“Yeah,” I said.
I glanced back at my building, realizing I wasn’t going to miss it that much. Pierce’s mansion had everything that my apartment didn’t - including Pierce himself. I watched him from the corner of my eye. The genuineness on his face when I told him about Caleb surprised me. Weren’t vampires supposed to be terrible, evil monsters? That wasn’t what I saw at all when I looked at Pierce.
An ironic thought wormed into my mind and I smirked. Maybe Caleb’s fantasy vampire novels weren’t too far from the truth.
But as soon as we got home and stepped foot back into the mansion, I got a taste of a vampire’s cruelty after all.
8
Pierce
“PIERCE!”
Margaret’s shrill cry caused Benji and I to freeze in the doorway. We were on our way to the guest room so he could put his things away, but clearly Margaret had other plans.
Benji stood behind me, wide-eyed and clearly frightened. I wished I could console him, but Margaret rarely ever shouted like that - something must have been seriously bothering her.
“I’ll handle this,” I murmured to Benji. He nodded stiffly and huddled behind me as we entered the dining hall. Adriel and Theo were already seated, sitting up straight and watching us anxiously as we took our places.
I remained standing and asked, “What seems to be the problem, Margaret?”
Margaret narrowed her eyes at me. I knew she hated it when I called her that in front of guests, instead ofmother.
“That,” she said, pointing at Benji like he was an inanimate object, “is the problem.”
Benji’s shoulder slumped and my heart broke.
“Is this not a matter we could have discussed privately?” I asked loudly.
“No. This needs to be settlednow,” she continued.
I returned her narrowed glare and took my seat slowly next to Benji. Underneath the table, I took his hand in mine and grasped it firmly, showing him I was on his side and I would handle this.
“Well?” I asked.
Margaret’s eyes appeared like tiny, hateful rubies from the other end of the long dining table. “I do not believe your intent, Pierce.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re buying time so one of your other brothers can rise up to the challenge instead,” she continued. “You clearly have no intention of mating with that human, so I’m going to get rid of him.”
I stood so sharply that my chair screeched against the floor and clattered.
“You will do no such thing!” I snarled.
My voice shook the room. Even the grandfather clock ticking away in the corner seemed to go dead silent.
“Pierce,” Margaret finally said, “sit down.”
I did not sit. “You won’t harm a hair on his head. Promise me, Margaret.”
Her brows raised now. She knew I was serious. “Will you mate with the human?”
Benji slumped deeper into his chair. This must have been an awfully uncomfortable experience for him, and I felt horrible. I needed to make it up to him somehow.
I sat back down, but I couldn’t hold back the snark in my reply. “That’s a rather personal question, isn’t it?”
But Margaret wasn’t amused with my antics. She hissed. “Pierce, for your insolence, I order you and the human to partake in some form of intimate activity. That is the only way I’ll accept this.”
