LOGIN"Necessity," Mac answered, his expression now serious. "We fucked up and disaster hit us. When the shit went down, everyone bailed on us, intent on their own personal dramas. None of the Ancients were available so we've had to sort things out for ourselves. Thankfully, Lily prevailed on Rafe for some medical assistance, as we vampires know shit about that kind of thing. Both he and Jared have kindly allowed some of their medical personnel to show us how to take care of our own. We're adapting but it's a slow process. I've had to assign some of my people to learn how to be caregivers."He walked over to the bed nearest to them, staring down at the male lying so still on his back. His dark hair spilled over the white pillow and he looked as if he were asleep, not a mark on his handsome face. There was a book beside the bedside table and an overstuffed armchair with a light blanket draped over the arm. Mac reached out and straightened the cover over the vampire, a frown marring his face.
For a second, Demetri stiffened and then he threw back his head and started to laugh. His woman was insatiable and the blood was already rushing to his groin at the thought of what he was going to do to her. "So I do, wife," he laughed, his deep green eyes sparkling with lust. "I believe you were telling me how you weren't afraid of me...?"Mara shrieked as he stood up, throwing her over his shoulder as he did. He gave her backside a hard swat, making her shriek again with laughter. "Let's go test out that premise, woman."*****Caleb parked his car in front of the huge house that made up the training and living areas of the Praetorians. He waited briefly inside the car, his eyes taking in the couple standing on the top step to the main entrance, arms wrapped around each other, lips joined in a kiss so passionate it would have made most humans blush to witness. Mac and Lily made an impressive couple. Even melded together in a heated embrace, they gave off a sense of power, always aler
Caleb was silently counting, working out their position. He didn't know this William or Corinne and maybe that was a mistake on his part. Once he'd set up the Council, he'd stepped back and let them manage themselves. Maybe he should have paid a bit more attention, given past history...but he'd trusted the core members to let him know if anything was wrong. "So five definite votes and three maybes. Can you sway those three around to our way of thinking?""They will be or they'll have me to deal with," Demetri growled.Mara refrained from rolling her eyes, but barely. Ignoring her husband, she nodded at Caleb. "I don't see that as being too hard a task. We should be able to swing a Council vote our way and even if we hit a deadlock, the Ancient Council has the deciding vote."Caleb sat back, relaxing for the first time. "Good. We're going to have to inform them about the poison only we need to keep Reasa's identity out of it. Just tell them the vampire was taken care of on the spot. No
Caleb glanced up from the book he was leafing through as he waited for Demetri and Mara to come downstairs. A handful of seconds later they walked into their sitting room and one glance at his friend's face told him Demetri was going to be difficult to handle. He dampened down a sigh and mentally ran through what he could do to help Mara. From her sideways glances at her husband, he could see that she was aware of the situation and watching it."This had better be urgent, Caleb," Demetri snapped, making no attempt to hide his irritation.His friend quirked an eyebrow, a hint of hardness entering his eyes. "Are we going to have a pissing contest before we can get down to business? Because I really don't have time for this, so either get your bitching out of the way quickly or shut up and sit down." Caleb turned his gaze to Mara and gave her one of his more endearing smiles. "We have time for some coffee, though."She snorted and gave him a pointed look, before turning to go to the kitc
He still loved her; he was still intent on protecting her. He wanted her to come home. The tears from her nightmares dried on her face; fresh tears falling as she hugged herself tightly. Caleb loved her. They would be together again soon and they'd find some way to work through their problems.Rhianna headed into the en-suite bathroom to run a shower. They were staying in a small apartment Gard owned in the city; one of many properties it appeared her brother owned. As she showered, she replayed the dreams in her mind, frowning as the hot water flowed over her body. It appeared there was something Gard hadn't told her, something Anakatrine had kept quiet about too. She would be having words with him about that.She was dressed and knocking on his door in less than fifteen minutes, her damp hair pulled up in a high ponytail. When the door pulled back, she stifled a gasp at his haggard expression. It would appear none of them had escaped the nightmares. "You neglected to tell me somethi
There was bitterness and pain in Callain's final words that shocked Caleb and he ran his hands through his hair as he digested the vampire King's words. Callain was right. Caleb had spoken to Anakatrine as well as Annie, but he'd never allowed his alter ego to come out in all that time. Anakatrine and Callain were present in this timeline but kept completely apart!Caleb groaned, holding his head in his hands. He would go mad if someone kept him apart from his mate, if he couldn't speak to his Annie, touch her and hold her for a quarter of a century. He had done this to Callain and Anakatrine, and just the thought of what that must have been like for them made him groan again. It didn't help that he hadn't been aware of what he was doing. The fact that he'd done so was enough to fill him with self-loathing. What the fuck was he doing?It was all too much; he needed some space and time to think everything through. He'd reached the limit of what he could endure while talking to the vamp







