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“The boy said he saw someone who may have looked like your mom, sitting in a stretch limousine, the license plate of which indicated it probably belonged to a grand elemental, though I don’t know which one yet.”
“Grand elemental?”
“Elemental elders, the ruling class of that particular breed. They practice the most powerful magic, act as judges, policy makers—to some extent—and of course gatekeepers of knowledge.
I felt myself making a face. “My mom in a stretch limousine? With a grand elemental? That doesn’t sound very likely.”
“Exactly, not only are limousine windows heavily tinted anyway, but something else you need to know about vampire covens is people are always trying to get a bit higher up the pecking order. There’s a lot of backstabbing, double crossing, and”—he waved a hand in the air—“for lack of a better word, bullshitting, to gain favor with those above them. Vamp youth like the one in question are especially prone to it. And what better way to make a good impression with me than to insist he’d found someone it’s well-known I was eager to find?”
“So, you think it’s just made up, to get in your good books?”
Shrugging, he pronged a morsel of pink steak. “In all likelihood. I’ll speak to the boy personally though, to be sure. And he says he remembers part of the license plate too, so I have people making inquiries into that. In any case, your mom told you just yesterday she’s safe and healthy, and will be home soon, so don’t get stressed out over what’s probably nothing. If any solid information comes from it, you’ll be the first to know, I promise.”
I took another sip of champagne, feeling a little rattled by mention of my mom. As Xander had said, she seemed to be okay, she’d gotten in touch and would hopefully be back soon. “Well, just be sure to let me know straight away.”
“Of course, you have my word. I hope I didn’t upset you?”
He hadn’t, and his concern was touching. I actually chuckled at the contrast in our first meeting compared to the dinner we were having now. “Do you remember how much you scared me when we met?”
He grimaced, his pearly fangs poking out. “I do. It’ll never happen again.”
“Is that your normal way of hitting on girls?”
“I don’t normally hit on girls. I just appear and they usually hit on me. Whether I like it or not, it’s a part of who I am.” His tone was matter of fact. “You’re the first I’ve ever had that reaction from.” He gave a bemused smile. “And now, knowing you better, I’m so glad you’re different.” His face turned serious again. His focus was entirely on me, like the rest of the restaurant had disappeared. “It’s so refreshing and exciting. Like you’ve taken a hammer and cracked—no, smashed—the invisible dome of boredom and superficiality that was suffocating me.”
“I don’t know what to say.” I glanced down at my hands, finding them twisting nervously in my lap, over the feelings he kept sparking inside me. An innate feeling that even though he was so different than me, what we had really was special and we were somehow meant to be together. “Just next time you want a girl to like you though, be like this, sweet and kind. Not creeping up on them in the dark, okay?”
“Oh, there won’t be a next time, my beloved orchid, believe me. And besides, you have my aunt to thank for that disastrous introduction.”
“Your aunt?”
“Yes, Persephone. She thought there wasn’t a girl of any breed who wouldn’t swoon at that type of wooing. I uh, think she was a little mistaken.”
I laughed. “Just a little. This is the aunt you trust so much?”
He nodded.
“I hope she’s better at business dealings than dating advice.”
“Absolutely. Oh, that reminds me, if you want to meet her, why don’t you come to the coven’s campus party Saturday? I’d love to have you there. She’s already said she wants to meet you, and it’s going to be the party of the year.”
“Your aunt wants to meet me? I’d love that. What about the other guys though?”
I wasn’t sure how they’d feel about a vampire party, especially Jax. And as for Osric, I’d have to let him know through Aaron. I didn’t feel he would have wanted an invite directly from me.
“They’re very welcome. Everyone’s invited. Jax might, understandably, be wary of coming to a coven party, but please give him my word, there’ll be no trouble. Only a great time. Besides, it’s at the coven house, but there’ll be all breeds turning up, for sure. What do you say?”
The waiter interrupted with dessert. I’d ordered something I couldn’t pronounce with a lot of chocolate. Xander had a little plate of blood oranges, though there was no actual blood and I hoped he wouldn’t be embarrassed to consume more of what he needed in front of me.
“I’ll definitely come.” I dug into my dessert. “And I’m sure I can persuade at least Aaron, probably Jax too. Let’s see—oh, speaking of invites, the Sentinels are playing against the Stallions tomorrow night, in New Bellevue. If you came along and showed some support for Jax and his team, I bet he’d really appreciate it.” I cleared my throat, but it didn’t need clearing. “I want you guys to be closer. If…” I couldn’t quite voice what I wanted, what we all seemed to be heading for. And I stuffed a spoonful of chocolate into my mouth.
The vivid colors in his eyes sparkled, his voice lowering. “Oh, I see. Well, I could be persuaded, I suppose. It’ll cost you though.”
He was being a mischief-maker again. And I liked it. I swallowed hard. “Cost me what, exactly?”
Carefully placing the two candles to the far edges of the table, he leaned far forward, his words wisping fresh citrus zest as I moved closer too. Our mouths ended up within an inch of each other. “Have a guess?”
I glanced down and could see his fang tips poking from under his lips. My heart started to race, and I replied in trembles, my words stumbled by adrenaline. “So, if I kiss you, you’ll come to the game tomorrow night?”
