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Inches away from losing total control, I felt an annoyed tap on my shoulder.
"Sorry to interrupt, lovebirds. We're getting ready to land." Lukas stood over us, his nose wrinkled in distaste. "It's time to get it together. You two are like fucking animals. Don't you ever stop?"
Blushing, I grudgingly attempted to free myself from Stefan’s iron-like grip. He was inhaling heavily, his eyes still black with lust. His hands still possessively gripped my ass as he buried his face in my neck. He was scenting me, further marking me as his. My loving, possessive, high-handed vampire.
"Don't you ever get tired of interrupting?" I shot back irritably. "Mark my words, Lukas. You're going to meet someone and I'm going to make it my mission in life to harass you. I'm going to make you regret all of your little barbs and shit-stirring ways."
Lukas rolled his eyes and pursed his lips. "Color me warned, Josie. I think I’m safe since I don't do relationships. I can't do the monogamy thing. There are too many strings attached for my taste. I prefer to keep my options open. Anna told me once..."
His voice broke and I watched as Lukas looked away, glancing at Anna's unmoving body. She looked peaceful, as if she was sleeping soundly.
My desire diminished and simmered to a low roar, my concern for Anna rushing to the surface and garnering my attention.
"Is there any change?" I asked, crossing the plane to sit down on the edge of the couch next to her. Smoothing her hair from her face, I looked for any noticeable difference. There was none that I could see.
"No," Stefan answered before Lukas could speak. Our eyes met across the plane. "If she wakes, I will feel her presence. I will be forever tied to Anna as her sire."
His thoughts were suddenly heavy again. The simplicity of his words stabbed at my conscience sharply. He'd only saved Anna for me. He would have never willingly stepped in and offered Anna immortality without my impassioned pleas.
"There will be a SUV waiting for us at JFK. We'll transport Anna back to the apartment and then we'll..." Lukas' voice dwindled off. His worried gaze wandered to Anna again.
"And we'll what?" I snapped bitterly. Lukas’eyes widened at my outburst. I swallowed and struggled to make my tone gentler. "We’ll hope Stefan saved her, right?"
"We'll wait," Lukas said delicately. He glanced at his hands nervously and shifted uncomfortably.
Gritting my teeth, I closed my eyes. I shouldn’t have snapped at Lukas or made him feel worse than I knew he already did. I was tired, anxious and running on pure adrenaline. “Lukas, I shouldn’t have snapped like that. How much longer until Anna will wake up, Stefan?"
"Another 24 hours, give or take." Stefan murmured. He pulled me to my feet and wrapped his long arms around me. "Come. We will be landing soon."
Nodding, I looked at Anna one final time before heading back to my seat.
Stefan sat quietly in the seat beside of me. He offered me his outstretched hand, our fingers intertwining. The enormous size of his hand dwarfed mine and he tenderly stroked the top of my hand with his thumb.
Exhaling softly, I turned my head to the side, watching him intently. "It’s funny. I keep waiting to have a normal day. A day where we can sleep in, do normal things that has nothing to do with scheming and worrying."
"You already tire of the vampire bullshit?" Stefan asked humorlessly. He stared blankly ahead. "It will not always be this way. Trust me."
"I was tired of it weeks ago." I smiled and rested my head against his shoulder. "Do you still think I'm worth it or are you ready to trade me in on a lower maintenance model?"
He chuckled and I felt his faint amusement fill the bond between us. I was relieved to hear his light laughter after the overwhelming tension of the last 24 hours.
"Josephine, I have lived almost 1,000 years. I have never felt more alive since I found you. I relish the reprieve in the monotony," Stefan leaned his head against the back of the seat. "You and Lukas are young. In 300 years or so you will look forward to complications. We will look back on this and wonder why we were ever concerned about these things.”
Was Stefan right? Would I look back on this in a few centuries and think this was nothing but at best an annoyance? Would immortality be an endless stretch of never-ending boredom? Would Stefan ever tire of an eternity of my quirks and stubbornness?
“I doubt time spent with you will ever be boring. You constantly surprise me and I find your determination refreshing, Josephine. If I had my way, we would spend the next 20 years never leaving our bedroom,” Stefan murmured as he read my thoughts. “We have an entire world to explore together. The possibilities will be infinite.”
“Unless I meet some tragic human death? A car accident, an airplane crash.” I waved my free hand dramatically around the expanse of the plane. “Or possibly the temper tantrum of megalomaniac father?”
“Vackra, that will not happen. And if it does, I will change you,” Stefan reassured me. His anger spiked as he thought of me being taken away from him. Knowing Stefan, he’d chase down Death himself and demand he return me to him.
He laughed again at my mental picture, pressing us closer to the window of the plane. “Possibly something along those lines would happen. We will be landing soon. Look.”
Following his gaze, I peered out the small window. I could see the lights of the city approaching us, twinkling in the distance. Smiling, I snuggled closer to him.
“It’s good to be back home. I just want everything to be ok,” I whispered against his shoulder, nudging him with my nose.
His lips brushed against my temple. “As do I.”
