Twice Bitten (Love, Lust & Magic #1)

Griff

It was a dark and stormy night—the kind straight out of a B-movie horror flick—but instead of one boogeyman waiting for the na?ve college freshman walking through an abandoned alleyway, there were, in fact, two .

While he would tell you he was as big a fan of slasher films as the next guy, even Kyler wasn’t a fan of the uneasy atmosphere the Campustown neighborhood radiated at the current witching hour. It also didn’t help that he barely knew his way back to his dorm, much less around town—a consequence of arriving to the sleepy city of Mystic Hollow just thirty minutes prior. Moreover, the heavy set of footsteps making their way toward him from somewhere in the darkness wasn’t helping to ease his already spastic nerves.

“Hello?” his question pierced the night sky.

As defenseless as any other college kid armed with a backpack, smartphone, and laptop walking home alone, the shaggy-haired late-night wanderer wondered if he could make it back to his dorm room before finding out what was going bump in the night.

Oh, why the hell did I think a midnight stroll would be a good idea? he asked himself. I should’ve called a taxi like the bus driver suggested.

“Hello?” the handsome eighteen-year-old asked again, moving his thick-rimmed glasses up the bridge of his nose as he stopped to look around. He was almost as surprised by the panic evident in his own voice as he was by the approaching footfall. “I-is anybody there?”

Fuck, that’s just what all the pretty white girls like Sarah Michelle Gellar say before dying in literally every single ‘90s horror film. Way to be original, . He chuckled nervously as though reacting to his own thoughts.

The dark, empty street before him—a shortcut to and from Mystic Hollow’s usually bustling college nightlife scene—was menacing, no doubt. But there’s also streetlights, thought to himself. Comforting streetlights. However, the echo of footsteps now seemed to come from directly in front of him.

With every ‘fuck it’ left in him, ’s hands wrapped tightly around his backpack straps and he made an abrupt right turn into another empty back alley that would take him straight to his dormitory. Be the Buffy, repeated to himself as he tried to wipe away the stereotype of isolated white college kids being prime serial killer targets and focus instead on Miss Gellar’s much more heroic role. Be the Buffy.

Navigating an obstacle course that included overturned trash cans, empty beer bottles, and an eerie fog that settled just above his ankles, instead did exactly what he did best under stress: panic.

As a child, whenever found himself alone and afraid he would recall the kind words of his adopted mother, the woman who raised him. “Just remember, you’re never alone. Your family will always be with you,” she would repeat. “And to remind you of that, take this.” recalled the cool feeling of the silver rose-shaped pendant she had placed into his hands at a young age, the same one that now hung from a stainless steel chain around his neck.

“Remember, be the Buffy,” he whispered under his breath as he felt for the chain hidden underneath his shirt. “Okay, scratch that . Whatever you do, don’t look behind you.”

As though in response to ’s petty personal pep talk, the sound of a lone glass bottle hitting cement bounced across the tall, grimy walls on either side of him. Aware that the sound wasn’t of his own making, quickly broke his first rule of the night and turned around. Shit! Here goes nothing.

His mind raced.

To his surprise, he came face to face with none other than his midnight stalker.

“Meow,” exclaimed a fat, orange tabby cat just feet away from him.

All the pressure building up in ’s chest evacuated as fast as the air from his lungs. Although he could still feel his heart pounding, this new visual brought him great relief. His little stalker? “Oh, completely random and totally out-of-place fat cat, it’s just you!” sighed sarcastically. “As if that’s not totally cliché.”

Far from shy, the chubby feline quickly circled , rubbing against his right leg as it purred. “Ah, well,” said as he reached down and ran his hands through its coat. “I have to admit that, in my defense, I’ve always been a bit scared of pussy.”

No doubt clueless to ’s attempt at a gay joke, the tabby cooed with every touch—that is, until something nearby caused it to let out a large, frightened shriek. ’s new friend bolted in the very direction it came from.

“Hey! I never said pussy was afraid of me ,” a startled called out after the cat, his nerves getting the best of him and sending him into a verbal tirade of bad jokes. He rolled his eyes while he wiped his hands on his pants. “In fact, pussy usually loves me!”

Before could even examine the semantics behind his midnight cat rant, he realized why he was even shouting absurdities at his fleeing feline friend to begin with. Anything to take my mind off of the creepy setting, right? Then came that weird, unnamed feeling that tells a person there’s someone behind them. It hit him like a ton of bricks.

“ Loves you, huh?”

Oh, shit . Mid-gulp, slowly shifted his feet and turned around to find out what was behind garbage can number two. What he saw— or who he saw, rather —threw him completely off-guard.

Cloaked comfortably in the rising mist, framed perfectly by the faint light of the night sky’s moon, and armed with a smile that could melt whole sororities, ’s textbook definition of ‘tall, dark, and handsome’—TDH, as he would often acronym these types in his head—made eye contact with him. Markedly taller than ’s five-foot-seven stature, and with a significantly more strapping frame, the mystery man’s shining blue eyes complemented his Black complexion and warm undertones. The vascular muscle definition pressing through his t-shirt and those rare ocean-colored irises aside, there was something supernaturally sexy about him.

“Huh?” was literally all could muster. In that very moment, he could’ve been drooling profusely without even realizing it. Yeah, thought to himself. He’s that entrancing . But he couldn’t figure out where the man had come from. One thing was for sure, though. This man can definitely ‘go bump’ in my night , he thought to himself.

“Pussy?”

Here it comes. Word vomit . Don’t do it, . He’s prime TDH.

“I-I-I…” began as his cheeks warmed. He motioned to where the frolicking cat was just moments ago, as though the plump tabby would reappear to back up his story. “ Uh, I tawt I taw a puddy tat ?” he finally replied in his best Tweety Bird impression.

TDH didn’t reply. Instead, he cocked his head.

“Sorry,” continued. “To be honest, an unusually well-fed stray cat spooked me. Also, I’m apparently the king of all bad jokes.”

“I like bad jokes,” mused the stranger, flashing a quick smile. “Cats, though?” He inhaled deeply, as though searching for a kitty cat aroma—or maybe a whiff of . “Hm, not so much.”

This was generally the time when made himself scarce because whatever TDH he bumped into asserted his heterosexuality, but this instance was different. “I can’t imagine I should call you Tweety, though, huh? W-who are you, anyway?” the handsome man before him asked. “I mean, uh, do you go to school here?”

Instead of being the nervous one, it appeared as though the roles were suddenly reversed. The calm—almost creepy, but still very intriguing—manner in which ’s new alleyway acquaintance originally spoke was now verging on shaky.

More surprised in his interest than anything, didn’t instantly compute TDH’s question. “Wait, what ?” He adjusted his glasses as he looked him in the eyes. He couldn’t still be talking to me, could he? Well, I mean, I am the only one here.

It appeared ’s reaction made the man even more uncomfortable. Almost like he had never made small talk a day in his life. In fact, it looks like he’s almost irritated. Hungry, even. Hangry?

“Um,” TDH fumbled. “I’ve just never… I mean, you don’t smell like—uh, look like you’re from around here.”

“Oh,” responded a rosy-cheeked . Smell? Did I put on deodorant? Maybe he means my cologne and is just trying to be nice. Yeah, nice… Or weird? “I’m in Kyler. for short. Today was move-in day at the university.I’m a?—"

“Oh ,” TDH interrupted, his voice matching the inflection had made seconds before. With a flash of his pearly whites, he finished his sentence. “Fresh meat.”

“Well, I like to think of myself as more of a fresh man rather than fresh meat,” said under the guise of a nervous chortle. “But for all intents and purposes, um, y-yes.”

The mystery man interrogating him didn’t immediately respond. Instead, he looked more like he was concentrating. Eyes trained on ’s, TDH’s facial expression changed from calm and attentive to immediately perturbed.

Kinda feels like he’s trying to do some psychic mind-reading trick, thought . Maybe he succeeded and is mad I’m picturing him in the buff, or maybe I should just think of something else, or, uh, say something.

“So, um,” began the nervous freshman as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Does that mean you go to MHU, too?”

“I-I’m sorry,” TDH hurried his hand to his forehead and massaged his temples before returning to the calm, collected version of himself he was when they first met. “Yes. I’m Pruitt Mondamin. I’m the?—”

“Whoa, wait. The quarterback ?” interrupted . “Sorry. I mean, you’re on like every school billboard. In fact, all the guys at orientation practically started a circle jerk every time your name was mentioned.”

“Circle… jerk?” Pruitt raised an eyebrow.

“Um, yeah. You see, it’s when…” cut himself off when he realized he was again rambling. “Never mind. Uh, it seems you’re pretty popular.”

Pruitt shrugged. “You flatter me, . But something tells me you’re not a football fan.”

went into a tangent where he explained that, beyond a brief stint on the swim team in high school, sports didn’t make his list of top interests. But if you’re playing them, however… he thought to himself as his mind again wandered.

The freshman soon realized Pruitt was paying much less attention to what he was saying and much more attention to his body.

Is the top jock at my college checking me out? Seriously? again shifted his weight, deep in thought. Can I even be mad when that’s literally all I’ve been doing this entire time? Is this the part where he asks me to bend over in the alley? Takes me on a date? Shows me the best place to eat on campus? Dozens of unanswered questions raced through ’s head. Not sure if this is better or worse than online dating.

smiled bashfully, cleared his throat, and waited for Pruitt to either snap out of it or say something. The silence between the two of them wasn’t awkward, though. It was almost enjoyable.

“You’re not walking home alone, are you?” asked Pruitt, entirely oblivious to ’s internal realizations. He, too, shuffled his feet as he scrutinized the alley and their immediate surroundings.

It felt like Pruitt was aware of something wasn’t. Unsure if his new acquaintance was concerned about his personal well-being or just checking to make sure there were no nearby witnesses for the grueling crime he was about to commit, followed the quarterback’s determined glare before responding. “I mean—well, why? Did you see someone else out here?”

Pruitt’s tilted head and entrancing blue eyes were at first his only answer.

“I’ll admit I haven’t had time to meet much of anyone in these dark, scary alleys. Well, except for you ,” continued .

“Look,” Pruitt sighed as he crossed his arms. “Mystic Hollow may appear to be some quaint little college town, but that doesn’t make it safe to walk down its back streets after dark.”

“Well, so far all I’ve seen back here besides an uncharacteristically broody football star is the alley cat that fears him,” said with a grin.

Pruitt’s emotionless face melted into a smile of his own, but it wasn’t long-lived.

“Funny enough, sounds like the cat isn’t the only one out here tonight that belongs in the pound,” came a deep voice from somewhere behind the duo.

As fast as could turn around, the second boogeyman of the night had positioned himself mere inches from his face.

“What’s that smell?” the second stranger asked as he leaned in, taking in an obvious whiff as he moved his attention from ’s neck to his eyes. His South London accent was thick and entrancing. Sexy even , thought to himself. But kind of out of place in Massachusetts.

Still trying to process yet another nighttime spook, searched somewhat frantically for an answer. “Um, I don’t know. Kenneth Cole, maybe?”

As ’s eyes finally focused on the man invading his personal space, he realized he was dealing with yet another TDH. In retrospect, and given his very fair complexion, could’ve named the towering behemoth before him something a little more accurate.

With the new man before him wearing nothing but a pair of snug black jeans and Timberland boots, it was no surprise the usually quick-witted could do little more than form a sentence in the intimidating—and undeniably hot—stranger’s presence. Sporting a faded cut on the sides with a short, messy pompadour on the top of his head; a thick, yet maintained dark brown beard that highlighted his chiseled jawline; and a combination of Japanese, tribal, and traditional tattooing running the full length of both arms and crossing onto his heaving, furry pecs, the striking six-foot-two figure before him looked like he had just walked out of what could well be the hottest vampire flick in history.

And he was acting like it, too, thought .

His arms flexed and his chest puffed, the shirtless newcomer leaned in so close that could feel his groomed chest hair, the manicured treasure trail it became, and the outline of what that led to through his jeans. His eyes also caught ’s attention. They look wild—evil even—and way hungrier than Pruitt’s.

It was then that the tattooed man leaned down and purposefully brushed his beard against the freshman’s smooth face. It hurt, but ’s body reacted by pumping enough blood to make his own pants tight and constricted against his stiffening body. Is he going to hurt me? To eat me? To bang me? wondered . The real question is, would I even mind?

A tattooed hand reached forward with purpose, caressing ’s neck gently before tugging at his chain necklace. The force was enough to yank the pendant he wore out from under his shirt, revealing a silver rose medallion with a precious purple gem at its center.

“I was going to say lilacs, but I’m way behind on what the kids are wearing these days,” he said with a toothy smile. “Don’t you smell it, Pruitt?”

Realizing his mouth was hanging open, reverted to playing it cool. He ran a hand through his hair and took a step back, surprised to find he was pushing up against the chest of a fuming Pruitt.

“Oh, and nice necklace,” the British bad boy said under his breath.

trembled and lost his balance, but Pruitt caught him before he tumbled over. Whoa, almost forgot about the first hottie of the night. My, what big hands you have , he mused, his thoughts again focusing back on Pruitt.

“What in the hell are you doing here, Uriah?” spat Pruitt. As if Pruitt’s tone wasn’t enough for to realize the intensity of the situation, he also felt the tension of the jock’s big hands gripping his shoulders , the tightening of his rock hard body as he protectively embraced him, and his light-speed heartbeat.

Is this real life? a panicked asked himself as the two men prepared for what looked like a physical fight.

continued to question if he was simply dreaming when Uriah puffed out his own chest and pushed his weight straight into him, effectively answering Pruitt with a taunt. The two offense-minded men stood at the same height, their eyes mere inches apart as found himself trapped in the middle. Not sure whether to swoon, scream, or orgasm.

“Worry about your little football team, pretty boy,” Uriah shot back at Pruitt. “I was just in the area to grab a bite, but it appears things aren’t as they seem,” he continued, his attention now turning to the wide-eyed .

Pruitt growled. Like a full on wolf growl , noted to himself as he felt the warmth of the jock’s breath on his neck.

In response, Uriah gritted his teeth. Also somewhat animalistic, thought as he placed his palms on Uriah’s chest and tried to push him back. Instead, he was struck by the cool surface of his skin. But as cold as a vampire… Wait! No! I told myself once I’m not doing the Sarah Michelle Gellar thing and look where I ended up.

“Um, hey, guys,” spoke softly. “Is the dick-measuring contest over yet?”

With a cackle, Uriah backed up. “Trust me,” he said calmly. “There’s no contest.”

Pruitt must’ve realized he was nearly cradling the freshman and quickly released him. Instead of stepping away, however, he moved in between Uriah and and took a defensive stance. “Enough,” he sneered back.

“ However, if you want to judge, I’d be happy to oblige,” Uriah snickered, jokingly tugging at his belt buckle. Tilting his head to look past Pruitt and lock eyes with , Uriah cracked a wicked smile. “Or perhaps the new boy would rather join me for a late-night snack?”

Intrigued by the offer, moved his lips to speak but didn’t.

“Don’t do that, Uriah,” Pruitt cautioned. “, don’t look into his eyes. He’s just trying to trick you.”

“You want to come hang out with me, don’t you?” Uriah asked, his tone so convincing and so alluring that almost tripped over his own words.

Word vomit alert, he thought to himself. “Um, it’s actually in Kyler. But you can call me . And, uh, thanks for the offer, but I actually have my first day of classes tomorrow, so I probably should get home.”

Uriah’s face filled with the same mystified, even frustrated look Pruitt made not five minutes ago.

“ Don’t , Uriah,” Pruitt warned as he looked back at .

Confused, turned on, and freaked out all at the same time, stumbled back and threw up both hands in an expression of playful defeat. “Look, lesson learned. No more nighttime strolls through stereotypical scary movie settings. Pinky promise.”

With a brow raised, Uriah turned his attention to Pruitt. “Wait a second, is he actually immune to my?—”

Pruitt grumbled something under his breath as he shoved Uriah.

“Yours already then, huh?” Uriah growled as he stumbled back, then regained his footing.

“Come on, Uriah,” Pruitt replied as he rolled his eyes. “I’m not an animal like you.”

“Interesting choice of words,” sneered Uriah. “I very much beg to differ, jock boy.”

Wait. Are they fighting over me? wondered.

Pruitt shook his head. “I’m not the one with a history of preying on freshmen.”

watched as the two men went completely still, their eyes trained on one another. It was almost like they were having a staring contest. Does whoever blinks last get to take me home? wondered.

The men broke their silence with a yelling match. The quarterback went first. “Wait, that’s what you meant?! Are you kidding me?!”

“You’re the bloody wanker going into my head and reading my thoughts!”

“I didn’t just wake up this morning and go gay,” said Pruitt.

Uriah’s eyes nervously darted from to Pruitt. “Oh, yeah? Well, uh, m-me neither. Fact of the matter is, I was just on my way to hate fuck some lonely sorority girl—or, worst-case scenario, my girlfriend—when I picked on this...” His voice trailed off before his attention once again turned to . “Well, this.”

“M-m-me?” stuttered, now completely lost in the conversation.

“Now I’ve got big man on campus tryin’ to wring my neck all over some pipsqueak named Giff.”

“ ,” Pruitt corrected.

“Hey! Yeah. Speaking of , he has to be up in a few hours for Intro to Theater,” replied in the third person.

“The nerdy elective, huh?” Uriah asked. “Who takes theater, anyway?”

“Our school has one of the top ten theater programs in the country, jerk,” replied Pruitt. Uriah seemed surprised, while was impressed.

“Oh, bollocks,” hissed Uriah. “What good is that degree worth, anyway?”

Pruitt shook his head. “Better than the one you’re not getting by skipping class all the time.”

Uriah huffed in response, crossing his arms in defeat.

Pruitt turned to . “Hope it’s not with Professor Quinn. Guy is a tough ass.”

“Um, actually…” ’s voice trailed off as he pulled a crinkled-up piece of paper from his pocket. “I think I have my schedule here.”

“Even carries the schedule around with him, huh? Freshmen.” Uriah rolled his eyes.

’s eyes followed his finger as he read through his class list. “Oh, here it is. Oops , it’s Quinn.”

“Then you’d better get going,” Pruitt said calmly, his eyes trained to anticipate Uriah’s every move. “Heard he’s a stickler for tardiness.”

“Exactly why morning classes are overrated, little guy,” added Uriah. “The cool kids in Mystic Hollow like to stay up late.”

“Oh, come on, Riah,” Pruitt rolled his eyes. “Like you even go to class.”

“All right. Well, um, it was nice to meet you, Pruitt,” said as he pocketed his schedule.

Catching the beginnings of a smile on Pruitt’s face, Uriah stuck his tongue out. “The Pruitt Mondamin Fan Club adds yet another member to its?—”

“And, um, Uriah, was it?” interrupted.

Caught off guard, Uriah’s mouth hung open. It was almost as though he was in disbelief over showing any interest in him.

“Nice to meet you, too, I think?” added.

Pruitt chuckled as Uriah shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, uh, sure. See you around campus, pipsqueak,” replied Uriah.

Although things had significantly diffused in a matter of minutes, could once again tell it looked like Pruitt was about to pull Uriah’s head off. On that note, I’m getting the hell out of here so I can jack off to this before bed, he decided. The feeling of being pinned between the two alleyway hunks moments ago was not one he would soon forget.

“Oh, and ?” Pruitt called after him.

Looking back, the departing saw a look of genuine concern on Pruitt’s face. It actually is almost cute , he thought to himself. He isn’t gonna ask me to grab lunch or something like that, is he? “Hm?” he replied.

Looking from Uriah back to , Pruitt frowned. “Sleep with the door locked.”

Taken aback, but not wanting to show it, put on a smile and nodded. With Pruitt’s final warning fueling him, he walked faster than ever—maybe even jogged a little—toward his dormitory.

His mind raced as he replayed the evening’s events. Smelling me? Overpowering me? Trying to play some kind of Jedi mind tricks on me? I’ve used more dating apps than I’m comfortable admitting and have seen a lot of fucked up shit, but that may take the cake for crazy.

On top of everything that just happened, couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow—in some way—something about the two men he had just met felt familiar. Almost like he had seen them before. In a dream, maybe?

And the wildest thing about it all? With thoughts of Pruitt’s smile, of Uriah’s brute dominance, and of the both of them ravenously pinning him between their muscled bodies, he almost wished he could have stayed.

As swiftly beelined towards campus—his mind swimming in warm fuzzy fantasies—he was unaware of the pair of eyes that watched him from a distance.