Page 47 of Vanessa’s Bravery

She knew that. “What if I’m not brave enough?”

Gabriel smiled. “We’ve all had to overcome the same obstacle, and we all muddled through it.”

Vanessa tilted her head to the side. “It was a little different with you and Mom.”

“Yes, but not less traumatic. She had to deal with being a newly turned vampire. That’s no walk in the park. At least Cole now knows that he’s a satyr, that’s a step in the right direction. He’s a preternatural creature even if it’s not that obvious to anybody—other than to you, of course.”

She decided not to comment on the physical sign that identified Cole as a satyr. She bit her lip.

“You can do this, Nessie.”

She forced a smile. “And what are we gonna tell him about going patrolling tonight?”

“It’s your choice, but as your boss, I don’t think I need to tell you that we need everybody we can spare to be on the lookout for those rogues.”

“He’ll insist on going with me.”

Gabriel shrugged. “Let him. Who were you supposed to patrol with tonight?”

“Adam.”

“I’ll call Quinn to use him somewhere else. You stick with Cole, it’ll be good for him to see what you do. But you have to protect him. When did you last feed?”

“This morning.” And she was craving blood after her marathon sex session with Cole. “Thanks for the reminder.” She walked to the small fridge in her living area, opened it and took a bottle of human blood out of it.

“Good. You need your strength.”

Vanessa gulped down the cold liquid and disposed of the empty bottle in a closed recycle bin.

“I’m ready.”

Together they left her room. Vanessa heard voices from downstairs. Her mother was making small talk with Cole in the living room. When Vanessa and Gabriel came down the stairs, Cole looked in their direction, falling silent.

“I’m afraid, Cole,” Gabriel said with a shrug, “my daughter is a stubborn one. She’ll do her job tonight, no matter what. But I can assure you that she’s trained for it. She underwent the bodyguard training at Scanguards, just like my sons and I have. She’s an excellent bodyguard. She can handle herself.”

Cole’s head whipped to her. “You work for the same company as your father? I thought you’re a social worker for the city.”

“I am,” Vanessa said quickly. “The city hires Scanguards for certain things, including taking care of the sex workers and the homeless. That’s my job, and since I’m out and about at night, we thought it would be best if I’m trained in self-defense, personal security, and a few other things.”

Cole already opened his mouth to respond, when Maya interrupted, looking at Gabriel. “Babe, it’s time to go. I’ve got patients to see.” She smiled at Cole. “We’ll see you again soon, Cole. It’s been a pleasure.”

“Thank you, Maya, you too.”

When her parents left, and silence descended on the house, Vanessa crossed the distance between her and Cole and put her hands on his chest.

“We should get going too,” she said.

“So you’re a bodyguard, huh?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Is there anything else I should know?”

She pursed her lips and tilted her head to the side. “My dad is also my boss? And my brothers are my colleagues?”

“And you all work for this company, Scanguards?”

“That’s about it.” Except for one other thing, but she wasn’t ready to reveal her last secret yet.

Cole pressed a kiss to her lips, and pulled her into an embrace. “All right, then let’s go patrolling, or whatever you call it.”

He released her.