Page 16 of His Eternal Temptation

There were rumors that Rowan killed Cris in a quest for power, to be rid of a restricting force he’d tired of. He didn’t generally refute these claims because they worked in his favor. Killing one’s sire was nearly impossible due to vampire magic and the bonds shaping vampire lineages. The magic world feared Rowan for the accomplishment. He didn’t kill Cris for power, but he took any power he’d gained as a result and used it without shame to further his real goal. Protecting others.

Whenever he could, Rowan protected humans from abuse at the hands of vampires and witches, and the magic community from one another. Anyone on the short end of a power imbalance, because Rowan had been that person once.

It was much easier to be a protector when other powerful beings believed you were ruthless. Rowan’s image was a delicate balancing act, and the reason doing the right thing would always come out on top wasn’t something he shared.

Lane would just have to trust him on this.

FIVE

LANE

Lane faced Rowan’s simmering fury with dwindling confidence.

He’d left his coven to prove he was someone his father could rely on, to save him from getting sucked into another scheme, and somehow this was where he ended up. Helpless. The opposite of who he wanted to be, especially in front of Rowan Valero.

“Why’d you kill your sire then?” he asked.

“Not to rid myself of a nuisance. I’m not that cruel.”

So Lane was a nuisance. “I’m sure you can justify offing me. Taking out a threat, perhaps?”

Rowan took a menacing step closer. “Are you the kind of threat I’d take out? Think, Lane. I didn’t hurt you after you betrayed me, and I won’t do it now. You’ve done nothing wrong. I believe you’re telling the truth about why you’re here.”

“Are you kidding? Since when? After everything you said last night, you suddenly trust me?” Lane wasn’t that gullible.

Rowan’s jaw clenched. “I don’t suddenly trust you, but that doesn’t mean you showed up to entrap me. The curse being part of a plot is too far-fetched. You came for help, and so I’ll help you.”

“But if you change your mind again and deem me a threat, all bets are off?” Lane’s hands shook. He felt like he was falling and couldn’t stop as the ground rushed up on him.

“I didn’t say that.”

“Didn’t deny it either.”

“I don’t know what you want me to say, Lane. I’d never kill you like this. It’s low, and not how I operate. Trust is irrelevant. This is about principle.”

Lane was desperate to believe him, which was exactly why he shouldn’t. Not without solid proof. Words were too often empty. “Trust isn’t irrelevant to me. Not when it’s life and death.”

“Then what do you propose? How can I convince you that you aren’t in danger?”

“I’ll take your word for it when you can do the same for me. Think you can manage that?”

“All right. That’s fair,” Rowan said, halting Lane’s next cutting remark.

He hadn’t expected Rowan to back down, let alone agree he had a point. Was Rowan for real?

Rowan gestured toward the door. “Why don’t we go across the hall? I’ll have clean clothes brought in for you. And breakfast,” he added as if the need for human food had only just occurred to him.

Lane’s gaze bounced from the door to Rowan and back. “Fine.”

He had to get out of here. Away from Rowan’s stare. He headed out of the room, aware enough of Rowan’s presence that he didn’t need to turn and check.

In the bedroom, Lane shut himself in the bathroom for privacy. All the taps were gold, and the counter was covered in little trinkets. It was weirdly pretty, but Lane hardly saw what lay before him. He braced against the counter and shut his eyes.

He couldn’t go on like this, sitting around waiting to see what Rowan decided to do with him, waiting for a witch to perform an impossible spell. He couldn’t take it.

He counted backward from ten and laid out the facts. Rowan wasn’t evil. Lane had learned the inaccuracy of those rumors ten years ago. Did he believe Rowan’s morals were firm enough that he’d never kill him while they were bound together? It was more likely than the flip side. Lane didn’t genuinely believe Rowan had killed his sire in a cold-hearted power grab. There had to be more to it.

Rowan had also changed his mind about Lane being here to trap him, and he wasn’t one to tell placating lies. It seemed Rowan was capable of hearing Lane’s side and admitting when he was wrong. That wasn’t how someone looking for an excuse to kill acted. Rowan had never been rash.