Ant and Viktor's Story
by
Doctor Anthony Channon, commonly known as Ant, had a stalker. Fortunately, with his abilities as a level twelve mage he knew the man didn't mean him any harm. Unfortunately, other people didn't feel so kindly toward Ant as he went about his business as a psychic police consultant, and after an errant bullet, Ant finally comes face to face with his stalker and learns one life-changing truth.
Viktor, no last name because a vampire didn't need one, had been working for a mob boss when he crossed paths with an intriguing mage. Compelled to follow him around, for no reason whatsoever except he wanted to, Viktor had a chance to be face to face with the man when someone tried to kill him... or his service animal, because that part is still being debated. The truth about his compulsion didn't hit him until later, but when Viktor finally worked it out, he knew keeping the mage safe wasn't going to be easy.
With bullets flying, a sassy sister, a dog who had teeth and knew how to use them, and forces working against them, the path to a happy ever after wasn't easy for Viktor and Ant. But sometimes, when the going gets tough, a vampire just had to do his thing, and a mage just had to let him.
This is an MM Paranormal Romance story that features Fated Mates. The story is intended for mature audiences and is a standalone.
Cover Artists:
Genres:
Pairings: M-M
Heat Level: 4
Romantic Content: 5
Ending: Click here to reveal
Character Identities: Gay
Protagonist 1 Age: Ageless/Immortal
Protagonist 2 Age: Ageless/Immortal
Tropes: Fated Mates / Soul Mates
Languages Available: English
“Ant, you’re not giving me anything but half answers here. What happened? Were you hurt? Speaking of which, where’s Able? Did he get hurt?” Bridget was looking under the table.
“No, no, neither one of us got hurt, and Able’s having a siesta on the back porch. You know how he likes the sun there in the morning and he’d had a long night, alongside me.” I’m going to have to tell her something. “I was just finishing my reading of the crime scene when someone took a shot at us – either me or Able, I’m not sure who but we’re fine,” he emphasized again. “We are absolutely fine. The bullet didn’t reach us.”
READ MORE“You got shot at? And all you can say is that The. Bullet. Didn’t. Reach. Us.” Bridget let out a long breath. “Only you could describe a shooting like that. What do you mean the bullet didn’t reach you? Did you see it fall on the ground in front of you? Did it whiz past your ear? Did some hero in a cape fly past and pluck it out of the air? What the hell, Ant? Give me details.”
Sometimes Bridget just made no sense at all – at least in Ant’s mind. “He wasn’t wearing a cape. I’m sure I would’ve noticed something like that.”
“What do you mean he wasn’t wearing a cape? Who wasn’t wearing a cape?”
“Viktor. The man who caught the bullet. He was wearing a suit, and you know, one of those long overcoats that cost a fortune.” Ant shook his head. “Definitely no cape, I’m sure of it, and he didn’t fly. He ran. He was like a blur he moved so fast. Zing. Zing.”
To his surprise, Bridget leaned over and banged her head on the table. Twice.
“Ouch, why did you do that?” There were times when Ant thought he had a handle on typical behavior, but then Bridget would come along and show him he still had a long way to go.
“Ant.” Bridget looked up, even though she was still hunched over the table. She glared at him. “Who the hell is Viktor?”
“My stalker?” Ant winced as Bridget banged her head on the table again.
“I haven’t had enough coffee for this,” Bridget moaned into the tabletop. “Seriously, Ant. I need coffee, now.”
“You would probably feel better if you didn’t keep banging your head on the table.” Ant got up, keeping hold of his mug. He could do with a refill. By the time he returned to the table with two fresh mugs of coffee, Bridget was sitting upright again. She had a bit of a red mark on her head, but Ant didn’t think she’d want him pointing it out.
He'd barely sat down again, when Bridget waved her forefinger at him. “As your older sister, wouldn’t you say I’ve always looked out for you as best as I can?”
Ant nodded. “You do an excellent job, thank you.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me you had a stalker?”
“Because you wouldn’t like it.” Ant took a hurried sip of his coffee. Bridget’s look implied that wasn’t good enough. “He wasn’t a bad stalker. More like someone following me around because they were curious about me. You know I can tell from the energies what a person is feeling about me, and nothing in the energies said he was going to hurt me.”
He shrugged and yawned, covering his mouth with his hand because Bridget had told him that was the polite thing to do. “I figured he’d get bored sooner or later. You said yourself I bore my students, and it’s not like I’m the life and soul of a party. I don’t even go to parties. It made sense to me that this person was just curious and would stop following me around whenever that curiosity had been satisfied. I was surprised it’s lasted this long, truth be told.”
“Stalkers are dangerous,” Bridget hissed. “Men and women all over the world are terrorized by stalkers every day. Your power relates to things that have already happened. You don’t know that person wasn’t following you around so they could learn your routine – looking for the perfect time to kill you on a future date.”
“But see.” Yes. Finally. Ant had an answer for that. “If it hadn’t been for my stalker I would’ve been dead or damaged last night, or Able would’ve been which is just as bad, but because I had a stalker, he saved me from that bullet. I told you that. It was a good thing he was there.”
“Maybe he was pissed off that someone else was trying to kill the person he’d been sizing up as his next victim. Did you ever think about that?”
“No.” Ant frowned as he took another sip of his coffee. “Who would think a thing like that?”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Bridget flung her hands in the air. “Maybe your stalker?”
“Viktor isn’t trying to kill me.” Ant was sure about that. Sort of. Almost sure. No, he was definitely sure.
“I swear you’re going to give me a heart attack.” Bridget sighed. “Okay, then Ant. You tell me. How do you know that this Viktor person won’t kill you? How can you know for sure?”
“I’m almost certain we’re fated mates,” Ant said slowly. “I did a short read on him, after he caught the bullet for me, and my magic said he was definitely mine.”
COLLAPSE
