Keeper's Finder (Keeper's Kin Book 0)

by Beth Alvarez

“Is that a no?”

  “It will be if you decide to eat in my vehicle again. Do you realize how difficult it is to clean that out of leather?”

  Josh snorted a laugh. “What? They were just popsicles. Wipe it down with a damp cloth, it’ll be fine.”

  “I wasn’t speaking of the popsicles,” Thaddeus said. “The smell of blood was strong this morning. To my senses, at least. I shall refrain from telling you that you are too young to feed without supervision, as it seems you were able to maintain control of yourself, but do not do it in my car again. Am I clear?”

  He thought it was meant as a compliment, but the wording made Josh uncomfortable. “What do you mean, maintain control?”

  “When you are young, a new vampire, you are ravenous. You don’t recall the first two days after your death but, suffice to say, you were mad with hunger. Your girlfriend is fortunate you ate before your visit. Having freshly fed meant your cravings were minimal. If you’d gone on an empty stomach, I doubt she would have survived.”

  Josh put a hand on the door frame, a pang of dread hitting his gut like a lead weight. “I wouldn’t hurt her.”

  “Not intentionally, I’m sure. That said, perhaps you might wish to have a snack before you go out?” Thaddeus raised a brow at him before returning his attention to his work. “Be careful with my vehicle. And do tell Albert I said hello.”

  “Albert,” Josh mumbled, shaking his head. He’d always expected vampires to have more prestigious names. Thaddeus was a perfectly classy name; Joshua Rook had a certain air of dignity to it, as well. But Albert? Josh spared a moment of pity for the man, then bounced the keys in his hand and made for the door.

  “Oh, and one last thing,” Thaddeus called.

  Rolling his eyes, Josh turned back to the office.

  The old man picked up a single paper from the edge of his desk, holding it out. “This came from the VR department while you were out. Before you go, I thought you ought to see it. And report for the subsequent training, just in case. It doesn’t take long, perhaps half an hour.”

  Josh frowned, creeping forward to take the paper. He glanced over it, stopped, then reread the whole thing. “The Nashville Department of Vampire Resources hereby approves Mr. Joshua Alexander Rook’s request to turn... anyone?” He lowered the paper, staring across the desk. “Anyone?”

  “Any further investigation into who you wished to turn would have delayed the approval by several weeks, at least.” Thaddeus narrowed his eyes. “I sincerely hope you realize what you are holding. It takes a considerable amount of clout to sway the department in any direction, never mind with speed. You do not know difficulty until you’ve dealt with VR. Universal approval? They won’t issue that for just anyone.”

  Disbelief made his limbs numb and Josh stared at the old man. “You’re full of surprises, Thaddeus.”

  “A thank-you would suffice.”

  Instead, Josh stepped around the desk and swept the Keeper into a hug.

  Thaddeus snarled in displeasure and Josh released him with a laugh.

  “Thank you,” he called, waving the paper as he bolted out of the office.

  Grunting, Thaddeus straightened his tie.

  * * *

  The sun was still up when the black sedan parked in front of the coffee shop. Charlotte did a double-take, grinning when she was sure.

  “See something you like?” Addy teased, following her glance out the window. She turned her head, looking for somebody on the sidewalk, frowning when she didn’t see anyone.

  “My friend’s here to pick me up.” Charlotte untied her apron, slipping into the back room to put it away. Then she let her hair down, finger-combing her auburn curls. “Thanks for helping me find someone to trade shifts with, too. I was just wiped out this morning.”

  Addy grinned. “Hey, don’t mention it. You’ve done the same for me a dozen times. Good to see you smiling, honey. Just don’t rush things, okay?”

  “I’m not,” Charlotte said. “Promise.”

  Addy waved her away and she smiled, darting out of the shop and hurrying to the car. The passenger door popped open when Charlotte approached and Josh leaned back, avoiding the beam of sunlight that spilled in when she opened it.

  “Sorry, I can’t get it from the other side. I haven’t mastered the car-umbrella transitions yet.” Josh waited until she closed the door behind her to steal a kiss. “Ready?”

  “As I ever will be. I see you shaved. You look good. I missed seeing that baby face.” She buckled in, dropping her purse to the floor.

  “Yeah, I’m sorry you had to put up with me looking like a dead animal.” He rubbed his smooth jaw, looking sheepish. “How’s your neck?”

  “Caked in makeup. Nobody will ever know.” She tilted her head so he could inspect it, smiling shyly. Had she been in her right mind, she never would have allowed him to bite her. But in the throes of passion, it had been unbelievable, intimate and satisfying in ways she’d never imagined. She didn’t know if it would feel the same outside of sex. Although, with that incredible first experience lodged in the back of her mind, she wasn’t opposed to trying.

  “I asked Thaddeus about it. He said it’ll heal faster than normal injuries, so it should be gone in a few days.”

  Charlotte nodded. “Another couple weeks and I can wear turtlenecks. It’ll be easier to hide, then.”

  Josh gave her a worried look, opening his mouth to speak and then closing it again.

  She mentally kicked herself.

  This was their last night together. Unless he had some kind of grand master plan worked out, he had to step out of her life tomorrow to begin his training. She bowed her head, trying not to grimace. How could she start their night out that way?

  “So are you gonna tell me where we’re going?” she asked, attempting to change the subject.

  Josh relaxed a little, appreciative of the opportunity. “Nope. I’m glad you wore comfortable shoes, though, because there’s gonna be a lot of walking.”

  She laughed. “I didn’t have a choice, you picked me up from work. Thanks for being okay with that, by the way. I was just so tired after Julian left that I didn’t have the energy to get going this morning.”

  He sobered. “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble.”

  She kicked herself again. She’d meant to text him about that in the morning, but she’d gone back to bed after finding someone to trade shifts with. She’d slept late, barely made it to work on time, and forgot.

  “He’s having a hard time,” she said softly, unsure what else to tell him. “He misses you.”

  “We’re all having a hard time. This hasn’t been very easy on me, either. Knowing I’m still here, that I can’t do anything to keep him straight or comfort my family...” He shook his head. “It’s rough, you know?”

  “I know.” She rested a hand on his thigh, rubbing gently. “I’m just worried. It sounds like your mom isn’t being... Well...” She stopped there. How did you repeat something like what Julian told her?

  “I wouldn’t take it to heart,” Josh said. “He misunderstands things sometimes and takes away only what he feels, not really what was said. Mom’s crazy about him. I’m sure right now, she’s just scared he’ll end up the like me. Or like she thinks I am, anyway.”

  Which was to say dead. Charlotte nodded, leaving it at that. Dragging Josh into it wasn’t going to help anything, anyway. Even she would lose him soon enough. She bowed her head, watching her hands in silence as he drove.

  The sun dipped behind the horizon, the light over the landscape cooling as he turned, the car gliding past the country club. “Here we go.”

  Charlotte glanced from the fading reds and purples in the sky to the clock in the dashboard. “What-”

  He parked right beside the gatehouse, rolling down the window.

  She frowned. They’d come to Cheekwood a dozen times. “It’s way past closing, Josh.”

  “And every time we ever came here, you said it would be neat to have the place to ourselves.
What do you say?”

  “I’m not jumping any fences with you.”

  “You don’t have to.” He grinned, knocking on the gatehouse window.

  A security guard pulled it open, nodding with a smile. “Sir. Ma’am.”

  “Evening, Albert,” Josh said cheerily, passing the guard a strip of paper. “We’ll be a bit, but here’s my number. Call if there’s an emergency and we’ll get out of your hair.”

  “No problem at all. Enjoy your visit.” Albert lifted the gate and waved them on.

  “You know him?” Charlotte asked in a murmur.

  “He’s one of us,” Josh whispered back, starting to roll up the window before pausing. “Oh, and Thaddeus said to tell you hello.”

  “Ah, you’re working with Birch?” The guard tucked the paper into the pocket of his shirt, resting his elbows on the windowsill. “He was my Keeper for a good fifteen years, you know. I only changed Keepers because I relocated before he transferred to Nashville. I needed someone a little closer. Lucky to be working with him.”

  “Thank you. He’s been a good mentor so far.” Josh nodded politely, then put the car back in gear and eased up the hill.

  “Are you seriously telling me that guy’s a vampire?” Charlotte hissed in a whisper.

  Josh chuckled, parking beside the visitor’s center. “Didn’t you hear what he just said?”

  She nodded, then shook her head, disbelieving. “But he’s a regular security guard!” It made logical sense that vampires would hold normal jobs and blend in, but actually encountering one left her shaken. If he hadn’t told her, she never would have known.

  “And I’m a regular office worker,” he teased. “See? I’m even still wearing the tie.”

  Rolling her eyes, she caught him by said tie and hauled him close enough to plant a kiss on his cheek. “At least you took off the jacket. Look at me, wearing a tee and jeans. I look so underdressed compared to you.”

  “You’re fine. Come on.” He slid out of the car and opened her door for her with a gentlemanly bow. Then he laced his fingers with hers, drawing her toward the winding trail that meandered around the estate. “Look at that, the moon’s coming up.”

  Charlotte paused, craning her neck to see. It cast a cool light across the sprawling gardens, though it didn’t bear the same gloom it had the night before. It was comforting, this time, welcoming and soothing.

  “It’s beautiful. I guess this is going to be like your sun now, huh?” She tried to keep her voice from quavering, but the reality was harsh. She squeezed his hand, suddenly afraid to let go, lest the future take him too soon.

  “Kind of,” he agreed. “I mean, I’m not going to be nocturnal so long as I’m a Keeper, but I’ll only ever spend time outside after sundown. I’ve already been burned enough to last me a lifetime.”

  “And... do you think you’ll ever be anywhere I’ll see you?” The question wasn’t even veiled. Her cheeks burned, but there was no taking it back now.

  Josh paused, looking at her a moment. Then he started walking again, still holding her hand. He led her under a wide arbor, past manicured hedges and neat flower beds. “I need to talk to you, Charlotte. About something important.”

  Her stomach turned. If he’d called her Charlie, she might have expected pleasant conversation. That he used her name, instead of that infernal nickname, meant it was going to be heavy. Already, tears pricked her eyes and her heart ached. How could he be gearing up to say goodbye so soon? She wasn’t ready!

  “Last night...” He cleared his throat, pulling her closer, holding her hand so tightly she thought her fingers might go numb. “When we made love, I made a mistake. I mean, not that being with you was a mistake, it was one of the best nights of my life. But I never thought we’d go that far again, and I didn’t prepare for it like I should have. What I mean is, we weren’t... safe.”

  Charlotte blinked at him, understanding the words but not quite grasping what he was trying to say. “What do you mean, we weren’t safe?”

  He made a small sound of exasperation, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. “We didn’t take any precautions. Vampires can’t have kids. But I haven’t been one very long, and that means there’s always a possibility you might... That we might...” He trailed off, his meaning sinking in crystal clear.

  “Oh... Oh, Josh.” Her hand fluttered toward her stomach before she caught herself and pulled it to her mouth, instead.

  “If it happens, I swear I’ll take care of you.” There was a fervent heat in his words, a cold intensity in his blue eyes. “No matter what the rules are, I’m not going to let it keep me from being sure you’re provided for. But I don’t know how I could be there, Charlotte. How could I? Even if being with you wasn’t forbidden, how am I supposed to explain to a kid why Dad’s got a bottle of blood next to his apple juice in the fridge?”

  Charlotte swallowed hard. “I don’t know, Josh. I don’t know. But I don’t care. We’d figure it out.” And no matter the difficulty, she knew without having to think about it that she’d want to keep a baby. They’d always agreed on wanting kids. If there was any chance of reclaiming some sliver of the life they thought they’d have, she’d take it.

  “I know it wouldn’t be fair to ask you to do it alone.” He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. “I just don’t know what else I can do. The organization is designed for outcasts, not families. For people escaping the world, not trying to stay a part of it.”

  “It doesn’t sound like you would have been able to do much anyway,” she murmured, softening her words with a sad smile. “It’s not like I’d be able to see you after tonight.”

  “I had a plan for that.” He shrugged, stifling a chuckle. “But you’re always talking about the best laid plans of mice and men. I should have expected it wouldn’t go exactly as I envisioned.”

  “Oh?” She raised a brow, challenging him to go on.

  He didn’t. Instead he led her through a bamboo grove and past a chattering brook, silent for some time. The click of his dress shoes echoed in the night and he slipped his hand away, pacing up the stairs by the corner of the mansion and toward the end of the wisteria-hung arbor above the terrace. “I had this all worked out in my head. We’d have a few days apart, then you’d come with me. They’d give us a house. Our own place, somewhere private. You could finish your degree and get a job as a therapist, working with people like me. It was going to be perfect.”

  Her pulse quickened and Charlotte crept closer, unsure what to say. The fountains behind them were still, leaving nothing to break the silence.

  His blue eyes followed the moon’s creep through the sky, reflective as mirrors but just as empty as if he’d tried to see himself now. “Then I started thinking about last night. I thought about how many times you’ve said you couldn’t wait to be a mother. And I realized it wasn’t fair of me to ask you to give it up. Even if we could be together, you as you are and me as I am, I’d be asking you to give up the things you want—the things that make you happy—to benefit me.”

  “Joshua Rook, I swear, if you are about to break up with me-”

  “Shouldn’t I?” He turned toward her, his expression calm and almost wistful. “Wouldn’t it be better for both of us if I was capable of just letting you go? You were so angry at me for coming back, for being unable to let you move on.”

  “I never wanted to move on. I never wanted to picture a life without you in it. But that was what I thought I had.” She reached out, taking his face in both hands. “I can never tell you how lost I was without you, Josh. How hard I cried when your parents called me and said you were gone. What it felt like to be that empty, trying and failing to fill the space with work. And then seeing you outside, and feeling—against all reason—hope.”

  Josh caressed her face with the backs of his fingers. “Hope is all that’s kept me going since I woke up this way.”

  Hot tears spilled over her eyelashes. “Then don’t let go.”

  He wrapped his arms ar
ound her, burying his face in her shoulder. “I can’t, Charlie. God help me, I can’t, even when I know I should.”

  She kissed his hair, sniffling as he pulled away from her.

  Composing himself, he braved a smile and wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumb. “I wish I’d asked you this a long time ago. The question’s a little different now.”

  Charlotte’s heart skipped, then leaped and drummed against her ribs.

  He slid backwards, sinking to one knee. “Charlotte Wright,” he began, drawing a tiny box from his pocket and presenting it to her in the moonlight. “Will you be a vampire with me?”

  The velvet box split, revealing the ring she’d always dreamed of. A large white sapphire in place of a diamond, the stone nestled in an intricately shaped, Edwardian-inspired setting, the design hand-sculpted and cast by a local metalsmith.

  Tears filled her eyes anew, blurring her vision, turning the glittering jewel in front of her into a gleaming star. She covered her mouth with both hands and blinked hard.

  A chance to stay together. A chance for a happily-ever-after with him, her high school sweetheart, whose ashes supposedly sat on his mother’s mantel.

  She choked on a sob and, for an instant, panic filled his eyes.

  Unable to speak, she nodded.

  Josh released the breath he’d been holding with a laugh, grinning up at her with all the boyish charm she’d always loved. “It’s white gold. I know you wanted silver, but I can’t touch it, and if you said yes, you wouldn’t have been able to wear it after changing.” He tugged the ring free of its box, awkwardly slipping it onto her finger.

  The white sapphire glinted and gleamed in the whiter moonlight. Charlotte wiggled her fingers to see it sparkle as he stood. “I don’t care what it is anymore. I thought you were leaving me!” She hiccuped with the last word and he swept her into his arms.

  “Hey. I came back undead to do this, all right?” He nudged her ribs with a teasing smile. “I can’t promise we’ll be able to have a lot of contact before you change. The rules are still there. But we can have a wedding, so long as it’s not in a church. And your parents can come, as long as they’re willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement to legally prohibit them from discussing the existence of the supernatural.”