by I. T. Lucas
Eva rolled her eyes. Hell would freeze over before she admitted that. “Pfft, please…”
“It’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’re an immortal female, and your body craves my bite. It’s just chemistry.”
She crossed her arms under her fake boobs. “I want no such thing.”
“I could smell your arousal and so could Jackson. He couldn’t help his response, so he hoofed it out of here.”
Embarrassing didn’t start to cover it. But Eva wasn’t some blushing virgin. “So any time a female immortal feels horny all the males around her go wild?”
“If she is unattached and not related to them, then yes.”
“How would you know if I was attached or not?”
“If you were attached to a human, I wouldn’t. But if it were another immortal male, your scent would’ve alerted me to the fact.”
“Fascinating.”
He nodded.
“Can I come in?” Nathalie knocked on the doorframe.
“Yes, dear. Bhathian just finished explaining about the birds and the bees immortal-style.”
“Good, I’m glad that’s out of the way. We need to decide what to do next, though. I vote for you to come stay with us at the keep. Get to know the rest of the clan.”
“There is a clan?”
“Yes. But first I need to call the boss and ask permission. Would you excuse me for a moment?” He pulled out his phone and walked outside.
“If you want to talk privately, you’ll need to get out of the building,” she called after him.
“I know.”
Eva patted her mask and grimaced. She probably looked horrible. “I’ll better go fix that.”
“The bathroom is that way.” Nathalie pointed in the same direction Bhathian had gone.
“I changed my mind. I’d better wait for Bhathian to come back or he’ll think I want to eavesdrop.”
“I wouldn’t,” he said as he entered. “We have a green light.”
Eva lifted her satchel. “I don’t want this to be the first impression I make.” She waved a hand over her getup. “I need to go back to my hotel room and change.”
“We can drop you off and wait in the car.”
No way. She didn’t want Bhathian to know where she was staying. “It will take a long time. You can give me the address, and I’ll drive myself, or you can wait for me here.”
“We’ll wait for you here.”
“I’ll try to be quick about it.” Eva gave Nathalie a hug because she couldn’t leave without one.
Driving back to her hotel, Eva thought back to that one night with Bhathian. For years she’d been trying to reconcile everything that didn’t make sense about it, wondering if her memory was faulty. His night vision, his glowing eyes, the insane attraction, the incredible stamina…
She’d always enjoyed sex, but no man had ever satisfied her like Bhathian.
Chapter 14: Bhathian
As he waited for Eva to come back, Bhathian thought about the way Kian, the usually overcautious regent, had welcomed her wholeheartedly without even conditioning her arrival at the keep on a blindfold. As an immortal, and as Nathalie’s mother, he deemed her safe. Eva, on the other hand, remained suspicious. A lifetime of hiding and keeping secrets had taken its toll. It would take a lot of time and effort before she could trust anyone.
“I wonder if she’s changed at all,” Nathalie said.
“Probably not much since you last saw her. But then you said that she always wore heavy makeup to make herself look older. She might look much younger than how you remember her.”
Nathalie snorted. “She might look younger than me. That would be so weird.”
“It’s possible.” Bhathian couldn’t wait to see Eva without the disguise.
He still remembered her vividly. A bombshell—so sexy that one look was enough to knock a guy off his feet—a natural born seductress. The thing was, none of it had been manufactured, or even conscious. Eva had been quite naive for a forty-something-year-old woman. Back then, she hadn’t been as guarded and suspicious as she was now. Though as an undercover DEA agent she must’ve seen the ugly and dirty part of humanity.
Of course, he hadn’t known she was with the DEA when he’d first seen her on the plane. To him, the woman who’d called herself Patricia had been a flight attendant who’d flirted with him and whom he’d later seduced on the dance floor of a bar.
Holding her in his arms as they’d slow danced, Bhathian had wanted her with such an intensity that he’d had the fleeting crazy notion of taking her right then and there and thralling everyone in the busy bar to forget it. He’d barely held on until they had gotten to her hotel room.
She’d blown his mind.
He should’ve known that no human could’ve kept up with him all night as she’d had. And her resistance to thralling should’ve been the clincher. And yet he’d let her go because he was a dense dumbass who hadn’t put those clues together.
Life had never been the same since.
Everyone wondered why he wore a permanent frown, or why he smiled so rarely. He hadn’t admitted it to anyone, including himself, but he’d been living with a big yawning hole in his heart and a persistent ache in his gut. He’d known something was missing, but he’d refused to acknowledge that he’d been longing for a human woman he’d met twice and had sex with once.
The Fates had brought him a gift, and he’d been too blind to see it. Two immortals making a baby on their first try was unheard of.
Ever.
He’d never been a big believer in a higher power. When he invoked the Fates it was just as a figure of speech. But there was no way to regard Nathalie’s conception as anything but fated.
After more than an hour had passed, Bhathian started to get anxious. What if she wasn’t coming back?
It would be just like Eva to disappear again.
Could she be that cruel? He could understand if she hadn’t wanted anything to do with him, but what about Nathalie?
She would be devastated if her mother pulled the same stunt again.
“I’m going to wait for her outside,” he told Nathalie.
She cast him a pitying look. “Okay. Text me when she gets here, and I’ll come down.”
Bhathian nodded.
It was good to be outside and breathe fresh air as he strode up and down the street, giving an outlet to the nervous energy buzzing not only in his brain but his entire body.
His heart skipped a beat when he saw Eva’s rental car slowing down. Seeing her come back made him dizzy with relief.
He was there the moment Eva eased into a parking spot and cut the engine. Wrenching the driver side door open, he almost tore it off the hinges, and as he bent to offer Eva a hand up, the buzzing in his head became deafening.
“Easy there.” She regarded him with a wary look in her amber eyes as she placed her hand in his, sending an electrical current from his fingers down to his toes.
Gently, he pulled her up, his body quaking with the need to bring her flesh against him. It took an iron will to step back and give Eva some space.
She was even more beautiful than he remembered. Hair the same dark mahogany shade as Nathalie’s cascaded in waves and big curls around her shoulders and down her back. And her lips… her skin… her everything… He couldn’t verbalize what his eyes were seeing adequately to do her justice.
“Take a breath, Bhathian.” She clapped him on the shoulder, leaving him rooted to the spot.
It took him a moment to shake himself and follow Eva to the café. She moved with the fluidity of an immortal female, but for some reason hers seemed more predatory, more confident. She gave off a dangerous vibe.
He had a feeling Eva wasn’t a woman to mess with.
Before, when she’d told him she would bring him down if he dared do anything with the knife, he’d humored her, scoffing at what he’d considered an empty threat. Now he wasn’t so sure.
Damn, he’d forgotten to text Nathalie.
; It was probably too late for that. He rushed to catch up and open the door for Eva, earning an indulgent smile for his effort.
Indulgent, mocking, amused; he’d take any smile she threw his way.
“Wow!” Jackson took a step back. “That’s one hell of a transformation.”
“Careful there,” Bhathian growled. If the boy was sporting a hard-on, he was going to punch him in his pretty face.
Jackson lifted his hands in the air. “Just saying, man. No disrespect.”
“You look amazing.” Nathalie waddled toward them from the kitchen. “Mo… my, oh my, you’re a knockout.” She swallowed the “Mom” at the last moment.
The humans sitting in the café weren’t the same ones from before. Nevertheless, Bhathian didn’t want any more unintended slip-ups. It was time to take this show on the road. “Let’s go, ladies.” He opened the door.
“Are we taking your car or mine?” Eva asked.
“We’ll take mine, and I’ll drive you back here once we’re done.” He was looking forward to having some time alone with her, but it was doubtful she’d agree to meet him without the buffer of company. He would have to be sneaky about snatching moments with Eva and getting her used to the idea that this time he wasn’t going anywhere.
Chapter 15: Nathalie
“Are all these people here for me?”
Eva’s step faltered as they crossed the security checkpoint and stepped behind the thick bulletproof glass that separated the front of the lobby from the clan’s private area in the back. The executive lounge, as Kian called it for the sake of those who wondered why the place wasn’t open to the public.
A partition made from greenery hid the café from view, but it did nothing to block the murmur of excited voices.
Kian must’ve told everyone in the keep about Eva’s arrival because it sounded like there was a crowd waiting for them. On second thought, he’d probably told Syssi, who’d told Amanda, who’d told Dalhu, who’d told Anandur, which was as good as putting it on the evening news.
Nathalie clasped her mother’s hand. “Don’t be mad. Everyone knows we were searching for you. They are happy for us and curious to see you.”
Eva stopped and turned to Bhathian. “Does that mean that there will be a stampede of immortal males sniffing me out like a bunch of hounds?”
Nathalie giggled. The visual Eva’s remark painted was just too funny.
Bhathian’s body seemed to swell in aggression, and he wrapped his arm around Eva. “They’ll have to go through me first.”
Before he’d spoken, Eva had seemed unhappy about his display of affection, but what he’d said must’ve changed her mind. It was quite obvious she wasn’t interested in rekindling things with Bhathian, but he was useful for fending off other potential suitors, whom Nathalie had no doubt would’ve been many.
Eva was the first unattached immortal female these males weren’t related to. And she was gorgeous. A stampede was entirely possible.
As they cleared the partition, Kian was the first to approach, the others staying behind out of respect for their regent.
“Welcome to our clan, Eva.” He offered his hand, and she shook it.
“Thank you,” was all she said as she pulled her hand away.
Nathalie would have whispered in her ear that she had nothing to worry about with Kian, he was as taken as a guy could be, but it would’ve been futile to whisper given the bat ears of their audience.
Thankfully, Syssi stepped forward. “Hi, I’m Syssi.” She offered her hand.
Kian smiled brightly and wrapped his arm around his wife’s slim waist, pulling her close. “My better half.”
Eva’s shoulders relaxed, and she shook Syssi’s hand. “Nice to meet you. Nathalie and Bhathian didn’t have time to tell me anything yet, so I don’t know who is who, but I’m sure you’ll fill me in.”
Next was Amanda, who gave Eva a very obvious once-over and then nodded her approval. “Now I see who Nathalie gets her good looks from because it’s certainly not from him.” She pointed at Bhathian.
Eva stiffened again.
“It’s okay, Mom. They all know Bhathian is my biological father, but no one talks about it in front of Fernando. Papi is happily clueless.”
Apparently, though, that wasn’t what got Eva’s hackles up.
With her four-inch heels, Eva was at eye level with Amanda who was wearing flats, and she hit her with a hard stare. “Thank you for the compliment, but you’re wrong. I see a lot of Bhathian’s beauty in Nathalie—a feminine version of it, naturally.”
Amanda grinned like she’d just proven a point and offered her hand. “I’m Amanda, Kian’s sister.”
Eva took the hand she’d been offered and was immediately pulled into a bone-crushing hug. “You’re family now. Handshakes are for strangers,” Amanda said.
During the entire exchange, Bhathian had been doing a great impression of a statue. He hadn’t even twitched. Like a sentry, he stood by Eva’s side until the procession of welcomers ended.
“Thank God,” Eva said as she plopped down into a chair. “My cheeks hurt from smiling. Not to mention my feet.” She kicked off her shoes.
Amanda snickered. “I know, right? Heels make your legs and butt look great, but kill your feet. Anyhoo, I have to bid you goodbye. Hope to see you here often.” She bent down and kissed Eva’s cheek.
“It was nice to meet you, Amanda,” Eva said and sounded like she meant it.
Amanda took some getting used to. Her over-the-top personality was off-putting at first, but once people got over that as well as her stunning looks, they discovered she was fun and kind and not stuck up at all.
Kian and Syssi joined them.
“What do you think of your daughter’s new business?’” Syssi waved a hand over the café.
Eva turned to Nathalie. “This is yours?”
“Theoretically. Kian put up the money for it, and I’m paying him back in installments.”
Kian crossed his arms over his chest. “It’s hers. Nathalie is just stubborn. I told her she doesn’t need to pay anything, but she insists.”
Eva swallowed, and the corner of her lip started twitching. Nathalie still remembered the signs heralding tears. Her mom was getting emotional.
“Thank you for welcoming my daughter and including her in your family. I’m so grateful to you all. My biggest fear was that Nathalie would be alone. Fernando and I had no other family. He got sick and I had to leave. There was no one she could turn to for help.”
Syssi leaned over and patted Eva’s hand. “I’m so glad Bhathian found her. I couldn’t have hoped for a better sister-in-law. Nathalie is awesome.”
Eva’s eyes peeled wide. “You’re Andrew’s sister? But where is Andrew?” She turned to Nathalie. “Is he scared of meeting his mother-in-law?”
Nathalie was waiting for that to come up; luckily it wasn’t six yet and Andrew was still at work, so she didn’t have to invent excuses. “He is not back from work yet.”
“Is he still working for the government?”
“Yes. He is an analyst in the anti-terrorism department.”
“I understand that he was the one who found me.”
“With some help from his friends. You were very difficult to track.”
Eva leaned back in her chair. “And to think that I’ve spent all this time running and hiding for nothing.”
“Not for nothing. Hiding what you are is of crucial importance,” Kian said.
She nodded. “What I still don’t get, among many other things, is how did you know about me? I mean about the immortality.”
Nathalie shifted in her chair, trying to get into a more comfortable position which was a futile endeavor. “It’s a long story. Andrew has access to information most people don’t. Bhathian asked him to do what he could to locate you. A friend of Andrew’s who is a forensic artist drew your portrait from what Bhathian remembered about you. So when Andrew started digging and saw the picture I’d given the police after you’d di
sappeared, he immediately noticed that you haven’t aged at all.”
“Is that how Bhathian found you?”
“Yes, and he brought Andrew along for courage. That’s how we met.”
“Well, at least some good came out of it.”
Bhathian frowned. “That’s not the only good thing. Aren’t you glad we found you? If not for my letter, you’d still be hiding and missing your daughter like crazy.”
“You’re right. I just need a day or two to absorb all of this. It’s so overwhelming, and I still have so many questions, but Nathalie looks like she is in pain. Sitting here is not doing her any good.” She looked at Nathalie with compassion. “You need to lie down and rest, sweetie.”
She did, but she wasn’t ready to let go. “I don’t want you to leave. I’ve missed you so much and now that you’re back I don’t want you out of my sight.”
Eva lifted Nathalie’s hand and kissed it. “I’m not leaving yet. I’ll come back tomorrow. I promise.”
“In the morning?”
“How early do you want me?”
“Can you come at eight-thirty?”
“I’ll be here. What should I tell security?”
“Don’t worry about it.” Kian waved a hand. “You’re already on file as a guest. The facial recognition software will green-light you without you having to say a word.”
Eva grimaced. “Like that’s supposed to make me feel better. It’s exactly the kind of thing I try to avoid, which is getting increasingly difficult with today’s interconnected world. There is no more privacy to be had.”
Syssi sighed dramatically. “Google knows who you are and where to find you. That’s spooky. Like a big brother watching.”
Kian seemed to be bothered by the exchange. “Everything we do here in the keep is encrypted and redirected. We have better cyber security than the Pentagon. You have nothing to worry about.”
Eva lifted a brow. “What about hackers?”
“None are good enough.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and smiled. “You want to bet? How much are you willing to lose?”
“Bring it on. No one can break through our security.”