Slumping to the ground, she propped her head on her knees and willed herself not to cry. She needed to plan what to do next, all without endangering the only other person who meant something to her around here—Stacey.
But how?
Tears trickled down her face, and she didn’t fight them. While she sobbed silently—she wasn’t stupid enough to want to draw attention—she wished she could have a normal life. One full of love and laughter instead of fear and resentment.
But who was she kidding? That wasn’t the life for her.
Her sobs quieted, and she turned to lay her cheek on knees and listened to the summer sounds of crickets and some distant frogs.
Just as the sounds started to soothe her, something tugged at her. Before she could look to see if the vampire males had found her, the tugging increased, and the world went black.
Chapter Two
Late September 1890
Nyx’s Kingdom Pleasure House
London, UK
Laurence “Laurie” Yates was writing down ideas for the following month’s themed rooms and balls when Joseph Hope—his friend and business partner—grunted loudly. After looking up, Laurie blinked. A female sat in Joseph’s lap, unconscious, with bits of leaves and twigs in her hair.
Before he could do more than blink, the other male groaned and put a hand to his head. And then took a breath. And another.
It took him a second to recognize what was happening—the female had just blooded his best friend, meaning the female was his fated one.
A thread of sadness and jealousy shot through him, but Laurie pushed it aside. His own feelings didn’t matter, but the female appearing out of nowhere meant his sister-in-law, Yesenia, had been using her magic again.
Yesenia was a time-wielder, and had been bringing people from the future to their fated ones in this time period; three in total so far. But they’d all previously landed in her husband’s home.
As Joseph closed his eyes and continued to breathe, the female started to slump and tumble off his lap. Laurie rushed over just in time to catch her before she landed on the floor. As her soft body collided with his, he noticed her pointed ears.
But that was the last thought he had before a loud clanging filled his head. Over and over again, getting louder and louder, to the point he wanted to scream. He just barely managed to lay the female on the ground before it became overwhelming, and he felt like he might vomit.
He sucked in a breath, and another, the pain lessening a little as the sound continued to clang inside his mind.
Once he finally didn’t feel like his head might explode, it hit him—he was breathing.
The female had blooded him.
After opening his eyes, he met Joseph’s dark brown ones, and judging by Joseph’s gaze, he understood the same thing—the female had blooded them both.
Meaning the three of them were fated ones.
A thread of joy shot through Laurie as he’d always wanted to be blooded, and especially with both Joseph and a female. They’d always enjoyed being a threesome the most, back when they could still get hard and have sex.
But before he could say a word to his longtime friend and former lover, the female on the ground groaned, and they both rushed to her side.
Laurie brushed some hair off her face, and despite the leaves and smudges of dirt, he couldn’t believe how pretty she was. Full lips, a soft, round face, and while her nose was slightly too long, it added a dash of character.
But as he scanned her face, something niggled at him. Something about her was familiar, and yet he couldn’t quite place it.
Joseph finally spoke. “She looks a little like River.”
River Vale was the fae witch healer married to Laurie’s sister, Nora.
And who had a younger sister named Meadow.
Laurie shook his head. “No, it can’t be.”
