“She’s in no danger.”
“A vampire was drinking her like a milkshake five minutes ago.” She crossed her arms, still refusing to move.
“She drank my blood, and now she has my scent on her. No other vampire will lay a finger on her,” I said, my temper starting to rise. Why wouldn’t she just listen?
“It’s not your fingers I’m worried about,” she muttered. “Okay, then put your scent on me, so I can go find my cello and explain where I’ve been.”
A smile tugged at my lips, but I wouldn’t let it loose. “It’s not that simple.”
“Why not?” she challenged me.
“Would you like to ingest my blood?” I asked her.
Thea gulped and shook her head.
“Would you like me to drink your blood?” I imagined that was an even less appealing option.
“You can’t just rub against me or something?” Her hand flew to her mouth as soon as she realized what she had said.
“There is another way, but it would take a little more than rubbing, pet,” I purred, taking a step closer to her. Her remark was innocent, but my thoughts weren’t. Maybe all I needed was to get this unusual human out of my system.
But I knew that was a lie.
“What would it take?” she asked breathlessly.
I leaned down, lowering my voice to a murmur only she could hear. With vampires everywhere, I needed to be cautious. Bedding humans was frowned on, but during the social season, it was against every rule of etiquette to form a new attachment to a mortal. “I could take you to bed. No one would doubt you were mine after that.”
She gulped, a battle beginning in her eyes. “I’ve never–”
“There you are!” A sharp, imperious voice interrupted before she could finish. I straightened and shot Thea a warning look as a beautiful woman in a red silk gown sauntered toward us. Next to me, Thea gawked as she took her in. That was how people usually reacted when they saw Sabine. I’d been suffering through its effect on her ego for nearly a millennium.
“You didn’t come to the house,” she said, placing a possessive hand on my bicep. Thea stiffened next to me. I looked to discover her lips turned down in a sour expression.
“Because you’re avoiding me,” I reminded her.
“I’ve been busy.” She shrugged a shoulder dismissively. “Engagements don’t plan themselves.”
“I hope by engagements you mean parties.”
“Of course.” She blinked twice, a sure sign that she was lying. I’d learned to recognize her tells. It was why she always lost to me in games of poker. “What else would I mean?”
Thea cleared her throat politely. “I should be going. Thank you for your help.”
“Help?” Sabine repeated, curiosity tainting her voice.
“It’s nothing,” I said before Thea could repeat any of this evening’s disasters. It was bad enough that I’d gotten involved. It was worse that I’d nearly given in to my thirst for Thea. Sabine didn’t need to know any of that.
“Nonsense.” But she wasn’t the type of vampire to roll over and accept that answer. “How did my son help you?”
“Son?” Thea choked.
Had I actually thought things couldn’t get more complicated? Obviously, I’d forgotten how the world worked while I was desiccating alone in the Keys. This was a rather unpleasant reminder of who I was and of my duty.
Sabine waited expectantly for me to respond, and I knew I had no choice but to turn to Thea. “Allow me to introduce my mother.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
THEA
“She’s your mother?” The words slipped out before I could stop myself.
“Julian.” The woman glared at him with a look that only a mom could muster in such a moment. “May I have a word?”
“Excuse us for a moment,” he said tightly.
I nodded, feeling a bit numb, as I watched the two of them walk a few steps down the hall to a shadowy alcove. His mother was incredibly beautiful, her hair the same glossy dark color and her features just as striking as his, but softer. Not that she was his actual mother, probably. I mean vampires were made, as far as I knew. That was how it worked in stories.
Usually, I liked to consider myself a fairly adaptable person. Why fight change when you can run with it? But watching them whisper in the dark, my brain was on overload. Too much was happening too fast. This had to be a dream. One of those crazy, swiftly changing ones that felt so real you almost believed it was happening.
I closed my eyes. “Wake up, Thea. You’re dreaming.”
Usually that did the trick, especially when I was stuck in a nightmare. And this was a nightmare–wasn’t it? Opening my eyes again, I found myself still standing in the corridor. Julian and his mother huddled a short distance away. I pinched my arm, just to be certain.
“Ouch.”
This was really happening. All of it.
Vampires were real.
