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Méndez wasn’t fooled either. He glanced between us with an amused grin that made me cautious of how much more we should reveal to the infamous vamp.
“Ah, I see,” Méndez said smoothly, “then I shall make no assumptions. Modern dating is different, isn’t it?”
“It’s something,” I quipped.
Regina elbowed me, causing me to grunt. Drake laughed. Destiny chuckled her way out of the room. And me? I had to dig at the bottom of my well of patience to make extra room so I didn’t drag Regina into the nearest bathroom where I could rail her into submission.
My self-control was prize-worthy. I needed her to recognize that. “Sorry, darling.”
“Forgiven, honey,” Regina replied calmly, to which my heart fluttered. She smiled regally at Ander. “We’re here because we have something for you.”
Finally, the moment had come. I removed the amulet from my neck, presenting it to Méndez with a respectful bow of my head. The vampire sat for a long time, stunned, with his hand outstretched to reach for the amulet. He didn’t make a sound.
I sat still for as long as he was prepared to stare. Far be it from me to judge other creatures for how they process shock. This thing meant nothing to me, but to Méndez, it obviously meant a great deal.
Was that why Steven wanted me to deliver it? Because it meant nothing to me?
“My cousin’s amulet,” Méndez spoke reverently as he lifted it from my hands. “I thought I’d never see this again.”
Regina nodded. “When my father died, he left instructions for me—for us—to return it to you. I’m not sure why.”
The vampire’s pale eyes flickered in her direction. “Your dear papa never told you about our prior business, did he?”
“No, I’m afraid not, Ander.”
Amusement crossed his features. Then disappointment trickled in as he observed the necklace. He held it high, letting the glittering emerald spin slightly. It wasn’t long before his eyes resembled the same solid green color, a truly magical sight to witness.
“It belonged to my cousin, Santiago. Your great-great-grandfather stole it from Santiago during his youth.”
Regina choked. “Goddess, forgive me. I’m so sorry.”
Méndez waved away the apology. “For your father to remember this sin and make it right through you both—” His eyes fluttered to me and reflected his kind smile. “—means the world. I am forever grateful for this gesture. Allow me to give you my number so you may call on me for a favor in the future.”
It seemed only natural that I grabbed Regina’s hand when she sniffled. She clung to me for a moment as silent tears poured down her cheeks. Destiny stood by with a sympathetic expression, holding a box of tissues at the ready. As soon as Regina wanted one, she extended her hand to take the box. Even the overly cautious human named Drake was getting misty in the eyes.
I was doing the same thing.
That moment changed everything. As Méndez stroked the emerald and told us the history of its use—as a gem that restores health to combat the effects of silver poisoning—I saw what I didn’t see in any other vampire I had met. I saw the things I knew to be true in the ones around me, especially in Regina.
I saw life—and it changed something inside me.
Chapter 14 - Regina
Monday morning brought with it a chill I hadn’t wanted. It was hard waking up on the last day of our miniature vacation, knowing that I had to go home and talk to my best friend about her dad. Last night had been so beautiful, so healing. I didn’t want Eric to leave my presence just yet.
We had so much more to experience together.
Yet simultaneously, I knew that our feelings were possibly warped by the intensity of the mission, as he so fondly called it, that we had just completed. My late father had tasked Eric with returning an item stolen by an elder Navarro to the vampire family from which it had been taken. To have a wolf do that, well…
My father was always the trickster type. He liked turning things upside down and exposing the underbelly of things. Now that I understood why he had instructed Eric to go with me, I could understand Eric that much more. Was my father giving me his blessing from beyond the grave to join families with the Barretts?
I slid out of bed and shuffled over to my suitcase, sitting in the peacock chair near the window. Outside in the yard, a fluffy black wolf with gray stripes hopped around and chomped at birds that dared to fly low. I shook my head with a sigh.
“Demanding me to run with him,” I muttered through a grin. “Just who does he think he is?”
Oh, but that wasn’t even the problem.
The problem was that when I ran beside him through the tall grass toward the tree line, I felt like my entire soul had burst open. Wind raked through my hair as twigs caught my clothes. I would have stripped them off had it been night. Hell, I would have been fine streaking with the electric fence protecting the property. I just didn’t want anyone to think we were nuts.
