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His suspicious tone made me realize that all the shifters, including Alejandro, hadn’t heard Juriaan coming until he was right next to us. Maybe it was because he was here all the time and able to use the forest’s noises to mask his footsteps.
Mentally shaking my head at the mystery, I gestured to Pasquale. “Pasquale, this is Juriaan. He’s one of the rangers assigned here and a close friend of the family.” With humans, we always referred to the pack as family since it was safer that way. “Juriaan, this is my...” I faltered. Although it had been a week since our engagement, I realized that now was only my first time to introduce Pasquale as my fiancé.
He was my fiancé, my future husband, but he wasn’t the one who had me half naked hours ago. His name wasn’t the one I moaned and screamed, and he wasn’t the one who had made me come so hard my body went totally limp after.
Pasquale took my hand and brought it to his lips. “Your shyness is becoming, princess.”
His action and words were unexpected. They were also something I wasn’t used to, and I found myself flushing as I felt everyone looking at me.
Still clasping my hand, Pasquale told Juriaan, “I am her fiancé, Pasquale Hernandez.” He said it like he had announced he was king and he expected Juriaan to kiss his feet for it.
Unbidden, my gaze strayed to Alejandro.
His eyes bored through me, like he was begging me for the right to knock some humility into the panther prince.
I looked away hurriedly before I could end up giggling.
“It’s nice to meet you.” Thankfully, Juriaan didn’t appear to mind Pasquale’s obnoxious tone. Glancing at me with concern, he asked, “Isn’t it kind of late for you all to be out here?”
“Umm...” Pasquale had already rejoined his men, leaving me with Alejandro. I looked at him for help, but he only shrugged. “We’re h-here f-for r-research.” Lies always had me stammering. I gestured to Alejandro. “He’s a writer.”
“Oh?” I could see Juriaan had a hard time believing me, and I couldn’t really blame him. Alejandro, with his in-your-face good looks, appeared too flamboyant to pass as a writer.
“You’re writing a book?” Juriaan asked Alejandro.
Fearing Alejandro’s answer, I said quickly, “Yes.”
“About what?”
I searched madly for a topic, and all I could think about was reality. “About...vampires?”
Juriaan blinked. “Really?”
Beside me, I could feel Alejandro trying to glare me into shutting up. “Yep. Fiction. Like, there’s...umm...Eddie? And he, umm, likes...Bell?”
“That sounds like Twilight,” Juriaan said.
I blurted out, “Did I mention Bell’s a guy, too?”
Juriaan looked at Alejandro with interest.
“It is...true,” Alejandro finally said.
Crap. Alejandro was really going to chomp me into pieces after this. As I tried to think of something to say that could prevent my death, Alejandro was speaking again, asking Juriaan about his work.
“Yes, I know this place like the back of my hand.”
“I see. Would you mind accompanying my, err, team for the meantime? I’ve just realized I have one last thing to do before I can leave the city.”
This was news to me, and I couldn’t help but ask, “Where are you going?”
ALEJANDRO
Calys’ expressive eyes belied her casual tone. She was jealous. It should have made Alejandro happy, but it only pissed him off. Whose fault was it that she couldn’t straight out say what she felt? Pasquale loudly claiming to be Calys Adelardi’s future husband still grated on his nerves, and it was one of his reasons for leaving her side. If he stayed one minute longer in their company, Alejandro would really end up killing Pasquale. He hated it – he goddamn hated it every time he saw Pasquale touch Calys and not have the right to do anything about it.
But he also had another reason for leaving, one more pressing and one he didn’t want to tell Calys about until he was sure.
To Calys, he gave a mocking bow and said, “It’s my off-duty hours, princess. So I’m afraid I don’t owe you any answers. I’ll come back as soon as I can. Stay close to Mr. Ranger here.”
Juriaan was frowning. “If you are under her employ and were hired to guard her, you must not stray from her side.”
Alejandro snorted. “Trust me, she is no shrinking flower.”
“She is a woman and as such, she must be protected.”
So this boy not only looked like a fucking angel, but he spoke and thought like one, too. Alejandro knew there was a reason why he hated him at first sight.
Baring his teeth in a smile, he said, “It’s a good thing you’re here then.”
Turning his back on the ranger, he bowed to Calys again. “I’ll see you soon, princess.”
And then he left to start killing vampires.
He had noticed the bloodsuckers following them the moment they got past the city limits. No one should have known they were taking this route to reach the Adelardi lands in the north. But the vampires had known, which only meant they had a mole among them, and Alejandro was determined to find out who it was.
