Where was her cell phone? She stood and did a shimmy dance, finding it nicely charging on her counter. Hitting speed dial, she waited until Olivia answered.
“I’m alive!” she yelled.
“Yay!” Olivia yelled back. “I knew it. Oh, God. Can you believe it? We’re immortal. We should go skydiving.”
“And bungie jumping. And rock climbing,” Ronni added. She paused. “Wait a minute. You’re immortal, too?”
“Yep. Or I will be soon. We mated two nights ago.” Olivia’s voice turned dreamy. “Can you believe it? It was the most romantic night of my entire life. Chalton is beyond my dreams.”
Aww. Ronni warmed, even as her heart hurt just a little. What would it be like to have love for eternity? She shook herself out of the self-pity. Damn it. She was lucky. “You deserve it, Olly. You really do.”
“So do you,” Olivia said. “How was it?”
Ronni snorted. “Totally awkward, to the point of panic.”
Olivia chuckled. “Oh, my. That sucks. I’m sure it’ll get better.” She said something off the phone and then returned. “We’re on a private plane and will be landing in just a few minutes. I’ll grab a cab and be at our scheduled meeting in an hour. Can’t wait to see you.” She was silent for a beat, and then her voice lowered with emotion. “You’re gonna live, Ron.”
“Yeah.” Ronni rubbed her chest. “I am.”
Olivia yelped. “Ah, gotta go. Talk later.” The phone went dead.
Ronni looked at the quiet device in her hand. What would love and mating be like? For the briefest of seconds, her stomach hurt. She shook herself out of the sadness. She was alive, and that was more than she’d hoped for just a week ago. For that, she could be immensely grateful.
And she had a job to do. Her small desk in the corner caught her eye, and she hustled for it, drawing out a stack of manila files. Each one held details about somebody who might’ve had the motive and opportunity to poison her. “Now, fucker. I’m going to find you.”
* * * *
Jared parked his bike outside the bar, scattering slush and snow.
“You’re gonna need to put the bike away for winter,” his youngest brother said, leaning against the crumbling brick building outside of New York City.
“Eh.” Jared shrugged off snow and followed Theo into the old Russian bar. No pool tables, dart boards, or even bright lights. Bars were for drinking, and they’d better order vodka or risk being shot by the proprietor—a thousand-year-old Russian vampire.
Theo motioned for two drinks and led the way to a scarred and scratched booth in the back. He sat. “So. You’ve got a mate. I can sense her on you.”
Jared sat and nodded, reaching for the first shot. “???? ????????!”
“Your health, too.” Theo tipped back the drink.
Jared drank, letting the booze hit his stomach.
“How was it?” Theo asked, his dark eyes glimmering with amusement.
Jared grinned. “Terrible. Seriously. Just awful.”
Theo winced. “Dude. Sorry about that.”
The waitress brought two more shots.
“Leave the bottle,” Jared said, still chuckling, his entire world settling perfectly now that his brothers were back in his life. He waited until the woman had moved out of earshot. “Veronica is beautiful and sexy, but hell. She was dancing with death. Let’s just say it was a bit rushed.”
Theo laughed. “That sucks, man. Have you had a chance to redeem yourself?”
“No.” Jared rubbed his whiskered jaw. “She just woke up this morning, and I figured she needed a little space. The woman looks damn good in full health, brother.”
Theo’s dark eyebrows rose. While his hair was a deep brown, he had the same black eyes as his older brothers. They filled with curiosity. “It sounds like you’re thinking of something permanent. I mean, together type of permanent.”
Jared downed his second shot of expensive vodka. “I’m not thinking anything of the sort.” He’d had his one chance at love.
