Eric winced at the body hitting the ground. That smack of flesh and blood hitting the concrete never had been a sound he was fond of. And being accused of lying, Eric shook his head at John, "Believe what you'd like, John." He didn't drink blood. Not human blood, anyway. The intake of food kept tje urges satisfied and only when the lust was truly too overwhelming did he take blood in from his own mate to quench that thirst. He had never hunted anyone, never killed anyone for food. He wasn't about to start now, and he wasn't a scavenger, he wouldn't take scraps unless there was an absolute need.
"If I didn't want to be around you, John, I wouldn't be here right now. There are plenty of places to stop and clean up before we get to the studio. But I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to do." He was in no position to force John to come with him if the man didn't want to.