Andi laughed. It was something she hadn’t done in a very long time. “Flatterer. You just want to hurry things along. Did you get my complexion spell?”
“Did you get my magazines?”
“Of course. Though I don’t know why you think you need a fashion update. You look pretty good to me.” In truth, he looked about twenty years out of date, but she didn’t want to hurt his feelings.
Abyar straightened his tie and shot his cuffs. “I do try, but the information I get from those that pass is spotty at best. Personal appearance is not a high priority with them.”
He knew she was a liar, but then again so was he. The woman needed a lot of work, but she seemed amenable to the idea and though the few charms he procured for her cost a bundle, he thought the payoff would make the investment worthwhile. He’d never had much interest in females before, but this one intrigued him. She was bright and devilishly clever, a woman after his own heart. At first, he’d only chatted with her to win her trust, but through their midnight talks, he’d grown quite fond of her. He shivered at the thought. He’d never been fond of anyone.
“There are things we need to discuss, plans we need to make.” She interrupted his musings. “Are you ready to come into the circle?”
He gave her a wolfish grin. “Ready? My dear, I’ve been ready for years.”
Chapter 21
The drive home took longer than expected because Grace insisted they stop every half hour. She needed to experiment with what she’d learned and she needed humans to do it.
The first stop was a convenience store where Grace was the only customer and it was easy to turn away the clerk’s dull buzz of boredom. Grace laughed out loud at her first success and the clerk looked at her strangely when she paid for her chips, probably wondering why potato chip should cause such a reaction.
They stopped at a gas station, an all night grocery and finally a bar that had a good number of cars in its parking lot. Otto wasn’t happy about it. He didn’t think Grace should go in there alone.
“If you go with me I won’t feel a thing,” Grace huffed, “What kind of a test is that? I’ll go in and pretend to use the phone and come right back. Won’t take me more than five minutes.”
Alcohol always increased emotion and this bar was no different than any other. Grace stopped a few feet inside the door and took a look around the room. She was the only woman in the place. She took a deep breath, concentrated and felt the web building in her mind, a spider’s web to capture and cushion the waves. She wasn’t completely successful, but the buzz was tolerable and she mentally gave herself a clap on the back and moved to the bar. The bartender gave a disinterested nod toward the back of the room when she asked for a phone. So far, so good.
She had just reached for the receiver when a sharp pain stabbed at the back of her head and she jumped. This was so much stronger than anything else in the bar. Grace took a cleansing breath, tightened the web and turned in time to see a tall, rangy man with unkempt hair and a leering grin heading her way.
“Never seen you in here before. Name’s Ray. Why don’t you come on over and have a drink with me and my friends where we can get acquainted.”
“Thanks for the offer, Ray, but I really need to be on my way. I just came in to use the phone.” Lust and violence tore at the web.
“Nah, you don’t need to be running off. You need to come have a drink. Party a little.”
She looked into Ray’s eyes and said, “You really don’t want to do this,” with all the conviction she could muster.
The guy didn’t hesitate, didn’t blink. “Yeah, I do. Come on back to the table.” He grabbed her upper arm.
Shit. Manon was right. As yet, she couldn’t push anyone to do anything against their nature. This guy’s nature was pure creep. Grace screamed at the top of her lungs and spun away out of his grip. Her elbow rammed his ribs and she stomped his foot. A startled howl told her she’d connected, but she didn’t wait to see how well. She flew through the bar and out the door.
Otto was there before she could call him and when Ray and a buddy crashed through the door he stepped in front of her and faced the two men. He threw back his shoulders and suddenly looked taller and broader than he had a moment before. Grace heard the distinctive hiss and knew that his fangs had emerged.
“Otto, don’t,” she pleaded, “Let’s get in the car and go.” She took a few steps in that direction. Otto stood his ground. More men tumbled out of the bar.
“Shit, Otto, if you’re going to do this then cover the fangs,” she hissed, “We’ve got an audience. And no white light!” she added as an afterthought. She ran for the car.
In the time it took to lean over the driver’s seat and turn the ignition, it was all over and a grinning Otto was striding toward the car. The headlights illuminated the two men on their hands and knees dizzily shaking their heads. The one named Ray vomited and the crowd at the door cheered and jeered.
“What happened?”
“They were drunk. I’m not.” Otto put the car in gear. He was still smiling and his shoulders were set with satisfaction.
“You really enjoyed that, didn’t you?” Grace had meant to give him a stern lecture but found she was smiling, too. Uncle Otto seemed so pleased with himself.
“Yes I did.” He nodded firmly. “I miss it and you’re not the only one who had a test to run. I knocked a tooth out of that first guy. He bled and it sure smelled good but the thought of putting my mouth on him was disgusting.” He looked over at Grace, still grinning, and chucked her cheek. ”I’ve beat the thirst and it’s all thanks to you.”
“You’re the only uncle I’ve got and I aim to keep you.”
“You gave me a second chance to do things right.”
Grace smiled. “You want to bring her home.”
“Yes, in more ways than you can imagine,” he said quietly.
“Tell me more Uncle Otto. I want to hear it all. I think I need to hear it all.”
Otto took a deep breath and let it out on a deep sigh. “No one knows that Manon and I are bound, Grace. She’s a Daughter. I’m a Guardian. The two don’t mix. You’ve heard the story of the Paenitentia’s beginning and you’ve heard your own. There’s bad blood on both sides. Manon didn’t care. I did. For the first and only time, I lied to my brethren. I said I’d give her up and they believed me. That’s why there was no one to tell her when I turned.
“We’ve kept our secret for seventy-five years and I don’t want to keep it any longer. I don’t want to spend the years I have left wanting her, missing her and sneaking off to steal a day with her. You’re right, Grace, I want to bring her home. I want to say ‘This is Manon. She is my woman and we are bound.’”
The passion in his voice brought Grace’s heart to her throat. She felt the tears sliding down her cheeks and did nothing to stop them. How could two people as kind and generous as Manon and Otto be kept apart for the sake of a legend that was thousands of years old? Seventy-five years of hiding your love, sneaking around like a criminal just to be together. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right.
“Will you bring her to the House?”
Otto snorted, half amused, half derisive. “Manon and Canaan in the same house. I don’t think so, though it might be entertaining. You’ve seen what she looks like when his name comes up and he feels the same way. The things he said about giving you to Dov? That wasn’t about you Grace. He said it to get at me. I’d brought up seeing Manon and he was angry. I think it shocked him that I knew where she was. He knows how I feel about you Grace and that’s where he lashed out because saying anything about Manon, good or bad, is off limits.”
“So he didn’t mean it?” Her shoulders lifted. Her back straightened and her stomach unclenched. She hadn’t realized the weight of Canaan’s words had affected her physically.
“No. He didn’t mean it. The man loves you, Grace, and that goes against everything he’s ever been taught. He’s where I was seventy-five years ago and he’s in danger of making the
same mistakes I did. I’m afraid he’ll send his heart to hell for pride and tradition.”
Grace’s stomach had unclenched but now it rolled. Uncle Otto was talking about her future as well as Canaan’s and after all Manon’s encouragement; she didn’t want to face the possibility of failure. She shifted the subject back to Manon and Otto.
“If you two aren’t going to live in the House, where are you going to live and what does it have to do with the thugs who jumped me?”
Otto smiled like a very clever little boy. She could see why Manon was charmed.
“I bought those two vacant houses across the back alley. If I can take care of a few details, Manon’s agreed to oversee the renovations. We’ll live in one of them.”
This was exciting news. Grace had been afraid that Otto would leave the House to live at Manon’s which was hours away and Grace didn’t drive. To have them living right across the back alley was the perfect solution.
“And the second house?” she asked.
Otto stared straight ahead at the road. “That’s for you. You can work with Manon on the renovations or do it on your own and send me the bills or do nothing at all. That’s up to you. The building is in your name. If things work out with Canaan, the house will be your dower portion, what you bring to the mating. If things don’t work out…” He kept his voice neutral, matter of fact. “You can live in it and still be close to family.” He reached over and patted her hand.
Grace was touched. “Uncle Otto, thank you. I can’t begin to tell you how much this means to me, but it’s too much.”
“Nonsense. I have more money than anyone could ever spend and no children to leave it to. That means that when I die, it’ll revert to the Ruling Council and that just sticks in my craw. Take this gift, Grace, and any other that I offer. You’re the closest I’ll ever come to having a daughter of my own. Let me enjoy it.”
The lump in her throat wouldn’t allow her voice to pass. She could only nod her assent.
Otto ignored the emotional overload and continued. “I don’t want the women that I love living in a place where they’ll always be afraid, so I’ve decided to become the neighborhood cop or maybe judge would be a better description. I’m too old and weak to fight demons alone, but I sure as hell can whip any or all of the punks that live around here. And what happened in the parking lot tonight proved that I can do it without falling to the thirst or the killing rage that comes with fighting demons. The neighborhood thugs are going to have to find another place to play.”
“Oh Otto, I think it sounds wonderful. You’ll be a one man neighborhood watch with a right hook instead of a cell phone.”
“Glad you like the idea. Now I have to get Canaan to buy into it.”
“If you explain it to him the way you explained it to me, he’ll see it, Uncle Otto, and he’ll understand. I know he will.” Something out the window caught her attention. “Oh god, there’s the McKenna’s grocery. We’re almost home. Tell me again that he loves me. Tell me again before I lose my nerve.”
“He loves you, Grace. I’m familiar with the symptoms and he’s got it bad.”
“And you’re sure no one’s there tonight. They’re not expecting me?”
“I’m sure. The boys are out raising hell and Canaan’s on patrol. Don’t bother with supper. You just get yourself settled in and get a good day’s sleep. You can surprise them at breakfast.”
Sleep was the last thing on Grace’s mind.
Chapter 22
Canaan pulled into the underground garage and hit the security button. He supposed it was time to get the boys their own cars and access to the garage. The old heap they were currently using was about to fall apart and while that was their own fault, they hadn’t bashed a bumper or crushed a fender in months. It was time. They’d earned it and it would show them that he appreciated their taking responsibility both in their jobs and around the House. They’d stopped asking when or if Grace was coming back, but they tried to keep the house as if she’d be there any moment. They weren’t as inclined to roughhouse as they were before and had even taken down the posters of naked women in the Back Room. They’d only left them up to get a rise out of Grace who willingly obliged.
Ah, Grace, when are you coming home? He didn’t want to think of the other possibility. Otto was enjoying his small revenge and gave nothing away. When the boys asked, he gave them a ‘who knows’ shrug, but twice he’d disappeared for the whole night leaving right after sundown and returning right before dawn. Otto knew what was what. He simply wasn’t telling.
“Enough of this,” he muttered to himself as he pushed open the door to the pantry, “Otto and I need to have a talk.” He had to know what was going on at Manon’s. The woman was probably plotting to use Grace for her revenge. Canaan wished he could fault her for it.
Buffy met him at the foot of the stairs as she always did, with a kindly purr instead of the usual snarl and hiss that befitted her vampire killer namesake. She rubbed her head against his ankles and he smiled as he bent to scratch the cat’s ears. Here was proof that Grace would return at least for a night. She’d never leave Buffy behind.
The scent of lemon wax and flowers wafted down the stairs. Canaan’s head snapped up and he grinned like a boy. Grace was home! Buffy led the charge as Canaan took the stairs two at a time. He stopped with a skid in front of Grace’s closed door. Should he knock and wait for her permission to enter? What if she said no? Or should he barge in and demand to know her plans? Now that she was here, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.
Buffy sat quietly at his feet looking at him strangely. Why wasn’t the cat with Grace? It gave him the perfect excuse to crack open the door to allow the cat entrance. When Grace greeted the cat, he would call out and Grace could take it from there.
He quietly turned the knob and opened the door but the cat wouldn’t budge and there was no sound from within. Grace must be asleep. He stood for a moment in indecision, and then silently closed the door. If she was going to stay, wouldn’t she be downstairs waiting for them all to come home? He had no right to ask her anything. It was all up to her. He’d waited this long to hear the result of her time with Manon, he could wait a little longer.
Canaan walked into his room pulling his shirt over his head as he headed for the shower. He stopped dead at the sight of his king sized tub filled with bubbles and Grace immersed up to her neck. The thought of what lay beneath the surface caused his gut to clench and his cock to stand up at attention. He swallowed a groan.
“Grace.” He said the name softly, pleadingly, then swallowed hard and steeled himself. “Is this the real Grace or the vision Grace?”
“Both,” she said and smiled.
“Grace,” he said again and the feel of her name on his tongue was better than fine whiskey. “I want this, but there are things you need to know before you make this decision, before things go too far. We need to talk.”
Grace schooled her face to remain calm. Everything hinged on the next few moments. Her insides churned. Her legs felt boneless. She slowly closed her eyes and remembered his kiss, the warmth and hardness of his body as he held her in his lap and the comfort and love she had felt when wrapped in his strength and power.
She opened her eyes and looked into his and saw the want and need and fear reflected there. In his eyes she recognized her power as well and that was what gave strength to her legs as she lifted herself from the tub.
“There’s nothing you can say that will change my mind. We’ll talk all you want. Later.”
Water streamed down her body, sliding over her shoulders and along her breasts as she rose from the tub. It poured down her back leaving tiny rivulets of soapy bubbles to cling to her hips and thighs. She felt her nipples pucker as the cooler air of the room touched them. She heard him the sharp intake of his breath.
With renewed confidence she watched him watching her. His eyes left hers to travel down her body burning a trail of desire with his gaze. She could feel the heat within her rise as she
stepped from the tub.
“Grace,” he said again as if that one word said it all. He wanted to tell her that he was sorry. He wanted her to know what role he had played in keeping Otto from Manon. He wanted her to know what her life would be like if she stayed with him, but a goddess was rising from the water and all words left him but one. “Grace.”
She took a step toward him and he took a half step back, raising his hand, palm outward in a gesture to stop her advance. A look of pure lust flashed through his eyes and his soft laugh had a wicked edge. She shivered with the thrill of it and took another step. Her breast came in contact with his open palm and she trembled at the feel of his warm hand.
With a groan, he pulled her against him and his hand began to squeeze and knead the pliant flesh of her breast, sending a jolt of electric pleasure through her that ended at her core. She felt the hardness of him pressing against her belly through the thickness of his jeans, heard the hiss of his breath as he lowered his mouth to hers.
Grace raised up on tiptoe and placed her hands on either side of his head meeting his kiss with a fierceness and a passion that further inflamed his. He parted his lips to allow his tongue to search for hers and she opened her mouth to him willingly offering herself to his plunder.
His hand left her breast and joined the other in cupping the cheeks of her buttocks to lift her to his waist which she encircled with her legs. He never removed his mouth from hers, but turned with her in his arms and strode to the bed. She clung to him, running her fingers through his hair, pressing her body into his as if she could crawl inside his skin.
Canaan’s heart was thundering in his chest, his breath great pulls of air. His cock strained for release. He wanted to throw her down, spread her legs wide and drive into her over and over again until he was spent. But he held himself in check while he pulled down the covers and lowered her gently to lay across the bed keeping her knees spread by standing between them and allowing her lower legs to drape over the edge. He removed her hands from about his neck and placed them firmly above her head, his actions clearly indicating that was where he expected her to keep them.
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