“Free of charge.”
Caleb’s expression fell. “Huh?”
My heart fluttered. “Pierce, are you serious?”
“Of course,” he replied simply. “Why would I not be?”
“Because - a mansion on this property? For free?” Caleb cried in disbelief. “That’s insane!”
“I might be a little strange but I can assure you I’m not insane,” Pierce said with a playful smile.
Caleb’s lip wavered as if he was about to burst into tears. He met my eye, like he was begging to tell him Pierce was joking before he got any more involved in the idea. But I couldn’t - I was just as dumbstruck as Caleb. Had Pierce been planning this all along?
“It’s a convenient solution for everyone, isn’t it?” Pierce said. “Caleb, you may live for free at the estate while continuing your job. That way, you can build your savings without struggling to pay rent.” He turned to me. “And Benji, you can easily visit Caleb whenever you desire. When the baby is born, I’m sure their uncle will want to be around.”
“Yes!” Caleb cried. “I do… I want to be a part of your kid’s life, Benji. And I’m not just saying that because of the free house.”
I grinned. “I know.”
“All I require is that youdon’tmind living on the property of a vampire,” Pierce said, flashing his white teeth. “Is that acceptable to you?”
Caleb leapt out of his seat and nearly knocked the cocoa over. “Holy crap - I mean, yes! Can I hug you right now?”
Maybe it was my imagination but Pierce almost looked shy when he opened his arms for Caleb’s impending slam of a hug. If he still had normal blood he might have been blushing.
“I can never thank you enough for this,” Caleb said, his eyes rimmed with tears of joy and gratitude. “Seriously, if there’s anything I can do,pleasetell me.”
Pierce nodded. “Of course. But please, don’t think of yourself as being indebted to me.”
“I can’t believe this is really happening,” I said. “Caleb, we’re gonna be neighbors!”
“Hell yeah!”
But my excitement was cut short by the mental image of Margaret lunging at Caleb earlier. I frowned.
“What’s wrong?” Pierce asked.
“Will Caleb be safe at his place? I mean…” Margaret’s snapping teeth flashed in my mind, ferocious and hungry. “Margaret won’t attack him again, will she?”
Caleb slumped, his excitement dulled by the memory of fear. He clutched his arms.
“No,” Pierce stated firmly. “I hadn’t expected her to be so uncontrolled tonight, but trust me, Iwillimplement safeguards. She won’t touch you, Caleb.”
My brother didn’t look so sure. I grabbed his shoulder. “Hey, listen. I think I got through to her tonight. I don’t know what it is, but she’s been really nice to me since she found out I was pregnant. Probably some weird vampire-grandmother feelings. Whatever it is, shelistenedto me tonight. I saw it in her eyes. When I told her to back off from you, she understood. She must know that you’re important to me.”
My explanation seemed to get through to Caleb, because he nodded slowly. “Okay. If you say so.”
“Idosay so,” I teased. “Now come on, drink the rest of your cocoa before it gets co-cold.”
Caleb groaned out loud. “God, I’m gonna regret being your neighbor, aren’t I?
* * *
Since I was quitepregnant at this point, I wasn’t allowed in any of the moving-related activities. How sad.
Instead of the manual labor Caleb and I were used to performing on our own, Pierce hired a moving company to transport the rest of Caleb’s things to the new estate house. The house itself stood behind the main mansion where we lived, like an upscale cottage.
After the movers were done and handsomely tipped, Pierce, Caleb, Theo and I went to check it out. Caleb went starry-eyed when he saw it for the first time.
