For the first time ever, Samuel was shocked. His jaw started to slack and his eyes widened enormously on his face. He even made an odd gurgling sound from the back of his throat.
I mumbled, “Surprise!”
He choked.
I tilted closer to him and pounded on his back. “Don’t faint or anything too embarrassing for an original Elf. Try to breathe instead of swallowing your tongue.”
He waved his hands in the air like he was swatting at a fly. “What. The. Fuck!”
My cheeks flushed to a horrible rosy hue. “This is a recent development. I haven’t always felt this way.”
He blinked, and then growled, “Did you feel this way when I made the deal?”
“Not exactly. But I did want more children.”
“But I’m Dark. How can I be the only man you want to have a baby with?”
“Because you helped create Kenna.”
Our exquisite child.
And the Dark Elf wasn’t too bad himself.
His mouth snapped shut, and his head cocked. “Do you have a crush on me?”
I snorted. “No.”
A black brow lifted. “You’re lying.”
I huffed. “Look, we’ve been having intimate sex for four years. A little bit of a crush wouldn’t be unheard of.”
He stared, a soft calculating pause to his person, as his black eyes ran over my features. Softly, he hummed. “And what would you say if I told you I’d been having sex with many Dark women during our four years together, in hopes that I could impregnate one of them?”
I took an instant step back, the air in my lungs freezing and chilling my body. I pounded on my chest, and panted, “Have you?”
Had I really been that blind?
Had he been screwing other women?
He slowly stood from his chair, watching as I sucked painfully for oxygen and gradually circling me. His eyes scanned me from head to toe before he stopped directly in front of me. A cruel black brow lifted. “You have more than a crush on me, Juliet. How could you let that happen?”
Heat flooded my face, and I bypassed his question, demanding a sharp answer for the truth. “It’s not a freaking hard question to answer. Have you been having sex with other women for the past four years?”
His lips twitched, his dark eyes on mine. “No.” He shrugged a shoulder. “When you’re not on your period, we have sex twice a week. I didn’t think it wise to ejaculate any more than that. I wanted my sperm healthy.”
My cheeks puffed as I blew out a slow breath. “You always say the sweet shit.”
His stared pointedly. “Now answer my question. How could you let this happen? Because if I had to guess, I’d say you’re close to being in love with me.” He chuckled. “And if I’d had sex with someone else, my balls would have been bruised for a week with the way your knee was twitching. You were jealous!”
“My knee did not twitch.” Though I did relax my fingers from the curled fists they were in and blinked away the bull's-eye I had imagined on his face. “And there’s no way in hell I’m in love with you.” I paused and then chuckled a hearty laugh. “It would be ridiculous to fathom an actual loving relationship with you.”
Samuel froze. “Excuse me?”
“Well, you are Dark. And an ass half the time.”
His frame instantly relaxed. “But you do like me.”
I shrugged a shoulder. “If you’d admit it, you like me, too.”
A quiet cough, snooty words. “I think not.”
My brows rose. “Did I tell you that one of my ex-lovers is moving to Jonas? He called a week ago to tell me he’d gotten a job here and—”
Dark power attacked the air in a brutal thrust of wildness, shutting down my line of conversation. He hissed viciously, “Who is this fucker? Brad the Shit Slinger or Abraham the Kiss Ass?”
I sat on the edge of my desk and swung my feet. “You know the names of the men I’ve slept with?” I snorted. “And Brad worked at the zoo and Abraham sold luxury cars.”
“Of course, I know about them. Anyone before I landed on your doorstep, I don’t know, but the two after that I watched to make sure you didn’t allow them near Kenna.” He waved his right hand in the air, his power still fluctuating like a flickering, faulty light-bulb. Stepping in close, he placed his hands on either side of my hips, his nose touching mine. “Now which goddamn idiot is coming to woo you back into their bed?”
It was my turn to smirk. “You’re jealous.”
“No, I’m just plan to kill the fucker.”
“That’s a little drastic.”
Simple. Quiet. Words. “You’re mine.”
My lips lifted further. “Ah, but in what way?”
His mouth opened and then jammed shut.
He jerked away from me and rubbed the back of his neck. He paced one way and then the other. His dark eyes caught mine. “I don’t like you like that.”
I kept swinging my legs, enjoying as he squirmed in front of me. “Are you sure about that?”
“I…”
I quirked a white brow. “Yes?”
He pivoted and walked straight to my door. “I have a meeting I need to take care of. We’ll talk about this silliness later.”
I waved at his retreating backside. “I’m sure we will.”
Samuel threw open the door but stopped cold.
His body was still visible. He had forgotten.
Jessica’s head snapped up from her computer, her shock at seeing him inside my office flashing away. She beamed, her smile so bright. My assistant asked quickly, “Is there something I can help you with?”
Samuel stared at her, and then rubbed at his left ear. He glanced back at me, and muttered, “I would never put up with that shit. She sounds like she has an addiction to carnival balloons. You should fire her ass.”
With that, he charged down the hallway toward the elevators, quickly rounding a corner, no longer in sight.
I shoved off my desk and patted the air. “It’s all right, Jessica. He comes off that way to everyone.”
She blinked. “Like an asshole?”
“Yes.” I shut the door and turned to my desk.
Samuel was right on one account—I had work to do. I dug my cell phone out of my briefcase and dialed. Placing my phone to my ear, I sighed in relief when she answered. “Susan, I have a project that requires your assistance. Is there any way you could steal some literature from the library there? I’m going to the cabin tonight and could use some reading material to pass out to. I want everything you can find on the original Elves.”
I closed the remaining book Susan had brought me last night and tucked it under my bed for safe keeping. The ache in my eyes reminded me I had been reading for quite a while. I rubbed at them while glancing at my alarm clock on my nightstand.
My brows lowered. Kenna was late for our movie marathon—not completely uncommon for her. But she was a good two hours late. I leaned to the side and grabbed my cell phone lying on the far pillow.
I dialed her number.
Kenna didn’t answer.
“Excuse me, daughter,” I mumbled with irritated flare. Kids never changed no matter how old they were. I dialed her again. Listened to the ringing, and then her voicemail. My lips thinned, but I waited for the beep. “Kenna, it’s Mom. Where are you? Call me back before I get worried.”
I glanced at the clock again and rubbed my right brow. Tomorrow was her Blood Tree. She wouldn’t be running around and skipping our night together over nothing. I nibbled on my bottom lip and tried her number again after ten minutes of no return phone call.
My daughter didn’t pick up.
I gradually stood from my bed and paced the bedroom floor. I watched the clock tick by, minute after minute. And yet my phone never rang.
She’d said she was going to the diner before picking up the cloak from the cleaners. There was a chance that Samuel had been there. That was his destination of choice for getting to know her better, keeping it private and easygoing.
He answered on the second ring, and promptly ordered, “Give me a second.” There were multiple rowdy voices in the background, so I kept quiet. A minute later, with much less noise buzzing on his end, he asked quietly, “What’s wrong?”
“Were you with Kenna today? She said she was going to the diner.”
“Yes, I was there. We talked for a while.”
“Well, she’s not home for movie night yet. And she’s not answering her phone.” I sighed. “I’m worried now. I don’t think she’d miss our last night like this on purpose.”
He was quiet for a long second and then cursed quietly. “I knew something was wrong when she left. She was in a rush to get somewhere.”
“The laundry mat. She was picking up the cloak she’s going to wear tomorrow. It’s the one I wore at my Blood Tree.” One of the possessions I had made sure to take the night I left my parents. “Is there any way you could swing by—”
His voice was winded. “I’m already on my way out of the Dark realm. What’s the address?”
I rattled it off to him. “Call me when you get there. I’ll keep trying her cell phone.”
“Of course.” He hung up.
My phone vibrated in my hand two hours later. I quickly answered, growling with anxiety, “Did you find her? She’s still not here.”
“She was at the cleaners,” he stated in a soothing tone. “There was a small mess she left behind, but I’ve cleaned that up. And I’ve located her and she’s fine.”
“Tell me where.”
He hummed softly. “I’m reasonably sure she wants to be alone tonight. She’s safe, so don’t worry. I’ll watch over her.”
The wrinkles in my forehead never cleared. “What do you mean she wants to be alone?” I paused. “And what did you mean by she left a mess at the cleaners?” My eyes widened, his words of her being in a rush to leave the diner hitting home. “She didn’t break in there or anything, did she?”
Samuel snorted. “The cloak is in the backseat of her car.”
I sighed in exasperation, my shoulders lowering in supreme relief. “I still think I should be with her if she’s feeling guilty.”
“No…” He paused and then snorted. “Oh, my. Our darling daughter just stole a bottle of booze from a homeless man. I really don’t think she wants company right now.”
I stared blindly at my bedroom wall. “Buy that man another bottle.”
“I’ll buy him a few. He appears very put out.”
“I can imagine.” I rubbed at my forehead. “Well, I’ll keep trying her phone anyway. Maybe she’ll answer if she wants to come home tonight.”
Another soft hum. “She probably won’t.”
“You’ll stay to protect her?”
“Always.”
“Okay, I’ll see you at the Blood Tree tomorrow then.” I tapped on my bottom lip with a pointed finger. “And tomorrow night, I think we should talk.”
“Agreed. We didn’t finish our conversation yesterday.”
Because you ran away. “Perfect.”
He was silent a long moment. “Juliet?”
“Hmm?”
“Have you prepared yourself if she’s Dark?”
“She’ll be Light. I know it.”
He coughed, and then laughed. “It’s always best to be prepared for any situation. Especially when you’re in front of the entire Elf race.”
My face scrunched. “I suppose my parents will be there. Maybe you’re right.” Though I highly doubted they would even look at me let alone speak to me. Bastards. “I’ll think about it.”
“Just keep your chin up. After all, you’re in love with one Dark Elf. What’s loving another one really going to do?”
“Good God. I do not love you.”
He snorted. “So you say.”
“So I know.”
Samuel snickered. “Good night, Juliet.”
“Keep our girl safe, Samuel.”
I charged through the front door of my house. My attention honed on the Dark Elf sitting on my couch. I glared so furiously his head would have a hole in it if my eyes were bullets.
Samuel raised is hands…though an enormous crooked grin gradually lifted his lips. “Don’t be mad at me. I told you nature always won over nurture with an Elf.”
The muscles ticked in my cheeks as I ground my teeth together. I whispered, “Where is she?”
“She just got in the shower, I think.”
Okay then. I raised my voice. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me the ‘mess’ you cleaned up last night was a dead motherfucking body?”
He shrugged. “I knew you would freak out.”
I shook my hands in the air, my eyes wide. “Hell yes, I would have! My daughter had just been attacked and killed a man!” More hand shaking. “A mother has a right to freak out over that. Instead, you left me to look like a fool during her Blood Tree in front of the entire Elf nation!”
“Actually, I did warn you—”
“Shut up!” I panted.
Again, my eyes were shooting bullets.
Samuel cleared his throat, and stated softly, “You didn’t appear a fool either. Only shocked. And you recovered nicely, too.” He scratched his chin. “I remember this one time, where this parent—”
“I don’t give a fuck,” I muttered and let my back fall against the wall. All the fight in me drained from my system, and my head fell into my palms. My voice was muffled by my hands as I whispered, “My daughter is Dark.”
Samuel hummed. “As I thought she would be.”
I peeked up at him and rolled my eyes. “You don’t have to be so damn arrogant about it.”
He relaxed back on the couch and placed his hands behind his head, pulling his t-shirt tight against his muscular pecs and biceps. He didn’t miss how his body affected me either, a small cocky chuckle vibrating deep in his chest. “It’s not Tuesday yet. You still have three more days until our next encounter.” A black brow lifted. “Unless you’d like to have a quickie tonight when I come back from my training session with Kenna.”
I blinked. “We aren’t going to finish our previous conversation like we planned?”
“Not right now. I can tell she needs energy. The more powerful the Elf after their Blood Tree, the faster they need it to energize their body.”
“Oh.” I dropped my hands to my sides, realizing how ridiculous I appeared with them half hiding my face. “That’ll work, I guess.”
His lips twitched. And he flexed his biceps. “To the quickie? Or to the talk?”
I sent my eyes skyward. “Lord, help me.”
“I’ll take that as both.”
Bang. Bang. Bang.
I jerked up straight from the wall and turned my attention to my front door. The person had knocked so hard the wood might be dented on the other side. My brows puckered, and I took a step toward the door.
But I quickly hopped back when the front door burst open…and a furious original Light Elf stormed inside. My white brows lifted, plenty irked at the man. He had been an asshole to my daughter tonight. I stepped into his path, barring his way to the hallway. “Julius.”
His dark eyes flicked once to Samuel, sneered, and then snapped back to mine. “Get out of my way. I want to know exactly what the hell happened last night.”
“Hmm.” My nose crinkled, and I shook my head. “I don’t think so. Not in the mood you’re in right now.” I flicked my right hand toward the door. “Go cool off, and then you can come back later and apologize for how you behaved.”
He jammed a pointed finger over my shoulder, barking, “That is my mate in there. I have every right—”
“She is my daughter, and you are in my house. We’re not in the Light realm right now. You will do as I say.”
His hands landed on my shoulders, his b
lack eyes filled with pure possession. “My mate. And you will do as I say or I will—”
“Get your fucking hands off her, Julius,” Samuel growled so quietly, his tenor filled with so much terror, the original Light Elf and I froze. Our heads tilted to the side. Samuel now stood only an inch away from us, his power vibrating on the air, stabbing in Julius’s direction. “Or I will make you move.”
Julius’s white brows furrowed, but he jerked his hands back and stared at his palms. We stood in tension-filled silence until Julius dropped his hands and peered up at me. “I’m sorry. I will leave and come back later when I’m no longer in shock.”
I crossed my arms. Nodded. “And you’ll apologize to your mate.”
He rubbed at his chest, his words hesitant. “I didn’t handle her Blood Tree well, did I?”
I snapped, “Not in the least.”
Julius swallowed heavily. “I just can’t believe it.”
“Believe it,” Samuel muttered. “She’s Dark.”
Julius cast a withering glance in his direction.
I gestured to my still open door. “Go on.”
He growled under his breath.
But he turned and walked out of my house.
Samuel slammed the door behind him, almost hitting him in the backside. “Fucking Light prick.”
A squeak came from Kenna’s bedroom, her shower shutting off. I moved toward the couch and sat. “She’ll be out soon.” I rubbed at my forehead. “And I can take care of Julius. I don’t need your help with him.”
Samuel snorted and dropped onto the love seat. “If you think for one second you could handle Julius in a fight, you seriously need to check your ego.”
“He wouldn’t fight me.”
“For his mate?” Black, incredulous brows lifted. “He would make you disappear in a heartbeat if you actually came between the two of them together. That Elf has been waiting for his mate forever.”
My eyes narrowed. “I can protect my child.”
“Not against him,” Samuel hissed, keeping his tone down. Kenna was banging around in her room, finishing getting ready. He shook his dark head of hair. “And I do not want him touching you.”
I arched a brow. Smirked. “Why is that?”
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