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V had been taken out and left for dead in the woods beyond a warrior camp.

Butch also had another thing going for him: a female of worth who loved him. Marissa was positively glowing at his side and V tried not to look at her too much…except he couldn’t stop. So warm, the way she stared at Butch. So very warm.

V had to wonder what that was like.

When they stepped into the Pit, Butch let out a ragged sigh. Clearly his energy had flagged completely by now, sweat breaking out across his forehead as he struggled to remain upright.

“How about your bed?” V said.

“No…shower. I need a shower.”

“Are you hungry?” Marissa asked.

“Yeah…oh, God, yeah. I want…bacon. Bacon and…”

“Chocolate,” V said wryly as he muscled the cop down to the guy’s suite.

“Oh…chocolate. Fuck, I would kill for that.” Butch frowned. “Except I don’t like chocolate.”

“You do now.” V kicked the bathroom door open and Marissa ducked into the shower and turned the water on.

“Anything else?” she asked.

“Pancakes. And waffles with syrup and butter. And eggs…”

V shot the female a look. “Just bring anything edible. He’d eat his own shoes at this point.”

“…and ice cream and turkey with stuffing…”

Marissa kissed Butch on the lips. “I’ll be right b—”

Butch grabbed her by the head and held her to his mouth with a moan. As a fresh flood of the bonding scent came out of him, he maneuvered her against the wall and pinned her with his body, hands traveling, hips pushing forward.

Ah, yes, V thought. The newly transitioned male. Butch was going to be throwing wood every fifteen minutes for a while.

Marissa laughed, utterly delighted with her mate. “Later. Food first.”

Butch settled back immediately, like she’d called his lust to a heel and it behaved because it wanted to be a good boy. As she left, the cop’s eyes followed her with rank hunger and adoration.

V shook his head. “You are a total sap.”

“Man, if I thought I loved her before…”

“The bonded male biz is some powerful shit.” V stripped Butch of his towel and shoved him under the water. “Or so I’ve heard.”

“Ow.” Butch glared up at the showerhead. “I don’t like this.”

“Skin’s going to be extra sensitive for a week or so. Holler if you need me.”

V was halfway down the hall when he heard a yelp. He hightailed it back, barging through the door. “What? What’s—”

“I’m going bald!”

V whipped back the shower curtain and frowned. “What are you talking about? You’ve still got your hair—”

“Not my head! My body, you idiot! I’m going bald!”

Vishous glanced down. Butch’s torso and legs were shedding, a rush of dark brown fuzz pooling around the drain.

V started laughing. “Think of it this way. At least you won’t have to worry about shaving your back as you get old, true? No manscaping for you.”

He was not surprised when a bar of soap came firing at him.

Chapter Forty-one

It was a week later that Van learned something important about himself.

His humanity was gone.

As a moan echoed through the empty basement, he glanced at the civilian vampire who was strapped on a table. Mr. X was working the thing over and Van was watching. Like this was nothing more than someone getting a haircut.

He should have thought it was wrong. In all his years as a fighter, he’d inflicted a lot of pain on opponents, but he’d avoided hurting the innocent and had despised people who went after the weak. Now? His sole reaction to this base cruelty was annoyance…because it wasn’t working. The only thing they’d learned about O’Neal was that a human fitting the man’s description had been seen among males suspected to be Brothers in some of the clubs downtown—Screamer’s and ZeroSum in particular. But they’d known all that already.

He was beginning to suspect the Fore-lesser was working out his frustrations at this point. Which was such a waste of time. Van wanted to go after vampires, not play armchair quarterback at a scene like this.

Except, shit, it wasn’t like he’d had a shot at killing one of those bloodsuckers yet. Thanks to Mr. X keeping him off the field, all he’d taken out since joining the