She doesn’t move, but continues to stand here, staring at me.
“What are you waiting for? Let’s go.” I walk past her, heading out the door, when her next question stops me in my tracks.
“Is something happening between you and the Crown?”
I turn slowly, not sure what to say to Katina. She’s been good to me—a friend when I’ve needed one—but am I ready to admit to her what I’m feeling for Julian? “Nothing is happening between us. My friend is missing, and I need his help in finding her.”
Katina’s eyes narrow as she bites on the inside of her cheeks. “Be careful, Marina. This world is dangerous—especially for a human. You don’t want to get yourself caught in the crossfire of the warring families. It won’t end well.”
I know she’s right. It’s what I’ve feared from the beginning. Julian and I come from two different worlds, but right now none of that matters. I have to try to help Shannon.
“Please take me to him.”
I’ve been over the details of the news report three times with Julian.
“Does this have something to do with me?” I question, feeling like it has to. Why would vampires continue to stalk girls from the same small town? Easy prey? Perhaps, but my gut tells me it’s more.
“Maybe,” he admits. “But I don’t know. I haven’t run the auction. That’s Marcellus.”
“Take me to him,” I demand, ready for a showdown with the creepy brother. “I have to know if his men have her. If this has something to do with me, I need to see him. She isn’t involved with this.”
“We don’t know if this has anything to do with you. By confronting Marcellus, we are only opening up Pandora’s Box,” Julian says. “This needs to be handled with care. If they have her and we go about it the wrong way, it will ensure her death.”
I grab at my hair, pulling at the roots, frustrated and tired, yet ready for a fight.
“What do I do, Julian? How do I help her?”
He pulls me into his arms, blanketing me in the comfort that only he can provide.
“We wait. We strategize. And when the time is right, we act.” He lifts my chin so that our eyes meet. “Can you trust me with this? Let me handle it and keep you both safe.”
A tear glides down my cheek. The feeling of helplessness is so intense, it threatens to crumble me.
“I trust you,” I promise. “But please act fast. Her family are good people. They don’t deserve this.”
He kisses the top of my head. “Very few do.”
With my head plastered against his chest, I listen to the steady rhythm of his heart. For all the differences, there are some things that are the same. We both bleed. Our hearts both beat. We both have the ability to feel deeply. I’ll hold on to those. His willingness to help me has my heart swelling and emotion I’m not ready to entertain taking center stage. Julian Bellamy makes it so easy to fall.
Trust your instincts, Marina.
Maggie’s voice calls to me and I shiver knowing she’s here even when she’s not. It tears me apart, but comforts at the same time.
“Marina, I . . .” His words trail off.
“Don’t say anything. I don’t want to talk any more. I want to not think about any of it. Just for a while.”
We sit in silence for several minutes. It feels so good in Julian’s arms. Safe.
“Come with me.”
Julian’s house is magnificent. Two staircases lead up to a veranda overlooking the foyer.
A giant chandelier hangs above, reflecting light as it hits each crystal. The floors are white marble with pale grey swirls throughout. You’d think the elegance of the place would make it stuffy, but the décor throughout makes it feel like a home.
He leads me around one more corner and through a door to a game room.
“Seriously? You have a man cave?”
His brow furrows. “Man cave?”
“Julian. You may be centuries old, but you can’t tell me you don’t know what a man cave is.”
“My time amongst humans has been very limited due to my place in the family. Unlike Law, I haven’t been privy to all the luxuries that the years have brought. I’ve been sheltered, if you will.”
How sad. It does explain why he seems so much more formal than Lawrence. To think of Julian shut off from the world makes me angry. What were they trying to do? Limit his interaction with humans so his empathy would be stifled? Of course.
“This is a man cave. It’s a room filled with things that men enjoy.”
“Man cave,” he tests out the name. “I like it.”
“So, what do we have in here?” I say, walking around and taking in the various games and collectibles. Air hockey, foosball, table tennis, pool, a television—you name it, it’s here.
“Seriously?” I say, confounded by this room. It’s completely unlike Julian. Maybe I don’t know him at all.
“I guess you can say it’s my way of trying to play at being human,” he shrugs. “It’s weird, I know.”
“It’s not,” I say, understanding more than I can even explain. It’s much like my attempt at drinking games. I had little interest, but for a chance to feel normal—or what’s seemingly normal—I participated.
“Want to play?” Julian asks, pointing toward the table tennis setup.
I have little to no experience playing table tennis. There is a very real possibility that I can’t even hit the ball. I’m about to divert his attention elsewhere when he calls me out.
“Don’t be scared. I’ll teach you.”
I roll my eyes. “Who says I need to be taught?” I ask, feigning skill.
He smirks. “You have no idea how to play. It’s written all over your face.”
“Fine. Teach me,” I acquiesce.
He runs through the rules a couple of times until I feel comfortable enough to start.
“Let’s hit the ball back and forth for a few minutes until you get the hang of it,” he suggests. He hits the ball onto my side and I swat it back over the net toward him. “Good job,” he praises, eliciting a smile from me.
Several minutes go by as we’re volleying back and forth—or so Julian calls it—before I’m finally ready to play.
“Okay, let’s do this.”
He serves the ball to me and I miss . . . pathetically.
“It’s all right. Try again,” he says, trying to encourage me.
I send the ball back so that he can serve again. He bounces it once and sends it back toward me. I swing and this time the paddle flies out of my hand and slams into a wall, making a loud clunk. My hands come to my mouth. I’ve managed to put a nice dent into his drywall.
“Oh my God. I’m so sorry, Julian.”
A grunt breaks through his chest, followed by bubbling laughter. He finds this funny.
“Stop laughing. I nearly put a hole in your wall,” I say, almost in tears.
His head falls back and he barks, he’s laughing so hard. My arms cross over my chest and I groan in irritation. When he finally stops laughing, he wipes a stray tear away from his eye.
“I don’t care about my wall, Marina. It was your face. You were so serious when you swung. I’m glad it was a ball and not my head in your path. You looked positively wicked.”
No matter how hard I try to contain it, a chuckle breaks through my own lips. Julian mimicking my face is hysterical. I do have a tendency of going overboard, and I’m sure his impression isn’t too far off.
“Maybe we should do something less dangerous,” Julian says, pointing toward the television.
“A movie sounds good,” I reply, ready to be done with table tennis. I’ll leave games to people who are good at them.
We spend the rest of the evening curled up on his couch watching some black-and-white movie that I can’t remember the name of. It doesn’t matter. I’m content. We’re not touching, but the close proximity of our bodies isn’t lost on me. I can feel the heat coming off him. His deep breaths make my heart skip a beat or two. Julian and I exchange glanc
es occasionally, but I do my best to turn away, not wanting him to see how he affects me. Feelings that don’t make sense bubble inside of me, threatening to burst out. I stuff them down. Nothing good can come from loose lips.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“You’re such a witch,” Stacey says, pulling a brush through my tangled hair.
I wince as the brush gets stuck on a snarl.
“I offered my spot to you and you refused. You don’t get to be bitter.”
Watching her in the large mirror, I see her smile. She isn’t really mad, just a bit jealous. I don’t blame her. I would be too. A night out on the town with Julian Bellamy sounds like heaven. The past week has crawled at a snail’s pace while I waited for him to get back.
“As much as I wanted out of here, I think you and Julian need some alone time.” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively insinuating more than a platonic dinner date.
“You’re insane. There’s absolutely nothing going on between Julian and me.” On my end, there is attraction, but that’s where it starts and stops. He’s simply too handsome for his own good.
“It’s ridiculous. He’s a vampire,” I add, to make my case. I’m not sure who I’m trying to convince at this point.
“A sexy one,” Stacey says off-handedly.
“Not human.”
The truth is, no matter how attracted I may be to Julian, we would never make sense. “While he never ages, I’ll grow old and wrinkled.”
She pouts her lips. “Who said anything about the future? I was merely suggesting you lose that V-card.”
I groan at her lack of decorum in bringing up my chastity.
“I’m not interested in losing my virginity to anyone, especially not someone I have no future with.”
Her lips thin into a straight line. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there’s a good chance you don’t have a future, period. Don’t miss out on your chance to experience something mind-blowing because you’re stuck in ways that no longer matter.”
She’s right. We’ve been so secluded here that the auction and evil vampires seem like a nightmare from long ago. Julian has alluded to the Council trying to overthrow him. What happens if they do? You’ll die like the others.
“You’re missing something,” I divulge. “Let’s say I was all about your absurd suggestion, and I plan to try to seduce him. He’d have to want the same thing.”
She throws her head back and laughs. I scrunch my nose, trying to piece together what’s so funny.
“Oh, he wants the same thing. Trust me.” She chuckles again. “There’s one thing I have learned over the years, and it’s how to read a man. And that man can’t keep his eyes off you.”
My cheeks turn warm. A swelling begins in my belly and works its way up my chest. Could she be right?
“Ladies, ladies. I’ve brought some goodies,” Katina calls from the doorway, entering with a flourish and carrying a garment bag. “I brought you something more appropriate to wear. If you’re going to be seen in New Orleans, you need to look like you belong.”
Her eyes trail up my current dress.
“Right now, you look like you stepped out of a time machine circa 1779.”
It’s my turn to purse my lips.
“Thanks to you and your sense of humor,” I scowl.
“Who? Me?” she asks, acting like she has no clue what I’m talking about. I let it go. I’ll never win with Katina. She doesn’t even realize how eccentric she is.
I’m just glad she recognizes that these clothes won’t do in the outside world. Maybe this is the start of her actually coming to terms with the century outside of these walls. I’d love to see a massive clothing upgrade when I get back.
“You went shopping?” Stacey says with a hint of longing in her voice.
“I do enjoy it every now and then.” Katina perks up. “Plus, I have a friend that works at a boutique in town. It’s been a while since I paid her a visit. She was getting lonely.” She wiggles her eyebrows. She definitely favors women.
“All done,” Stacey says, patting my shoulders. “Time to get you dressed. Cinderella can’t be late for the ball.” I stand and walk to the bed where Katina has laid the garment bag. Unzipping it, I find a black knee-length dress with a crisscross front and pleats. I pick it up and feel the fabric beneath my fingers. It feels comfortable. Cotton or polyester, or maybe both. It’s casual and cute. In the bag is a pair of knee-high brown boots and a brown bag. It’s covered in Ls and Vs, which means nothing to me.
“Oh my God. Is that the Artsy?” Stacey squeals, getting a smile of appreciation from Katina.
“Obviously. Louis and I are very close.”
I watch as the two go on and on about the bag as if it’s the best thing they’ve ever seen.
I’ve never been one to care about fashionable things. Especially not accessories. My family was lucky to keep the roof over our head. We certainly didn’t have extra to spend on insignificant things.
Continuing through the garment bag, I find another bag that looks like jewelry, dangling from the hanger. I go to pull it off and Katina slaps my hand away.
“Put on your dress first. We can worry about this later.”
My eyes cross and I stick my tongue out at her.
“Ever the boss,” I say teasingly.
I slip on the dress and allow my wavy locks to fall down my back. Understated and classy—I love it. I’m not overdone, like at the auction. Katina and Stacey did a great job between the clothes and the hair and makeup.
Katina checks her watch and tsks. “We’re running out of time. Come here.” She pulls something out of the bag that she took away from me earlier and goes to stand behind me. When her hands come around to the front of my neck, my blood runs cold. It’s a collar, like the slaves at the auction wore.
“What is that?” I ask, knowing full well, but wanting her to admit what she’s doing.
“It’s a precaution, Marina.”
I step away from her. “No. Absolutely not. That was not part of the deal.”
“Marina, if you’re going off of this estate, you have to wear this. There’s no way around it.”
“Then I’m not going,” I say, growing angrier by the minute.
I sit on the bed, cross my arms over my chest, and sulk. I should’ve known there would be stipulations. But I never thought he would actually try to collar me.
“Are you seriously going to refuse to ge out of this place just because you have to wear that?” Stacey asks, looking annoyed by my actions.
“Stacey, this is what all of those servants at the auction were wearing. It’s what they use to control people. I already promised I wouldn’t run. If he doesn’t trust me, then maybe he shouldn’t take me.”
Stacey shrugs her shoulders. “Suit yourself. I’ll go in your place,” she says.
“You stubborn girl,” Katina chastises, walking out the door and slamming it shut behind her.
“I’m sorry, Stacey, but I just can’t do it. I have done my part and stayed inside these walls. I have forgiven Julian for his part in all of this, but this is asking too much. Expecting me to be okay with this is too much. It’s a reminder of all the other girls who are being tortured right now or are already dead. I won’t wear it.”
Ten minutes later, there’s a knock on the door.
“Come in,” I call out.
Julian peeks his head around the corner. “May I come in?”
I motion for him to enter. He comes to my bedside, sitting next to me. He doesn’t say anything for a second. “Marina, I never asked Katina to bring the collar to you. I had planned on talking to you about it myself.”
“Why? You had to know I’d refuse.”
He sighs.
“The chance you’d put up a fight was high, but you have to know that it’s very dangerous for me to take you into New Orleans without one.”
I huff.
“It has nothing to do with me trying to control you, and everything to do with the way it looks to
anyone we encounter. If the Council sees you without it, it’s bad news for us both.”
“Last I checked, slaves are illegal,” I bite.
Julian sighs heavily. “New Orleans is riddled with vampires and people who work for the Council. Council members themselves frequent the place. They would smell your blood from a mile away, and the first question they would have is why I would walk around without having you in a collar.”
I narrow my eyes at Julian. What isn’t he saying?
As if reading my mind, he continues, “It would look as though I’m weak. That I’ve ignored my better judgment because of a human girl. We’ve been over this.”
“Am I to believe that no vampire has ever enjoyed the company of a human without a collar? Couldn’t I just be having dinner with you under the assumption that you are a man and not a vampire?”
“It’s not that simple. As I said before, you’re marked. Being marked gives you different qualities. Things you can’t see, but vampires can. A vampire would know you came from the auction, and the fact that I’m allowing you to roam free wouldn’t bode well for me if it got out.”
“So, we’re at an impasse.”
“Can we compromise? Could we remove the batteries, and have you wear it? That way, from afar, it would look like I’m following policy? If someone gets close enough and notices, I’ll deal with the consequences if they arise.”
I don’t like it. The idea doesn’t seem like a compromise to me at all. He’s still expecting me to wear a symbol of everything I hate in this world. However, I also can acknowledge I’m being selfish and difficult. I’m trying to give, but it’s difficult. There are some things I’ll never be able to agree to without a fight.
“I want you to join me, Marina. I’ve been looking forward to this all day.”
“You have?” His words warm my insides and help to drop the wall I’ve erected in the past few minutes. I might not love his compromise, but at least he’s trying. If he can give a little, so can I.
“I’m sorry. Old habits,” I say sheepishly. “I’ll wear it. With batteries. You’ve explained the reasons and it’s unfair of me to chance any of this.”
Blood That Binds: A Vampire Romance (Blood Legends Duet) Page 19