“When?” He brushes my hair out of my eyes and tucks the strands behind my ear.
“When do you want to get together?” This is by far the boldest I’ve ever been in any relationship.
“Tonight.” Staring into my eyes, he seems mesmerized by me.
A laugh bursts from me. “I’ll try, but it’s hard to get a sitter on a Sunday night.”
The doorbell rings.
I look at the clock. “It’s too early for Willa to be bringing the girls home.”
Frowning, Ion takes a deep breath. “It’s Seth.”
My gut tightens, but I get up and move toward the door.
“I’ll be in the next room, Lori. It will be less complicated if he doesn’t know about our…relationship. However, I’ll not leave you alone with him.” He rises and takes his cup with him into my bedroom.
Standing on my front porch, Seth’s face is drawn, and his eyes shift nervously. “Hi, Lori.”
“What are you doing here, Seth?” I keep the door open and step out. I have no desire for him to be inside my house.
“I’m leaving town.” He digs in his pocket and pulls out money. He hands it to me. “It’s two hundred dollars. I know that’s not enough, but it’s all I have right now. Maybe you can get the girls something for their birthday.” He swallows and dashes a tear from under his eye. “I’m sorry about yesterday and all the other days.”
“The girls aren’t here. They had a sleepover.” I clutch the money and wait for him to snatch it back and fly into a rage.
Instead, he nods. “That’s good. I need to sort some things out before I see them.”
I hand the money back. “You might need this.”
Pushing my hand away, he shakes his head. “No. You keep it. I’ll send more when I can.” He shifts from foot to foot as if he needs to go somewhere.
“You know, there are places you can check in and get help with all that.” Trying to believe what I’m seeing and hearing, I offer the only help I can think of.
“I’m heading back to the city. Gerry has family in Brooklyn. We can stay there a little while. Maybe I’ll look into a program there.” He twitches and looks at his car parked several doors down.
I squint as the sun hits the windshield.
Gerry waves a hand out the window.
Waving back, I laugh. “Get your life together and you can see the girls, Seth. You are the only thing standing in the way of having a relationship with them. They are worth whatever you’d have to suffer to get clean and sober, that much I can promise you.”
He rubs his arm and bounces, making me think that his addictions may have gone beyond alcohol, but I don’t ask. With a little wave, he says, “I’ll be in touch.”
I watch until he gets in his car, then close the door. “That was interesting.”
Leaning on the wall at the threshold to my kitchen, coffee cup in hand, Ion watches me. “Do you think he can do it?” Of course, as a vampire, he heard every word.
I shrug. “Not on his own, but maybe with a program. It will depend on whether he wants to clean up.”
Ion washes his cup and puts it in the drying rack. “I’m going home so you can greet the girls without me confusing them. If you want to come over tonight, I can see if Tilda and Max are available to watch them. However, I can wait.”
My feelings are hard to contain. Loving this vampire is more than I could have ever expected from my life. Having him love me feels magical. “Why don’t you come and have dinner with us here tonight. I’m making spaghetti, and there will be wine. You can tell them a story, and we can spend some time together.”
When he doesn’t respond right away, nerves get the better of me, and I put my cup down harder than I intend. “Or not. You probably don’t want to spend time with all of us. People want to ease into a whole family and not have it thrust on them. I’m sorry I said anything.”
Another blur and he’s holding me in his arms. “I am not some human idiot who thinks he’s owed some ridiculous grace period where you pretend you don’t have children. I would love to spend time with you and your twins. I love you, and I love them. If you feel the same one day, I hope we can be a family.” He threads his fingers through my hair, cups the back of my head, and kisses me.
My knees buckle, and a low moan rumbles in my throat.
