“You will take me to her immediately.”
“No.”
“No?” Barrett glared at him, his complexion darkening with impotent rage and fear for his daughter’s life. Thinking of Bryony at the mercy of this creature sickened him and yet, at the moment, there was nothing he could do about it, notwith his family asleep upstairs. He had seen first-hand what vampires could do, the carnage they left in their wake. He took a deep breath hoping to calm his fears.
Stefan watched Barrett’s eyes. The man was a wealthy land owner, powerful, accustomed to getting what he wanted, when he wanted, by any means necessary, but smart enough to know when he was outmatched. A quick brush of Barrett’s mind told Stefan everything he needed to know. Bryony’s father was a retired hunter with ties to the Guild. Stefan grunted softly. Perhaps Leyton Barrett posed a greater threat than he had first thought. Even now the man was weighing his chances of taking Stefan down.
“Is she being held against her will?” Barrett asked, his hands clenched at his sides.
“No. Do you have a message for her?”
“Tell my daughter that she is loved and missed and that we eagerly await her return.” Barrett drew himself up to his full height, his gaze holding Stefan’s. “Know this. If anything happens to her, if she is being detained by force, I will not rest until whoever has taken her has paid the ultimate price.”
With a nod, Stefan turned and left the house, all too aware of Barrett’s angry gaze burning into his back.
Barrett paced the floor for several minutes after his visitor’s departure, his thoughts churning, fear for his daughter like acid in his gut. His baby, in the hands of a vampire. It was unthinkable. Fighting to remain calm, he summoned his butler. “There is a vampire in the vicinity. I fear he has Bryony in his power.” No doubt the foul creature had forced her to write that damn letter, he mused. But why?Why say anything at all? What had the vampire hoped to gain by coming here?
“Shall I notify the Guild?” the butler asked.
Barrett scrubbed a hand across his jaw, and then nodded. “Yes, Alistair, I think that would be wise. We need to find Bryony before it’s too late. Inform the Guild that no action is to be taken against whoever is holding her until she is safely home.”
The butler nodded and left the room.
Barrett clenched his hands at his sides. By damn, if that inhuman monster harmed one hair of his little girl’s head, the damn, bloody vampire would lose his own.
In the morning, Bryony woke with a smile. Lying there, staring up at the ceiling, she wondered if it would be so bad to stay with Stefan for more than three months. She enjoyed his company. He continued to treat her like a queen, granting her every wish, showing her a world she had never seen before. Perhaps, if she agreed to stay longer, he would take her home to visit her family for a few days before the three months were up so she could reassure herself that they were well, to let them see that she was alive and happy. Happy, she thought, surprised to find it was true.
Turning on her side, her thoughts turned to Stefan. No doubt he would be a wonderful lover. Thinking about lying in his bed, in his arms, made her blush from head to foot. His kisses were incredibly intoxicating. Gentle one minute, demanding the next. She loved the feel of his hands moving over her, the husky sound of his voice when he whispered that he loved her, desired her. What would it be like to caresshim in return? To run her hands over his muscular arms and chest? To touch him and taste him?
Slowly, her smile faded. She was forgetting one important thing. Stefan was a vampire. He had bitten her and taken her blood. How could she live with that? Had it been as terrible as she remembered?
She sat up, suddenly recalling that Stefan had promised to deliver her letter to her family last night. Had he done so? Did he have a return message for her? Had he seen her family? Were they well?
Too nervous to sit still a moment longer, she dressed, ate a quick breakfast, then went into her sewing room, hoping to take her mind off her family and the message from her family—if there was one. Try as she might, she could think of nothing else.
She was at her easel, painting her family home, when Stefan appeared in the doorway.
“You have a good memory,” he remarked, studying the canvas. “You have captured it perfectly.”
Laying her brush aside, she turned to face him. “Did you see them?”
“Only your father.”
“Is he well?”
Stefan nodded, wondering if she knew that her father had once been a hunter.
“What did he say?”
“He said they love you and miss you and are eagerly awaiting your return.”
“Nothing more?”
“I did not stay long,” he said, noting the disappointment in her eyes. “He did threaten to see me dead if anything happens to you.”
Bryony smiled faintly. Her father didn’t make idle threats. Unfortunately, she doubted if her father or any mere mortal could slay Stefan.
Stefan took her out to dinner at a fancy restaurant and then they went dancing in a quiet club. She had danced with young men before at parties and social gatherings. She had danced with Elon at the celebration in the village. But dancing with Stefan was more than just moving around the floor. He held her close, his gaze caressing her face as the music seemed to enclose them in a world of their own, so that she was scarcely aware of the other couples. There was only Stefan, his dark eyes adoring her, his voice soft and sensual as he whispered her name, then brushed his lips across hers. She had no sense of time passing or anything else. There was only Stefan holding her close.
