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Bel cleared his throat and forced his eyes over to the cellos again. “I guess we’re all much older than we appear.”
“What was it like growing up in London at that time? Were you and your brothers sons of a duke? You’ve all got that polished, aristocratic look to you. Even Winter manages to feel like a blueblood in his hoodie and jeans.”
Bel rocked back with his own bark of laughter. River was so very wrong, but also not too far off from the truth.
“Our mother, Julianna Varik, was an opera singer, which was and wasn’t a euphemism for courtesan. Her voice was ethereal. Positively heavenly. She performed on the stage for years. She was also the toast of London. Everyone wanted her at their parties, and from what I gathered, the men wanted her in their beds.”
“But she turned them all away,” River said enthusiastically.
Bel shrugged. “She did until she met my father, Harrison Thatcher. He was the second son of a duke without much prospect of ever inheriting the title. He paid for my mother’s lovely town house and gave her an excellent allowance, which she invested. They were together for many years, resulting in the birth of myself and my brothers.”
“What happened?”
“Harrison’s older brother died before he could father an heir. My biological father inherited the title and was forced to marry. His wife wasn’t fond of the world knowing that Harrison kept my mother, so he was forced to put her aside.”
“Shit.”
Bel shrugged again. It all seemed so very long ago, like a story from someone else’s life. At the time, he’d been just a small child. He never saw Harrison much to begin with and never truly felt his absence when he left. At least, not like Julianna had.
“My mother had been practical about the arrangement. She’d always known they wouldn’t marry and that it would all end eventually. She invested wisely and made ample money from her performances, so we were able to live in quite the high style in London. She made sure we had all the best tutors.”
“And she made sure you learned to play instruments?”
“Julianna loved music, and she taught us to love it as well. She played the harp and the piano, but she mostly sang.”
River reached over and very carefully took one of Bel’s hands in his. “She sounded amazing. I’m assuming she passed long ago.”
“A few months now.”
Fingers tightened around Bel’s hand in a flinch, and he nearly smiled. “Julianna met and fell in love with Aiden when Rafe and I were about eleven. He treated us like we were his own children. But after about a year, Julianna fell ill. Aiden tried to save her life by changing her into a vampire.”
“This story doesn’t have a happy ending, does it?”
Bel shook his head. “She escaped death, but the rebirth affected something in her brain. She was given to bouts of extreme violence. Only a vampire could control her, overpower her.”
“Oh God,” River whispered. Undoubtedly his thoughts had jumped ahead to the obvious conclusion considering what he knew of the Variks already.
“So, my brothers and I chose to become vampires when we were older. It was the only way to protect her. To protect each other.”
River leaned his head against Bel’s, fingers tightening around his hand. “You have an amazing family. You’ve loved and supported each other over all these long years.”
“That’s why I feel so abandoned by them now.” Bel lifted his head, not caring that River could see the tears fighting to fall down his cheeks. “How could they turn their back on my request? How could they not see helping you and Wyatt is the right thing to do?”
River released Bel’s hand and cupped the side of his face. “Because they are trying very hard to protect you and the rest of their family right now. They have not abandoned you.” His thumb slowly brushed along Bel’s cheekbone, wiping away a tear that had slipped free. “Trust me, Bel, I know what it is to be abandoned. They have not abandoned you. They just need some more time.”
“River…” Bel whispered brokenly. He didn’t even know what he was pleading for any longer.
Leaning forward those last couple of inches, River brushed his lips against Bel’s. A gasp left Bel, but he didn’t pull away, didn’t move a muscle. He wasn’t ready for this to end. His eyes fell shut as River brushed their lips together again. Then finally, they kissed. Soft and sweet and so fucking perfect. Bel’s heart soared at that gentle touch.
River’s hand tightened on his face and he pulled away for a second before diving in for another kiss. The tip of his tongue slid along the seam of Bel’s lips, and they instantly parted. A desperate moan jumped from his throat, and he eagerly tangled his tongue with River’s, loving the sinuous slide, building heat, and the taste of River. Everything was so wonderful.
