Eventually, he sighs and surrenders. “I ran into an asshole last night and it has kinda spooked me.”
My heart freezes, and my blood runs cold. Was ittheasshole? The one who violated and traumatized him?
Ned looks up at me and winces. “Baltazar has never…done anything. He is just a jerk.”
“That’s some jerk if he has unsettled you this much.”
Ned’s shoulders tense. I almost reach out my hand to give them a little squeeze, but I manage to stop myself just in time.
“It’s…it’s fine,” Ned’s voice sounds strangled. He peeks up at me again, and then he sighs heavily. “Baltazar leads a local cult, and he wants me to join. He is crazy, but harmless.”
Cult? Wow. Well, that’s quite something. And it explains the bizarre name. But this doesn’t sound good at all.
“Should we call the police?”
Ned’s hazel eyes widen. “Oh no, no. It’s fine. I’m just paranoid he will turn up here.”
My stomach clenches. Hard. It feels like a rock in the middle of my organs. Suddenly, Ned’s hand is on my arm.
“Morgan, I’d never let anything happen to the kids, or you. Please believe me.”
The sincerity in his voice seeps into my soul. Ned is all of five-foot nothing, yet I find myself nodding in agreement. Somehow, it is entirely believable that he can protect us from unhinged religious fanatics.
“The worst that will happen is that he will stand on the lawn spewing gibberish.”
I nod again. How the hell did Ned get caught up with such a weirdo? I guess times have changed, and Ned is young and actually leaves the house and socializes. Unlike me. Home and work. It’s all I do, so of course I’m not going to come across strange people for them to latch onto me.
“Can I stay the night?”
I blink at Ned. Did he really just say that?
He takes a deep breath and continues. “I’m really sure it is fine, but I hate the thought of you and the kids getting dragged into my drama. If I’m here, I can deal with him if he shows up.”
My mind is filling with images of Ned in my bed. I shake my head to clear it. I have five guest rooms. All perfectly lovely. One is even already sort of Ned’s. I offered it to him as a sanctuary to hide in from the kids when he needs five minutes. He has some books in there and a pair of slippers.
But he has never stayed the night. Until now.
“Of course you can stay, it will be a pleasure to have you.”
Oh god. Did I really just say that? Kill me now, please. What kind of cheesy innuendo was that? And I didn’t even mean it. Well, not consciously. Oh my, I can feel my cheeks heating.
There is a fond, warm look in Ned’s eyes. He chuckles, but he doesn’t tease me.
“Fancy getting out the good whisky once the kids are in bed?” he asks instead.
I swallow thickly and nod. Right now, I can’t think of anything in the world I want more.
Chapter nine
Ned
Iwish I could sleep. A whole eight hours would be blissful. But every year since being turned I seem to need less and less. I suppose it doesn’t help that my sleep schedule is all out of whack. Vampires should be nocturnal, so fighting it can’t be good for me, but I can’t exactly be a nanny who sleeps all day.
It’s a pain in the ass that can’t be helped. And it has left me wide awake in Morgan’s home at three o’clock in the morning. Wandering around in the dark and behaving far more like a ghost than a vampire. I do feel like a lost soul, so there is that, at least.
I’ve checked all the doors and windows. Multiple times. I’ve checked on the kids. I can walk silently and see just fine in the dark, so I’m not going to disturb anyone like this.
That doesn’t however, apply to getting the vacuum cleaner out. Or any other household chores.
