Fateful 2-Fractured

by Cheri Schmidt

  The vampires stared at her, and when she didn’t stand again, they reseated themselves.

  She stood up another time, and watched in amazement as they followed just as before.

  With a look of confusion on his face, Cedric asked, “Is there anything you need, Danielle? I’d be happy to get it for you.”

  “Thanks, but I just need the bathroom. I’ll be back in a minute.” She figured she’d better go, so they didn’t get too suspicious—yet.

  When she returned, they all rose to their feet, then sat down as she did. “Oh, I forgot…” she said and launched from the sofa.

  The men followed, and she had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. “Oh, never mind. I don’t need it,” she muttered and dropped back to the cushion.

  Up again, then the men.

  Down again, and they looked at her with realization dawning on their expressions. She leaned to stand again, but was then held down by both Cedric and Merrick.

  “You’re toying with our good manners,” Merrick accused with a broad grin.

  Danielle laughed out loud.

  “We’ll have no more of that, Mrs. Deveroux. If you keep it up, we just may have to sit on you,” Richard threatened, though it lost its sting with his giant smile.

  “Sorry. I’ll be good. I just couldn’t resist. Too funny.”

  Unexpectedly, they heard the backdoor squeak as someone entered the home.

  Richard lunged to his feet, groping for something at his hip. But frowned when he found nothing, and Danielle realized that he’d been looking for a sword. Apparently the man had carried one long enough that it was natural instinct for him to reach for it when threatened.

  “We don’t carry those anymore, Richard,” teased Merrick.

  “I know that! Was that Ethan?” Richard whispered.

  “I don’t think the plane could have landed five hours early. It has to be someone else.”

  Footsteps echoed from the wooden floors as this person approached.

  “Who’s there?” Cedric called.

  “It’s just me,” a man replied.

  It sounded like Ethan to her and she moved toward the hallway to see.

  Merrick caught her arm. “It can’t be Ethan. It’s too early. This must be an imposter,” Merrick murmured.

  The sound of heals against the floor drew closer.

  Her guards, it seemed, panicked as they shoved her into the cushions and then pretty much piled on top of her.

  The footfalls entered the living room and someone asked, “Where’s Danielle?”

  It was Ethan.

  “I’m here,” she called from underneath someone’s chest, she didn’t know who, but he was heavy. The sound came out muffled.

  “Get off my wife!”

  She felt the weight leave her as the prince complained, “You’re five hours early! Why didn’t you call? There’s certain protocol in place for bloody reason!”

  “I was able to catch an earlier flight, and my phone died. Plus, I wanted to surprise her.” Ethan responded simply as he made for her. “Are you all right? Did they crush you?’

  “I’m fine.” She threw herself into his arms. “I missed you.”

  She felt his lips move into a smile against her cheek as his arms held her to him and her feet left the floor. “I missed you too.”

  Leaning back to catch his gaze she wondered if it would still make her ill. A flurry of vertigo blew over her senses but she wasn’t slammed with nausea and smiled, figuring it was because she’d just drunk a cup of chamomile tea. While his eyes still made her dizzy, the early pregnancy nausea was fading, and it was slightly more tolerable. Ethan said nothing else as he kissed her and turned to carry her to their bedroom.

  Danielle opened her eyes and peered over Ethan’s shoulder as the guards watched him leave with her. They looked kind of lost, and she began to feel slightly guilty for it, like she was abandoning them.

  “Thanks for everything, men. I’m retiring early tonight.”

  “Will you be finishing the film with us?” Merrick asked.

  “You guys can, I’ve seen it before,” she replied as Ethan began to nuzzle her neck and tickled a laugh out of her.

  “What were you watching?” Ethan asked as he entered the hallway, and the guards left her view.

  She shuddered. “Arsenic and Old Lace.”

  Ethan laughed. “And how were they liking that?”

  “They found it disturbing.”

  “But it seems they were enjoying it anyway.”

  “I think they were. You wouldn’t believe what I’ve been making them watch.” She then told him about all of the films they’d seen, and he laughed again.

  “Sounds like you’ve had a good time.”

  “It’s been a little rough with Richard, he’s really bossy.”

  He’d entered their room and was lowering her onto the bed. “You butted heads, I take it?”

  “Yes.” She flushed, knowing she had to tell him about the plane ride. “And lips, but only twice.”

  “He kissed you? Twice?” She wasn’t surprised at the angry tone in his voice at this news, the possessive side of him made her wonder if she should have told him. But this wasn’t the kind of thing she could keep from him.

  “Just to hide me from the vampire on the plane. It was brief, well, no it wasn’t brief, but…”

  “What else? Did he hurt you? Did he make you cry?” There was that muscle tick in his cheek again.

  She hadn’t meant to tell him about the crying part, but since he’d asked, she couldn’t lie about that either. “He tends to bellow.”

  “A common trait of your average medieval prince, I suppose.”

  Danielle studied his expression and sensed that there was some of the jealousy he feels around Max resurfacing in regards to Richard. “You seem more like a prince to me, he’s a barbarian,” she said hoping to soothe him.

  “I was never a prince, and never would have been. I may have become an earl, but never a prince. And right now, I’m a toad.”

  He is jealous of the prince. “You’re all frogs to me, but you’re my Frog Prince, and always will be.”

  Ethan exhaled. It was a long exasperated one. “And you’re certain that you’re all right? Do I need to check for bruises?”

  Her eyes widened at that. There was just that one bruise, but it wasn’t really Richard’s fault. He hadn’t meant to take her arm so firmly when she tripped over Cedric’s feet and he caught her.

  Frowning, Ethan tugged off her cardigan and cursed under his breath at the black and blue mark on her upper arm.

  “Now don’t freak out. I fell.”

  Narrowed blue eyes caught onto hers. “This is not consistent with a fall, Danielle. Someone grabbed your arm.”

  “To stop me from falling, yes. It was an accident.” She may have been frustrated with the prince, but she didn’t want him in trouble for this.

  “How did this happen?”

  “I stepped backwards and stumbled over Cedric’s feet, Richard caught me by the arm.”

  “This is what I get for leaving my fragile wife with three medieval stooges.”

  “I wouldn’t call them stooges ... and, Cedric isn’t even old enough to be considered medieval…”

  He studied her face for a moment longer, and again she felt the enchanting influence of his vampire gaze. Danielle made a mental note: Drink Chamomile tea before making eye contact with Vampire Ethan because it really helped.

  His head tilted. “Somehow you’ve bonded with them.”

  “I guess I have,” she said slowly, and found that even she was surprised by this.

  “I don’t like how this makes me feel.”

  “You’re jealous.”

  She could see that he hated it when she pointed that out. Then his expression rearranged. “We don’t have time for this. I need you. I’ve missed you so much,” he said as he began kissing her face, and neck, and shoulders.

  “Oh, no!” She then realized how little time they had
together before night fell. “The sun!”

  “Yes, it will be setting in about an hour, and I’ll have to leave you for the night.”

  “No. I-I don’t want to sleep alone again!”

  Ethan ignored that and began tugging off his clothes.

  “Let’s try sleeping together. I watched late movies with them, well after dark.”

  That got his attention. “They weren’t supposed to do that.”

  “Nothing happened…. They were good about avoiding eye contact and they never sat next to me on the loveseat.”

  “I’m cursed at night and so are they; you shouldn’t have taken that risk.”

  She didn’t really know what to say to that.

  “We can’t be separated like this again. Never again! For heaven’s sake, you were kissed by another man!”

  “What about you? Did you kiss Gillian?”

  “We kept the hunting brief to prevent her from being recognized, and fearing they still posed a threat even if you had been turned, we remained inside most of the time. In that case there was no need to put on an act.”

  “Is that your answer?” she asked because from that bit of lame info she couldn’t tell if he’d kissed her. “So did you kiss her or not?”

  “No.”

  Great, now she really felt guilty.

  That storm brewed in his blue eyes again, but he curled his body around hers as if he meant to prove that she belonged to him alone.

  “We didn’t make out, Ethan. I was trying to shove him away the whole time,” she said, hoping to calm the upset lining his face.

  “Does he kiss better than me?”

  She looked into his eyes, and smiled as that familiar, slightly uncomfortable, and mesmerizing sensation swept over her. “You’re forgetting about this eye thing we have going. No one can top that.” She closed her eyes and slid her nose over his cheek, drawing in his scent. “Mmmm, and that. I can’t get enough of that. No one can match what you do to me. No one kisses me like you do, and no one is better at it than you. Not that I’ve tested it…. Am I forgiven?”

  “Of course.”

  The anger softened from his mouth and his sapphire gaze dropped to her lips. “Show me, darling. Show me what I’ve been missing out on for far too long.”

  Chapter 16

  Who’s Staring?

  Danielle had talked Ethan into staying in their bed until long after the sun had set and his heart had stopped beating for the night. But the next morning she awoke to an empty bed. It seemed he stayed until she’d fallen asleep and then slipped away. She didn’t like that. She didn’t want to be separated from her husband at bedtime, sleeping in different bedrooms. It just wasn’t right.

  Waking up alone hadn’t put her in the best mood, and she decided she needed to hit something. Again, frustration was fueling her need for studied violence. She dressed in her workout clothing, brushed her hair back into a ponytail, gathered her heavy metal music, and made for the garden. It was getting cold out as fall began to set in, but she planned on moving enough to not notice.

  The three guards still lingered, but they wouldn’t be as close as they had been before. Danielle secretly missed the silly banter that went on amongst them, and thought maybe they were a little like the three stooges. As well as making her cry, they’d made her laugh quite a bit. However, she was extremely happy to be able to get out of the house. With Ethan home, she’d be able to enjoy a few more freedoms. If she was believed to be here now then she could go outside, right?

  As she approached the door, Merrick captured her arm.

  “Ow! That’s where the bruise is. Do you mind?”

  “Oops, sorry about that.” He released her promptly.

  She reached for the handle again, and Merrick stepped in front of it.

  “Um, I’m just going out to exercise.”

  “Did you ask Ethan if you could do that outside?”

  “Ethan’s not around to ask,” she replied angrily. “I’m not a child; I don’t need his permission for everything.”

  “Let her go, Merrick. She’s supposed to be pretending that she’s immortal, remember? I think she’d still be doing her training if she were,” Richard said.

  “Hmm, I see your point. Sorry, Danielle, old habits are hard to break.” He chucked her chin like she was his little sister.

  Danielle smiled. “I understand,” she said as she went out into the chilled morning.

  She’d only been allowed to look at their yard from inside, until now. Moving across the grass she decided she could see why it reminded Ethan of England. It was formal with shrub topiaries surrounding it. These weren’t the amazing animals Beon liked to sculpt, these were simple balls and twists, but they still provided an English-style effect.

  The northern side was teaming with rosebushes but they’d lost their pretty blooms for the season. Irish moss carpeted the ground below, which still had little white flowers sprinkled over it because it was a hardier plant. An herb garden lay at the south side of the yard, but most of it had gone to seed and she knew frost would soon destroy what was left. A neglected and dying vegetable garden stood next to a fountain. She frowned realizing that Ethan had probably planned on enjoying the fresh produce himself. However, now he couldn’t do that.

  Danielle chose the space in the middle of the lawn to begin her workout. She set the iPod dock down and pressed play on her iPod. The banging song electrified the air and she loved that.

  “I’m afraid you may have it too loud. The neighbors could complain.”

  She turned to face Richard, who’d obviously followed her out. “If it’s too loud, then you’re too old.” Danielle started her routine.

  “You really like Aerosmith?”

  Left block, forward punch, uppercut. “I’m surprised you even know who they are.”

  “They’ve been around long enough to be noticed, even by me.”

  “Yes, they’re great for this.” She punched and kicked in his direction.

  “I’m impressed. I can see you’ve been studying this for a long time. Your technique is nicely polished.”

  “Too bad it’s useless against the likes of you. Regardless, I keep doing it because I like it, and I need the exercise.” She moved through two roundhouse kicks, and several blocks and jabs.

  “I’ll spar with you.” He reached out and caught her fist in the palm of his hand.

  She jerked free. “I don’t think so. Ethan might be angry that you’re even out here with me.”

  “She’s right about that,” Ethan said.

  Richard dipped into a quick bow and left after he said, “Good day.”

  “Where were you this morning? And when did you leave me?”

  “You tempt me when you’re sleeping, I couldn’t stay.”

  She stopped what she was doing, and one look into those mystical eyes of his made her dizzy, so she dropped her gaze to his shirt. “My blood? Is that what tempts you?” she asked, fingering one of his buttons.

  He slid the backs of his fingers over her cheek, and she swallowed. His hands were cooler than her morning chilled cheeks. She was more aware of his temperature changes after being so close to him when he was mortal, and while the sun had risen, he hadn’t warmed up much yet. It must be a gradual thing, she mused.

  “No,” he said, “I wanted to make love to the angel sleeping next to me, and if I woke you for that, then I would be tempted ... to use the curse. It was less painful to sleep in another room.”

  “What does it feel like? That temptation.”

  “It feels wicked in a bad way. Evil.”

  “And the taste?”

  “The taste is only a small part of it. In truth, it’s more about drawing energy and power.” He shuddered like he was disturbed by his own words. “Just feeding feels so immoral to me. I rather preferred the pangs of hunger, and the uncomfortable tightness of being too full. Food is heavy. I liked that.”

  “And because of this, you can’t sleep next to me?”

  “I—just—
I couldn’t do it last night.”

  “This sucks.” She dropped her hand from him, twisted away, and went back to her techniques, getting more violent with the movements.

  “Richard watches you. Did you know that?”

  She stopped again, but kept her back to him. “Um, don’t all of my guards watch me? Practically nonstop?” She could see one even now, guarding the back gate.

  “Well, yes, but not like Richard does.”

  “What is it about the way he watches me that bothers you?” She felt a chill slice up her spine at the idea.

  “There’s just a look in his eye that troubles me. And he stares; the others don’t stare at you.”

  “If you don’t trust him then why is he in charge?”

  “Because Max chose him, and I agree that he is the best man for this, and I don’t think he means you harm. He just seems a little too interested.” Ethan had his lips to her ear now, and Danielle shivered as his cool mouth moved against her lobe.

  “Isn’t he married? I forgot to ask that…. I know that Merrick is, and Cedric just married Anna—”

  “He’s single.”

  “That can’t be.” Her voice dropped down to a whisper. “Isn’t he nearly seven hundred years old?”

  “He’s been married a few times.” Ethan’s breath fanned her cheek. It wasn’t as cold as his flesh, possibly because it came from inside him and with the sun up he was warming up.

  “What happened?” Danielle turned to face her husband, but she avoided his eyes. She buried her nose into his cold shoulder instead. So much for getting some exercise….

  Ethan responded by rubbing her back. She felt herself sag against him as his fragrance surrounded her. “He’s been divorced a few times,” he said.

  “Why? I mean he’s rather grouchy, but he’s got a soft side hidden underneath it all.”

  “The point is that he’s looking.”

  “And you think he wants me? Now you’re paranoid and jealous. Ethan, I’m married to you, and everyone knows I’m expecting your baby. That’s generally a major turn off for most men.”

  “You’re the one who discovered the cure…”

  “Oh, please! I only did what you told me to do, and any mortal could do it. I think you’re wrong. He’s just anal about this military stuff, and keeping me alive is the main objective.”