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er. Our only other hope is to drop word that we are seeking a meeting with the witches and hope they take the bait. We’re exploring both options.”
I tried asking another question but Leo cut me off. “Make it fast, Takk. Call me when you have something.”
Takk stood up from the golden-colored sofa and started walking towards the door. “Of course, sir. I’ll be in the suite next door making calls if you need me.”
After he left the room, I took a deep breath to calm down. That guy really rubbed me the wrong way for some reason. Leo seemed to sense my irritation. “I think we need to get you out of this room. Care to take a walk with me?”
“Sure.”
We made our way through the Temple Bar district. The roads were lit up by street lamps and window signs from ground-level businesses. It had recently rained so the cobbled streets were covered in a beautiful sheen. Most of the buildings were magnificently restored Old World elegance. We continued walking until we ran into the Temple Bar Pub. I recognized it easily once I saw the red-painted trim wrapped around the corner of an old brick structure. I couldn’t resist being a little touristy as I dragged Leo inside. The interior formed a maze made up of several different rooms with wooden tables scattered throughout. We finally found an open one towards the back and sat down. Irish music playing in the background was practically drowned out by all the voices. Our section was shrouded in darkness, the only light coming from a single votive candle placed on each table or the fixtures behind a thirty-foot bar that lined the wall. The ambiance was great though. Sure, it was touristy and there were probably more non-Irish people here than not, but the craic was buzzing through the air. I once read that the city of Dublin had more than one thousand pubs! Maybe that was the reason behind this weird energy that was floating around, but I doubted it. Everyone just seemed so alive. I had never seen anything like it before.
A waitress came up to our table. “Gran’ evenin’! What can I get for you?”
Leo gestured for me to order first. When in Ireland, I thought. “I’ll have a shot of Jameson and a pint of Guinness.”
Leo smirked at my request. “I’ll have the same.”
I waited for the waitress to leave. “Aw, you’re being an obnoxious American tourist with me. How sweet!”
“I couldn’t just leave you hanging there by yourself. It was pretty bad.” He winked.
Leo had many sides, and playful Leo was definitely one of my favorites. The waitress set our drinks down a moment later. I grabbed the Guinness and took a healthy sip. “Crap, even the beer is better here!”
Leo laughed. A full-on belly laugh. I was momentarily stunned by the beauty of it. “I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself, my love.”
I really was having a great time. It was nice to take a break from the everyday chaos and just enjoy life. I downed my shot of whiskey and chased it with the beer. “I really am, Leo. Thank you for taking me out tonight.”
He reached across the table and clasped his hand with mine. “Anytime.”
Leo and I continued to talk, drink, and laugh until closing, then walked back to the hotel holding hands. Okay, maybe that was mostly because I needed help with the walking part. Leo, of course, was completely unaffected. I could normally handle my liquor, but to be honest, I couldn’t remember how many rounds we’d gone through. I decided early on to let everything go for the night, knowing that Leo would keep me safe. I stumbled across the threshold when we got back to our hotel room. “Whoopsie!” I giggled.
I wound up tripping again as we entered the bedroom and pulled Leo down onto the bed with me. “Careful there, love.” He laughed.
I was suddenly blasted with heat when I realized that our fun parts were lined up against each other. I could feel his goodies gearing up for some action as he leaned in to kiss me. When our lips touched I mumbled, “Are you mad at me?”
He pulled back, propped over me on his elbows. “What do you mean?”
“About Vance.”
Any warmth that was there before drastically cooled as he moved away from me to sit on the edge of the bed. “What about him?”
I sat up as well. “You know…about me sleeping with him. Again.”
Leo had been hurt the first time Vance and I got together several weeks ago, but he assured me that his feelings about me hadn’t changed. After this last time, I could tell that something was different. Leo caught me doing the walk of shame the following morning, so there was no way he didn’t know what had happened. He cleared his throat before answering. “I thought we had already discussed this.”
“No, we haven’t,” I insisted. “C’mon, Leo, I know you know what happened right before we left town.” What I didn’t know was why I was pressing the issue. Perhaps the alcohol was dulling my common sense.
“What is it that you want me to say?”
“What do I want you to say?” I repeated. “How about the truth?”
He took a deep breath before replying in a clipped tone. “Fine. You want the truth? Of course I know. Blood bond, remember?” Since Leo has had my blood in the past, he could sense my feelings and location at all times. It wouldn’t be too difficult to put two and two together. “Am I happy about it? Forgive me for being so rude, but what the hell do you think? Of course I’m not happy about it. Quite frankly, it stirs up some thoughts that are fairly difficult to ignore.”
“Like what?”
He laughed without humor. “You don’t want to know.”
“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want to know.”
