by Multiple
“We need to find Lady Beth,” he stated. “She’s not within my hearing.”
Baptiste nodded, as Irene offered, “I saw her across the ballroom toward the far side. She left my side and I noticed.”
Trinity began to move in that direction. “Still, we will check all places,” Church ordered behind him. “I will check upstairs. Baptiste can look out front and Miss Irene may look through the ladies’ retiring rooms.”
Trinity heard the last only with his exceptional hearing because he was halfway across the ballroom. People tried to corner him into conversation, but he merely nodded, not caring if he appeared rude. His inner thoughts were trying to calm him, by pointing out his and Beth’s connection was very new. Perhaps this was a side effect. Too many people dulled it, and the ballroom was much fuller than he’d expected.
The curious couldn’t stand to be left out, he thought. Nevertheless, his wife offered his family great benefits. Now society would stop wondering at the bachelors. For a while.
“My Lord Montrose, I wanted to tell you how sorry I am that I was in anyway involved in the misunderstanding concerning you and Lady Beth Winslow.”
Trinity halted his forward march at these remarkable words coming from a young society miss. Then he placed her as Lady Ariel. “Countess Montrose,” he corrected curtly. This was the twit whose gossip tried to ruin his wife.
He glared down at the young woman. “I wouldn’t call your interfering, patently wrong, and malicious gossiping a misunderstanding,” he uttered.
The lady turned white at his accusations, as he added, “But I will thank you nonetheless, because your misunderstanding has given me my countess. The one you called friend.”
He turned and left the lady behind, going into the far hallway where his senses came alive. “She was here,” he whispered. He started forward to follow a scent he would ever think of as heather on the moors mixed with starlight.
His brothers quickly realized his assurance that he was on the right trail and they came from each corner they’d been searching to meet him beside the mansion in an alcove portion of the shrubbery. There was a fountain, a circular patio, a bench, and three people under the latent light of torches in the distance.
Trinity stilled when he realized one of the three was a vampire, and he grasped Church’s and Baptiste’s arms, holding them back from rushing forward and approaching. A sick feeling centered in his gut. The vampire obviously had his wife under his spell. Fangs punched out of his gums with viciousness that wasn’t displayed through to his body. He held still, assessing, and his senses told him …
“That vampire is older than any I’ve ever met,” Church uttered beside him.
The women swayed before the tall vampire who was dressed as though attending an evening ball. The power that emanated off the vampire pounded against Trinity’s chest, verifying Church’s assessment that this was an ancient.
“Salvete, gentlemen. I come not for blood,” the ancient vampire turned his gaze to them. Trinity felt a snarl catch in his throat because the eyes of the vampire were white.
“Latin,” Baptiste whispered alongside him of the word the vampire used. It was a harmless greeting, but the power and strength exuding from him was not harmless at all.
“As old as Rome,” Church said with awe.
Trinity’s gaze widened. “Then you’d not hold my wife under your spell,” he snapped, slowly walking closer.
Church stayed a step behind him, and asked for Trinity’s ears only, “Who is the other woman?”
Trinity barely glanced at the young, blonde-haired woman with spectacles; he only knew she was human and as mesmerized as his wife was.
“Your mate,” the vampire stated, and Trinity noted his fangs were not present nor his claws. “I sense this now,” he said, bowing and taking a step back. “I would not have intruded had I realized.”
Trinity watched the vampire’s eyes turn from white to bold, striking violet. He was built as if he were a gladiator from ancient times. Trinity watched Beth, released from the vampire’s hold, start to regain her senses with alarm stirring inside her. He sent forth a soothing presence.
“Ah, you are truly bound, as in the old ways,” the vampire murmured as Trinity halted beside Beth, grasping her waist to carry her to his side. His arm circled her as his thoughts divided. This vampire seemed to know about things he did not, such as mating. But his attention divided between Beth and her accoster.
“Who are you and why are you here accosting our women?” Church demanded, confronting the vampire and turning him away from the others. Trinity watched Church catch hold of the blonde-haired lady, holding her at his side. She seemed still under the oldest vampire’s spell.
“Trinity?” Beth questioned, leaning into him. His attention stayed on the older vampire and with Baptiste they formed a semi-circle behind Church.
Trinity leaned to Beth’s ear and said, “We are not out of danger yet, love.” He felt Beth’s soft body stiffen against him, but she stayed quiet.
“I am Lord Titus Constantine, Duke of Ironwood, on this small island. Salvete, gentlemen, and my lady.” He bowed slightly to Church and to them. “I normally keep my presence secluded to my estate in the far north.”
“Are we being threatened by you?” Church demanded.
Titus raised a well-formed raven eyebrow. “I have no cause against you.” Then he added, “Yet.” Lord Titus Constantine’s returning smile was not sinister.
Trinity demanded, “Why have you approached my mate?” The word Titus had used felt so appropriate it sunk into him with perfection.
“I seek the killer of my progeny and your mate has a connection to the slayer.”
“Lord Fanton!” Beth exclaimed.
Trinity held her tightly, watching Titus nod.
“You sired Cull?” Church asked with surprise.
They all watched Titus nod again, while Baptiste muttered beside them, “I’ll wager that is some story.”
Titus smiled a brilliant flash of white teeth with fangs still held at bay. “As you can imagine I am very protective of what is mine,” Titus uttered. “I will not allow my blood’s — Cull’s murder to go unpunished.”
“Then you align with us,” Church said. “Nothing will stop us from hunting down Lord Fanton Rothschild and ending his terror.”
“I perceive there is more to his evil ways I have not heard yet,” Titus said.
Church nodded. “But we don’t take live human blood, nor will we ever again, and we will not align ourselves with any that do.”
Titus raised a hand. “I applaud your morality.” He bowed. “I have not fed from human in over two hundred years.” His smile lifted. “Shall we challenge each other’s commitment?”
Church scowled. “If your words can be believed.”
Titus raised both eyebrows. “You are careful. I am careful also,” he stated. He turned fully to Trinity. “I will ask your permission to visit your mate next time, in your presence, to ask about this rogue named Fanton.”
Trinity didn’t respond as Titus started to turn away as though leaving them. The blonde lady sighed, and Church caught her before she sank to the ground, obviously released from the ancient vampire’s hold.
“Wait,” Trinity called, and he set Beth aside, next to Baptiste, then he approached Titus. “You seemed to know we are mated. How?”
Titus stepped a few paces forward and looked up to the moon, as he murmured, “You do not know of this?”
Trinity shook his head, watching Titus’ striking gaze return to him. “Your Sire never taught you?” he questioned again.
“No,” Trinity expelled with more loathing than he wanted to reveal.
“That is a grave grievance for such perfect knowledge,” Titus said lowly. His gaze swept Trinity from head to toe as if judging. “You live by vows?” Titus asked. Trinity nodded as Titus continued to ask, “Vows you’ve freely chosen to, shall we say, uplift your humanity?”
Trinity nodded again, curtly. “We
do, and we try to enforce other vampires to live by certain vows.”
Titus glanced over at the others. “This is good. Our brethren were destroyed, hunted into ash in the old countries across the sea, because they could never learn to deprive themselves and temper their lusts.”
“You are from the old countries as you call it? Across the sea?” Church asked as he held the lady cradled in his arms. She seemed in a faint against him.
“I am.”
“The questions I could have for you!” Baptiste blurted.
“I can see you all are young and eager to learn,” Titus said. “Perhaps we will become better acquainted. For now I will just tell you …” He bowed to Trinity. “That you have found a human woman capable of mating with you. It is not as rare as one would think. Once you are blood bonded, she will never age, along with you, and you will forever hear her call of need. Here,” Titus pointed to his temple. He turned sideways, retreating slightly. “The rest I will leave as enticement so that we have something to trade each other in the future, you and I.”
Trinity held out his hand. Titus looked at it curiously, and then, slowly, his hand rose, until they clasped hands. “I will expect you to come through the front door next time.”
Titus returned his firm handshake, then released his grip. From one second to the next, Titus was there, and then he was gone in a whirlwind of what looked like thick, black smoke.
Trinity felt the shock of the unexpected apparition strike through him as he held against any outward reaction. He heard Beth gasp, and Baptiste exclaimed, “Bloody hell, did you see that!”
They watched the black cloud whirl and coalesce in a swirling configuration leaping toward the moon, and then it darted away toward the north.
“I’m glad he seems on our side,” Church muttered behind Trinity, making Trinity turn back to the group. Then Church added, “Anyone know who this is?” They all looked at the lady starting to revive in Church’s arms.
“She’s Lady Elsbeth, the dowager Duchess of Hawthorn,” Beth supplied.
“She’s too young to be widowed and a dowager,” Church blurted, as Trinity watched him looking down into the lady’s blinking gaze behind her spectacles.
“W-What in the world is happening?” Lady Elsbeth Hawthorn stuttered.
Trinity strode to Beth’s side, as he uttered, “You’d best fix that quickly, Church.”
Church seemed caught in a trance of his own, standing immobile looking down at the woman beginning to struggle in his arms. “W-Who are you?” she demanded of Church.
Baptiste announced to the group, “I’d best get back to Miss Irene, if all is well.” He started away at a regular pace before adding, “I can feel she’s very upset.” Suddenly, he stalled, looking back at them and his gaze bore down on Trinity. “Didn’t Lord Titus just say one can inwardly hear their mate?”
“Damnation,” Church cursed. “She won’t mesmerize. I’ve tried it several times.”
Beth let out a small laugh and exclaimed, “And we know you cannot hypnotize your mate.”
Trinity’s eyes widened as he looked at his brothers. Beth clasped his hand and he pulled her to him as she smiled at him with loving amusement. He felt the certainty in her thoughts that surely it seemed his brothers were heading toward romantic entanglements.
He grasped her waist and turned her several times as though they danced a slow dance, until they stood off alone in the moonlight. His brothers could handle their dilemmas because he had something more important to do.
“Trinity,” Beth laughed, as they danced an impromptu waltz.
He bowed. “My lovely wife.” Then he drew her against him. “My lovely mate,” he said with such clarity, and then his lips slanted over Beth’s welcoming mouth.
When he allowed her lips free, she gasped, “I do love you, Trinity.”
He bent, sweeping her up into his arms, catching her by surprise as she gasped his name.
He began to stride away from the ball. “I love you too, Beth, and I intend to show you how much. Now.”
He would find a back way to their bedchambers even if he had to display unnatural strength and scale an outside balcony to do so.
The End.
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Love Charms
A Paranormal Romance Boxed Set
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