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"Eye fucking me already, Josephine?" He tossed a leer over his shoulder. "This is the office. " He motioned to a room on my right. "Guest bathroom, laundry room. And finally, this is our bedroom. "
He stalked into the spacious room, dropping our suitcase on the dresser. Plopping down on the king size bed, I braced my arms behind me and watched as Stefan crossed the room and flicked a switch on the wall. Chocolate brown motorized curtains closed across the wall of windows, darkening the bedroom. He blurred to my side and lounged on the bed beside me, propping his head on one of his large hands. I relaxed my arms and lay back on the bed, staring up at his handsome face. He stretched across to kiss me gently before reluctantly lifting himself from the bed.
"You need to eat. Shower and I will order food for you," he murmured. He stood and lingered in the doorway for a moment. "The bathroom is fully stocked. Come and find me when you are finished. "
He disappeared down the hallway. With a tired groan, I got to my feet and wandered into the master bathroom, removing my wrinkled blouse and letting my jeans pool around my feet. I turned on the shower, adjusting the temperature before stepping in. I made short work of washing my hair and body, relieved to finally wash the grime of the last two days away. It was tempting to stand under the streams of hot water until it ran cold, but tension and fatigue were slowly creeping up on me, making my vision blurry and my eyelids heavy.
Stepping out of the shower and quickly toweling off, I grabbed a comb off the vanity and ran in through my long hair. I glanced at my reflection in the large mirror and the realization that this face would be staring back at me in 20 years hit me like a ton of bricks. No more worry about laugh lines, crow's feet and sagging skin. That revelation was quickly tempered by knowing that in a few years I'd have no more Anna or Georgia in my life as my friends. They'd never understand why Stefan and I didn't age. Hell, I didn't understand it and I was living it.
Tearing my eyes away from the mirror, I walked into the bedroom and slumped down on the bed. Sighing, I fell back and closed my eyes against the hot tears that were stinging my eyes. I just wanted to lay here for a moment and get myself together. Just a few moments of peace to get the scramble of my mind back in order. The quietness and darkness of the room had other plans for me, and I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
* * *
"Pad Thai with Shrimp or Pad Sew with Chicken? I was unsure of which you would prefer so I ordered both. "
Stefan didn't look up from his laptop as I padded into the kitchen wearing one of his dress shirts as a nightgown. He was seated on a swivel bar stool at the counter, his fingers flying over the keyboard, making me wonder how the computer could keep up with the speed of his keystrokes. He glanced at me over the screen, the corners of his eyes crinkling as his handsome face broke into a wide smile.
"Pad Thai. " I opened the takeout container and unwrapped the wooden chopsticks. Walking around the island, I sat down beside of him on a matching stool. "Thanks. "
"Anything for you, vackra," he said. He swiveled in his seat to face me. He was shirtless, only wearing black silk sleep pants. My eyes had a mind of their own as they traced across his broad chest, following the long expanse of his finely muscled arms. How was I lucky enough to wake up to this for the rest of my life?
"What are you working on, my sexy man of intrigue?" I asked as I popped a shrimp into my mouth. As I chewed, I watched amusement flicker across his face. He raised an eyebrow at me and closed the laptop.
"Business e-mails. How are you feeling, Josephine?"
Turning my neck from side to side, I stretched. "Physically, I feel much better. I'm clean, rested and not hungry thanks to you. " I picked at my Pad Thai. "Mentally, I'm still trying to come to terms with feeling like my entire life has been a lie. I find out that my birth parents abandoned me, I'm some weird vampire hybrid and my father is one of the most powerful vampires in existence. The only bonus is that you're still here. "
"And you are here with me. As far as what happened with your father, I can only sympathize with you. If I am to be completely honest, I am happy you are some 'weird, vampire hybrid'. That means I get to keep you for an eternity. "
Placing my Thai food on the granite countertop, I scooted closer to him and rested my head against his cool shoulder. Forever with the love of your life? How many people get that opportunity? Pulling back and placing a kiss against his bicep, I sighed with contentment as I felt the weight of his head against mine.
"Do you have any idea what Nigel knows about my mother?"
"Nigel is an honest vampire. He is undecided on what he wants to tell you about her. I would believe in whatever he chooses to tell you. " Stefan's cool breath tickled my scalp. "If you have no reservations, I would like to stay in New York for a few days. I have business matters to attend to and we can meet with Nigel. "
"That's fine with me. Do you have Council business?"
Stefan released a deep sigh. "No. "
"Is this some sort of top secret business you can't tell me about? If we're going to be together you need to tell me what's going on. No secrets. "
"I know. I only worry about how you will react to this information. "
I gave his shoulder an affectionate shove and rolled my eyes. "Is it worse than finding out you were a vampire? I think I took that information in stride. "
It was his turn to roll his eyes. He leaned over to nip at my neck with his teeth. "No, it is not worse than the night you disc
overed I was an immortal creature that longed for your blood. It is about my business holdings and what that means for us. "
Why would his business holdings have anything to do with me? They belong to him and should be no concern to me.
Reading my thoughts, his blue eyes searched my face. "You are my mate, vackra. Everything I have is yours now. " He stood and walked down the hallway and disappeared into his office. He sauntered back into the kitchen, his silk sleep pants resting low on his hips, showcasing the deep V that disappeared into the drawstring waist. He placed a thick manila envelope in front of me and patted it with his large hand.
"What's this?" I looked up at him suspiciously.
"Open it," he commanded as he sat back down beside of me.
Shooting him a look of irritation, I opened the envelope and pulled out another portfolio with LM Holdings Incorporated embossed across the front in bold script. As I opened the folder, I flipped through the stack of papers. Page after page listed his assets: the building in which I was currently residing and two other properties in SOHO and TriBeCa. Business properties in the Financial District. Assets in Los Angeles, Chicago, Paris, London, Milan, Indonesia and Stockholm. Completely overwhelmed, I scanned them quickly, completely bypassing the bank statements. I'd finally reached the end of the stack when I noticed three credit cards with my name on them: a Black American Express, a Platinum Visa and what appeared to be a bank debit card.
