“Lukas, you really don’t need to accompany me to get a bite to eat.” His large frame in such proximity gave a whole new meaning to the word crowding.
He hadn’t let her get more than three feet from him except when she went into the bathroom and then only if she were going to use the toilet. She’d asked him why a vampire would have such a thing. His men had installed it after he met her in the grotto.
“I’m thinking I might. It’s either this or I invade your mind. You left the grotto after I told you to remain.” His cool reply a reminder that she’d have to earn his trust. “And you’re hiding something from me now.”
She poured them each a glass of wine, handed one to him. The golden liquid, sweet to her palette, soothed her nerves for the conversation ahead.
“There are things you still need to know about me, Lukas. Things that separate me from anyone else you’ve ever met.”
“Sariel, try as you might, you will not change my mind or path.” He took a sip of wine as she turned the thought over in her mind.
In the next heartbeat, Gryffen’s roar echoed throughout the castle.
Two things occurred simultaneously. Lukas set Sariel behind him and Gryffen stood before Lukas wearing nothing more than a towel, long hair tangled and eyes blazing blue fire. He reminded her of an avenging angel.
“Where. Is. She!” Sariel knew his bellow, directed at her, meant Crystine had disappeared.
“I don’t know! I swear I don’t. I haven’t seen her since we got home yesterday.” Tears slid down her cheeks with the reality of their situation.
She knew Crystine would run from Gryffen and her obvious feelings for him. Their blatant connection had heightened her friend’s desperation to escape. The bliss of Gryffen’s venom hadn’t abolished the shadows of a cornered demeanor.
When they’d arrived at the castle yesterday, she’d noted the sorrow in Crystine’s expression as Gryffen held her tight. Yet her friend wouldn’t explain.
Now, when she stepped up beside Lukas, he slid his arm around her waist and pulled her under the protection of his shoulder.
“This note, she left for you. The one she left for me makes no sense.” Gryffen thrust an envelope into her hand, which she opened to read.
Tears slipped from her eyes as she explained to Gryffen and Lukas. “She says her endeavor is complete. She apologizes to you, Lukas, for doubting you.”
The pain in Gryffen’s stricken features would haunt her forever, knowing they echoed in Crystine. “She says she cares for you, Gryffen, but…I think she’s been independent so long, she’s scared. She says she’ll be back when it’s time…How did she know? Did Aleyn speak with her?”
“Yes.” Gryffen’s voice grated. “He spoke with her last evening. Afterward, she erected strong blocks even I couldn’t penetrate.”
Lukas enfolded her in his arms as sobs wracked her frame.
“She’s left me. How could she do that?”
Looking back at Gryffen, Lukas asked, “Can you track her through her blood?”
“Damn right I can.” Gryffen’s anger burned cold and analytical. “I’ll be back when I’ve found her. This time, I’ll make damn sure she’ll never want to leave me.”
Gryffen flashed down the steps only to reappear moments later, fully dressed. In the next heartbeat, the front door slammed behind him.
After a deep breath, Lukas turned to her. “What did you mean, Sariel, when you said she’ll be back when it’s time?” The ripple of muscle as he retrieved his wine glass to drink reminded her of his strength and purpose, to protect her.
This wasn’t the way she pictured telling him. Before he could read her thoughts, she blurted out her announcement. “What if I’m pregnant?”
Lukas snorted wine from his nose and mouth—something she never expected to see. The only reason he didn’t choke was he didn’t need to breathe.
The look possessing him was so fierce she couldn’t stifle her laughter. She’d just brought this domineering, force of nature to his knees with four words.
With a menacing frown, he took her glass and set it aside.
“What? How? Sariel, did someone…” His glass arced to and shattered in the nearby sink.
“No, Lukas. You know you’re the only man I’ve ever known that way. Aleyn spoke with us after that night in the grotto, said that having a child is part of my destiny.”
“But the prophecy detailed saving humanity…”
“And that I’d have an unusual child…You know how dormant grass and flowers come to life in my presence? Well, my body will have the same effect on your seed.”
Before the last word passed her lips, he held her snug in his arms. His initial crush gentled as he looked down at her abdomen with reverence. “You mean—you might already be pregnant?”
Her smile echoed his. He brushed kisses along her jaw before settling in rough demand on her lips.
When she gasped, he raised his head.
“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?” His brows drew together in a fierce frown as he growled. “You should be resting, not spending the night making love.” He set her down as if she were fragile as a soap bubble. “And wine is definitely not in your diet. I will have a full-time dietician here immediately.”
“I don’t know that I am…” She reached for the wine, only to have him snatch the glass and toss it to join the first. The sound of shattering glass made her jump.
Still, a smile curved her lips. He would always be overbearing, always have her best interests at heart, always keep her safe.
The End
Publisher’s Note
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About Reily Garrett
Erotic romance author Reily Garrett has spent over twenty years in the fields of ICU nursing, private investigations, and military police investigations. Her dark romantic suspense stories include extreme situations based on a good imagination drawn from life experiences.
Fangs, angels, military heroes, and psychics deal with the impossible but always have a HEA. When not in her dungeon writing, she’s usually training shepherds or taking pictures.
Dark erotic suspense. Hard bodies in tight situations.
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