockets on my pants to keep me from giving into the temptation to touch that which I haven't been given permission to touch. While Danny used to like it when I would use my hands along with my mouth, in times like this when I'm attempting to placate him, I play the obedient slave and don't do anything he doesn't give me permission to do.

I use all the tricks I know to bring him close to the edge and then back him back off. My cock swells, straining against the material of my cargo pants. Just when I think I'm going to have to suck him all fucking day, he seems to crumble in on himself and places his free hand on my shoulder. I hum a little in encouragement and the fingers in my hair curl a bit, gripping my skull while the fingers of the other hand dig into the muscles of my shoulder.

Suddenly I'm back twelve hundred and thirty years ago. Back to when I wore his collar and felt pride in showing off the marks he would leave when fucking me because of the ill-fitting tunic he insisted I wear in the common areas of the house.

"Fuck…Teyrnon…" he gasps and his dick twitches in my mouth.

I can tell he's getting close so I pull back to say, "Use me, Master. Find your pleasure in me," then open my mouth and wait for him to take what is his.

With a snarl that just might be my name, he grabs two fistfuls of hair and shoves his cock down my throat, hard. I relax my jaw and revel in the burn of him thrusting in and out and the pleasurable pain of his grip on my hair.

Finally he stiffens and I hastily open my eyes so I can watch his face as he climaxes, his dick spurting down my throat. I swallow each and every drop and lick him clean once it stops.

"Enough," he hisses, placing the heel of his hand against my forehead to hold me in place while he pulls out.

Running the back of one hand across my mouth, I stay on my knees and watch the play of emotions on his face. "Tell me what you're thinking," I whisper.

He just shakes his head and pulls me up by my shoulders in order to wrap one hand in the hair at the back of my head and pull me into a very possessive kiss; a kiss that leaves me weak in the knees and all but boneless. My heart soars when he palms my erection through my pants.

"Mine," he growls, spinning me around so that I'm facing the car and quickly undoing my fly.

Last time he got this possessive was after I'd been taken by a woman who wanted me to sire her children because her husband was sterile. He killed her while she was still straddling me and then took me home and fucked me until I couldn't walk.

I brace myself on my hands on the frame of the car and thrust my ass out at him, begging him to take what belongs to him. With a tug, he lowers my pants to my knees. When his hands wrap around my hips, I spread my legs as much as I can.

Dropping my head so that it hangs between my arms, I completely relax my muscles, telling him without words that I am his to use however he wants.

I fully expect him to take me hard and fast but he manages to surprise me by entering me slowly which leads me to expect a slow gentle fucking. But he surprises me again by pulling almost all the way out as soon as he bottoms out and setting a brutal pace; one that leaves me grunting from the force of his thrusts and has me scrambling for the reins of my control.

And then the biggest surprise of all: he sinks his fangs into my neck. My dick twitches as the Bond flares dimly, and everything around me goes black, and suddenly I’m alone. When I look around, I find Danny cradling a tiny orb against his chest much like he does Grace. He's staring down at it like he's not quite sure what it is or how it came to be in his hands.

"Danny," I whisper, stepping closer.

"Is this what I think it is?" He turns anguished eyes on me.

Stopping right in front of him, I look down at the tiny light in his hands and say with a sigh, "If you think it's our Bond, then yes, it is."

"Teyrnon-" he falters to a stop almost as if he has no idea what to say.

I wrap my hand around the back of his neck and press my forehead to his. "It's actually bigger than it was a couple of weeks ago when I fed from you."

"That's a good thing, right, that it's getting bigger?" The hope in his voice brings tears to my eyes.

"You've feed enough, for now, min kjærlighet. We can finish discussing this out there." And just like that, we are once again back in the real world where he's pulling his fangs from my neck before licking the wound closed, ending the caress with a gentle nip to my earlobe that is so at odds to the way he's still fucking my ass.

"Come now, Teyrnon," he growls in my ear. "Prove to me that you still belong to me."

Even though it's been well over twelve hundred years, my body still obeys that tone, those words and so with a shout, I come, hard, painting the side of the car in long stripes and am rewarded with the feeling of him flooding my guts.

After what feels like an eternity, his dick stops twitching and he collapses against my back. "Damn, I forgot what a great fuck you are," he mutters, pulling out and backing away.

Turning slowly, I pull my pants up but don't fasten them and find Danny backed against the workbench opposite with his hands braced on either side of his hips and his own pants still open and the elastic of his boxers still tucked under his balls. He looks completely wrecked, like he just learned something that has completely altered his world view. And I guess he has. All this time he didn't think the Bond was in any danger despite our not feeding it on a regular basis.

"Danny," I call softly, not sure I want to disturb his thoughts.

When he looks up at me, the look in his eyes breaks my heart. I can't remember the last time I saw him cry but he's crying now, the tears running unchecked down his face. "Lars."

I blink at him and tilt my head to the side because I couldn't possibly have heard him right. "Um, I'm sorry?"

"Lars. I want you to call me 'Lars'."

I duck my head to hide my smile. "Lars." I raise my head and lock gazes with him, hoping he'll tell me what's going on in his head. The Bond is still just weak enough that I'm only getting a vague echo of his emotions.

He takes a deep breath in through his nose and releases it slowly through his mouth. "What happens if the Bond dies?"

I slowly approach where he's standing, stopping an arm's length away. "I don't know." I shrug.

"So every Mated pair Bonds regularly?"

"No. Some can't, some won't."

He narrows his eyes on my face. "Cryptic much?"

"If you hadn't been so stubborn I would have informed you of the way things are now." He tilts his head and raises his eyebrows, telling me without words to get to the point. "There are Mates that live in different places because of their covers and then there are Mates that hate each other."

He winces. "That's gotta suck, having someone you hate as a Mate."

"I wouldn't know." The grin he gives me is one I haven't seen in centuries and has me determined to make sure I see more of it. "I never had that problem," I murmur, stepping in close and pressing my hips to his. "Let me fuck you, Lars. Let me strengthen the Bond." Leaning down, I nose under his chin, flicking my tongue against his neck in cat like licks.

He doesn't quite stop the shiver that skates down his spine and I press my advantage, sealing my lips over the corner of his jaw and sucking gently. He brings one hand up to cup the back of my head, pressing his thumb behind my ear and wraps the other around my hip. "Take me upstairs, Teyrnon." Again he uses the tone that my body is conditioned to obey.

With a shudder, I pull back and turn to lead the way to my room. He can't seem to keep his hands to himself as we walk through the house and climb the stairs to walk down the hall to my bedroom. I don't remember him ever being so handsy with me.

We enter the room already wrapped around each other, trying to touch everywhere and remove clothes at the same time. Our teeth clack together as we fight for dominance of the kiss and end up tumbling backward onto the bed with him on top.

Now that we're not moving, I can concentrate on removing his clothes and I waste no time in doing just that. Grabbing his shirt by the hem I pull it off over his head, tugging a bit when the sleeves get caught on his forearms where he has them rolled up. As soon as his head clears the material of his shirt, he latches onto a bit of skin high on my neck.

Arching beneath him, I slide my hands down his back and under his pants to grip his ass, pressing his groin firmly against mine. Placing my feet on the bed, I let my knees fall open to give him more room between my legs.

Danny pulls back to shove against my hip in a wordless order to move closer to the center of the bed. Using my heels and elbows, I crab walk up the bed until I'm lying diagonal across it. He crawls up me and the look in his eyes has my mouth going dry. Licking my lips, I lift my hips when he tugs on my pants. He tosses them over his shoulder and grabs the hem of my shirt, urging me with a jerk to sit up so he can remove it, then it too joins his shirt and my pants on the floor. Rolling over to his back, he pushes his pants down and kicks them to the floor.

Fully naked, he straddles me and slowly strokes my dick, bringing me to full hardness in no time. Taking both my wrists in his hands, he lifts them over my head, pressing on them a bit to let me know he wants me to leave them there. Rising up on his knees he takes my cock in hand and holds it steady so he can impale himself on it.

I fully expect him to ride me hard and fast because he knows I have a thing about people straddling me ever since he killed that bitch while I was still inside her. But he doesn't. In fact this whole evening has been one surprise after another.

He rocks back and forth slowly, alternating circling his hips clock-wise and counter clock-wise. Then he begins to raise and lower himself, giving a tiny wiggle each time he's fully seated on my thighs. Bending my knees, I place my feet flat on the mattress to provide leverage so I can thrust up to meet him. Luckily he doesn't seem to mind.

Danny jacks his dick with one hand and twists my nipples with the other. I throw my head back, barring my throat. He leans down and nibbles on my collarbone. "I believe you said something about strengthening the Bond?" he whispers in my ear.

"I can't feed very well in this position."

He huffs, then slips his arms under my shoulders and rolls us so that I'm on top. As soon as his back hits the mattress, he tangles his legs with mine and wraps his hands around my shoulders from behind, his arms tucked under mine.

We stare into each other eyes for a few seconds then he tilts his chin back, offering me his neck. My hips stutter a couple of times at the inherent meaning behind the motion. While Danny rarely ever denied me feeding from him, he never actually asked me to. Not even the first time. Each time I've fed from him I just did it.

Moving slowly, lest I spook him, I lower my head and seal my mouth to his neck before slowly extending my fangs. They break through his skin with little resistance. Sucking lightly, I moan softly at the taste of his blood.

This time the Bond flares as bright as the flash of a camera and leaves spots dancing in front of my eyes, and that blackness envelops me again. I don't have to search much to find Danny standing next to the Bond which is now the size of a watermelon.

"Is that a good size for it?" he asks, looking up at my approach.

I shake my head. "No. It's supposed to be as big and bright as the sun."

"I'm so sorry, Teyrnon," he whispers and puts one hand on my shoulder.

Reaching up, I cover his hand with my own. "I know you are."

"So we have time to fix this, right?"

I chuckle at his childlike question. "Yeah, we have time." I'm encouraged by how much the Bond has grown with just these three feedings. When I fed from him a couple of weeks ago it was the size of an apple. When he fed from me earlier it was the size of a cantaloupe and now it's the size of a watermelon.

I pull my fangs from his neck and lick the wound closed, turning it into a loving caress. Bracing myself on my fists over him, I begin to fuck him like there's no tomorrow. While Danny is a chatterbox out of bed in it he's pretty quiet. Usually. Today however he is not.

My balls smack wetly against his ass while the dirtiest, nastiest, kinkiest things spill from his lips, encouraging me to keep driving into him like I can actually crawl inside and become one person with him. The force of my thrusts has the bed banging against the wall, the scrape of the feet against the wood floor loud in my ears. But under all the different sounds of our fucking is the one that I haven't heard in far too long: the sound of him moaning my name in ecstasy.

The race to the finish has never been this wild for us but I'm hoping it will be from now on.

I love watching his face when he climaxes but tonight I find my eyes drawn to his hand whipping along his length in time with my thrusts into his ass. From there, my gaze is caught by the sight of my dick disappearing into him and I rise up onto my knees and grip his knees to push them wide in order to see it better.

"Teyrnon," he groans when the change in position has me pressing in deeper.

"Come for me, Lars," I grunt, doing my level best to break the laws of physics so that we can occupy the exact same space.

His eyes roll back in his head, his back arches off the bed and with a keening wail he shoots long thin ropes of come all over his chest. The feeling of his muscles contracting around me has me following close behind him and I collapse forward onto him.

With a wiggle, I make myself comfortable and settle in for what will most likely be the best nap I've ever had.

Danny pokes me in the side, pulling an irritated grunt from me. "Oh, so now you're just gonna go to sleep?"

"Yes, Danny. It's what most men do after earth shaking sex."

"I thought you wanted to talk. Plus, I am so not a mattress." I start to shift my lower body to the side. "Or even a pillow, you big oaf!"

With a huff, I lift my head, prop it on my hand and stare down at him. "We can talk after we rest. You're not going anywhere, are you?"

"No, Princess, I'm not going anywhere. Grace is with Rachel this weekend."

I smile at the knowledge that I have him all to myself for the entire weekend. "Good." I tuck my head under his chin, inhaling his scent and settle in for a proper nap with my Mate.

Danny grumbles about how I seem to have grown a couple of extra arms and now resemble an octopus more than a SEAL and turns so that he's on his side facing me. He brushes his lips against mine and with a sigh of contentment we both close our eyes and allow sleep to claim us.

When I wake later, my internal clock tells me I've only been asleep for two hours. I feel a moment's panic when I stretch one hand out and encounter empty space until I realize that I can now feel Danny's emotions just like back when we first Bonded. A smile crosses my face at the barely there sound of him moving around in the kitchen and that while he's frustrated that he can't find whatever he's looking for, he is content, more content than he's ever been since being Turned.

Stretching and scratching across my chest, I roll from the bed. Snagging a pair of board shorts on my way out of the room, I make my way down the stairs and into the kitchen where I find my Mate wearing nothing but a pair of sweat pants and rummaging around in the fridge.

Leaning one shoulder against the doorframe, I cross my arms over my chest and settle my weight on one foot. "Whatcha looking for?" I ask before I notice another emotion underneath the contentment: hunger.

"Do you not have any blood?" He straightens up and turns to face me, a frown marring his face.

"Well, I certainly don't keep it out where just anyone can find it. I am Passing, ya know." His frown deepens and one eyebrow climbs his forehead. "It's right here," I say, pressing on a blue square on the wall next to where I'm standing, revealing a hidden fridge.

"Wow. That's handy." He reaches inside and removes two packets of blood.

When he hesitates, I bite the bullet and ask a question I really don't want the answer to. "When's the last time you fed?"

He shrugs. "Couple of weeks."

"Uh-huh. How do you usually feed?"

He looks at me askance. "Live Donors."

I run my tongue along the gums of my top teeth. "Uh-huh. How often?"

"What is this, twenty questions?"

"If it has to be."

He huffs out an aggravated breath. "Every couple of months."

"Yeah, see, here's the thing-" I shift until I'm standing straight, with most of my weight on the balls of my feet, prepared for anything. "-I don't believe you." Both eyebrows disappear into his hairline in what I've come to call his 'Oh, do tell' face. "Yeah, see, the Bond isn't even half as strong as it should be and yet I can feel your hunger. Oh, right now contentment is overriding it, but it's there and it feels like it did when I was first Turned. Like it's a living, breathing thing that wants to eat me from the inside out. I. Should. Not. Be able to feel that! Even if the Bond was at full strength, you should not be so fucking hungry I can feel it!" I get right in his face. "I'm gonna ask you again, how often do you feed?"

He stares into my eyes for several seconds then drops his gaze. "It's been four months. But Rachel has been giving me the run-around about Grace and I just haven't had the time! She's gotten to where if she calls and says I can see Grace, I had better drop everything and go or else I don't get to see her that week."

I believe him. Settling back on my heels, I cross my arms over my chest. "And how do you usually feed?"

"Live Donor." He raises his right hand. "Honestly." When he doesn't elaborate, I just raise one eyebrow. "I go to a club, seduce a girl, have my meal and send her on her way. No harm, no foul." He juggles the bags of blood in his hands. "I did at least learn how to make one Donor last all night."

"Because I made sure you knew. And that's another thing-" I'm not really ready for this conversation but we're here now and he's listening so I guess we're having it now. "-I shouldn't have been the one teaching it to you. You should have been teaching it to me since you're older."

"By a year; which is nothing in Vampire time."

I give a non-committal head nod. "Have you ever fed from a bag?"

His forehead crinkles again and I can't tell if it's because he's thinking or because he's not sure of something. "No, I haven't. It's either been a live Donor or someone has handed me a goblet with blood already in it."

"Nuke those for twenty seconds each." I nod at the bags in his hands. He walks over to the microwave, tosses the bags inside and punches in forty seconds. "Goblets are-" I start, pointing at a cabinet next to the fridge.

"I know. I've been rummaging around in here for almost an hour now." He pulls two goblets from the cabinet just as the microwave beeps.

He doesn't move to get the blood out of the microwave so I step up and do so. Turning to the island where he set the goblets, I pull the bottom off one bag and empty its contents into the glass. He copies me and soon we both have full goblets that we carry out to the lanai.

Danny takes a sip and immediately spits it out. "God, that tastes like ass."

"And of course you know what ass tastes like." I don't even think before snapping back just like I used to.

"Well, your ass." His response has me choking on my own sip of the cloned blood.

He blinks at me. "What?" he asks all innocent.

"Oh, nothing." I wave a hand in an off-handed manner. "Forgot you can be funny when you want."

"Don't have much reason to these days."

"And I'm trying to change that," I lean in to whisper. He shivers and steps away to sit down on the loveseat. When he starts to set his goblet on the table in front of where he's sitting, I tell him, "You need to drink all of it."

He glares at me but picks the glass up and drains it in one go, shuddering at the nasty taste. "I've never had blood that tasted this bad, before."

"That may be because you've never had cloned blood before." I gesture with my own goblet.

"You'd think they'd find a way to make it taste better." He frowns at his now empty goblet.

"I don't think the inventors were worried about the taste, just the nutrition value." He leans forward to put his empty glass on the table and my eyes are drawn to the muscles in his leg as they shift with his movement. "Hey. Are you wearing my sweat pants?"

He sits back and smirks at me. "Yeah. Got a problem with it?"

Chuckling softly, I take a sip from my goblet then realize that I'm not as hungry as he is. Handing my glass to him, I say, "Not at all. Here, finish this. Your hunger is distracting."

He frowns but takes the glass and empties it, making a face similar to that of a child who has tasted something truly nasty. "So very sorry," he says his voice flat.

I narrow my eyes on his face and decide to finish the conversation from the kitchen. "Are you always this hungry?" Danny's stubborn refusal to look at me is all the answer I need. "Damnit, Danny! How have you managed to not kill anyone?"

He licks his lips and shifts in his seat. "I might have. I don't know."

"How could you not know?"

The look in his eyes when he finally looks at me has me wishing I'd been stronger over the centuries and regretting all the times I left him on his own. "I used to get so hungry I'd black out."

"So, all the dead bodies surrounding you just escaped your notice?"

He shakes his head. "There never were any dead bodies."

"How-?" I begin but he talks over me. It's as if by asking these questions I've torn down the wall holding the words back and they all come spilling out.

"I always woke up back at where ever I was staying at the time. All I can ever remember of those times is entering a bar or brothel and asking for a drink or a girl and then nothing until I'd wake up; alone in my rooms."

"How much time would you lose during a typical black out?"

"A day, two at most. Longest was a week." He drops his gaze to stare at his hands playing with a loose thread in the seam of his pants. "It was also the last time I ever blacked out from hunger. I started forcing myself to feed at least once every quarter."

"When was this week long black out?" I'm almost certain I know when it was.

"Summer of 1870. When you took that month to go to Scotland with Dean." It's just as I thought. Even when we were 'together' we weren't really. By 1800 he had stopped feeding from me at all and we had stopped sleeping together centuries before that.

I open my mouth but have no words. I knew he hated being a Vampire but I never realized that he was starving himself.

"You just don't get it, do you? I never wanted this. Any of it. But you, you bastard, you probably always wanted to be a Vampire since you've always known the truth about them and you saw my being Turned as your ticket to finally getting what you want." He looks out over the ocean and chews his lips. The Bond is flooded with remorse and it appears there are tears welling in his eyes. "It was like that show about Nick Knight. Only I don't want to be Human again. And instead of drinking only animal blood I was avoiding drinking blood all together. And not because I thought it would 'cure' me or whatever. I just didn't like the reminder of something I can't change."

"You're an idiot," I say affectionately. He turns and blinks at me. "Ignoring it only makes it worse. If you had let me in, I could have helped."

He lowers his head and stares at his hands. "Yeah, well, hindsight and all that," he mutters.

I snort my agreement. "This mean you're willing to work on this?"

He looks at me from the corner of his eye. "Yeah. I've actually wanted to for a while now." He drops his gaze and licks his lips. "Never was any good at admitting when I was wrong, ya know."

"I remember." There were lots of times when we would argue over his inability to admit that I might know something he didn't. The worst ones were when I was still his slave. "How long have you felt this way?"

He takes a deep breath and releases it slowly. "Since that week in 1870."

I purposely don't react. Last thing he needs right now is me getting angry. "You had plenty of opportunity to say something over the centuries."

"I know. But I didn't have the words to admit I was wrong; that I needed you." He's refusing to meet my gaze and I allow it, knowing he'll get what he has to say off his chest quicker that way. "For twenty years I was your master. I gave the orders. You needed me. Then all of a sudden the situation was reversed and you were giving the orders and I needed you. I hated it. Hated you. That hatred became like a security blanket for me. When you'd spend the night with one of Arthur's servants I'd wrap it around me and let it keep me warm." He looks up at me, lips trembling, tears welling in his eyes. "I fed off that hatred every time you feed from someone that wasn't me. I didn't want to need you that much. I felt it made me weak and that was not something I ever want to be in your eyes."

"My God, Danny. I had no idea." I'm stunned by his admission.

"That was kinda the point, Steve. No one could know how weak I was. On top of being a No Consent I needed you in a way I haven't needed anyone since I was a child at my mother's breast." He shakes his head, one tear rolling down each cheek.

Sliding from the chair, I kneel in front of him. "I still need you, Master. I'll always need you." Placing my hands on his knees, I push them open enough for me to kneel between them. "I've never thought of you as weak." I run my hands up his thighs, stopping just short of his groin. "Let me show you just how much I need you."

He reaches out with one hand and cups my cheek, a very evil grin replacing the sad frown and causing my dick to begin to harden. With his free hand, he pulls the waist band of his pants down, tucking it under his balls. "Suck me." His hand slides around the back of my head, urging me to do as ordered.

Keeping my gaze locked with his, I allow him to pull my head down into his lap. This blowjob won't be like the one I gave him earlier in the garage; no, this one will be all about him taking his pleasure with my body. I shift into a more comfortable position and relax into it. Grabbing two fistfuls of my hair, he uses it to hold my head steady while he fucks my face.

I'm instantly transported back to the first time he did this.



Despite my having been given to him nearly two weeks prior, he has yet to actually do anything beyond forcing me to clean his room and clothes and fetch his food in the great hall.

I'm rearranging the pile of furs on his bed; the slave he bedded last night was extremely picky about which one she slept under. What she didn't seem to get was that she wasn't allowed to stay, none of them are, because he's not looking for a wife, just someone to give him a child.

"Teyrnon." I look up to see him striding across the room. I've never paid much attention to other men but there's just something about this Viking that grabs and holds my attention.

Stepping back from the bed, I bow deeply at the waist. "Master." I know he said I don't have to call him that in private but I'm afraid that I'll forget when we're not alone since I'm not used to calling anyone by that name.

He says something about not forcing me to accept something but I don't speak his language enough yet to know what he said. I'm not sure why he didn't speak in my language; he speaks it much better than I speak his and if he wanted to make sure I understand him he would have.

"Master?" I frown at him.

He shakes his head and waves one hand like he's swatting a fly. "Come here." He says one of the few phrases I've made sure I know. Can't serve him if I don't know when I'm being summoned to his side. When I'm standing in front of him he says something in that rapid way he has, leaving me blinking as I try and figure out what he just said. Instead of trying to tell me what he wants again, he pushes gently but incessantly on my shoulder until I'm on my knees.

I may have had sex with dozens of girls over the past four years but that was for procreation, not pleasure and as such I might as well be a virgin for all the experience I have in pleasuring another person. The moment my knees hit the floor, his hand slides around to the back of my neck and pulls me toward him. I go willingly enough until I realize he's pulled his cock out of his pants. I try and pull back but he won't let me and the grip on my neck starts to become painful.

"Stop resisting, Teyrnon. This is what you're here for." Looking up into his eyes I can see that he's right. I didn't understand all of what his father said two weeks ago when we arrived but it is now quite clear that I was given to him as much more than a normal slave; I was given to him as a pleasure slave, his to do with as he pleases. And right now it pleases him to force me to…put his dick in my mouth?

Licking my lips I eye his erection. "I've never…" My voice trails off.

"Dozens of women and not one sucked your cock?"

"They were there for procreation, not pleasure."

"Of course. Since neither of us can get pregnant, you are here purely for my pleasure. Is that understood?" I nod. "Good. Now open your mouth, relax and let me do what I want."

Swallowing thickly, I do as ordered: I open my mouth and let him have his way.

He hooks one thumb in the hinge of my jaw to keep my mouth open so he can thrust in. I choke when he doesn't stop until he hits the back of my throat. Grabbing two fistfuls of my hair he proceeds to do to my mouth what he did to that female slave's cunt last night.

All too soon, tears are streaming down my face; he shows me absolutely no mercy, thrusting in and out with no regard for my comfort, only his pleasure. I don't know what I'm going to do when he spills his seed down my throat; do I swallow it or spit it out? A few days ago I caught him being pleasured by another slave. When he finished, the slave spit his seed out on the floor. Instead of being angry, he laughed but somehow I don't think he'll find it amusing if I do the same.

Over the past two weeks I've heard him fucking several different slaves so I know what he sounds like when he's almost finished. He begins making those sounds now and I instinctively begin swallowing. The liquid he spills down my throat is hot and thick and salty. When he pulls back some drips down my chin and I stick my tongue out to try and lick it off.

He wipes what I don't get with his thumb, then raises it to his lips and licks it off. "Don't worry, you'll get much better at that." He straightens his clothes and turns to leave. Before he gets to the door he turns back. "Finish in here, then come find me in the great hall."



A sharp tug to my hair brings me back to the present. Danny was right, I did get much better at sucking his dick. And it has become one of my favorite things to do, right after getting my ass fucked by him. His thrusts get more forceful and I know the instant he ceases to be Danny Williams, my partner and becomes Lars Olafson, my master: his grip tightens and he growls low in his throat.

"Take it, Slave." Danny was never really one for reminding me of my place but his usage of that word here, now, reminds me of the last time he used it: the one and only time he had to remind me of what I actually was. I had grown so used to his lax treatment of me in his room that I forgot myself in front of the king. It earned me a backhanded slap and a sharp scolding before being sent from the great hall and back to his room.

But that's not why he uses it now. I get the feeling he's using it as more of an endearment and I find I kind of like it. I make a mental note to talk to him later about us resuming our former relationship on occasion in private.

When he comes he presses my head all the way down, squishing my nose against his lower abdomen. If I still had to breathe my lungs would be screaming for air by the time his cock stops twitching and he releases his grip on my hair enough for me to pull back a bit.

"Here. Come here." He pulls on my hair until I climb up onto the loveseat with him.

Once I'm settled with my knees on either side of his hips, he attacks my mouth with a fierceness that is just shy of being angry. Last time I felt this kind of anger in his touch was the last time we actually had sex several centuries ago.

With his left hand tangled in the hair at the back of my head to keep it steady, he fishes my cock out of my shorts with his right and begins jacking me with quick efficient strokes. In the second before my orgasm washes over me, he sinks his fangs into my neck while pressing his thumb into that spot just below the head of my dick.

A white light flashes behind my eyelids and I find myself on all fours surrounded by the bright glow of our Bond. Lifting my head I look around and find some shadows but mostly just this beautiful light. And Danny standing not far away.

"This is much better, yes?" He approaches and assists me in standing up.

"Yeah but still not great."

"So you keep saying."

"Doesn't make it any less true."

He ducks his head. "I truly am sorry, Teyrnon."

Cupping his chin, I raise his head so I can look in his eyes. "Nothing to forgive, Lars. You were scared and angry. It's only natural that you lashed out at me." He opens his mouth to respond but before he can utter a single word a woman's voice calls out my name.

His brows lower. "She has a key!?"

I shake my head. "Probably entered the same way you did: through the unlocked front door."

"You really should lock your door, Steven."

"Mmhm." My name is called again. "Enough, D." I push on his shoulder.

He pulls his fangs from my neck just as the intruder says, "Steve? Chin called and said you probably need to feed."

"She knows!?" Danny hisses.

"She's a favorite Donor." He huffs and starts nuzzling behind my left ear. "Danny…" I try and get him to stop by shrugging my shoulder. He just nips my earlobe and resumes trying to drive me insane.

"Steve? I know you're here. Your truck's in the driveway. Ya know, if you'd just feed from Kono then Chin wouldn't have to ask me to use my leave time to come feed you. I mean really…" Her voice trails off on a gasp. "Oh, my God! I'm so sorry! I didn't know you had company. I'll just go."

"No, Cath, wait." I finally dislodge Danny from where he's trying his level best to leave a mark on my neck. "I'd like to introduce you to my partner, Danny."

"Why don't you just ask her to leave?" Danny asks in a combination of Welsh and Norwegian.

"Was that even a real language?"

"It was two different ones, actually. And incredibly rude." Danny narrows his eyes and growls low in his throat. I just grin at him and climb from his lap. "Lieutenant Catherine Rollins this is my partner Detective Daniel Williams."

Catherine nods her head in Danny's direction. "Detective." She turns back to me, her eyes wide as she realizes what she said as she searched for me in the house. "Steve…"

I chuckle. "It's okay, Cath. Danny's my Mate."

"Steve!" Danny jumps up, outrage pouring off him in hot waves.

"We can't keep this from everyone, Danny. Cath has been a Chosen for nearly ten years now."

"Maybe I'm not ready to start telling people. You ever think of that, huh?" He crosses his arms over his chest. "I mean, first the Governor and now her! Seriously, Teyrnon, stop outing me to people!"

"Teyrnon?" Catherine's confusion is palpable.

"My name."

"What?"

I sigh. "I guess this is your form of payback, huh?" Scrubbing my hands over my face, I sit down on the coffee table. "Cath, please sit." I motion to the empty chair to my right.

With a frown marring her pretty face, she does as I request. "Um, am I about to get your story, Steve?"

"The Reader's Digest version, yeah." I look over at Danny but he just shrugs. "Okay. Uh, from the beginning." I rub my palms on my knees as I try and gather my thoughts. I haven't ever actually told anyone my whole story.

"So, I was born Teyrnon in 760 in Wales where modern day Cardiff now is. My mother was a direct descendant of a tribe of Druids thought long dead because Druids were only men. I was being raised to take her place and rebuild our race."

Since this next part involves Danny as well I look over at him again and get a nod in reply. I nod back and turn to face Catherine. "In 780 my village was attacked by Vikings from Norway. Due to where we lived we never expected to be attacked by anyone; our little harbor was fairly protected from ships that might pass that side of the island. Somehow the leader of these men saw us and decided to attack."

Catherine glances from me to Danny and back. "I'm not sure I'm following."

"Just be patient, please. I'm getting there." I lick my lips and glance back at Danny. For the first time in a while he actually looks guilty for this part of our story. "I was the only man who survived the attack. They also only kept women of childbearing age who were not currently pregnant. Unfortunately this meant my mother and three women carrying my children were murdered."

"You had three wives!?" Catherine is outraged.

"No." I clear my throat, nearly positive she's not going to like my answer. "Remember when I said I was being raised to rebuild my race?" She nods. "I was doing it the old fashioned way. Girls from neighboring villages were selected to procreate with me. They'd stay in my village until they delivered. If the child was a girl, a suitable match was found for them and they were sent on their way. If the child was a boy, his mother was found a husband among the eligible men in my village so that the boy could be trained by my mother.

"There was usually only one or two pregnant girls at any given time but my mother was growing impatient and so there were three. And possibly a fourth but she died while being raped."

"How awful!"

I nod sadly. "Yeah. I was forced to watch as they raped my mother. She too died of the injuries she suffered." Again, I glance over my shoulder at Danny. We've never talked about what his father and brothers did to my people that day. "Once they were done, they loaded us and all the valuable items they could into their longboat and began the long trek back to their home.

"Once there, we were all stripped naked and paraded through the village. Some of the women, most not even eighteen yet, were grabbed by one or two men and carried off. My hands were literally tied and I was helpless to do anything about their treatment of my people."

I drop my gaze to my clasped hands, fighting the urge to look at Danny again. "When we got to the longhouse, the leader shoved me forward. In the middle of the room stood a man about my age. Once I was standing in front of him I was forced to my knees. The rope tied around my hands was handed to him and I was given to the man who would be my master for the next twenty years."

At Catherine's gasp, I look up into her eyes, surprised to see tears brimming there. "Oh, Steve!"

"It wasn't all bad. My master is a kind hearted man. He never once mistreated me. In fact, he actually freed me shortly after his father gifted me to him."

"Wait, you said he is a kind hearted man."

"Caught that did you?" This time I give into the urge to look back at Danny.

He chuckles softly and shakes his head. "Just tell her already."

"Catherine, may I introduce you to Lars Olafson, my master and Boned Mate."

Catherine's eyebrows climb her forehead. "Master and Bonded Mate? Seriously?"

I nod. "Yeah. In 800 we were forced to flee Norway. We ended up in Wales where Danny was Turned. The following year I was Turned and we Bonded. We haven't had the best relationship since then but we've decided to work on it now."

"Well, that explains why I didn't know you were Bonded."

"Well, he is. Well and truly Bonded." Danny speaks for the first time and I laugh silently at the jealously thickening his tone.

"I'm glad. I always felt like something was missing in your life, Steve." She looks from me to Danny and back again. "Does this mean you don't need me?"

"Oh, no. We need you. It's just not me you'll be feeding. It's Danny."

"You're willing to share?" Danny sounds like he can't believe it.

"We're Mates. I'm willing to share everything with you, D."

"Aw, you two are so fucking cute!" Catherine giggles.

"Are you willing to feed him or not?" I try and ignore the fact that she called us cute.

"Sure." She jumps up from her chair. "How do you want me, Danny?"

Danny looks at me. "Really?"

"What are you not getting about this?"

"The fact that you hated every single person I fed from over the centuries."

I roll my eyes and blow out a frustrated breath. "That was because you were denying me in favor of them. And this isn't something I care to discuss right now. You're still extremely hungry. So, please, feed from her."

Danny actually looks chagrined at my scolding. "How about the same way you feed Steve?"

"Very well." Catherine begins removing her clothes. "Do you want to keep your pants on or take them off?" I find her question confusing since Danny still had the waistband of his pants tucked under his balls while he jerked me off but a quick glance around her shapely butt shows he straightened them without my noticing.

"I think I'll join you in being nekked." He stands up just long enough to shuck his pants, tossing them at my head. I pluck them out of the air and chuckle at his antics. This is gonna be so good.