Page 38 of Imprisoned with the Vampire King

"How do you know about them being mated, then?" Dante asked.

"I don't live entirely under a rock."

I wasn't going to admit that I'd had to ask one of them for money so I could continue eating while working on getting the demon royals out of prison.

"How often do you need to feed now that the mate bond lets you take as much as you need?" I asked Dante.

"Every few days is fine."

"He needs blood every day," Jazz corrected. "Don't let him lie to you."

"Every other day is plenty," Dante said.

"We can meet at the grocery store or something," I agreed.

He didn't even consider that. "We're not meeting at a grocery store. I'll reach out through the bond when I need to feed, and we'll figure something out then."

My entire face wrinkled. "Don't talk to me through the bond. That's way too intimate. I don't want anyone in my head but me."

"Then I'll get you a phone. We can text," he said.

"I don't answer texts. We can just have a standing arrangement at a coffee shop if you're too fancy for grocery stores. There's probably a Werewolf Café right between our houses. It's kind of a long drive, but if we meet halfway⁠—"

"Turn here," Dante said, gesturing to the right lane. "We're not meeting at a café, either. We'll figure something out when we've had time to adjust to being back in the city."

Right.

It had been twelve years since he was in Rumor. He was probably overwhelmed.

I was too, but I'd only been in prison for a week.

We were all quiet for the rest of the drive.

Eventually, I pulled into the driveway of a modern, gigantic "mansion" that looked like a hotel. It was no wonder Jazz had been so horrified by my ancient minivan; the royals were loaded.

Whatever Dante's businesses were, he was clearly good at his job.

Jazz let out an unsteady breath. "Well, thanks for the ride. And for getting us out of there. I honestly didn't think we would ever leave."

"You can thank Merrily. I wouldn't have answered the door if anyone but her had shown up."

Jazz nodded.

Then, she slipped out of the van, pulling River with her.

"I'll keep to myself, and make sure the rest of the angels do the same," my brother said on his way out.

I'd forgotten that he was powerful enough to hold a Cabinet seat himself. He'd undoubtedly end up leading the angels by the next time I saw him.

Which hopefully wouldn't be for a long fucking time.

"Do they not consider you an angel?" Dante asked me.

"Nope. Fallen angels are our own category. If I wasn't keeping the penitentiary running, the actual angels would've already hunted me down and killed me."

"That's bullshit."

I made a noncommittal noise.