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Horny, frustrated, and a little bit lost, Daria closed her eyes. Somehow, she managed to sleep, the steady hum of the plane and Charlie’s warmth nearby helping out. She woke up to the ding announcing the plane’s descent, Charlie’s palpable tension, and Diego’s layered clothes and sharp gaze as he leaned over.
“What?”
The vampire’s reply was short.
“My clan’s watching the airport. So is Riva’s.”
Chapter 11
Everything from the landing of the plane to leaving the airport was a blur, interrupted only when they spotted the trouble Diego had warned them of among the mix of humans and decided it wasn't safe yet to separate. Still, it had to be asked.
“You can go to them, you know. Make excuses and they will still accept you,” Charlie said, leveling his gaze on the watchful eyes behind the sunglasses. “Tell us what we need to do to corroborate that story without getting caught or harmed by your clan.”
It was an easy way out and an olive branch extended to the man who, despite his earlier misgivings, had been a key part in keeping them alive.
“I’m staying with you guys,” Riva declared before the other could answer. “My clan’s crazy when angry, and it’s best to let this pass. They won’t spare any of you. I know they tracked me, and his clan followed them. I need to get rid of the tracker inside me. I should have done it earlier. Just give me ten minutes and—”
“Tell me how to help you with the tracker.”
Her gaze met the vampire’s, who held steady. When Diego followed Riva without another word, Charlie knew his answer to the offer.
“Ten minutes. Then we go.”
Somehow, he managed to make calls to inform his family of his safety, then hers, before he contacted the one person who could keep everything tightly wrapped up. It didn’t take long for the van to come, ditch any followers, and drop them off at a safe location that he hadn't visited in a while.
“This is my sister's place. Actually, this is her husband's place and it was originally a secret art studio. It's his second one, but it also doubles as a hideout for those who need it.”
Riva limped to the foyer located under the abandoned warehouse, the bandage on her leg where the tracker had been keeping her from bleeding openly. Everyone looked tired, the reprieve of the flight not enough, so he directed them to spare rooms and left them to take care of their needs. Daria lagged, standing in the hallway.
“I will stay in the same room as last time,” she said, pointing to her right.
“Suit yourself.” There was no missing the tension in his voice, but he couldn’t help that.
“Blue,” she mused, awe in her voice.
“What?”
“This painting is all shades of blue. Your brother-in-law is so talented.”
He glanced at the art piece hanging on the wall where the blues were prominent and saw it the way she saw it: something new and overwhelmingly beautiful. But the emotion in her eyes was even more so, extending to the slight shaking of her hands. He fisted his to keep from reaching out, not ready to do so. Instead, he nodded in encouragement.
“Feel free to explore. I will…I have some things to do. You are safe here.”
“I know. We are safe now.”
“I have to go.”
He walked away before they could talk more, needing to get away. The only reason he had asked her to stop listening to Diego and Riva was so she could stop describing it out loud—because her describing it and wondering about sexual positions had him thinking about sexual positions, but with him and Daria in the starring roles. It was a messed-up mind gymnastics all in all, one that plucked at his already-fraying self-control. Then there was his body, beaten up from all the physical gymnastics, too, and ready to just get rid of all the tension.
The shower called his name, so he went for it first, discarding his clothes along the way. The hot water had him hissing, but he didn’t step back. It battered the aches in his muscles and emptied his mind, but there was one ache left that siphoned new ruminations in. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to slip out, too, until he was nothing but an empty vessel.
You are safe here.
Daria needed safety. But more than that, she needed someone to be by her side and monitor her progress—in her newfound eyesight, in her upcoming powers, in everything that was going to be a part of her in the days to come. If that was her reaction upon viewing a painting, he could already imagine the rest: palpable amazement when she saw her Fae kin and her shifter friends, a growing eagerness as she explored the forests and cities in a new light. Then there was that giddy smile when she finally saw faces, coupled with that soft, pleased laughter that lit up her features until everyone was entranced….
He was entranced…had always been. He pictured it in his head, and just like that, everything that he had been trying so hard to forget came back in trickles until his body no longer felt relaxed. He stared at his cock, rising against his will and pulsing with a heat directed only at one person.
“Freaking hell.”
