The sound of the wind zipping by us fails to register. The rustling of the grass seems miles away. The whole of nature itself fades from my awareness. My mind goes silent, unable to accept or process the biggest curveball I never could have predicted. “I didn’t…”
Orlando gives my hand a squeeze. “You’re freezing. You need more blood, or you’ll start to ice over again. Let’s get you inside. You can hate me from in there just as well as you can out here.”
“Wait. Nobody moves before I get this straight.” Declan needs clarification just as much as I do. Though, I’m guessing no matter how many times we hear it, the world still won’t make any sense. “Colette and Ro… Mister Valentino… were supposed to mate, but he split before he could do his part. The ritual was half-done, and it was starting to mess with Coco’s body.”
“That’s right.” Orlando seems relieved that we are starting to understand.
Declan shoves his hands into the pockets of his jacket as the wind whips by us. He shivers as he speaks. “Colette’s body started freaking out because it needs his blood.”
Orlando exhales, his shoulders lowering. “Yes. Mated females drink regularly from their males. Every day.”
I want to throw up. I want to run away. I want to never have heard of any of this, so I don’t have to deal with it.
Declan is more studious than I am. I want no additional information, but my brother needs to understand it all. “You figured that your cousin’s blood and yours can’t be all that dissimilar, so you put some of your blood in Coco’s tea. Did it work? Did her body calm down?”
Orlando nods emphatically. “Yes, but she needs it every night. She sleeps now. She’s not cold to the touch anymore if she drinks regularly.”
I can’t believe I’m adding to this madness, but my mouth opens, and the truth spills out. “I don’t get the shakes anymore. Not since you started making that tea for me. Even with the stress of dealing with the mayor and all of that, I’m steady as ever.”
Declan is instantly all about this insane plan. “Wait, this mating thing can heal my sister? It can take away the things that were wrong prior to being mated?”
Orlando shrugs. “I think so. It’s all conjecture, remember. Stories passed down. But yeah. They don’t get sick as easily if the female feeds regularly from the male. They strengthen each other. They know things about each other without being told.” He casts me a culpable look. “Like how you knew you needed to make those cookies without knowing the recipe, the significance, or that it’s the anniversary of my mother’s death.” He hangs his head. “I didn’t mean to mate with you. This all went horribly wrong. I’m sorry, Coco. I would never…”
I don’t know what to say to any of this. “You don’t want to… I mean, you’re not in love with…”
Orlando blanches, for which I am grateful. “No. You’re perfectly… whatever, but no. You’re a decade younger than me, for goodness sakes.”
I frown up at him. “Hey, your cousin is ten years older than me, too. It’s not that weird.”
Orlando shoots me a wry look, but still doesn’t let go of my hand, nor do I remove my fingers from his arm. “Do you want me to be in love with you?”
“No, but don’t say it like having feelings for the likes of me is something that makes a man want to barf.”
“Apologies. No. I don’t like you like that. Obviously. I was only trying to help. I clean up after my family all the time. I thought this was just me doing that. Now I don’t know how to undo it.”
“Well, I could always just stop drinking your blood.”
“It’s not something that can be undone. You’ll deteriorate.” Orlando clears his throat. “You need my blood now. It’s a medicine you’ll never be able to survive without.”
I mumble out an incredulous stream of cussing that makes even Declan grimace. “Are you serious?”
Orlando squeezes my hand. “Let’s get you inside. You’re going to freeze out here.”
“Don’t say it like that!”
“Like what?”
I slide my hand away from his and take a step back. “Like I’m your little woman and you need to tell me how cold I am! I’m not yours. I’m not anybody’s! I don’t need you to intervene. You shouldn’t have dosed me with your blood, Orlando! That’s a thing a girl should know is in her tea before she drinks it!” I tap my throat. “And now my throat hurts! That tea is the only thing I want, but it means that we’re…”
Orlando tucks his hands behind his back, standing at attention to absorb the brunt of my wrath. He looks like he is preparing to go before a firing squad. “I made the wrong call.”
“The wrong call should get a person lost on the freeway. This is… Is this a life sentence?!”
My words cut Orlando. I can tell by the way he flinches. Still, he composes himself, remaining calm while I turn shrill, giving my terror a voice. “There’s no undoing it. None that I know of, at least. And I could be wrong.”
I blink up at him. “Are you?”
“No.”
I throw my head back. “Then don’t get my hopes up! Now what? Do we have to live together?”
“No. We don’t have to do anything, other than I need to give you my blood every day, and you need to drink it. Other than that, we can have totally separate lives.”
“Then that’s what we should do. Declan, can you take over watching the house?”
My brother steps toward me. “Of course. Fintan, the sheriff and I can rotate.”
I bite back my groan of having to deal with Fintan on a regular basis. “Good. Orlando, I think my family can take it from here. Thanks for watching out for me these past few weeks, but this is too much. We can meet up once a day to do the blood thing, but other than that, we shouldn’t… I don’t want this to become something that takes over our lives.”
Orlando’s jaw ticks, but he doesn’t argue. Still, I can feel his silent displeasure. He doesn’t like this idea, but he can’t exactly tell me what to do, being that he is the reason we are mired in this mess. “Whatever you like. Now can we go inside? You’re freezing.”
I ball my fists, my voice turning shrill. “Don’t tell me how cold I am!”
Orlando inhales his frustration. “Fine. I’m freezing. Can we go inside because I’m cold?”
“Oh, fine.” I stomp past him, keeping up my anger, but part of me is already planning on throwing the blanket over his shoulders the second we get back inside.
Do I want to take care of him, or is the mate bond compelling my steps?
No, I love my big sweetie pie. Not in this exact moment, sure, but on a normal day, of course I would get him a blanket if he was cold.
Declan and Orlando murmur to each other, but I want no part of it. I step into my home, fighting off a shiver. I pick up the thick blanket on the arm of the couch. Though I’m so mad, I can hardly work out intelligible sentences, I drape the blanket around Orlando.
Then I turn on my heel and march to my bedroom, wondering how on earth I can undo this chaos.
The guys leave me alone until a quiet knock interrupts my stuttering thoughts.
Orlando pops open my door and stands in the entrance, his chin lowered in submission. “You need to drink this. Then I’ll get out of your space. Declan’s staying here tonight.”
I hate that the scent of the tea jerks my senses to the forefront.
I don’t say a word, even as my lower lip quivers. I don’t want this to be real, but when the first gulp trickles down my throat, there is no denying the truth.
My body needs Orlando’s blood—whether I like it or not.