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He nodded to her. A second later, a warm blast of reassurance wrapped around her. “Your stuffie needs love.”
Mara pulled Sparkle from the bag she’d set at her feet and hugged the unicorn close. She refocused on the show. Alaric would make sure they were safe so their Daddies could take care of whatever they needed to do.
Chapter
Fourteen
She, Carina, and Alessia had devoured several vampire cartoons and one old black-and-white movie. The special effects of the vintage flick were so laughable even Mara hadn’t found the show scary. Especially when the others kept pointing out wires and props.
The guys had wandered in, shaking their heads. They didn’t talk much to each other but rejoined the watch party. Mara waited until she and Darius were alone in the car before she asked, “What happened?”
“Our targets weren’t at home. Hunting was a bust. We’ll have to try again.”
“Do you think they knew you were coming?”
“Perhaps, Little girl. If I were them, I’d be extremely cautious. We’ll put a tail on them tomorrow to figure out what’s happening.”
“You could pull your money out of the bank,” she suggested.
The bank losing the Nightfall business after she contacted them about irregularities would probably result in losing her position. That concerned Mara. Could she ever get a job in banking again?
“If we do that, we’ll never pinpoint who was responsible.”
“Is that more important than stopping them from stealing from you?” Mara asked.
“No one swindles our clan. At least not without learning the consequences of doing so.”
“Duh, duh, duh, duh.” She couldn’t resist reciting the tones used in the movies to signal a scary part was coming.
He looked sideways at her. The mask of anger dropped from his face for the first time since he’d returned. “Am I currently in a horror show?”
“Maybe. I’m sorry the bank is causing so many problems. Maybe I should have stayed quiet and not alerted you.”
“Is that what you really wish you’d done?” he asked, dividing his attention between the darkened road and her face.
She paused to consider that for a second and shook her head. “No. I’m too honest. Covering something up would have wrecked me.”
Darius wrapped his hand around her knee and squeezed lightly. “I appreciate you being brave. Someone else might not have made that decision.”
“Probably. But then we wouldn’t have met. Maybe you’re my reward for doing the right thing,” she suggested.
A smile brightened his expression even more. “I don’t think I’ve ever been anyone’s pleasant bonus.”
“I’m okay that you waited for me to come along to claim as your mate.”
He laughed, and Mara couldn’t help but join in his amusement. The mating bond wasn’t a choice, but a tie between a vampire and the one fate decreed he should have. She preferred to hope he would have selected her.
“Little girl, now that I’ve found you, I can’t imagine my life with anyone else. You add joy and fun to every moment. I’m sorry I’ve been grumpy this evening.”
“You were revved up and ready to kick ass. That’s frustrating when you can’t get the answers you’re searching for. I’m sure we’re going to figure this out.” She yawned widely and hugged Sparkle to her chest. “Tomorrow. We’ll put on our detective hats and solve the mystery.”
“You will not play sleuth anymore. Already someone has put a target on your back. You are not to dig into the records any further. Promise me you’ll allow us to take care of this,” Darius said.
Mara crossed her fingers behind her stuffie’s back before agreeing. “Of course, Daddy. I’ll do what you say.”
He looked at her suspiciously. Mara forced a yawn to interrupt the conversation. He patted her knee. “I’ll have you tucked in bed soon, Zoí mou.”
“Okay, Daddy.”
