Now

Joaquin invited him to the Whyte Wyrm to hang out on Saturday night.

"I'll be tied in up in business for the first part of the night, but I should be free around ten," he told Kevin.

"Then I'll be sure stop by," Kevin said with a smile. It still seemed to surreal to him that he'd found someone he wanted to be with and who wanted to be with him, but he absolutely treasured what he had with Joaquin.

Around nine o'clock he made the journey over to Southside, choosing to walk rather than drive. It wasn't a place where he spent a whole lot of time; Northside had everything Southside did, except for the higher crime. But he wanted a chance to be out in the open and get his bearings before going into a crowded bar and having to struggle to resist his urges for the rest of the night. Wanting to ensure he wasn't consumed by his instincts when he was with Joaquin, he made a point of feeding on the way, seducing some tall, dark, and handsome college student before continuing on his walk.

There was something freeing about being out at night, Kevin decided, enjoying the autumn chill in the air as his route took him past rows on rows of abandoned houses boarded up with and then a derelict industrial section with crumbling warehouses and grime streaking the dim windows. Especially since he had nothing to be afraid of.

Which was why, when he got within a block of the Whyte Wyrm and immediately noticed three figures emerge from the nearby shadows to follow him, he grinned in anticipation of a knock-down drag-out fight. It had been a while since Lara had sent him out on a mission, and Kevin was eager to have a chance to stretch his muscles.

So he stopped at the entrance of an alley just beyond a twenty-four hour laundromat, positioning himself so he remained in the darkness while they approached from under the light of the overhead awning. It allowed him to assess their features, their movements, and it only took a glance to determine they weren't anything supernatural, just run-of-the-mill thugs.

"Can I help you gentlemen tonight?" Kevin asked, standing at ease with his legs slightly apart and one hand on his hip.

"You sure can, sweetheart," one of the guys leered as the other two chuckled. "Care to tell us where a hot piece of ass like yourself is doing all alone out here? Seems like it could be a little . . . dangerous ."

He and the others continued closer and closer to Kevin until they were only a few feet away, and Kevin could sense the lust radiating off of the three of them.

Oh. This type of thing happened every so often: Raith vampires inspired such strong urges in mortals that their mere presence could draw out the baser human instincts, bringing them to throw aside all inhibitions. Usually, no one minded when it happened, as the Raiths got to feed and the humans got laid, and Kevin decided he wouldn't mind havings seconds tonight.

Taking several steps forward, Kevin put himself within arm's reach of the man, allowing him to grab him and pull him close if he so chose. These types of guys enjoyed to able to dominate their partner, manhandle them however they pleased, and Kevin would be lying if he said a part of him, more than just the vampire part, didn't enjoy it.

"Dangerous, huh?" he returned lowly, rolling his hips and fixing his gaze on the man's. "Would you protect me? If I did something for you in exchange?"

A slow grin split across the man's face as he began to reach out to pull Kevin toward him, but they were interrupted by an angry shout.

"HEY!" A figure sprinted up to them, her long pink hair, illuminated by the laundromat lights, streaming out behind her as she ran. "How many times do we have to tell you goddamn Ghoulies to stay off our turf?!"

The three guys moved to meet her, but she was too quick for the first one, driving her fist into his stomach and then kneeing him in the face once he doubled over. Knowing she might have trouble with the other two, Kevin wasted no time in grabbing the lapels of the one he'd been about to seduce and ramming his own forehead into his face—once, twice, and third time—before letting him fall to the ground. A few hard decks to the jaw of the last one remaining sent him down, too, leaving just Kevin and the pink-haired hair newcomer standing.

"Hey, you alright?" she asked, her dark eyes looking him over for any sign of injury. "Those assholes didn't hurt you, did they?"

"No, but I wonder if it would be a good idea to leave," Kevin noted, casting a glance at the girl's would-be assailants, who were now sprawled across the sidewalk, groaning.

"Let them try it," the girl said contemptuously, giving one of the men a swift kick in the ribs with her motorcycle boot. "These Ghoulies are in Serpent territory, and if they don't know that, I'll be happy to teach them."

Still, she hopped over them, walking in the direction of the Whyte Wyrm, and Kevin accompanied her.

"Thanks for the rescue," he said as he looked over the girl, wondering about her involvement. She had a tall, lean build, thin but with evident muscle, and she moved with a confident, businesslike stride. It wouldn't be a surprise to hear that fights were routine to her.

"No problem," she said. "You did an all right job yourself." She offered him her hand. "Toni Topaz, by the way."

"Kevin Keller," he introduced himself.

Toni grinned. "Joaquin's boyfriend? Nice to meet you. And to know you can handle a fight. Wouldn't want him dating some Northside wuss."

Boyfriend? That was news to Kevin. Still, he chuckled at Toni giving her approval of him based solely on his combat skills. "Don't worry about me when it comes to holding my own. I can take care of myself."

Toni slyly arched a pink eyebrow. "Then I guess the question is, can you take care of Joaquin?"

Kevin rolled his eyes at her as he yanked open the door to the Whyte Wyrm. "You might have run to my rescue,Topaz, but we're not at the point of heart-to-heart conversations just yet."

"Oh, don't mind me. I just like hassling people. I'm always looking for a fight either one way or the other." Toni hooked an arm over his shoulders and steered him toward a corner table.

"A girl after my own heart," Kevin commented dryly. He liked Toni, he decided. She reminded him of a tougher version of Betty. And besides, it was nice to have someone new to banter with.

Joaquin joined them just moments after they sat down at the table and raised an eyebrow when he spotted the arm Toni had looped around Kevin's shoulders.

"Stealing my guy, Toni?" he teased.

"Just protecting him," she returned. "I had to rescue him from some Ghoulies that he ran into on the way here."

"The Ghoulies?" Anger and alarm flashed over Joaquin's features, and he turned to Kevin with a worried frown. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"I'm fine," Kevin reassured him.

"He totally kicked their asses," Toni enthused. "So did I, naturally, but this guy right here?" She tapped Kevin on the shoulder. "He's a great fighter. Nice choice of boyfriend, Joaquin. Toni approves." She hopped up from the table. "Excuse me, gents. I need a beer."

Kevin grinned at Joaquin. " 'Boyfriend,' huh? I didn't know we were official."

"We aren't," Joaquin said quickly, but then immediately amended his statement. "I mean, not unless you want to be."

A warm feeling blossomed in Kevin's chest, and he found that the smile refused to leave his face. "Well, I wouldn't say no." His heart was pounding, both at the idea of becoming official with Joaquin and the implications of such a relationship. If he and Joaquin became exclusive, it would now be cheating every time Kevin fed from anyone else. And he and Joaquin had yet to even have sex.

"All right." Joaquin grinned at him. "Be my boyfriend then, Keller?"

"Happily," Kevin replied sincerely, giddiness fluttering in his stomach.

"Fuckin' A," Joaquin replied, satisfaction in his voice, and he shrugged off his Southside Serpents jacket and reached over to drape it across Kevin's shoulders.

Nonplussed, Kevin glanced at the jacket and then Joaquin. "What's this for, exactly? Does being your boyfriend make me an honorary member of the gang or something?"

Joaquin rolled his eyes at him. "I swear, Kev, you have all the romance of a sack of rocks. You're my boyfriend, so you wear my jacket. Like how girls in high school wear their boyfriends' letterman jackets. It's how relationships work."

"I've never seen that happen, and I go to a high school," Kevin informed him.

"Shut up," Joaquin said playfully. "Just wear my jacket and think about me when you do."

Then he leaned in to give Kevin a deep, intense kiss.