Free Hellbourne by Amber Kell Page A

Bran’s gold eyes were glowing with hunger as he took in Luc. “What do you want from me, Bran?”
    The alpha walked in front of him before sliding to his knees—an eerie copy of Jerrod’s actions earlier that day. “I want whatever you will give me. Any scrap of your affection. Any moment of your time. I know you might not be able to forgive me, but I thought I was doing what was best for the Pack. I thought I could give them a future leader.” Bran let out a bitter laugh. “I should’ve known I couldn’t give you up. Instead of a strong leader, I ripped out my heart and gave them a broken alpha and dissension in the pack. Do you know half of them won’t even talk to me any more because of how I treated you? How can I lead my people if they won’t follow?”
    When Bran looked up, Luc saw tears filling those beautiful eyes. It felt wrong to have his strong, passionate lover on his knees—no matter what dreams he’d had after their breakup.
    “If they want me gone, I’ll leave the Pack. But I’ll never let go of you again.” Luc could hear Bran swallow back the tears. “If you’ll have me back, I’ll be yours forever.”
    “Oh, babe.” Luc pulled Bran to his feet and into his arms, cradling him close as the werewolf broke down into sobs. “Shhh. We’ll work something out.”
    It took Luc a long while to soothe his shattered lover, but eventually, after a magical cleansing to remove the blood, they moved to the bed. Tired from the emotional outpouring, they stripped and tossed their clothes to the floor.
    Bran wrapped himself around Luc as if to prevent him from escaping. Nuzzling his neck, the alpha pulled back after a moment. “You smell odd.”
    “Hmmm.” Luc was starting to drift.
    “You smell like that kid in your house.”
    “He’s not a kid,” Luc said sleepily. “I think he’s a hundred or something.”
    A long lick tickled his throat, making him giggle. Sniffing continued and Bran lifted Luc’s hand lapping at his palm. “What’s this?”
    “Jerrod’s mark.”
    “His what?! ”
    “Don’t yell.”
    “How can I not yell? You let some baby vamp mark you?”
    “I didn’t let him.” Luc glared at Bran in annoyance. “It was a mistake. I saved him from his master and by some funky vampire process it made me his new master.”
    Bran’s warm hands stroked Luc’s shoulders. “Sorry I yelled, baby. What do we need to do to find him a new master?”
    “According to Nikko, I’m his master until one of us dies.”
    Bran gave him an evil grin. “I can take care of that.”
    Luc punched him.
    “Ow.” Bran said, cradling his shoulder.
    “I forgot how bony you are.”
    “Ha! Serves you right,” Bran said, placing a kiss on Luc’s cheek. “You shouldn’t beat your lover.”
    “Bran, I don’t know what to do. I’d love nothing more than to come back and be your mate, but I have Jerrod I’m responsible for now. I just can’t abandon the kid.”
    “Give him to Nikko,” Bran said ruthlessly.
    “I can’t just give him to Nikko. His last master abused him. He needs care, protection, blood.”
    Bran sighed. “He can’t live here. The other weres wouldn’t tolerate it.”
    Luc nodded. “I know, but I can’t leave him to fend for himself either. I think it’s best if I stay where I am.”
    “What about your birthday? It’s only three days away. You’ll need preparation if you hope to survive your father’s persuasion.”
    “I know.” Luc swallowed around the ball of fear lodged in his throat.
    Every birthday, his father pulled Luc down into hell to try to convince him to give up his soul and become an official Hell Lord. As the only son born with a soul, Luc was an object of personal pride to his father. Lucifer senior wanted his son’s soul, but he was absurdly pleased when Luc survived his challenges each year. The devil’s theory was that the longer Luc resisted, the stronger Hell Lord he would make. Each year his test was a little more difficult until it mostly