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She blinked. “What?”
He then paced the east side of his bedroom and spoke for a long time about things Gerrod had told him, about how all the mastyrs in the entire Nine Realms would be after her, how he couldn’t bear the idea of her servicing other men in that way, how she’d be tempted, and on and on.
She finally covered her ears and squeezed her eyes shut. “Stop it. I can’t listen to this anymore. I won’t bond with you and I certainly won’t bond with any other mastyr, most of whom are warriors of one kind or another, just like you. I reject everything about being a blood rose.”
When she opened her eyes, he was standing over her.
He spoke softly. “I didn’t intend to overwhelm you. But I need you to understand that you’re vulnerable right now.”
“Well, you’ve made that clear, but please back off.” She lifted her hands up and patted the air.
He took several steps away from her and finally she could breathe again.
Glancing toward the east window, she saw that the dusky part of the evening was almost gone. “I’ll need to be at the diner in a few minutes. Will you fly me there?”
“Alesia, you can’t be serious. You can’t go back there, not yet anyway.”
“Why the hell not?” She rose to face him.
His eyebrows dipped. He looked mad as hell. “Because they’ll be back, all three wraith-pairs, if not here then at your diner, that’s why. They’ve marked you as someone dangerous and they won’t stop until you’re dead.”
She shook her head. “But, why?”
“Because you used your battle energy against that vampire.” His voice was softer as he said, “Listen, I want you to know that I’m so sorry about your mom. I had no idea and I wish like hell you’d told me sooner. Given what happened to you, I can see that I must have sounded harsh, even unkind, on the subject. And now I understand why you broke up with me.”
She lifted her chin. “But it doesn’t change anything with you, does it?”
He frowned. “The truth is, I don’t know.”
She’d never been more shocked. “Well, that’s something, I suppose.”
“I’m not saying this lightly, but if I’d been in your shoes, if I’d seen my mother carried away by a wraith knowing she’d be forced into an Invictus bond, I’d probably have spent every single minute of my life hunting for her, trying to rescue her.”
“You would have?”
“Yeah.” He nodded several times. “That’s exactly what I would have done.”
She finally crossed to him and put her hand on his arm. “Thank you for that, Zeph. I think that’s the kindest thing you’ve ever said to me on this subject.”
His frown deepened. “Again, I apologize for being so insensitive.”
Alesia stared into clear blue eyes, the eyes of the man she loved. She had no doubt about what she felt for him, not even a little.
But the idea of bonding with him still gave her shakes. She didn’t want to be this close to him, or to anyone, and maybe that went to the deeper part of the issue for her. She’d lost so much when her parents had been attacked and she didn’t want to go back there, having that much to lose ever again.
So, no, for her, being a blood rose, being close to any mastyr, would never be a simple thing.
She wanted to go home, to regroup, but Zephyr wasn’t likely to honor her request, not with an impending attack on the horizon.
She was about to suggest that he call Mastyr Gerrod so that he might send some of his vampire Guard all the way south to escort her home, when suddenly a loud banging sounded on the metal roof of his home, just like the night before. She flung herself into his arms.
He surrounded her quickly and held her fast. “It’s okay. I’ve got this. I’ll use some shock therapy again.”
“Yes, do that.”
He released her and moved quickly to his desk in the living room.
At the same time, another wraith shrieked at the front door and set up a second loud banging.
