When he sits down at the head of the table, his hair flops forward, grazing his temples and cheeks. He sighs as he rakes it all back with his fingers. When he brings his hands down again, it all rushes forward. I laugh. “Your barber won’t cut your hair, will he? You waited too long, so he wants you to grow it out to donate it again.”
He groans. “Correct. It has reached this awkward length where it is not long enough to properly pull back. However, if this is my biggest problem, I gladly accept it.”
I smile at that. “Good perspective-taking.” Haruka and Nino had a rough couple of months this spring. Awkward hair length is a welcome problem in comparison. “Nino?”
“Shower.”
“Is he having lunch with us?” Nino doesn’t have issues leaving the house. He manages aristocracy business affairs in both Kyoto and Osaka. It keeps him busy. He loves his work and is great at it. He turns struggling bars and restaurants around and makes them into success stories time after time.
Haruka yawns. “No. He has a meeting. Although we agreed that he should not work on Sundays. He assures me that this is the last one he’ll schedule.”
Sydney, their young purebred live-in, walks into the kitchen with grocery bags. He offers a cheerful greeting before shuffling around to put things away. “Good morning, Junichi!”
“Hello, Syd. How was the market?”
He stops, blinking his sage-green eyes under the mop of his sandy-brown hair. “It was wonderful. Busy! There are pears now for autumn—and persimmons. Asao taught me…” He takes a deep breath and smiles bright. The look on his face, you’d think he just described the moon and stars in the sky.
Sydney is one of the rescued purebreds from Socotra—one of the first to be accepted into our realm. He came without a mate and was pretty scrawny and emotionally withdrawn at first. Nino and Haru tried putting him in an apartment and implementing their fixed program the way they do with other refugees, but it didn’t go very well. They’d go check on him, and he’d be sitting in the dark in a corner and refusing to eat or feed.
Since they’ve transitioned him to living here at the estate and helping out, though, he’s done a one-eighty. Plus, he loves cooking and is pretty damn good at it.
“How is Doctor Jae’s proposal coming along?” Haruka asks.
“We talked about it yesterday. I think he’s confident in figuring things out after our conversation. I’ll let you know when I get the official report.”
Haruka nods, then rakes his fingers through his hair again. “The doctor perplexes me. Why is he somewhat physically appealing to my nature? And you mentioned before that you could discern a scent from him. Not the typical unembellished human scent, correct?”
“Yeah,” I say, leaning with my elbow on the table and cradling my face. It feels like Doctor Jae Davies is slowly occupying more and more of my world. “You don’t smell any unique scent from him?”
“I do not. What does he smell like? May I ask?”
I frown. “Why does that matter?” Scents are a very subjective experience for ranked vampires. It is literally a case where one man’s trash could be another man’s treasure. My source smells like ham to me. Flat out. I like ham, but it’s not very appealing to my nature and intrinsic thirst as a vampire—I don’t necessarily want to fuck ham. If I told him that he would die.
I should tell him.
“Talking about scents is a little personal.” I turn my nose up, brushing it off. But then I tilt my head in a pointed gaze. “What does Nino smell like to you?”
“Cinnamon. And oak. Sunlight.”
I sit up straight, scratching my head. “Alright, apparently we’re not embarrassed… How does sunlight smell, exactly?”
“It is difficult to describe. The sunlight aspect is more of a perceptual sensation.”
“Got it.”
“Hey, Jun.” Nino walks into the kitchen, smiling. Handsome sunlight.
“Hey—what does Haruka smell like to you?” Double or nothing.
Nino pauses at the counter, folding his arms. “It’s complicated. The simplest answer is roses. But when I feed from him, it’s very visual—transcendent. As if I’m in a different place altogether… like the soul of him is a rain-soaked garden with lush greenery and roses in full bloom. Sweet and fresh. It’s perfect.”
Haruka is openly grinning now and staring at his mate. Nino walks over as if a silent beckoning has occurred. Haruka lifts his chin and Nino leans down, smoothly placing two firm kisses on his mouth. When he stands straight, he reaches into his back pocket. “Oh, here.” He pulls out a thin black stretchy headband. Haruka scrunches his face as Nino quickly maneuvers it over his head, then works it back up to rest against his scalp. Haruka’s overgrown hair is officially out of his face.
“Thank you, my love.” Haruka sighs, then looks at me with his eyebrow lifted. “Your turn.”
God. I have to confess after transcendent roses in a rainy garden? “Like something sweet… a baked dessert. With spiced peaches?”
“What’s spiced peaches?” Nino asks. “Sounds delicious.”
“How Doctor Jae smells to Jun.” Haruka blinks his burgundy eyes at me. Examining me.
Nino laughs. “Aw, that’s cute.”
“Yeah, whatever.” I frown. Fucking humiliating. Like I’m a kid with a fruit cup obsession.
“Do you all want coffee? I can make some before I start lunch.” Sydney is already at the coffee pot, tinkering.
“Yes, please.” Haruka smiles in his genial and sincere purebred prince way. “Thank you very much, Sydney.”
The young vampire flips around smoothly, opening cabinets to get mugs. “It’s my pleasure!”
Haruka told me candidly that it makes him uncomfortable—having this young, emotionally and physically traumatized purebred serving them like this. But Sydney genuinely enjoys himself, and in combination with his weekly therapy sessions, his progress is irrefutable.
When I took him out for his first beer, I asked him about it—if it would be better to have his own place and be more independent. He told me he likes Haruka and Nino’s estate because he can keep busy, and it feels happier and safer than any place he’s ever known. I couldn’t argue with that.
“Typical humans do not register such distinct smells to our senses, Jun. Have you specifically asked Doctor Davies about his biology?”
I shrug. “No. He’s human.” But he’s apparently been fucked and bitten by quite a few lower-level vampires, so maybe there’s some kind of buildup? I keep that inelegant information to myself.
