Free Bed and Breakfast [Bloodkin 1] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) by Scarlet Hyacinth Page B

human was so absorbed in his contemplation of the volume he didn’t even look his way. “Find anything you like?” he whispered in Moss’s ear.
    Over Moss’s shoulder, Vane caught sight of the cover of the book. It showed a male tied down by his wrists, while another fucked him hard. Vane had a strange sensation of déjà vu. He’d dreamed this exact sequence the night before, with Moss being the star of the show. He’d read this particular tome many times. Perhaps he’d for some reason combined its images with his desires for Moss.
    Moss yelped, turned around, and hid the book behind his back. “My lord…You startled me.”
    That had been Vane’s intention. For some reason, he scented something more behind Moss’s gesture. “That’s not exactly true,” he told Moss. “And like I said on your first day here, I don’t want you to ever lie to me. Am I being clear?”
    Moss gulped and nodded. “The cover…It shocked me.”
    Vane had a feeling Moss skirted around the truth a lot. He briefly considered biting Moss, just to find out, but he decided he could wait. After all, Moss couldn’t be expected to trust him outright. Vane would have to earn it, although it was a mystery why he even wanted to.
    Besides, as much as he’d have liked to spend the whole day with the human, he did need to get some work done. Bloodkin didn’t take holidays. “Very well, then. Take it to your room. You’ll find it’s an interesting read.”
    Moss flushed to the very tips of his hair. “I wouldn’t…I don’t—”
    “It’s quite all right,” Vane interrupted him. “Or if you’d rather, you can stay. I’m afraid I have to be off. Work awaits. But I’ll see you at dinner, all right?”
    Moss nodded, and Vane took off, his mind still on the man he left behind.
     
    * * * *
     
    That evening, as he wrapped up a series of formalities in his office in the city, Vane experience a weird feeling of anxiety niggling at the back of his brain. He didn’t know why it could be, but decided to make his way home earlier. The carriage took him back to the mansion and he headed inside, but as he walked into the foyer, he immediately noted the conspicuous absence of all his servants.
    Vane frowned. That was very odd. The brownies were typically shy creatures, but his most loyal servants always met him at the door, having been with him for decades now.
    Vane sensed motion at the superior level and walked up the stairs. Strikingly, the source seemed to be the library. “Oh no. This is such a disaster. What are we going to do?” he heard Pena say. “This is all my fault.”
    “It’s not anyone’s fault,” Moss replied. “Calm down. We’ll clean up and everything will be as good as new. Come on, we needed to take care of this before His Lordship comes home.”
    “Oh, Mister Hayden. There’s no way we can possibly do that.”
    “Indeed.” Vane took a step forward and walked into the library. Pena paled, and Moss winced guiltily. Vane looked around and spotted the reason for all the commotion. A display case lay in pieces on the floor, glass scattered all over the place. A torn document pathetically demanded Vane’s attention.
    A vein twitched in Vane’s temple. The document in question noted Vane’s nomination as Kin Lord here in Clavar. As much as he hated the actual position, Vane could not do his job without its authority. Thankfully, the destroyed item had been only a copy and the original was still in his office.
    “What happened here?” he asked. When Moss opened his mouth to reply, Vane shook his head. “No, don’t answer that. Where’s Benson?”
    “He left,” Pena replied in a small voice. “He said Your Lordship knew about it and if we needed anything, we should ask Mister Hayden.”
    Damn Kier. It was just like him to play a sudden prank like this. Then again, the elf did deserve some time off. He worked too much.
    Behind Pena, a small boy cowered, and Vane knew what had happened. As adept as brownies