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I grinned and headed into the bathroom, where I grabbed a quick shower to warm up. Once I was dried off and dressed, I headed downstairs to make myself a potion and some lunch.
And discovered Roger standing in the middle of the café, looking around with interest.
I stopped abruptly. “We’re closed—and how did you even get in?”
“The door was open.”
Meaning Belle really had been out of it when she’d come inside, because checking we were secure was normally the first thing she did. “Which doesn’t mute the point that we’re closed. It even says that on the door.”
“Yes, but I am not here for sustenance.” He paused, and half smiled. “Although if you were to offer me a piece of that rather delicious-looking orange and walnut cake, I would not gainsay you.”
I snorted, but nevertheless walked around the counter. “Why are you here, Roger? What does your mistress want?”
“She wishes to know what you have heard about Marlinda’s death.”
I retrieved the orange cake and cut him a slice, then opened the drawer beside the cake fridge, grabbed a paper bag, and slid the slice of cake into it. I wasn’t about to encourage him to stay and eat.
“Haven’t the rangers spoken to her yet?”
“Yes, but only in her capacity of Marlinda’s employer.”
“If she wants to uncover the reason behind Marlinda’s murder, it might have been wise for her to mention they also had a relationship beyond the boundaries of employer and employee. After all, no matter how careful she might be, someone in this reservation is likely to have seen them together at some point.”
He accepted the bagged cake with a somewhat amused smile. “Which is why she did tell them they had an intimate relationship.”
That raised my eyebrows. For some reason, I hadn’t expected Maelle to be gay, although there was no reason for a vampire not to be, given their sexuality didn’t change when their bodies did.
“I see surprise in your expression.” His tone and pronunciation told me I was now speaking to the woman in charge rather than her servant. “You did not expect me to be so crude as to take my pleasure without also giving it, did you?”
“Given how little I know about vampires and their feeding habits, I can honestly say I didn’t know what to expect.”
The smile that teased Roger’s lips was almost predatory, and a chill raced down my spine. Not because I in any way feared him, but rather the anticipation evident in his expression. It imbued me with a deep sense that if I didn’t play my cards right, Maelle would loom far larger in my life than I wanted or needed.
“Oh,” he all but purred, “I’m sure we can fix that if you so desire.”
“I don’t desire,” I replied evenly, somehow resisting the urge to step back and run like hell from this half human and the woman who sustained him. “And never will.”
“Shame,” he murmured, even as Maelle’s presence leached from his features. He blinked and added, “Even with that information, the rangers have not told my mistress much about how or why Marlinda might have died.”
“That’s probably because they don’t know anything more, thanks to the fact they haven’t gotten the autopsy results back as yet.” I studied him uneasily. “And why would you think I’d actually know anything?”
Amusement touched his expression, though his eyes remained cold. “Come now, it is quite common knowledge that you and the ranger are... perhaps not bedfellows, but close to.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “You and your mistress need better sources, because we are not—much to my chagrin, admittedly—even close to being bedfellows. We haven’t even gone out on a goddamn date yet.”
“That is a surprise, given what we’ve witnessed.”
That had my amusement fading, and fast. “You’ve been watching me?”
“We keep an eye on all the main players in this reservation,” he said. “It pays to be up with current events when you’re a vampire.”
“I wouldn’t have thought that necessary given the council does know you’re here—”
“And they are well able to revoke that permission at any point,” he cut in smoothly. “We have not lived this long by being caught unawares.”
Which was basically confirmation that
he was far older than he actually looked—though probably not as old as his mistress. His speech patterns might be a little old-fashioned, but I’d hazard a guess he’d at least been born in the twentieth century. If Maelle wasn’t far older than even that, I’d be very surprised.
