Page 152 of Trapped By the Blood Ruby

Marco stood. “I’ll do what I can.” Then left.

He stared into the fire. Minutes passed, his mind deep in thought.

Lio was supposed to be dead, except clearly, he wasn’t. He thought back over the events of the past, wondering how it could be possible. He’d watched Bardanes’s assassin rip Lio’s heart from his chest, much the same way he’d killed Henrietta. Such a thing could not be faked. Especially when Lio’s body had desiccated, shriveling up afterward. He’d even burned it, for fuck’s sake.

And yet…

Could a vampire’s death be faked?

“Laurent?”

He jerked, blinking. “Fuck. I’m sorry, little flower. I got…distracted.” How long had he been sitting here?

“It’s all right.” She padded barefoot across the rug and slowly dropped down onto his lap. The tension in his chest released. Her side pressed against him as she stared up at him. “This Lio thing is really bothering you, isn’t it?”

“Is it that obvious?” His attempt at a joke fell flat.

She frowned, tracing a line between his eyebrows with her finger. “You always get this here, when you’re upset about something. You’re so good at hiding your emotions most of the time. But this always gives it away.”

Warmth spread in his chest, that she would notice something so small. Sure, he’d noticed many tells about her. But her noticing this…it felt special.

He rubbed his palm along her thigh.

“Want to talk about it?” she asked.

“No. Yes. I don’t know.” He bit down on his jaw until his teeth ached.

“How about we go to the kitchen and you make me some hot chocolate. Then, if you want to talk about it, you can?”

“That…” He swallowed. It sounded perfect, actually. She was young, so young, compared to his years. Yet, he found himself wanting to confide in her. And why wouldn’t he? Of anyone, she carried his memories. The others might know his life from having spent years beside him, but she knew his life because the memories she carried belonged to him, were felt by him, experienced by him.

“Hot chocolate it is,” he decided, scooping her up and setting her on her feet. She let out a soft huff, her face settling into something happy.

The kitchen was dark. Catina had retired for the evening. She spent most of her nights reading beside the fire. He’d caught her at it more times than he could count in years past. Mystery books were her favorite.

Laurent lifted Lily and set her on the countertop. She gasped, then laughed. “You look so beautiful in that dress,” he said, taking her hand and kissing her palm. Her face went from happy to hungry in an instant. Her scent, too. “Patience, little flower.”

He stepped back, looking up at her. Like this, she was slightly taller. He resisted the urge to spread her thighs and stand between them, close enough to feel her body against his.

Instead, he busied himself around the kitchen, gathering the items he needed. Soon it smelled like milk and chocolate. “Would you like anything extra? Peppermint, perhaps?”

She made a humming noise. “Nope. Just plain hot chocolate is perfect. With whipped cream, of course.”

“Of course,” he agreed, fighting the twitch of his lips.

After pouring two mugs, he scooped her off the counter and settled her on the wooden bench that spanned the length of the trestle table. He sat beside her, facing her and framing her between his thighs.

Her mouth puckered as she blew on the hot chocolate, urging it to cool.

“Lio was precious to me,” he said after a few moments. She stilled but didn’t turn, giving him space to speak. “Of all my children, he was my second favorite after Zola. But fondness wasn’t enough to appoint him my heir. He was too young. Marco was the better fit, and I’d been preparing him for the role for decades. Not…not the way my father prepared me.”

Some of this, Lily would know. They didn’t usually talk about the memories she carried. Occasionally she let something slip, allowing him to draw his own conclusions. So he spoke as if she knew nothing of this particular history.

“When I named Marco my heir, Lio was…not happy. His forgiveness, though he claimed to give it, was mocking. We…grew apart. Rather, he grew distant. I tried to keep him close. That was part of why I moved to Braxton.” He shook his head, hating to recall those troubled days. “Lio’s anger made him careless. He murdered one of Val Bardanes’s children, a prominent daughter. I always believed it was a lovers’ spat. Val was out for blood. Lio paid the price. I could do nothing, unless I wished to start a war. Our truce with House Bardanes was hanging by a thread.” He shook his head.

Vampire law was simple. An eye for an eye. Val Bardanes had been within his right to do what he’d done.

“I didn’t like the Bardanes family,” Lily mused. “When I met them at the ball. I like them even less now.”