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“Malik will attend the testing with me; Bennett will attend with Sarah. They will be the official witnesses. I’ve not yet been apprised of the location. Luc will have the House while we’re gone.”
“Lakshmi has authorized Bennett and me to report back,” Malik said. “We’ll keep everyone apprised.”
Brody’s lanky form appeared in the doorway, knocked on the jamb. “Liege, I’m sorry to interrupt, but there’s someone here to see you. They’ve asked to speak with you directly.”
Brody’s expression was completely neutral, which told me he was in on the plan.
Ethan frowned. “Human? Vampire?”
“Vampire,” he said.
Frowning, Ethan rose. “I suppose I’ll be right back. Lucas, would you like to join me?”
“Sure, Liege.” Luc made a move to stand but waited until Ethan was at the door before sitting down and gesturing me toward the door. “This is your present, Merit. You might as well be there when he opens it.”
I nodded and rose, following Ethan to the front of the House.
A man stood in the foyer, around six feet tall, trim. He wore a pair of gray trousers and a white dress shirt. His skin was honeyed, his hair coal black, his eyes a doleful brown. His face was perfectly sculpted, his mouth sensuous, his huge brown eyes tipped by long, dark lashes and framed by dark brows.
He stood casually, hands in his pockets, a position I’d seen Ethan take hundreds of times. But where the carriage of his body was unassuming, even casual, his power was evident. It pulsed from him in soft, thick waves, nearly tangible enough to touch. I had to clench my fingers into fists to keep from reaching out, from touching him. But I resisted, guessing that the act would be akin to moth touching flame.
Instead I stared, taking in every line of his lean form, of the perfect drape of clothing over muscle and honey-dark skin. He was Amit Patel—the most powerful vampire in the world—and he was here because I’d asked him to come.
“Amit,” Ethan said, obviously stunned. “What are you doing here?”
They embraced with claps on the back and obvious delight in each other’s company.
“You’re undertaking a rather monumental feat,” Amit said. His voice was softly accented, the sound melodic. “Being here to support you seemed the least that I could do.”
“I am bewildered and flattered,” Ethan said. “And I appreciate your support.”
Amit grinned, their camaraderie obvious. “I’m not here to support you, old man. I thought you could use a warm-up.”
Ethan snorted. “I hardly need training from the likes of you.”
“You need training every moment of your very distinguished life.” Amit slanted me a glance. “And speaking of need, you must be Merit.”
Ethan glanced back, realized I stood a few feet away and held out his hand, gesturing me forward.
“Merit. Meet Amit Patel.”
Amit smiled slyly. “Merit. It’s lovely to finally meet you.”
Beside me, Ethan snickered. “You’ve done the impossible, Amit—rendered her speechless.”
“It’s lovely to meet you. Sorry, I’m a little”—completely in your thrall, which you probably aren’t even doing on purpose—“sleepy, I guess.”
Amit smiled and took my hand, and my knees nearly buckled from the pleasure of it. I had to lock them to stay standing, and had to force air through my lungs.
“Merit,” Ethan said, and I felt his hand at my waist as he looked at Amit again. “What did you do?”
Amit cocked his head at me. “I think she likes me.”
I coughed out a laugh. “The magic likes you. I don’t know you.”
He smiled beneath impossibly long, half-lowered lashes. “It’s lovely to meet your magic, then.” He looked back at Ethan. “Since you’ve got phys today, I thought perhaps a warm-up might be just the thing.” His dark eyes sparkled merrily. “Speed the heart, warm the blood.”
Ethan’s relief was palpable. “I think that would be just the thing. You’ve been traveling—would you like to clean up first? Perhaps have blood?”
“In that order,” Amit said with a nod.
Helen appeared behind us in the foyer, hands linked officially in front of her. “Liege?” she said, apparently responding to Ethan’s silent call.
“Arrangements for Amit?” Ethan asked.
“Already prepared.” Helen offered Amit a smile so wide I thought her usually brittle expression might break with it. She never smiled at us like that. Actually, she never smiled like that at all.
“Amit,” she said, walking toward him. She put her hands on his arms, and they exchanged affectionate cheek kisses.
Maybe he glamoured her, I thought sourly.
“Helen,” he said. “You look absolutely lovely.”
“I try,” she said, and slipped her arm into his. “Your room is prepared.”
“I appreciate it,” he said, patting her hand. As they walked toward the stairs, Amit looked back at me. “And I look forward to our next encounter.”
When they disappeared into the second-floor hallway, I looked back at Ethan, found his gaze on mine, awe in his eyes. “You brought him here.”
“I suggested it. Luc actually made the call.”
His brows lifted. “You went above my head, invited the most powerful vampire in the world to our House in the middle of a testing cycle.”
“I did.”
His smile dawned slowly. “That was rather . . . inspired.”
Relief flooded me. I knew seeing Amit would make him feel better. But he was right—it was a pretty risky undertaking, even if I’d gotten Luc (and the rest of the staff) on board.
“Thank you. Considering the drama, I thought giving you another ally to commiserate with might be helpful.”
He moved forward, tipped up my chin, looked into my eyes. His own were dark, like clouded malachite.
“Breakfast,” I said. “That was a good-bye. Just in case.”
His mouth tightened, as if he hadn’t wanted to admit the risk to me. “Just in case,” he quietly said, and wrapped his arms around me. I buried my face in his shirt, let his warmth and magic and scent embrace me. God, but it felt good to be there again.
“I’ll take care, Sentinel.”
You’d better, I thought, but I wasn’t giving up on the possibility of monitoring the testing. I didn’t want to cheat per se, and I certainly didn’t want to jinx Ethan’s chances at a win. But I’d be damned if he went into something this dangerous without a backup plan.
