by Karen Lynch
“Good.” The Council and I didn’t agree on a lot of things, but we’d always been on the same side. If they believed they were going to have any say in Sara’s life, they were in for a rude awakening.
There was a beep on the line followed by Tristan’s sigh. “Speaking of the Council. Back less than twenty-four hours and already they are calling. I have a feeling my phone is going to be busy for the next few months.”
I started walking back to the others. “I’ll let you know if we find anything at the nest.”
“Great. And someone from the task force should be reaching out to you soon. Going forward, you’ll give any information you find to them as well.”
“Sounds good.”
* * *
“You have a visitor.” Chris walked into the garage where I was cleaning my gear. I wiped down my weapons after every job, but to keep them in the best condition, I polished the blades daily with a light coating of oil.
I ran a cloth over my blade. “Who is it?”
“She’s from the task force. She’s here for an update.”
“Geoffrey has everything she needs.”
“But I’d much rather talk to you,” said a warm English voice.
My head came up and I stared at the blonde warrior standing in the doorway behind Chris. A smile spread across my face, and I laid aside my sword so I could stand.
“Viv! Why didn’t you tell me you were coming to Vegas?”
“I only found out myself last night.” She entered the garage and walked over to hug me.
My Mori cringed away from her, surprising me by its reaction to someone I’d known my entire life. Then I realized Viv was the first female I’d touched since I met Sara.
I gave her a quick hug and stepped back, earning a puzzled look from her.
“So you’re on the task force?” I asked as we walked back into the house.
She sank gracefully onto the couch. “Tristan called yesterday and asked me to be part of it. I’m surprised he didn’t tell you.”
“He probably thought it would be nice if you surprised me instead.”
“A good surprise, I hope.”
I smiled. “You know I love seeing you. I assume you’re here on business.”
She laughed. “I always mix business with pleasure, you know that. Have you eaten? I’m starving.”
“Not yet.”
“Good. Let’s go out. There are a ton of great restaurants in this city.” Her blue eyes sparkled. “Or we could go to my hotel and order room service. I’m staying at the Palms and the accommodations there are wonderful.”
The thought of being with anyone besides Sara caused an unpleasant sensation in my gut and made my Mori growl.
I shook my head. “How about Japanese instead? I know a great place you’ll like.”
“Japanese would be perfect.”
Her smile faltered a little, and I realized my tone had been a bit cool. I immediately regretted it. Vivian was one of my closest friends, and she deserved better.
I extended my arm to her, and she took it, letting me pull her to her feet.
“I’m sorry, Viv. I’ve been in a foul mood for a few days.”
Chris let out a bark of laughter as he passed us, heading for the stairs. “A few days. Sure.”
I ignored him. “I’d love to have dinner with you.”
Her warm smile returned. “Only if you tell me what’s causing your bad mood.”
“I will.” There was very little the two of us hadn’t been able to talk about over the years. We would never be intimate again, but our friendship was important to me, and I valued her advice and her opinions.
“Good. Let’s go then, because I’m famished.”
We went outside, and I chuckled when I saw the red Aston Martin sitting in the driveway. Vivian had a weakness for fast cars, and she didn’t believe in being inconspicuous.
She insisted on driving, and she was grinning when we pulled up to the valet parking at the restaurant. “God, I love this car.”
The valet’s eyes gleamed when she handed him her key along with a hundred. “Take good care of her for me.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
“You treat your cars better than you treat your men,” I teased as we walked into the restaurant.
Her rich laugh drew the attention of people nearby. “She’s not mine yet, but I think I’m in love.”
At my request, the hostess seated us in one of the restaurant’s small private dining rooms. A waitress came, and we ordered enough sushi to sink a boat, along with two bottles of their best sake.
The girl looked from me to Vivian. She was no doubt trying to figure out where someone as slender as my companion was going to put all that food. I hid my smile. Mohiri females’ appetites rivaled the males’, and Vivian loved sushi.
The waitress left, returning a few minutes later with our wine. Vivian filled our cups, and we toasted our friendship before we drank, a custom she’d started the first time we drank together back in our training days.
We talked about the task force while we waited for our food. Vivian was staying in Vegas for two days before she met up with Mateo and the rest of the team in Portland. The Master was interested in Sara and Madeline, so Mateo wanted to start the search where Sara grew up.
“I’m curious,” Vivian said after the waitress brought a large tray of food and left us to our meal. “Why aren’t you leading the task force instead of Mateo? Don’t get me wrong. Mateo is in a league of his own, but this is Tristan’s granddaughter. I should think you would have insisted on going after the Master based on that fact alone.”
I thought about the best way to answer. “Tristan didn’t ask me to be on the task force because he knew I couldn’t be away from Westhorne for that long.”
She let out a laugh. “What do you mean? You leave for months on end. You’re away from Westhorne now.”
“Only for a month. I’ll be going back in a few weeks.”
Her eyebrow arched. “Does this have anything to do with the bad mood you’ve been in?”
“Yes.” I laid my chopsticks on my plate and met her inquisitive gaze.
“I found my mate.”
Vivian choked on her sake.
I probably should have waited until after she’d drunk to spring the news on her.
“Good one,” she wheezed, her eyes watering.
I waited for her to catch her breath. “I’m not joking. I bonded with someone.”
“You…” She stared at me. “You’re serious.”
I nodded.
“But when? Who? It’s only been two months since I last saw you, and you’ve been in Maine that whole time with…” Her eyes widened. “Oh my God. Tristan’s granddaughter?”
“Yes.”
She put a hand over her mouth. A second later, she dissolved into laughter. My scowl only made her laugh harder until tears streamed down her face. It was a full five minutes before she could look at me without losing it again.
“And you wonder why I’m in a mood,” I muttered, reaching for the sake bottle.
“Oh, Nikolas, forgive me.” She dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. “But you would laugh too if you were in my shoes.”
“Probably,” I admitted grudgingly.
The two of us had always joked about which of us would “fall” first. I don’t think either of us expected it to be me. I thought about Sara curled up beside me on the plane, and a smile came unbidden to my lips. Suddenly, I couldn’t remember why I’d resisted the idea of a mate for so long.
“Wow.”
“What?”
“If you’d ever smiled like that for me, I’d have fallen head over heels for you.” She stared at me in wonder. “You love her.”
“Yes.”
Her eyes glistened with fresh tears. “Look what you’ve done to me. I’m crying like a school girl.”
I picked up my phone. “I should take a picture or no one will ever believe me.”
“Don’t you dare!” She rolled u
p her napkin and threw it at me.
Chuckling, I caught it and tossed it back to her.
She grew serious. “Tell me you’re happy. I’ve known people who bonded and weren’t happy so they broke the bond. I don’t want that for you.”
I refilled our cups as I thought about how to answer.
“It’s complicated, but yes, I’m happy.” Or I would be when I could finally tell Sara the truth.
“Do your parents know?”
“God, no. You know what my mother is like.”
Vivian laughed again. “She’s going to be ecstatic. And she’s going to make my life impossible after this.”
I gave her a questioning look.
“When she tells my mother you’ve settled down, I’ll never hear the end of it.” She sipped her wine. “What’s your mate like? I want to hear everything about her and your time in Maine.”
I leaned back in my chair and smiled at her. “How long do you have?”
“As long as it takes.”
We continued our meal, and over the next two hours, I described seeing Sara for the first time and the moment I knew she was my mate. I told Viv about Eli, his obsession with Sara, and my frustration at not being able to find him. Vivian made comments every now and then, but for the most part, she listened. Her eyes filled with disbelief and awe as I related the events of the last month, and I could imagine how it must sound to someone who hadn’t been there and was hearing it all at once.
My voice grew gruff when I spoke about the day Eli finally found Sara and how she’d disappeared. Vivian reached across the table and laid her hand on mine as I talked about the search for Sara and the agonizing three weeks that followed.
I told her about Sara’s sudden return and her story about where she’d been all that time. Being on the task force, Vivian already knew about Sara’s Fae heritage, and it felt good not to have to keep that from her.
“Sara must be very special to win your heart. And she doesn’t know how you feel?”
“I think she knows I care for her, but not how much. She knows nothing of the bond.”
Understanding dawned in her eyes. “Being away from her must be hell for you. Why aren’t you with her now, making her fall madly in love with you?”
“She’s been through so much, and leaving home was hard on her. I’m giving her time to adjust to her new life before I tell her the truth.”
Vivian leaned forward. “Your expression tells me leaving was not your idea.”
“It wasn’t.”
I told her about my reaction to Callum and about Tristan asking me to leave for a month.
“As much as I hate to see you hurting, I have to agree with Tristan. You’re intimidating enough without adding the emotions of a bonded male. No one would dare to approach Sara with you glowering over her shoulder.”
She smiled brightly. “But when the month is up, go get your girl and sweep her off her feet. There is no way any female could resist you for long.”
“You don’t know Sara,” I replied dryly. “But she’s worth the wait.”
“Okay, now I really have to meet this girl.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “You know, you seem to know a lot about bonded males for someone who’s avoided relationships as much as I have.”
Her smile faded. She pressed her lips together and looked away from me. I was not expecting the next words to come out of her mouth.
“That’s because I’ve experienced it firsthand.”
My jaw dropped. “You bonded with someone?”
“It was a long time ago, and no one you know. I met him in Germany in my third year out of training, and we felt the bond immediately.”
She let out a short laugh. “He was an arrogant piece of work, and I couldn’t stand him. He thought courting me meant talking about him and telling me I no longer needed to be a warrior. I broke the bond a week after I met him, and I haven’t seen him since.”
I stared at her. “All these years, why did you never say anything?”
She lifted a shoulder. “It’s not something I like to remember.”
“If you were hurting, I would have been there for you, had I known.” She would do the same for me.
“It was uncomfortable, but I never let the bond grow, and it dissolved a few months after I left. I wasn’t in pain; trust me on that. He probably wasn’t happy at first, but he didn’t pursue it.” Her smile returned. “It was nothing like what you have with Sara.”
The waitress came with our check. I paid it, and we left the restaurant.
“I’m going to miss our time together,” Vivian said wistfully as we waited for the valet to bring the car around. “But I’m happy for you, Nikolas.”
“Thanks, Viv.”
She nudged me with her shoulder. “You know, there are going to be a lot of disappointed women when word gets out that you’ve mated.”
I laughed. “They’ll get over it.”
The valet arrived with the car, and we headed back to the safe house. At the house, Vivian put the car in park and looked at me.
“Well, you seem to be in a better mood, so I’d say my job here is done.”
I smiled at her. “I’m glad you came by.”
Chris came out of the house and walked up to my side of the car. “Hey, you two planning to sit here gabbing all night?”
“You have something better in mind?” Vivian asked.
“We just got word about another nest with at least a dozen vampires. We’re heading out in five minutes.”
“After dinner entertainment. You guys think of everything.” Vivian grinned at me. “What do you say, Nikolas? It’ll be just like old times.”
I smiled and reached for the door. “Let’s go.”
* * *
“Nikolas, your timing is perfect.”
“Why is that?” I walked to my bike in the parking lot of the steakhouse where Chris ate at least twice a week.
Tristan’s chair creaked as he settled into it. “I just got back to the office. Sara and I had our first dinner together tonight.”
“How was it?”
I was happy he and Sara were getting to know each other, but I couldn’t help feeling envious of him. I wanted to be the one sharing meals with my mate.
“It was very nice. I can tell she’s still a bit uncertain about me, but I can’t blame her after what her mother did. We’re taking it slow.”
“I’m glad she has you.” I stood beside my bike and waved for Chris to go on without me. “How is she?”
“Good. She’s still adjusting and getting to know people. It’s a big change for her, and she misses you.”
My chest fluttered. “She said that?”
Tristan let out a breath. “No. She tries to hide it behind her anger, but I can see it when your name comes up.”
“I should have waited to say good-bye to her.” She’d deserved some kind of explanation for me leaving, instead of waking up to find me gone. I didn’t blame her for being upset with me. She probably thought I didn’t care for her at all.
“You should have said good-bye,” he agreed. “I still stand by my reason for asking you to leave for a month, but I think we both could have handled it better. I was feeling a little overprotective when she got here, and I didn’t stop to think how it would hurt her if you left. I should have asked you to delay leaving for a day or two.”
“What’s done is done,” I said. “I’ll make it up to her when I come home.”
I hated hearing she was hurting, and my first instinct was to grab my stuff and head back to Westhorne tonight. But I’d left to help her settle in without me hovering. If I went home now, it would mean I’d put her through that for no reason.
“How’s her training coming along?”
“She’s struggling, but it hasn’t been that long.” He chuckled. “Yesterday, she had her first training with Celine, and probably her last.”
Sara and Celine? I wasn’t sure whether to be alarmed or amused. “What happened?”
I shook my head. “Sara wouldn’t throw a knife at someone unless they were a threat.”
“Celine can be a bit dramatic. Sara told me she threw the knife on the ground. But she did admit to telling the other trainees it was easier to kill something than to catch it.”
I let out a laugh. “That sounds like Sara, all right.”
He laughed with me. “She can hold her own against Celine. I don’t think you need to worry about her.”
“I think that comes with the bond.”
“I know. And I know this isn’t easy for you either. But it won’t be much longer.”
I stared at the lights of the Strip and wished I was looking at the mountains back home instead.
“Less than two weeks, and then I’m coming home.”
* * *
Geoffrey walked with me to my bike. “You guys sure you don’t want to stick around for another few weeks? This place is a lot more exciting than Oregon.”
“I think it’s time for a change of scenery.” I stowed away my stuff. “Chris wants to visit Longstone before we head back to Idaho.”
The other warrior held out his hand. “It’s been good working with you again. Come back anytime.”
I shook his hand and mounted my bike. My Mori shifted impatiently as I waited for Chris. It had been three weeks since I’d seen Sara, and I still had a week to go, but my demon was excited we’d be closer to her. I was too. A few days in Longstone might help to ease my restlessness until it was time to go back to Westhorne.
Chris came out of the house and said good-bye to Geoffrey. Then the two of us were on our way. Neither of us talked much during the ride, except when we stopped to eat at noon. Chris was looking forward to going home again, and I was happy to be closing the distance between me and Sara.
We had just crossed into Oregon late that afternoon when my phone rang. Tristan called every second day to let me know how Sara was doing, so I knew it was him before I answered.
