by Sarah Piper
Herbs she’d later used to poison him, but still.
After a long silence, Gabriel turned to Dorian and lifted his glass, his gaze heavy and serious, his mouth pulled into a deep frown.
In that moment, Dorian knew they were both thinking of Malcolm. Of all the things they’d said and hadn’t said, all the wrong turns, all the mistakes.
All the love.
There were no long speeches. No teary-eyed sharing of memories. But somehow, Gabriel managed to find the words that encapsulated it all.
“To brotherhood.”
Brotherhood.
For so long, it had gone hand-in-hand with betrayal and loss. With regret. With anger.
But now, it gave Dorian strength.
He raised his glass in return and smiled. “To brotherhood.”
“All set, love?” Dorian asked as Charlotte finally returned from escorting her sister outside with Aiden. Colin, Gabriel, Isabelle, Cole, and some of Rogozin’s demons were staying behind to finish cleaning up and interrogating the witches, but Dorian was more than ready to get the hell out of there.
He wanted a shower.
He wanted a nap.
He wanted to make love to his woman—in the shower and after a nap.
Charlotte nodded. “Sasha asked to ride back to Ravenswood with Aiden.”
Gabriel let out a low chuckle. “I’ll bet she did.”
“Hey!” She laughed and smacked his shoulder. “That’s my sister you’re talking about, dickhead.”
“And my brother,” he added.
Dorian arched an eyebrow. “You do realize she’s talking about Aiden, right?”
Gabriel shrugged. “I think he’s earned it, don’t you?”
“Nearly two hundred and fifty years ago, yes.”
“Better late than never.”
“Indeed.” Dorian rose from the barstool and pulled his woman in for another kiss, breathing in her sweet scent, deeply buried beneath the blood and grime.
The shower would be long and epic.
His cock was already hard just thinking about it.
“You two are bloody disgusting,” Gabriel grumbled, grabbing the last of the scotch and stalking off to find somewhere else to brood.
Charlotte finally pulled back, her eyes shining with emotion as she took Dorian’s face between her hands.
Her touch, as always, steadied him.
“We did it,” she whispered. “We got her back.”
“We got you both back.”
She stretched up for one more kiss, then whispered, “Take me home, vampire king.”
Home.
Passing from her lips, the word was a balm on his broken heart, and he scooped her into his arms and carried her out of those bloodied ruins, out onto St. Mark’s Place and into the bright hope of a brand new day.
Chapter Thirty-Four
One Month Later
As the daughter of a professional art thief, Charley had experienced her share of endings. Broken promises. Shattered families. Deaths.
Every last one of her old endings had been abrupt and devastating, leaving her to pick up the pieces and move on as best she could.
But now, as she bubble-wrapped the last coffee mug from her kitchen cabinets and set it into the box with the others, Charley was experiencing a new kind of ending. One that set the butterflies inside her to flight, whispering in her ear about new beginnings. Possibilities. Promises.
Everything was changing so fast.
Thanks to a hacker friend of Gabriel’s—another of his shady, mysterious contacts—they were able to transfer Charley’s father’s legal assets back into her name where they belonged. Once that was settled, she sold the penthouse in record time.
As beautiful as it was, she didn’t want to stay there. The penthouse was part of another life—an old life Charley had long ago outgrown. The embers had already been smoldering within her when she first met Dorian, and in the time they’d been together, they’d exploded into a full-on inferno.
Now, she was more than ready to emerge from those ashes.
To start again, her way.
Sasha had moved in with Darcy last weekend—a cute little two-bedroom apartment in Park Slope, Brooklyn, near some of their other friends from school. The girls had grown close, and after everything Sasha had experienced—everything she’d seen—she was ready to spread her wings a bit.
Next week, Charley would be moving out too—off to a third-floor walkup she’d found in Astoria, Queens, not far from the train. On a good commuting day, she’d be able to dash into one of the neighborhood’s famed Greek bakeries en route, pick up a pastry and some coffee to go, and make it to Manhattan in less than half an hour.
Her new boss was pretty flexible with her schedule, but Charley didn’t want to take advantage. She was beyond grateful that he’d even considered her proposal and given her a real job, despite her lack of legitimate experience. But since the acquisition of Armitage Holdings, FierceConnect was growing like crazy, and Dorian needed all the help he could get. As of last week, Charley was officially a marketing assistant for a brand new division geared toward attracting and supporting women gamers, developers, and content creators. She also got to consult on the artwork with some of Dorian’s developers, which she loved.
Mostly, Charley was tasked with getting coffees, scheduling meetings, making copies and travel arrangements—nothing too complicated. But she couldn’t have been happier. It was her first real, paying, on-the-books gig, and she showed up every day with an easy smile, eager to learn more.
Of course Dorian had tried to give her a higher position, but Charley wanted to start small, to work her way up through the ranks without any special favors from the boss.
It was her first job, after all, and she still had a lot to learn. But she had so much fun being there, having lunch with her new friends, sneaking away for an occasional “appointment” in the boss’s office. She even welcomed the stresses that came with working for such a high-profile company. To her, every challenge was another reminder that she was finally taking charge of her life, doing things her own way.
Her personal life had its own set of challenges, and Charley was facing those head-on as well. She and Sasha had decided to start counseling—at least for their human problems. Considering their rocky childhoods and everything else they’d been through, they had a lot to work through, both individually and as sisters. After all the secrets Charley had kept from Sasha, and everything that had happened as a result, Charley knew it would take time to earn her sister’s forgiveness and trust. She was ready to work for it, though. Together, they’d get through it, just like they always had—one day at a time.
That’s what it all came down to now: one day at a time. Sometimes, even one moment at a time.
Charley was grateful for every one of those moments, no matter how many more she got. If she’d learned one thing from the whirlwind of her existence these past few months, it was that life came with no guarantees—and an awful lot of surprise twists.
With a satisfied sigh, Charley taped up the box of mugs and pushed it against the kitchen wall with the others, officially done for the day. She checked her phone, thrilled to find a text from her man. He’d been at Ravenswood all day, supervising the final touches on his remodeled dining room, including delivery and installation of a new painting he’d recently purchased.
Question, his text said. Why aren’t you in my bed right now?
Hello to you too, she replied. I take it the installation went okay?
Come over and see for yourself. Better yet, come over and… come.
Mmm. Is there a guarantee on that offer?
Do you really need to ask? Don’t make me start without you.
Charley laughed. Okay. Let me shower & I’ll call an Uber.
Friends don’t let friends shower alone, love. Especially hot, sexy friends like you. I need to see you. NOW.
I’m sweaty and dirty and no. Just no.
The sweatier and dirtier the bett
er, Dorian replied. I’ve already sent a car for you. Jameson will be at your doorstep in 5 minutes.
You’re impossible!
You love me anyway.
Charley smiled again, letting out a happy sigh. Yes, Mr. Redthorne, she replied. I kinda do.
Dorian greeted Charley in the Ravenswood foyer wearing nothing but a mischievous smile. The moment she closed the door behind her, Charley was in his naked arms, fending off a barrage of kisses.
“I’m filthy. Stop!” Charley squealed, loving every minute of his attention. “What about the new dining room? Don’t you want to show me?”
“I’d rather show you something else.” Holding her tight, he blurred her up to the master suite. “Time to wash up, dirty girl.”
Wordlessly, Charley stripped off her clothes, and together they stepped into the shower, steam filling Charley’s lungs, the feel of the hot water on her skin instantly relaxing her. Dorian slipped his hands behind her neck and kissed her, and all the stress of the day’s packing vanished, swirling right down the drain.
Charley was in absolute heaven.
“If I could start and end every day like this…” She trailed off into another happy sigh, her fingers trailing lightly over Dorian’s perfectly sculpted abs.
Dorian slid has hands down to cup her ass. “Let me speak to the owner, see if we can work out some sort of deal. I have to warn you, though. It’s probably going to cost you. A lot.”
“Is that so, Mr. Redthorne?” Charley wrapped her hand around his cock, already hot and hard for her. He groaned at her touch, and she stroked him, slowly increasing the pressure, knowing just how he liked it.
Dorian leaned his head back and moaned, exposing the corded muscles of his neck and shoulders. Charley pressed a trail of hot, wet kisses across his chest, then down his abs, following the line of dark hair that led to his cock. She sat down on the shower bench, settling herself between his legs.
“I bet we can come to an arrangement,” she teased, urging him closer. As hot water streamed over their bodies, rivulets running down between her breasts and thighs, Charley parted her lips and took him deep into her mouth.
God, she’d never tire of the taste of him, the perfect fit of her lips around his smooth cock, the way he instantly fell under her spell as she stroked and sucked.
It was the same for her too. Whenever Dorian took control, whenever he touched her, kissed her, she was his. Completely. And she had been his, right from that very first kiss at the auction, giving herself over to him beneath a painting of a ship tossed about on a stormy sea.
“Bloody hell, woman. You’re not playing fair.” Dorian threaded his hands into her hair and guided himself deeper into her mouth, pumping harder and faster. She took him in—all of him—losing herself in his pleasure as he hit the back of her throat, the ache between her thighs growing unbearable. She slid forward on the bench and trailed a hand down her belly, her fingers dipping between her thighs, stroking her clit.
The sight of her touching herself made Dorian’s cock thicken, and the slide of his hot, wet flesh against her tongue turned her on to no end. She stroked herself faster, harder.
Sex with Dorian had always been so hot, so effortless, even when they were strangers—even when she was still human. There had never been any shame or self-consciousness between them, whether they were exploring each other’s bodies and boundaries or exploring their own. But things were different now. It wasn’t just that they were both vampires, although that definitely made things hotter. It was that they knew each other so well—that they loved each other, deeply and madly. The sex had taken on a new intensity, a feeling that Charley could scarcely put into words.
She didn’t have to.
She moaned against his flesh, sucking him harder, and when she looked up and met his eyes, she knew he was a goner.
“Charlotte!” He growled like an animal and gripped the back of her head, exploding in a hot torrent, his body shuddering with the pleasure of his release. She swallowed it down, moaning again as the wave of her own pleasure built between her thighs. Dorian slid out of her mouth, and she closed her eyes, circling her clit, bringing herself closer to the edge…
“No,” Dorian said. “Not yet.” He grabbed her wrist to stop her, and when she opened her eyes, he was on his knees. He dug his fingers into the flesh around her hips and slid her forward on the bench, then he dipped his head low. “I’ve been dying for a taste of you all day.”
As the steam billowed between them, Dorian kissed her inner thigh, dragging his tongue along the sensitive skin, slowly making his way to her center. Her pussy ached for him, wet and needy as he traced her outer lips with his tongue, licking and sucking as his hands gripped her thighs, every kiss making her writhe in ecstasy.
She shoved her hands into his hair and pulled him closer, but Dorian was intent on teasing her, pulling away before she fell over the edge, diving back in before she lost her mind completely. He was an expert at this game, one she both hated and loved, building up the pressure inside her like a pot of water just short of boiling over.
But Dorian knew her body well; he sensed when she was about to lose control completely, and rewarded her for her patience by thrusting his tongue deep into her pussy, stroking her clit with his thumb until he brought her all the way there.
“Dorian, yes! Oh God, right there!” She gasped as her body clenched around his tongue, her legs trembling, her heart banging in her chest as the waves of pleasure slammed into her, again and again and again.
After a long moment, Dorian finally pulled away, rising up off of his knees and bringing her with him.
Charley didn’t have the strength to stand up on her own, but she didn’t need it. Dorian lifted her effortlessly, pressing her against the shower wall as she wrapped her legs around him. He was hard again, ready for her, kissing her passionately as she slid down over his cock, his flesh filling her once again.
Dorian ran his thumb along her bottom lip, his eyes suddenly serious. He held her gaze for an eternity, water streaming down his face, dripping from his long lashes, pooling in the places where their bodies touched.
In his beautiful honey-brown eyes, she saw the soul of the vampire she loved, and knew she was right where she was supposed to be.
“I’m madly in love with you, my vampire queen,” he whispered.
She wrapped herself around him even more tightly, her heart full and happy as they found their perfect rhythm together, whispering each other’s names, kissing and touching until the sun went down and the seemingly infinite supply of hot water finally turned cold.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Dorian had tied the silk scarf expertly over Charlotte’s eyes, and now he placed his hands on her shoulders, carefully guiding her into the remodeled dining room.
It didn’t even look like the same room anymore, which was how he’d wanted it. No longer his fathers. No longer the room he most hated. But one he’d rebuilt, intending to fill it only with love. With family.
His family.
In less than a week, they’d be gathering around the table for their first holiday meal together—the Redthorne family Thanksgiving.
It was centuries in the making, and for the first time, Dorian actually felt the meaning behind its name.
He took one more glance around the room, wanting everything to be perfect for the big reveal. New hardwood floors gleamed beneath deep gray walls, the white woodwork and trim like icing on a perfect cake. They’d widened the glass doors and topped them with sheer window treatments that allowed in even more light. A blond oak table and chairs gave the room a bright, modern look, complete with a centerpiece of roses from Rosalind’s garden. At the far end of the room, the hearth had been rebuilt by hand, with massive black and gray stones from a local quarry.
It was beautiful, and the thought of filling it with his raucous family again made his heart nearly burst.
Now, Charlotte held her hands out in front of her, as if she were afraid she might trip.
>
“I’ve got you, love.” Dorian’s lips brushed the shell of her ear, and beneath her thin silk bathrobe, he felt the quickening of her pulse. “Are you certain you’re ready for this? Certain you absolutely, positively want to see this?”
“Oh my God, yes!” A nervous giggle bubbled from her lips, and she bounced a bit on her toes, reminding him of the proverbial child on Christmas morn. “I’ve been ready all day, Dorian. Come on!”
“You need to be really ready, though. Completely, utterly—”
“Dorian! If you keep building it up like this, it’ll be a total letdown.”
Dorian laughed, coming around in front of her and kissing her playfully on the nose. “Not possible.”
“The suspense is killing me. Would you just—”
Dorian silenced her with a deep kiss, then slowly untied the scarf, letting it drape down over her shoulders instead. He held her gaze for a long moment, her eyes full of so much love and wonder, it made his heart hurt in the best possible way.
Bloody hell, I love this woman.
After one more stolen kiss, he finally stepped out of her line of vision, revealing not just the new dining room, but the gift he’d installed for her.
Charlotte gasped, pressing her hands to her mouth as the tears filled her eyes.
There, mounted above the rebuilt hearth, illuminated by museum-quality recessed lighting that erased every last shadow, was her painting.
Adrift.
“But how did you…” She shook her head, as if she still couldn’t believe it. “That’s impossible. I saw it go at auction. That night when—”
“Yes, I remember.” Dorian grinned and took her hands. “Let’s just say I made the buyer an offer he couldn’t refuse.”
Her eyes widened, and he rushed to add, “Quite legally, I assure you. I’ve got the bill of sale to prove it, along with the certificate of authenticity from the Smithsonian, who sold it to the family in New York years ago, all on the up-and-up.”
