Aiden said mates were eternal, but marriagevows were until death, and many people walked away from those.She’d understand if she were a vampire, he’d said.Great,I’ll understand once I choose to live forever with a man I’veknown for five days.
If someone else had come to her looking foradvice on this issue, she would have told them they were a fool forconsidering it. People lived together and shared their lives foryears before getting married and still divorced a year later.
She realized she’d started scratching herhands again. What was wrong with her? Lifting her hands, sheexamined them, but there was no rash or insect bites to indicatewhy she’d started this obsessive itching. No, there was only theever-tightening presence of her skin.
The radio squelched before the dispatcher’svoice sounded. Maggie forgot all about her discomfort as shefocused on their call.
• • •
“Did you tell her that mates can’t livewithout each other? Does she know you could go mad or die withouther?” Vicky demanded as she followed Aiden down the stairs ofRonan’s mansion to the gym in the basement.
“No,” he replied in a clipped tone thatshould have warned her to back off.
“You should have told her; she wouldn’t haveleft!” Vicky insisted.
“She didn’t leave.”
“Thenwhereis she?”
When he spun around, she lurched back.“She’s back in her apartment and her life.”
“But she could be dooming you, and shedoesn’t know it! She has to know!”
“She doesn’t have to know anything! You andevery other member of our family, including the Stooges, are tostay out of this. None of you are to tell her anything or haveanyoneelse approach her. Do you understand me?”
“But, Aiden—”
“No,” he snarled, and Vicky took anotherstep away from him. “She has a right to make her own choices aboutherlife. She will be allowed to do that.”
“And if she decides not to be with you?”
Aiden’s fangs slid free; his nails piercedhis palms, and blood pooled into his fists. He couldn’t think aboutthe possibility Maggie might not choose him. He’d go mad if hethought about it, and then he might go after Maggie, something hewas determined not to do. She’d asked for four days, and he wouldgive them to her. If she asked for more time after that, he wouldgive it to her. If she needed him before then, all she had to dowas call.
“That will be her choice,” he said andturned away.
Stepping into the massive gym, he ignoredthe handful of other recruits training there. Like an annoyinggnat, Vicky followed him as he stalked across the floor to theweapons hanging on the back wall. The gym held every piece ofexercise equipment imaginable, and beating the shit out of one ofthe practice dummies was exactly what he needed.
“I’m worried about you,” Vicky said.
“I know.”
“I can’t lose you.”
He couldn’t hold onto his annoyance with herwhen he knew her worry came from a place of love. “You won’t.”
“There is vampire DNA in Maggie too. Enoughfor her to smell a little something off about Savages and torequire blood to be healthy. There will be enough for her torecognize you as her mate too. Or at the very least, miss you toomuch to stay away from you.”
“Perhaps,” he said and removed two swordsfrom the wall.
Vicky removed two smaller swords and heftedthem to test their weight. Aiden spun his weapons in his hands ashe stepped back to look at his sister. Before her imprisonment,Vicky had been more focused on fashion and parties than anythingelse. Since being freed, she’d become almost as dedicated totraining as him.
Vicky grinned at him as she stepped back.“Want to spar?”
“With the mood I’m in, I’m not sure it’s agood idea.”
“Are you scared?” she taunted before givinghim a small jab with the tip of her blade.
Aiden glanced at his shirt, but she hadn’tpoked him hard enough to draw blood. “Remember, you asked for it,”he said.
