by Unknown
It was an odd thing to adjust to, but it indeed felt natural and Brogan wasn’t willing to give it up just yet.
Jolie had bought them their new house. Fortunately for them, it wasn’t being lived in at the moment and they would be able to move in before all the paperwork was completed.
Money not only spoke.
It screamed.
When the owners of the two hundred year old monstrosity received the cash directly into their accounts, they agreed to let them immediately have it. It seemed odd to buy a home and never see it personally, but it fit their requirements in size. It wasn’t easy finding an old plantation with privacy, just outside the French Quarter.
It was close enough to Brogan’s job on the police force, and yet private enough to offer them safety. They would be heading out of Philadelphia in an hour, and Jacques was making sure the final preparations were completed.
Some of the family had already left for New Orleans by cars and planes. They would get the house ready for the mistress and begin unpacking for her arrival.
As Jolie walked through the house, listening to the old familiar ghosts, the memories that had been made there filled her heart. Once before, they had to leave their home, again when their lives were in danger.
“Are you okay?” asked Brogan. He had been following her to keep an eye on her, like a guardian would naturally do. He was feeling edgy for some reason, and he didn’t like it.
Call it his cop gut.
“I’m just recording some memories in my mind, Flynn.”
“I’m sorry you have to leave your home,” he said, dropping his arm around her shoulders. As of late, he was trying to not stress Jacques getting upset with his open affection toward her.
She smiled up at him. “Don’t worry yourself. As Jacques said, we’ll start a new home and relive many memories. It’s the advantage of living forever,” she stated, dropping her head to his shoulder.
Jacques came to the door and watched the two. “We’re about ready, mon amour,” he said, as Jolie held out her hand inviting him into their embrace.
“I just have one stop left.”
“Let’s go then,” added Jacques, knowing where she needed to be at that moment.
“I think I would prefer to do it alone.”
Yeah, he didn't like that at all, but he was willing to concede if it meant her moment to say goodbye. “Very well,” he said, leaning down to kiss her on the lips. “We’ll wait for you by the cars.”
She headed toward the door. “Thank you.”
Jolie exited the house in the dimming afternoon light and headed to the back part of the property where the deceased family was laid to rest. She glanced down at the roses in her hands. They would be her final gift on Louisa’s grave. Hopefully, she would get a chance to come back one day and visit the family they were forced to leave behind.
In the makeshift cemetery, the sadness overwhelmed her as she said goodbye for the last time.
“We must go, Louisa. I wish you were here to travel with us.” Jolie closed her eyes and a tear slid past her defenses. “You’re missed, mon ami. Rest in peace.”
“How touching,” said the voice from behind Jolie.
Immediately, her entire being went on alert. In the process of grieving, she had let her guard down and wasn’t scanning the area. Whipping her head to the side, Jolie found her old friend, Genevieve, standing there.
It looked like Flynn had been right. The woman was going to make an attempt at her before they escaped the city.
“What do you want?” asked Jolie.
“I wish to put flowers on your memorial,” she hissed, the insanity seeping into her black gaze, “instead of at my daughter’s.”
“Then, you shouldn’t have raised her to be a murder,” added Jolie, standing to face her.
“You betrayed the blood of your people for food, Jolie,” she paused, stepping closer. “Why? They’re nothing.”
Jolie sighed. “No Genie, they’re everything. Just as we are to each other, they matter too.”
Genevieve’s laughter raked the night like nails down Jolie’s skin.
“You know that I’m going to kill you, right?”
“I know that you’ll try, and because you’re older you just might be able to,” she answered her old friend.
“I’ve killed for years, and I’ll continue now that you will be out of the way. It wasn’t my daughter alone in Paris, killing the worthless humans. I was also feasting on their bodies.”
“I assumed when your daughter told me of her involvement. You wouldn’t have been that ignorant to not be aware.”
There was more sick laughter. “Well, now, I must really kill you,” she stated, as she raised her hand.
Jolie knew that she was in trouble as her throat closed. She fought to stop it, but the only thing she could do was fall to her knees and send out a cry for help.
If they heard her, she might survive.
If they didn't, her time on this earth was done and over.
Jolie found it ironic.
She was going to meet death on a grave…
Jacques and Flynn stood leaning against the H2 waiting for Jolie. It had been only ten minutes, but Brogan was getting edgier as each second passed.
“Is she ready yet?” asked Brogan, beginning to pace.
Jacques watched him curiously, as the man’s agitation grew. “It is too early for me to reach her, it’s still before dusk. I don’t have the ability to find her mind yet. It would drain me.”
Flynn was about to disregard his feelings of doom when he could feel the tickle of Jolie reaching for their minds. There weren’t words, but instead the wave of pain and fear.
Both men’s heads snapped up, like wolves scenting prey in the distance.
Jacques’s eyes went an unearthly green as he moved toward the family cemetery. Beside him was the detective.
Fear and anger mingled as the men raced to her side, hoping that they wouldn’t be too late.
Genevieve stood over Jolie, still using her limited abilities to choke the life from her. “Here comes your mate Jolie, but this early in the day, even he can’t stop me from squeezing your head right from your shoulders,” she stated, smiling evilly.
Jolie knew that her only chance would be their human detective. Since Genevieve believed him to be dead, he would be their ace in the hole. It was evident that they were getting closer as Jacques send out energy to throw Genevieve off balance.
“Nice attempt, Jacques, but I can hold you and Jolie off. Come watch her die, and then you can come to my bed and be one of my playthings,” Genevieve added, as she laughed wickedly. Her eyes never left the dying woman’s face as she longed to watch life ebb from her body.
Jacques struggled to get free from her energy, but at that time, he was simply too weak. He knew that Jolie’s and his life were in the hands of the man they had bonded to them.
Brogan finally reached the area, and he pulled his Glock to take the shots. With an angry vampyre, hell bent on revenge, he would only get this one chance.
Genevieve hissed in pain as the three shots rang out into the dusk night air. The French profanity filled the air as she spun toward the male who approached.
“How?” she asked, facing down the human who was stalking toward her, his gun raised and ready.
“Let them go,” he said, his eyes remaining locked on her face.
“You’re dead,” she hissed.
“Yeah, well I don’t mind death so much. Let’s see how you like it,” he quipped, pulling the trigger again, as he watched Genevieve flinch. In that position, he couldn’t get a clear chest shot to kill her.
Genevieve released Jacques and Jolie, preparing to regroup and escape into the falling night.
“I’ll finish this later,” she said, as she backed away into the surrounding woods.
As soon as he was free, Jacques was at Jolie’s side, cradling her in his lap as she fought for air.
The detective rushed to her side, dropping
to his knees to check on her. “Jolie, are you okay?” he asked, touching her cheek with his hand. “You scared us both.”
“Yes, Flynn. I’m fine. She wasn’t as strong as she could have been,” she answered, sliding the palm of her hand against the man’s cheek, as she leaned her head on Jacques’s shoulder.
Jolie knew that this was far from over. “We need to go. She won’t stop at this. She admitted to helping kill all those victims in Paris, and Genevieve won’t want me to let that cat out of the bag.”
“Let’s get out of here,” Jacques said, as he picked her up in his arms.
“I don’t know if we’ll be safe,” she admitted, closing her eyes to breathe in Jacques’s scent, as she nuzzled his chest.
“I was so scared,” added Brogan.
Jacques agreed with him. “I was too. I want us out of this city as fast as possible,” he said, glancing over at the man beside him. “Thank you, Flynn, for helping us.”
“It’s my pleasure,” he replied, hopping behind the steering wheel. It was going to take them a few days to get to the new city that they would be calling home. It was best to get started as soon as possible.
In the back seat, both vampyres stared out the back window of the H2, watching as their home grew smaller and smaller in the distance.
“It’ll be fine, mon amour,” Jacques said, as he pulled her into his lap. Their old life was coming to an end, but a new one was on the horizon.
And they would make the most of it.
“I know, Jacques, but I’ll still miss it.”
“Flynn, you, and I will start over,” he reassured, kissing her on the forehead, as his eyes met Brogan’s in the mirror.
A single tear slid down Jolie’s cheek as she wept for everything that they lost, and everything that they gained. Somehow, giving up a house and some memories didn’t matter as much as having Jacques and Flynn by her side for the rest of her existence.
She closed her eyes, enjoying Jacques calming scent.
“Are you ready, Jolie?” asked Flynn, as he continued driving.
To answer his question, they both leaned forward to place a hand on each of his shoulders, connecting them.
“We are,” they said together.
He dropped his sunglasses onto his face. “Then let’s get this eternity started.”
∞ Epilogue ∞
One Week Later
The men stood on the balcony outside the master suite of their new plantation. It overlooked the garden below and was truly spectacular. In fact, the house was unbelievable. From the Greek columns to the fireplace in every room, it was a work of art.
Jacques was waiting for Jolie to finish feeding from Chloe in the other room, so that they could begin their evening together. The last few nights, they had wandered and explored their new surroundings in the thick mire behind their home. He couldn’t wait to go out again, as the chirp of the frogs in the setting sunlight filled the air.
Their new place was a sight to see.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” asked Brogan. “I swear that it’s almost like a mythical land from a dream.”
“Oui, mon ami. It’s perfect for us.”
Brogan reached up to the hanging flowers, which covered their private space, and broke one off the vine to breathe in its enticing scent. The last few days in their new space had been peaceful. He was enjoying it as their new life unfolded. Now, if it lasted forever, that would be another story. He glanced over at Jacques. “How safe are we?”
He shared what he too was thinking. “I don’t know. I wish I could give you a definitive answer, but it will depend on how persistent Genevieve is,” he replied, quietly. “She won’t give up. It’ll only be a matter of time before she finds us again.”
Brogan focused on the night around them and their new kingdom. He was given a glorious suite next to Jolie and Jacques’s room, but had yet to use it. The last two nights, he had found himself, once again, curled against Jolie’s body.
How long would it last?
He wasn’t sure if he wanted it to continue or end, so there was no answer for that question. The one thing that he was sure of was that it felt good being near them.
Like Jacques once suggested, he was living for the moment and not worrying too much.
At the scent of her perfume, both men turned to the woman who they both were guarding with their lives.
One was the mate, and the other the guardian.
Jolie glided out onto the balcony, flushed from feeding. As she walked toward their bonded human, she pulled his face down to hers for an innocent kiss. Immediately, his body reacted to her close proximity. When she released his mouth, his icy blue eyes met hers, and there was nothing there but adoration.
“I picked this for you,” he said, handing her the delicate blossom that was cradled in his large hand.
Jolie accepted it and breathed in its fragrance. “I love it. Thank you, Flynn,” she said, running her fingertips lovingly across his cheek.
“Mon amour, I’ve missed you,” stated Jacques, drawing her attention.
Jolie had missed them both. As of late, her attachment and love was growing in leaps and bounds, not only for one man but both.
Going into his arms, she curled against him and met his lips with hers for a kiss. Energy buzzed around the balcony, wrapping itself around all three of them. As she broke away, his green eyes glittered in the falling darkness.
It was time.
“You both need to feed,” she said, turning her back to Jacques and focusing on their human.
Brogan looked down at her outstretched hand, and what she was offering him. The pull to go to her was so strong. He glanced up, blinking his eyes as he tried to focus on the vampyres before him. “I can leave and you can feed me later,” he finally offered, finding his voice.
That was the last thing that Jolie wanted. “Flynn, I can feed you both at the same time,” she reassured. “I want to.”
Unbelievably erotic pictures flashed through his mind of the three of them. He had to take a deep breath as he struggled to keep his composure.
Jolie kept her hand out as both of them patiently waited for their human to decide.
“You’ll get energy, and Jacques will get blood,” she stated, matter-of-factly.
He stared at them both, and while Jolie’s eyes remained the same, Jacques’s gleamed in the falling nightfall.
It was as if he was outside his body as he took the few steps to reach their side. He was a moth to the only candle in a room. Flynn touched her hand and warmth rolled through his body in wave after wave of pleasure.
“Do you come to us of your own resolve?” asked Jacques, watching him carefully.
The question confused him but he needed to be with them more than he wanted to breathe. The words were trapped in his throat, and he simply nodded. Flynn knew the truth.
He needed them.
He craved them.
He was lost to them.
Jolie pulled him against the front of her body and his hands went to her waist as he stared down into her eyes Leaning back Jacques was pressed to her body and ready to begin. “Are you sure that this is what you want?”
Brogan swallowed and stared at them as if he was missing something. He suddenly felt like prey but the need to be near them overweighed it all. He could feel the warmth of Jolie’s body against his, and it was cathartic. Yet, in his mind, something was screaming for him to run.
“I need you both in my life,” he confessed the dangerous revelation.
Jolie smiled at his admission. This had been what she was waiting for.
Flynn Brogan had come of his own free will.
Jacques leaned down with his lips poised a breath away from the pulse in her neck. In seconds, the circle would be created, forever binding them as one.
“Come to me, Flynn,” she purred, drawing him down to her lips.
This feeding would be different.
The energy jolted through them as Jacques hissed, biting down in
to his mate. At the same time, Jolie pulled Flynn to her mouth in a searing kiss. The energy slammed forward into him and backward into Jacques, using Jolie as the connection between them.
It began.
The colors swirled as the energy pulsed erratically. A collective moan escaped from all three of them and the ties that bound them together tightened, sealing them into one person.
Brogan struggled to keep his head above the rising tide of heat and emotion. Inside him, the final division of his essence was complete.
‘My soul’ came his inner voice.
‘Our soul,’ was the reply.
He opened his eyes in time to see Jolie’s, and they burned red as coals as the scent of blood and roses mixed around him.
“What have I done?” he whispered, catching his reflection in her glowing orbs. Her eyes weren’t the only ones that were different.
So were his.
Jolie pulled Flynn’s mouth back down to hers to continue the kiss. Anything past this point didn't matter. This one moment had changed everything.
“You’ve made a promise in the way of our people,” she whispered into his mind. “It’s one that can never be broken.”
“You’ve made a vow,” Jacques added, greedily devouring the energy.
“Never?” Flynn asked.
Laughter caressed his skin, and then came her reply.
“Never, my love.”
Coming Next:
Dangerous Choices
(Book 2)
August 2014
Meanwhile….
This time the tables are turned and they’re hunted as the prey. The twosome is now a strong family of three. Yet, there is no safety in numbers.
They’ve come to The Big Easy, but it’s going to be anything but that.
Jolie, Flynn, and Jacques have to fight for their lives.
In the darkness revenge waits, and Dangerous Choices will give fate the key to their lives.
United they stand.
In death they just may fall.
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