Christian didn’t even flinch. “Never. Keystone won’t always be here, and I’m bright enough to have figured that one out. But I won’t sacrifice Raven for anything. Not even your empty promises.”
“They’re not empty. You know what I’m capable of when I put my mind to it.”
He shook his head. “She’s the only thing I’ve got that makes me feel like a man and not a monster. I’ll not give her up.”
“I wonder ifshewouldn’t giveyouup after I make my advances on Viktor. Think about what might happen if Viktor finds out that you harbor resentment toward his new mate. When he tosses you out, do you think Raven would give up Keystone for you? If you love her, you won’t put her in that position.”
Lenore reached behind him and retrieved a silk robe hanging from a hook on the door. Even though her naked body had brushed against his, there was no hint of arousal moving through him. Not even a renegade twitch. She was testing him, getting close enough to make any male yearn for her invitation.
The baffled look on her face said it all. She couldn’t figure out why his heartbeat ticked at a sedate pace and why his eyes didn’t steal glances of her breasts and bald fanny.
If Lenore infiltrated Keystone, Christian’s hands were tied. But he couldn’t complain to Viktor—not without knowing her true motives. And what would he have to say that wouldn’t constitute as slander? Power couples weren’t uncommon, and Viktor might find her useful. Christian had just enough information on her past political maneuvers to besmirch her reputation, but she had blackmail on him threefold. Damning her would be damning himself. He’d hoped she would stay busy with her new job and forget about him, but fecking hell, she just kept showing up at the mansion like it was her home. Making enemies with Lenore would be like kicking a hornet’s nest.
Lenore slipped on the white robe but left it open in front. “You’re much quieter than you used to be. I quite prefer it.” She headed back to the bathtub. “You had a tendency to ramble on and on about the latest thing you read. Technology was exploding all around us, and all you could talk about was dinosaurs and whales.” She blew out the candles one at a time. “Remember that time you released all the animals from the zoo?” Lenore stood upright and baited him with a charming laugh that was infectious.
He couldn’t help it. He smiled at the memory of a rhino chasing a man on a bicycle in the middle of downtown traffic. They never found all the lions, and one ostrich maimed three men who attempted to catch it with their bare hands. “If those eejits had bothered to read a book, they might have learned that an ostrich can run up to seventy miles per hour. Cornered, they can kick a man to death.”
“If you wanted to free exotic animals, you should have purchased them.” After wiping off her hands on a towel, she closed the distance between them. “Impulsive behavior never reaps the rewards. You have to meticulously plan and think ahead.” She sighed while tying her robe at the waist. “I’m sorry. I’ve spent years mentoring immortals, and it’s difficult not giving advice.” Lenore reached up and touched his beard. “I remember how your smile could charm a room. Now it has a peculiar quality… like thorns on a rosebush.”
“Don’t waste your time on compliments. I don’t give a shite about your approval anymore.”
Lenore backed up a step. “You and I both know that’s a lie. In fact, my approval is more important than ever, given my position. I do wonder what it will take to get yours. You seem… distracted these days. That’s not like you. No matter how many years have passed or what hardships you faced, I still see the man who lives to please. That’s why you’re with Viktor, isn’t it? Maybe working on your own as a guard wasn’t rewarding enough. Your clients didn’t appreciate what you did for them, and you had no one else to tell you how talented you are.”
Christian bowed his head and stared at his shoes.
“Every man wants to be seen,” she said softly, drawing nearer. “To have his talents, his work, and his trophies admired by all. Or even by just one.” Lenore reached down to grip his wrist, and she held it like an iron shackle. Not to show tenderness but to feel the electrical impulses of his heart. To read his emotions with every flutter, with every quickened or skipped beat, and use it to her advantage. “I see you for what you are. I don’t wish to ruin you. But this is my time. I’m going to rise to power, and Viktor will be part of it. You’re so young and can’t see that far ahead, but I’ve already calculated the moves needed to climb to the top.”
“You’re already as high as you can go.”
“The higher authority fails you because there’s no one leader. Decisions are in the hands of the majority, and they don’t even have an equal number of representatives from each Breed to make those decisions fair and unbiased. It’s a fractious organization in need of an overhaul.”
“You’re speaking treason.”
“Outlining the flaws isn’t treason.” Lenore’s black eyes glittered with secrets. “You’ll have all the admiration you’ve always desired, without strings attached. This isn’t an offer; it’s a fact. Either you’ll rise to the top with me, or you’ll languish in fear and weakness. I now realize that money has never meant anything to you, but recognition has. Power has. When Viktor and I become a match, we’ll change this world, and those who stand with us will be a part of that change.Thinkabout the possibilities. We can create new laws and banish old ones. And I ask nothing of you,” she said, her lips nearing his. “If you don’t want to accept my offer, I don’t hold that against you. I simply wanted to give you a choice. Either way, we’ll be working together. You can keep your heart, your soul, and your pride. You can even keep that unsightly beard. All I will ask of you is your loyalty and vision.”
His brows furrowed. “Vision?”
“The ability to see ahead. To seemyvision unclouded. Falling for me all those years ago blinded you. Love is for amusement, but when it clouds your vision, it becomes an obstacle. This city betrayed me. The leaders at the time lied to me and tried to use me like a whore. You didn’t see that part.” She walked behind him and gripped the doorknob. “Decide which means more to you—catching a butterfly or catching a wave. The wave is coming, Christian. It’s an unstoppable force, and there will be a reckoning.”
Chapter 24
The cab driver dropped me off outside the gate, and it felt good to be home. The iron gates were twenty feet high and impossible to scale, and stone walls bordered our property. Because I didn’t have my card key, I pressed a button and Wyatt buzzed me in. The head of a Roman soldier glared solemnly at me as I walked beneath the archway. I flashed up the road until I reached the circular driveway in front. At night, Keystone was easy to miss from the main road. The candles in the hallways were spaced apart, offering just enough light to see but not to illuminate the inside of the mansion. Kira didn’t light up all the hallways, just the ones we frequented the most. When I reached the front door, someone had left it unlocked for me.
All homes have a unique smell, and though we lived in a castle, ours was no different. I sometimes caught a whiff of sautéed onions or the lingering goodness of baked bread from the nearby kitchen. But there was also an underlying aroma that I couldn’t put my finger on—a complex mixture of scents from the stone floors, the burning candles, and perhaps even the previous tenants. But to me it was the smell of home.
Wyatt was hanging out on the lower steps of the grand staircase. He raised his arm and poured a handful of Raisinets into his mouth.
I approached and rested my hand on the stone newel. “Anything good on TV tonight?”
Still chewing, he said, “I watched a fight that turned into an amateur sex movie.”
I gave him a lethal glare.
“Don’t worry, buttercup. It was too dark to see anything. I turned it off before I was scarred for life by Christian’s woody.”
“Woody?” I snorted. “What are you, nine? I thought men looked at each other all the time in bathrooms and locker rooms.”
He finished off the last of his candy and left the empty box on the stairs. “There’s a difference between hard candy and soft candy.”
