Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter #16 - Blood Noir Read Free

girlfriend he didn’t want anymore.
    I held out my hand, but made him take the step to close our fingers around each other. His eyes glittered in the overhead lights.
    file://L:\Azures L_Disc Shared Dowloads\EBooks\Anita Blake Series 1-17\(Book16] - Bl... 10/18/2009
    BloodNoir
    Page 17 of 287
    I took his hand, held it. His breath came in a soft gasp, and I thought for a second he was going to cry, but he just looked at me. His eyes that had glistened a moment before were almost dead, as if whatever he was feeling he’d locked away somewhere. In a way, to me, that was worse. I went to him, and he wrapped his arms around me as if he were at the edge of a cliff and I were his only handhold. That quiet holding on was so…male. A woman would have cried, or talked more, but for a man, after a certain point this is their pain.
    I held him back, tried to tell him it would be all right. I whispered it into his hair, against his cheek. “It’s all right, Jason. It’s all right.”
    Nathaniel came up behind him and wrapped his arms around us both. He pressed his cheek against his friend’s hair and said, “We’re here, Jason. We’re here for you.”
    Jason just held on wordless, motionless, the strength in his arms, shoulders, pressing against me, but it wasn’t about sex. I’d never been pressed so close to any man and thought only, God, what’s wrong? Either he had loved Perdy and now he was regretting letting her go, or the other shoe hadn’t dropped. What else could be wrong?
    We ended up on the floor of the kitchen, simply sitting in a row with our backs to the kitchen island. He still hadn’t said what else was wrong, or that he was desperately in love with Perdy and how could he fix it? I kept waiting for him to share. If he’d been a girl friend I’d have asked by now, but guy friends are different. Sometimes you have to sneak up on them like some sort of wild animal, no wereanimal pun intended; all men are leery of their emotions, spook them and they’ll shut down. If you’re careful, quiet, not too eager, sometimes you’ll learn more. Of course, sometimes you have to club men over the head with some question to get any sense out of them, but they prefer to speak from a quiet place.
    Jason had his head against Nathaniel’s shoulder, and a hand on my leg. At least he, like most of the men in my life, was cuddlier than most. I appreciated that. Jason’s voice came flat, empty, as if he were afraid to let his voice feel anything. “My father’s dying of cancer. My mom called last night just after Perdy and I broke up.”
    I exchanged a glance with Nathaniel. His wide eyes let me know that it was news to him, too.
    “Jesus, Jason, I’m sorry,” I said.
    “We hate each other, of course, and now the cold bastard’s dying and I won’t have time to forgive him before he dies.”
    “What can we do?” Nathaniel asked, softly.
    He smiled, a little weak, a little watered down, but he managed it. I thought it was a good sign. I hoped it was. “You really want to know?”
    “Name it,” I said.
    He smiled again, but his eyes flinched, as if I’d hit him instead of told him I’d do anything he wanted if it would take the pain away.
    “Perdy isn’t here to tell me don’t , or to tell you don’t . I’m a free man again.” He tried for a laugh, but it was a sound more like a sob.
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    “I get it,” Nathaniel said.
    I frowned at him. “Then explain it to me, because I don’t.”
    “He wants to have sex with you again.”
    “What?” I said.
    “Perdy can’t tell him, or you, no anymore. You can be lovers again.”
    “You mean now, like in right now?”
    Nathaniel gave a half-shrug. Jason moved his head off the other man’s shoulder. He dropped his hand away from my leg.
    “It’s okay, Anita, I’ve fucked this up. I know this isn’t the way to approach you. But my head is