Page 84 of Ryder’s Storm

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Ryder drove through the late-night traffic from the Mission to Pacific Heights. Scarlet sat on the passenger seat of his SUV, lost in her thoughts. It was almost midnight. So much had happened in the last six hours. It felt like a lifetime had passed, because the life ahead of her was so very different from everything she’d ever known. The man she loved was a vampire and a satyr, a creature she should fear, yet no such fear spread in her heart, because it was full of love, the love she felt for Ryder, and the love Ryder felt for her. There was no space for fear or doubt or regret.

Scarlet looked at Ryder’s profile while he navigated through the city streets that turned more deserted the closer they were to her home.

Ryder glanced at her, and put one hand on hers, squeezing it gently. “Everything will be all right. We’ll convince your father that he can’t trust Claudia, maybe not tonight, or tomorrow, but soon. And once he sees that you only had his best interest in mind when you told him about Claudia’s infidelity, you and he will make up. He was your father first, before he met Claudia. He loves you.”

Scarlet let out a sigh. “Despite the fact that he wants to have you arrested, you have nothing bad to say about him. You’re much kinder than I am. I’m so angry with him.”

“I’m not. Without him, you wouldn’t exist, and that would mean I would’ve never experienced true love.”

His last words sank deep into her, filling her with hope that all the obstacles ahead of them would soon come crumbling down.

“You have such a big heart. How is it possible that a vampire, a creature the lore paints as violent and heartless can be so caring?”

Ryder smiled and brought her hand to his lips. He pressed a kiss on her knuckles. “Because a vampire’s heart beats the same way any other creature’s does, be that human or animal. Our emotions run as deep as those of a human, maybe even deeper. And while we may be almost indestructible physically, our hearts can break as easily as a human’s.”

“I love you, Ryder.”

“And I love you.”

“There are so many more questions I have about your life, about all the other vampires, about… everything.”

“I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

She hesitated. “There is something I’m curious about.”

“Yes?”

“It’s about the women. You said Nina is Amaury’s mate and Damian’s and Benjamin’s mother, and like your mother, she looks so young, so I’m assuming she’s a vampire. But what happens to the human women who are… uhm… in relationships with vampires? If the vampire stops aging like you did, then what happens when the women age…”

“You believe Nina is a vampire?”

“Yes, of course, otherwise how would she look so young yet have two grown sons?”

“Nina is human. She and Amaury have been together for thirty-two or thirty-three years, since before Samson’s first child was born.”

Stunned, Scarlet stared at Ryder. “But then, how does she stay so young?”

“It’s the blood-bond she shares with Amaury. She drinks his blood. Because of it, she remains as young as on the day she bonded with him.”

“Ohh.” Would Ryder want her to drink his blood? And would she want that? Would she find it as erotic as when he’d drunk her blood?

“We’re here,” Ryder announced and parked the car in the first empty parking spot he found.

Scarlet got out of the car, and with Ryder holding her hand, she crossed the street and looked up at the stately Victorian that had been in her family for three generations. There was light in the foyer as well as in the living room. Her room, which overlooked the street, was dark, but behind the window next to it, which was part of the second-floor corridor, she saw a dim light.

In front of the entrance door, she stopped, her hand shaking too much for her to put the key in the lock. Ryder steadied her hand.

“He’s not gonna bite you,” Ryder said. Then he seemed to realize what he’d said, and added, “Sorry, stupid idiom. You know what I mean.”

Scarlet took a deep inhale and unlocked the door. She entered, Ryder behind her, shutting the door.

“Dad? I’m back.” She waited for his reply, but it was quiet in the house.

She cast a look at Ryder. He shrugged. “Maybe he fell asleep waiting for you?” Though by the look on his face, he didn’t believe it either.

Scarlet walked into the living room, Ryder on her heels. She glanced around. There was a glass on the coffee table, a tumbler which by the looks of it still had a little bit of whiskey in it. Next to it was a whiskey bottle.