“I had an apartment, and I had a horrible job. Now I get to live here with Marcus, and I work at Nightfall with Donovan.”
“You sound happy,” Alessia said.
“I am. Marcus takes excellent care of me. Titus is a wild man at Nightfall. Do you enjoy spending time with him?”
Alessia’s heart beat faster as she remembered Titus’s antics at Nightfall. He was an amazing entertainer. “A lot of womenat Nightfall would like to snare Titus. He’s superhot. I can’t believe he’s interested in me.”
“Why not? You’ve got that Italian princess thing going with the dark, flowing hair and yummy skin. I bet you tan easily. I burn to a crisp,” Carina said with disgust, looking at her forearm. “And now? I have no idea. Do vampires get golden brown?”
Alessia seized on the subject Carina had mentioned. “Could I ask you some questions about being a vampire?”
“I don’t know what I can share and what you need to ask Titus about,” Carina answered carefully.
“Oh! Sorry. I don’t want to put you in an awkward situation.”
“No need to apologize. Why don’t you share your questions, and I’ll answer if I can?”
“Okay, but only if you promise to clue me in when you’re uncomfortable.”
“You got it, Alessia. I promise always to tell you the truth.”
“Thank you.” Carina was incredible. Alessia smiled at her friend and gathered herself for a moment as she decided what to bring up first. “Why did you let Marcus turn you?”
“Because I love him and want to spend as much time with him as possible. If I were human, Marcus would have stayed with me until I died of old age. I can’t imagine how hard that would be for someone to stand by as the mate they’ve waited hundreds of years to find aged and passed away. A human life is a mere blink of their eyes.”
Alessia rubbed away the tears that filled her eyes as she listened intently to Carina. “That would be so sad.”
“Sad for them, yes. I’ll be honest, I was selfish as well. If our mating wasn’t strong, being trapped with a man for potentially centuries would be unbearable. Think of someone whohad a small habit that drove you nuts after two hours. Imagine how you would hate that annoyance after two hundred years.”
“I hadn’t considered that. I don’t think Titus does anything I don’t like.”
“For me, seeing women flirt with Marcus is a challenge. He’s so handsome and powerful. Ladies flock to him. I understand that. He’s hot,” Carina said. “I had to decide whether I could accept that Marcus had nothing to do with other women’s actions.”
“Like all the ladies who swarm Titus’s area when he’s making drinks,” Alessia said, adapting Carina’s example to her relationship. “Titus isn’t leading them on. He’s simply being himself. Titus doesn’t care about them. I swear he doesn’t even notice them, pulling their tops down and leaning forward to showcase their boobs. His attention is always on me.”
Carina nodded. “That’s so true. Titus doesn’t look at anyone else. Even if you’re not around. Maybe that lack of interest happens because they have mates now? Don’t get me wrong, I’m ecstatic Marcus is oblivious to others.”
Alessia nodded and fitted several puzzle pieces into place. Titus only concocted drinks for mates. They mattered more any other women.
“Titus is much more people-oriented. He flirts with his customers, but check out his eyes. He’s never really concentrating on them. Especially now. His gaze focuses on you,” Carina said.
Warmth gathered inside her. She’d noticed Titus’s attention always returned to her after talking to a bar patron ordering a drink. He didn’t hide how much he cared about her. Having someone treat her as if she was important was a definite change from the last several years. Maybe she wouldn’t have noticed she needed the reassurance that someone valued her if her life hadn’t been so undervalued since her father died.
“Thanks, Carina. Do you have any regrets?”
“Not a single one.”
“How many vampires work at Nightfall? Is everyone a vampire?” Alessia asked.
Carina smiled at her and shook her head. “I’m going to pass on answering those. That might be valuable to someone wishing to assess Nightfall’s vulnerabilities.”
“Oh! I didn’t mean to sound like I was fishing for information. Sorry. Wipe that question out of your mind.”
The two women worked on the puzzle quietly for a few minutes. Alessia wasn’t ready to make such an important decision. Carina’s warm hand wrapped around hers on the table. She glanced up in surprise to meet her friend’s sympathetic look.
“You’ve got lots of time, Alessia. Don’t rush into making a decision until you’re ready. Titus will hang around for you. He’s already waited for a long time. What’s a few more days, months, or even years? He has you while you sort out what’s the best choice for you.”
Tension evaporated from Alessia’s rigid frame. She slumped back in the chair. “Thank you, Carina. You give good advice.”
