That pulled a genuine smile from her. “I’m happy for you both.”
He stopped, stared at her. “Really?”
Bijou nodded. “I think you’re good for each other.”
His eyes brightened and she could tell that meant a lot to him.
When he left, she remained where she was, staring at the spot he’d vacated. She hadn’t been surprised when she’d scented the bonding that morning. In fact, she’d been anticipating it. Despite the fact they’d been dealing with whatever issues plagued them, Bijou knew Acadia and Kaj were meant for one another. How that worked, she had no idea. She’d never even heard of the Fae before she arrived here, much less heard of a vampire mating one. However, she figured as long as they were happy, she was, too.
Not quite ready to go back into the house, Bijou made her way over to the hot tub. She tapped a few buttons on the screen mounted to the wall to get the jets blowing, dropped her towel, and slipped down into the warm water.
As she got comfortable, she realized she was staring at the door to the sauna, memories of that night with Oliver flooding her.
Had that been Oliver? she wondered. Or was that Khari who had offered her relief from the overwhelming heat that had been plaguing the mansion at the time? She still recalled the way he’d worked her with his mouth…
Okay, enough of that.
No way was she going to sit here and relive that erotic encounter. Didn’t matter if that had been Oliver or Khari. It had been a mistake, one she was moving beyond now that she was back to being friends with Oliver.
Or was it Khari?
She groaned softly. So freaking confusing.
The thoughts spurred others, though. Such as, was that the reason she’d been attracted to Oliver? Because he had the soul of a vampire? She’d never been attracted to a human before, so it was a reasonable conclusion.
What if she was attracted to Khari when he emerged?
Was that even possible?
Closing her eyes, she dropped her head back and decided now was not the time to worry about stupid stuff like that. A male’s life was about to be altered in unimaginable ways.
She seriously doubted his love life—Khari or Oliver—was going to matter once it was all said and done.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Friday the thirteenth was a human superstition, not one claimed by vampires, but it seemed fitting for what was taking place today.
The past couple of days had gone by in a blur. Kaj had shared the details of what was going on regarding Khari with the vampires. As much as he knew about it, anyway. Obsidian had tackled filling in the angels who needed to know at the moment, and Acadia had wrangled in the Fae to give them the good news associated with them. If he’d heard correctly, there was a party scheduled for the near future—postponed until Asmia’s return—to celebrate their freedom. He hoped like hell they could come through for them in that regard, too, but things still weren’t looking good on that front.
Unfortunately, the same could be said for this. There would be no party taking place today, but he hoped like hell there wasn’t going to be a wake instead.
As he walked through the tunnels to the infirmary beneath Angel Central, Kaj and his entourage remained quiet. Mirakel, Blaz, Huracan, and Kidel were pulling up the rear, not a single one of them making any remarks. No jokes, no questions, just breathing as they walked to what would ultimately outline their destiny.
Acadia had gone ahead to be with Ari’el, having offered to stay with the baby in the event something were to happen. She was more than capable of ensuring the baby’s safety, and Penelope trusted her probably more than anyone else.
When they reached the doors leading to the medical facility that separated the two residences, Kaj took a deep breath as he placed his palm on the scanner, his eyeball in front of the laser, then said the magic words to allow voice recognition to release the locks.
The doors swung wide and—
“Is that a … coffin?” Blaz asked, his cough clearly covering up a laugh.
“Seriously, Michael,” Kaj grumbled. “A fucking coffin.”
“Seemed suitable,” the archangel said as he stood guard over what Kaj assumed was the body of the original vampire beneath the wooden lid.
“Fuck you,” Kaj retorted. Coffins were part of the myths humans had made up long ago about the undead, fanged creatures who drained the blood of their human victims.
Kaj was not a fan of human storytelling.
