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“Something’s troubling you, little lamb.” Ambrose says it as a statement, rather than a question, like he can sense the keen disappointment making my heart ache.
“It’s not important,” I whisper, still unable to meet his gaze. I give a half shrug. “I’m fine.”
The weight of his focus presses against my skin, as if he’s trying to peer into my thoughts and ferret out the truth for himself. I grit my teeth; if I thought he’d let me go, I’d try to roll away from him. Unable to lie to myself, though, I want to stay there in his arms. His body is cool, keeping me comfortable despite the humid heat, and he’s solid against me, a bulwark against the world beyond this room. Around him, my thoughts don’t race, jumping from one worry to the next, and the peace is as addicting as the fire he sparks inside me.
A phone rings from behind him and he scowls, twisting his head to look towards it. I finally let myself look at all of his face again, and it’s endearing to see the polished Ambrose with bedhead. I fight the urge to brush it with my fingers, the memory of how soft his hair is imprinted on my skin.
He lets go of me, reaching to pick up the phone. He looks at me as he brings it to his ear, and trepidation keeps me in place. Something tells me this call is important. I know it in my bones.
“Yes?” Ambrose’s voice is clipped but not irritated. Five agonizing heartbeats later, he hands the phone to me. I stare at it like a poisonous snake, worried that it’ll strike out and fill me with its venom. I take it, my hand shaking, and clear my throat gently before pressing it to my ear.
“Hello?” I say, my voice unsure.
“Hey, lady,” a raspy but familiar voice says.
I shoot upright, pressing the phone harder against my ear, my other hand curling against my chest. “Deidre?” I breathe out, almost unable to believe this a dream that I’ll wake up from. If it is, I... I don’t know what I’d do. Lose it, probably.
“Yeah,” my best friend says. Deidre’s voice is raspy and hoarse, and she sounds so tired.
“Are you okay?” I ask right away, heart and mind in an all-out sprint. “Are you hurt? Are you safe? Where are you? What—”
“Slow down,” she requests and it’s the burden in her voice that makes me snap my mouth shut, my teeth rattling from the force. “I’m...well, I’m not okay,” Deidre admits with a trace of her usual humor. “But I think I will be eventually. Thank you, for going to him. I’ll never be able to repay you.”
“I’d do it all over again, without hesitation,” I say, my voice firm. “Don’t you dare think about repaying me. You being alive and home and safe is enough.”
There’s silence on the other end, long enough that I pull the phone away to glance at the screen. When I see it’s still connected, I put it to my ear again. “Dei?”
“I need you to do something for me,” she asks.
“Anything,” I say before she can continue.
There’s a huff of laughter and my eyes sting. Then I’m crying, pressing my hand to my lips to keep the sound back. Deidre doesn’t need to hear me crying. I don’t even know why I am. Happiness? Relief? Fear? All of that and more.
“Kasar says you have my computer,” she begins. I don’t know how the vampire knew that, but that was a question for later. “I need you to show Ambrose everything in the file on Rapture. There’s stuff there that I think he’ll understand a lot better than I was able to.”
I nod, even though she can’t see me. “Done. What else do you need? Do you want me to get you clothes? Food? The police have your purse and phone, but I can figure out a way to get it back.”
“Thanks, but I’m okay for now. I just wanted to tell you thank you, and ask you for the favor.” She sounds more tired than a few minutes ago.
“I love you, Dei. We’ll see each other soon,” I vow. Screw Ambrose if he thinks my bargain with him will keep me from Deidre now that I know she’s safe. As safe as she can be in a vampire’s care.
“Love you too,” she says, breathless, and the line goes dead.
I clutch the phone with both hands to my chest, my eyes leaking tears, and heave in a shuddering breath. Deidre is alive. She’s alive. I’m not alone in the world. She isn’t either. A weight melts from my shoulders, sinking to the floor and down through the house. It’s as if I can breathe for the first time.
Looking towards the windows, glowing with the morning sun, I’m not plagued with anxiety. I’m weightless, unburdened. I can face the day, strong once again because I know the most important person in my life is still here. Familiar plants line the windows, and I grin. Sometime after I went to sleep, my plants were brought to me. A touch of home, and a sound of home.
A giggle shakes my shoulders, and after a few minutes, I start laughing. I’m still crying, but it’s a release. Ambrose must think I’m going crazy, laughing like a maniac in a tank top with rainbow cacti and truly atrocious bedhead. I don’t care, though. Nothing, not even a king, can take this moment from me.
The mattress shifts and I twist to look at Ambrose. Instead of watching me like I’m a crazy person, he has the softest smile. A real smile, and his golden eyes aren’t as cold as they have been since I first saw them in Noir.
I throw myself at him, my arms going around his shoulders, still grinning and laughing. I let his phone fall to the bed behind him and I squeeze him tight, pressing the side of my head against his. “Thank you, Ambrose. Thank you so much.”
He relaxes and my laughter renews as I realize he wasn’t expecting me to hug him. Then slowly, like he isn’t sure what to do, he returns the hug. Ambrose oozed confidence last night, playing the powerful royal playboy, but something like a gracious hug throws him off.
I pull back just enough to press a kiss to his cheek.
He looks at me, and I swear there’s a boyish wonder in him. Then I remember that I’m in bed with the vampire I bargained three months of my life to, the vampire I got myself off to last night, the vampire who everyone in the Barrows and most of Topside is afraid of.
