Maddoc’s heart skipped a beat at his brother’s question. If a dream demon had decided to attack her in her sleep, neither he nor his brother would be able to do anything. Her whimpers elevated into soft cries as more tears escaped and ran down her cheeks.
“Dani!” Gavin snapped louder than before and shook her shoulder sharply. “Wake up.”
“Erin!” Dannika screamed out her friend’s name as she lurched into a sitting position. “Don’t touch me!” She batted away their hands as she scrabbled backward down the bed until the footboard stopped her. Her face and body whipped around as if she was looking for an attack.
Maddoc didn’t take offense. It was obvious that the dream still had her in its grip. “Give her a second,” he said to Gavin before his brother could move closer. It only took a minute for her to calm slightly. She wiped her cheeks, blinking at the tears that covered her fingers.
Both he and Gavin moved toward her then. Gavin lifted her into his lap, hugging her. “Bad dream, Dani?”
She nodded and reached out her hand, and Maddoc grabbed a hold tightly. Now that the threat had passed, he felt his heart slamming against his chest and wondered if he could have a heart attack. This has to be what one feels like.
“You yelled Erin’s name a moment ago. Was she in your dream?”
“Yes, we were back in the cemetery, only you didn’t find me and I got back to her this time, but something was eating her. It was horrible. I couldn’t do anything. And then more were chasing me, and I couldn’t find her anymore. And what if something has happened to her? What if she needs me?” Dannika’s words came out in a fast rush of panic interspersed with crying hiccups.
The pain radiating off her was more than Maddoc could stand. A quick glance at the window confirmed that it was still nighttime. He met Gavin’s gaze over her head as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. They both knew where Erin might be, and if she was still alive they needed to get her here.
“Go snuggle with Maddoc, baby. I feel better now that I’ve been able to hold you, and I think he’s more traumatized by your crying than you were by your dream.”
She made a noise that sounded like a cross between a snort and a laugh as Gavin passed her over to him. Maddoc felt everything in his world shift back to normal when she willingly went into his arms. Gavin left the bed, and Maddoc shifted them back up to the pillows. Erin curled up against him as they stretched out. Her breathing still had a shudder to it as her body tried to calm down. He could feel her internal energy rolling like a violent hurricane as it fought to control her emotions.
“Shhh. You’re safe now. We’ll never let anything happen to you, and I swear we’ll find Erin for you.”
“You promise?”
“Cross our hearts,” Gavin answered as he came back across the room. He passed Maddoc a damp facecloth. Dannika sighed when he wiped the cool cloth over her cheeks, washing away the salty tears.
Gavin slid under the covers beside her, and she rolled into his embrace, snuggling her face against his neck much as she had done with him. Maddoc stroked his hand down her spine, a long, slow caress, as he concentrated on calming the storm of emotions inside her.
Dannika was an incredible dichotomy of what she showed in her expressions and what really went on inside of her. Physically, she looked like she was trying to settle down to go to sleep, but internally he could feel the riot of emotions that hammered against her psyche. She felt everything around her so acutely it was no wonder she looked emotionless on the surface.
Both he and Gavin laid there with her, stroking her skin, calming her until they felt her finally slip back into sleep. They continued to touch her, ensuring that this time her sleep was peaceful and deep.
“I’m going to get Erin.”
Maddoc fought the immediate urge to shout at his brother’s stupidity. It was a foolish idea, but Dannika needed to know the truth about her friend. “If they changed her, she wouldn’t be that strong right now.”
“That’s what I’m counting on. I know where they live.”
“Don’t go inside.” Maddoc’s stomach cramped at the thought of losing his brother to a swarm of vampires. “Maybe I should go with you.”
“No, you need to stay here with Dani. Keep her safe and calm. If I can speak to Erin and they are as close as Dani says…”
“She’ll come with you to reassure her.”
“That’s what I’m counting on.” Gavin leaned down and pressed a soft kiss against Dannika’s hair. “I’ll text you when I’m on my way home with Erin, that way you can wake Dani up and get her ready. If Erin isn’t alive, we’ll let her sleep and tell her tomorrow.”
“I hope you come home with her.”
“So do I.”
Chapter Nine
The last thing Dani had expected was her best friend to suddenly launch herself across the kitchen table at her. She’d been so excited when Maddoc woke her up and explained that Gavin had found Erin and was bringing her back home with him.
“No, Maddoc! Gavin, don’t hurt her!” Dani struggled against his grip as she watched Gavin tackle Erin to the floor. There was no way she was going to get away from Maddoc. He was too strong, but she had to try. They don’t understand. “Erin would never hurt me—”
Oompf. Maddoc flipped her up over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. His shoulder felt like a cement block pressing against her diaphragm, but that didn’t stop her from smacking his back and kicking her legs. “Put me down, Maddoc. Right now.”
A sharp sting radiated over her ass when he smacked her.
“Ow!”
“Behave.”
“Behave? I’m not a pet to be ordered around.” Dani smacked his lower back once more but gave up on trying to wriggle out of his grip. “You don’t know her. Erin is one of my best friends. She would never hurt me.”
“She was about to rip your fucking throat out. It was a stupid idea to bring her here and an even stupider one to let her get within arm’s reach of you.”
He took the staircase two steps at a time, making Dani grip his waistband and close her eyes. While deep down she knew he wouldn’t drop her, it was still unnerving to be hanging down his back like this. She might not understand everything that was going on, but she understood that they had tried to make her feel better by arranging the meeting with Erin. They didn’t understand that whatever had happened to her friend, Erin would never hurt her.
“She’s a newly made vampire, Dannika. We were out of our minds allowing her to get within a mile of you.”
“That explains why she looks like a porcelain doll.” Dani thought about how Erin had looked at the airport compared to today. I’m the terrible friend. How did I miss the drastic changes in Erin’s appearance?
Maddoc headed straight to the bedroom and gently deposited her on the bed. Then he started pacing back and forth across the room. “She knows where you are now. We’re going to have to be prepared if she comes back. The wards should hold her back for a while, but it won’t take long before she’s strong enough to break through them. At least we’ll have a warning. We’re going to have to move you somewhere else. It’s the only way to keep you safe.”
Dani watched Maddoc move back and forth, muttering to himself about everything they were going to make her do. Like that’s going to happen. They didn’t know Erin like she did, and she didn’t believe for a moment that Erin would have truly hurt her.
She scooted back on the bed and rested her back against the headboard. Reaching over, she picked up her astrolabe and ran her fingers over the familiar edges. She wasn’t that unintelligent that she would go find Erin herself, even if Gavin knew where she was. She knew that Erin wasn’t a coldhearted killer and would feel horribly guilty when she snapped out of it. Dani just hoped that her friend didn’t do anything ridiculous to try to atone for her actions.
It was only a matter of minutes before Gavin stormed in the room and headed straight for her. “That was the dumbest idea I’ve ever had.” He crawled on th
e bed and then started running his hands along Dani’s arms before gently cupping her jaw and tilting her head back and forth, looking at her neck.
Dani had to admit, while she appreciated their concern for her well-being, their actions were starting to piss her off.
“Never again, Dani.” Gavin pointed at her like one would a naughty pet. “You will never see that woman again.”
“Try it.”
Gavin blinked at her words, and she could tell that he’d lost track of his ranting. Even Maddoc stopped his pacing and was staring at her. Since they had both finally shut up, she decided to make a few things clear herself.
“Give me some space.” She pushed at Gavin’s chest, and he dropped back away from her to sit on his heels. “Now, both of you listen to me. I realize I might not understand many of the nuances of what went on tonight, but I do know that the two of you are treating me like a child. Neither of you have the right to stop me from seeing who I want to, nor do you have the right to stop me from going anywhere in this world. I have stayed here because I’m in a city I don’t know and the two of you have offered me kindness and safety. But don’t think that gives you the right to boss me around.”
“That’s the only reason you’ve stayed?” Maddoc had his arms crossed over his chest, and Gavin eased himself off the bed to stand next to him.
It wasn’t the only reason, and she had a feeling that if she didn’t tell them the entire truth then everything would completely spiral out of her control. “No, it’s not the only reason. You both are fascinating men that I want to get to know much better. I don’t know if I can be what you want, though. I don’t understand a lot of what is going on most of the time.”
“Like what?” Gavin was the one to ask this time, but neither of them moved closer.
“Like when the two of you look at each other and seem to know what the other is thinking, to start. And sometimes I think that you are asking me something, but really you mean it another way. I don’t do subtle. I do Mack truck.”
Gavin looked at Maddoc, who’d relaxed his posture somewhat. “She means as subtle as a Mack truck, don’t you, Dannika?”
“It’s Dani, and yes. Speaking of which, why do you insist on calling me by my legal name?”
Maddoc shrugged one shoulder. “Because no one else does. I like to be different.” And because he’s used to doing things around family that help them differentiate between them.
“If you wanted to be different, you’d shave your head or do something else drastic enough that everyone would be able to tell you apart. I think you like to fool people.”
“But we’ve never fooled you, have we?”
Dani shook her head.
“Don’t you think that’s something special?” Gavin took a step toward her, but she stepped away from him. With everything that had happened she needed to process, and if either of them touched her, she’d never get her thoughts in order.
“I need some time to think. There’s so much I don’t understand. So much has changed.” She’d never been a fan of change. Her entire life had been a single routine of habits that kept her calm and alone. Now in the last week, she’d lost her job, traveled to New Orleans, been attacked by a…thing, and then by her best friend. Not to forget the two men she’d met and slept with who didn’t appear to mind her habits. I should be a melting pot of anxiety and panic by now.
Maddoc stepped to the side table and picked up her astrolabe, handing it to her. “Here, you look like you need this.” There wasn’t any sarcasm or disdain in his tone, only warm concern.
Her fingers wrapped around the warm metal, and she felt a shimmer dance up her arm when their fingers touched. Maddoc bent down and kissed her, his lips soft against hers, taking her along a path her body was happy to follow before he broke the kiss. “We can give you space, but please don’t leave the house without saying something.”
When he stepped back, Gavin swooped in and kissed her as well. Cupping her jaw, he nibbled on her lips until she opened for him. Their kisses were much shorter than she would have wanted, but under the circumstances, she understood. Gavin wrapped his hand over hers and rubbed his thumb against the astrolabe next to her fingers. “Don’t take too long or we’re coming back up here to convince you.”
“I appreciate your understanding. There’s so much I need to think about.”
When they left the room, it felt like a great deal of heat left with them. Dani held the metal star chart to her chest and paced back and forth across the room as she tried to place everything in categories in her head. Her mom used to tease her that her brain was like a filing cabinet, and Dani couldn’t understand things completely until the filing was finished.
She had no idea how much time had passed, but the sun was flooding through the large bedroom windows when she thought she might have it all sorted out in her head. She had more questions, but the answers were with Gavin and Maddoc.
Her cell phone trilled when she was placing her astrolabe on the dresser. A short stab of disappointment that it wasn’t one of her friends was quickly banished by relief when the screen showed her mother’s number. Moms were always good for bouncing ideas off of.
“Hi, Mom! Did you get the guy in to check your roof?”
“Hi, sweetheart. Yes, the inspector was here yesterday. I’ve procrastinated about the roof long enough and have to get it redone.”
Dani knew her mother’s income wouldn’t have the wiggle room to allow for that kind of bill. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you pay for it.”
“You most certainly will not. I called the lab yesterday to talk to you and found that your grants had been cut.”
Dammit, so much for keeping that from her. “Mom, why would you call the lab, I told you I was going away this weekend with my friends.”
“Because, I thought it was next weekend, and stop trying to change the subject.”
“I was going to tell you, but I didn’t want you to worry. They had to cut us all until…if…they can get the grants reinstated.”
“Dani, I love you and I appreciate your offer, but I’m not taking your money. Do you have any ideas of what you’re going to do next?”
“I have some plans I’m working on.” There were other observatories and universities that she had applied to. She had the qualifications to be an asset, but she hadn’t heard anything back yet. “I’m probably going to have to move out of state, though. I don’t like you staying in that old house by yourself.”
“Don’t you worry about me. Everything will work out.”
“I want you to call the roofers and get it fixed before another hurricane comes through and takes your roof with it. I’m going to transfer the money from my savings to you.”
“Dani, I’m not taking your money.”
“Yes, you are. I have an emergency account for this very thing. I told you I have some lines out there and will get something lucrative soon. Don’t worry about me.”
“I’m your mother. When you’re fifty I’m still going to worry about you.”
“Love you.”
“I love you, too. Give me a call when you get back.”
Dani ended the call and then opened the app for the bank on her phone and transferred the money her mother would need to her. For so long, she and her mom only had each other to count on, but now with Gavin and Maddoc… Dani wanted them to meet her mom more than anything in the universe.
Leaving the phone on the dresser next to the astrolabe, she headed out to find the guys. The house was quieter than normal as she padded down the hallway. She paused from looking at the many framed pictures that covered the hallways, all from so many different decades and centuries. Many of them were antiques, as well as professional modern portraits, but the one common denominator in them was the subjects.
Maddoc, Gavin, Katie, Jilly, Duggan, Padrig, and Connor.
They’d been a family for well over a century from what Dani could surmise. They obviously loved each other and had accepted other people into their extende
d family. Does that mean there could be a place for me?
“They aren’t for you.”
Dani gasped and looked down the hall where Duggan was standing, one hand on the banister. She hadn’t heard him come up the stairs. “Did I say something out loud?”
“No, but you’re not the first woman to look at this house and property and see rich golden wedding bells.”
“That’s the last thing on my mind.” Dani’s thoughts swirled as she tried to figure out what Duggan was getting to. The acrid scent of incense clinging to him made her want to sneeze, and he looked as though he’d aged twenty years since the night before.
“Funny, because I could have sworn I heard you on the phone with someone talking about how you don’t have a job but you have a plan. Spreading your legs for those two won’t get a ring on your finger. Many have tried, but they are in love with Katie. She’s the one meant to stand between them. You remember that as you’re packing your things. You’ve overstayed your welcome.”
It was hard to take a breath as it felt like her throat and chest had seized. She jerked a nod, and he turned and stomped his way down the hallway. Dani felt like the walls were closing in on her as she fled back up to her bedroom.
Duggan’s words replayed in her head as she looked out the window and down into the courtyard. Maddoc stood there with his arm around Katie’s shoulders. Gavin relaxed in a chair on her other side. Katie looked like she belonged between them, and no one missed Dani’s presence.
Her throat tightened as she fought back the tears. “Why do I care?” she muttered to herself. “It’s not like I’m in love with them.” Yes, you are. “It’s too soon. Love doesn’t grow this fast. It takes time.” Then why does it hurt so much? She swiped at the tears that spilled over onto her cheeks. It felt like a knife had pierced her chest, the pain growing exponentially and destroying the wonderful calm bubble she’d been living in. Fear and uncertainty flooded her system, a cold violent change to her senses. Her awareness of the two of them had changed. She understood their subtle actions, the nonverbal communications that most people took for granted but she’d never understood.
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