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"Jesus, I'm right here. I'm fine and I promise to not run into the street, killing and maiming innocent people," Anna grumbled. She flipped her brown curls over her shoulder. She looked between Lukas and Stefan. "I know I'm new to this. Please don't treat me like a child while I learn."
Stefan's lips twitched in amusement at Anna's reply. "Agreed. Josephine, where do you want to go?"
"Let’s go for a walk. I need to stretch my legs."
My mind was bombarded with a dozen ways Stefan wanted to stretch my legs. Not one of them involved walking or being clothed while doing it. Normally, his mental images would make me second guess my original plans and do delicious things to my libido. My nervousness and anxiousness kept my arousal at bay.
"Very well." He noticed my lack of response and reached for my hand, inclining his head to Lukas. "We will be back."
We'd reached the door when Nikolaus sidled up to us. He grabbed Stefan’arm, stopping us. "You're gonna have to decide after you listen to what my sister has to say. We'll talk sooner than later. She has my number."
Stefan regarded Nikolaus with reserved curiosity, glancing down at his hand with annoyance "Please remove your hand, Nikolaus. I think you know my stance."
"I know what you said before. This information may sway your stance," Nikolaus replied matter-of-factly. He dropped his hand from Stefan’s arm to pull me into a one-armed hug. "I'll see you later."
"Bye," I kissed his cheek and motioned for the door, drawing Stefan along with me. "Let's go."
Stefan ushered me out of the apartment. Blocking my thoughts from him, we walked down the hallway. He remained quiet until we reached the elevator.
"I am not going to like what you have to say. Anytime you shield yourself so strongly there is a reason."
Pushing the elevator down arrow, I avoided his eyes. "No, you aren’t going to like it. You have to know what’s going on."
The bond between us filled with apprehension. It mirrored my own feelings. How do you break the news to someone that they were a puppet in a madman's scheming ways for the last decade?
***
We walked along the Highline hand in hand. It was early evening and we did our best to blend in with the passing people, turning more than a few heads in the process. Stefan looked particularly sexy, his blond hair and pale skin contrasting with the dark sweater that succeeded in clinging to the broad muscles of his chest. His long legs were sheathed in dark denim, making them look a mile long.
"Say what you need to say, Josephine. Mentally eye-fucking me is not helping," Stefan advised as we walked along. The bond came in handy. I didn’t need to look at him to know that he was upset, the tension emanating from him.
"I showed Nikolaus my uncle's letter and caught him up to date on what happened while we were in Bali," I hedged, slowing our gait. "Nikolaus caught me up on what happened here while we were gone."
Stefan pulled me to a bench, tugging me along with him. We sat and his handsome face became grim in the early evening light. The darkness he tried to conceal was threatening to break free. "Continue."
I drew in a small breath. "He thinks that Kian is behind Derek's attempt on my life. After reading the letter and my explanation of what happened to them, he strongly suspects my aunt and uncle's death wasn't an accident."
His head snapped to look at me sharply. His eyes took on that cold reptilian quality I'd glimpsed only once before. It had been so fleeting the first time that I thought I'd imagined it.
I hadn't.
"He and I agree on both of those points then. There is more, yes? What else do you know?"
Frowning, I ran my hand over his muscled thigh. I looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Promise me you won't act impulsively."
He laughed dryly, running a hand through his blond hair. “I will make no such promise. If this involves your safety..."
Cutting him off, I squeezed his leg. "It doesn't. It involves you and the Board." I flicked a loose strand of hair away from my face nervously. "Maybe I should rephrase. It actually involves you and my father."
Stefan simply stared at me. His glacial blue eyes waited for me to continue.
"Nikolaus took it upon himself to fish through vampire minds. He came across interesting information in the process."
His hand came to rest on top of mine. "Such as?"
"Kian knew of your search for me. He did his best to keep us apart for at least the last 10 years. Part of his way to keep you occupied and away from me was sending you on your missions." I let my words sink in before I finished. "If you came close to finding me, suddenly you'd have a vampire to punish and a job to do."
He carefully took my hand in his, as if holding on to me would keep his anger tethered tightly inside of him. His turbulent emotions were barely being held in check as he waited for more.
