Page 33 of Thirst
So damn easy to hurt.
“Look, forget I asked.” Talon turned away, rubbing slow circles on Jude’s back. His voice was quiet, but I heard the disappointment in it. “We’ll just have to find someone else.”
A hot, acid shame spilled into me. Talon had fed me, given me a place to sleep, made sure I got to school—when he’d still been a kid himself. His own life had been almost as screwed up as mine, with an alcoholic mom and a dad who spent half his time off-island.
Man up, dude. This is Talon’s son.
He was right. No one would fight for Jude like I would.
“No.” I straightened. “I’ll do it.”
Talon broke into a grin. “You’ll be fine, you’ll see. Practice for when you have your own someday.”
I grunted. I did want to have my own spawn someday, but not for a long, long time—like a couple of centuries or so. And I’d hire experts to raise the kid so I didn’t mess him up.
“Here.” Before I could stop him, Talon had shifted his son to my arms. “He likes to be upright so he can look around.”
“Whoa.” I froze, clutching Jude like he was a live grenade and one wrong move would set him off. “Give a man some warning. I told you—I don’t know how to do this.”
“Then you’ll learn. First lesson: support his head.” Talon moved the hand I had on Jude’s shoulders to the back of his skull. “He’s getting stronger, but it’s still too heavy for his neck muscles to hold up.”
I wrapped my fingers around the baby’s fragile cranium, heart thudding like I’d just stepped off a cliff.
“Sweet Lilith, he’s small. The size of a rugby ball.”
“Right?” Talon gave a wondering shake of his head.
Jude squirmed, whimpering.
My stomach dropped. I shoved him at his father. “Here. He’s not happy.”
“Loosen your hold.” Talon gently pushed him back to me. “You won’t drop him.”
“Says you,” I grumbled, but followed his advice.
Jude scrunched up his small face and dragged in air. What I knew about kids would fit in a thimble, but I was pretty sure he was gearing up to scream bloody murder.
I tried again to pass him to his father. “Take him, damn it.”
He backed away. “Try jiggling him. He likes that.”
“Yeah?” That, I could do. I gave Jude a tentative bounce.
He unleashed a loud cry. I gulped, shooting Talon a helpless look.
My friend crossed his arms. “More.”
I started bouncing in earnest, and to my shock, after letting out a couple more cries, Jude burrowed his head into the space between my shoulder and neck, snuffled for a few seconds, then fell silent.
When I chanced a look at him, he was sucking on his fist and staring into space. “Huh,” I said without ceasing my up-and-down movement. “It worked.”
“You’re a natural,” Talon returned.
I snorted and gathered Jude closer, sniffing his nape. “He smells good,” I said when Talon chuckled. “Like powder and baby.”
Talon grunted, and I glanced up to find him watching us with a sappy smile. “Look at you, Uncle Cain.”
I went rigid and Jude murmured unhappily against my neck.
