He dropped to his haunches in front of me, and tapped my knee. Surprised, I dragged my eyes up enough to fix on his own, mere inches away from me. They were soft and, what the hell, loaded with emotion? “What?” I asked him warily.
“I had the chance to be a father taken away from me when I was changed.” He frowned. “And before that, I was dirt poor and had buried the children I’d had. I wasn’t trying to force you. I suppose I’d like the chance, late as it is, to build a possible connection. To be a father. It’s incredibly rare for one of my kind to impregnate a human. Call me superstitious, but it seems like fate that Lucien brought you here.”
My head flew up. “You had kids, when you were human?” It had never occurred to me. But then, I guess I’d not considered much about Dalziel beyond his potently scary brand of fang daddy.
Dalziel stood with more grace than I’d imagined possible. “Yes. Two little boys, and a wee girl. All of them in the churchyard before they saw their third birthday.” His tone was flat, but I could hear the pain in his clipped syllables.
“Dude, I’m sorry. That’s shit.” Not exactly eloquent, but sue me, I wasn’t used to this stuff. Hell, I didn’t know anyone who’d got kids, let alone anyone who’d lost one. I tried again. “So you were married then?”
He came and sat on the bed next to me. “Yes, Charley, I was married. Pretty much everyone was at the time. People wanted their name to live on, and so we married and had a family. It was how life was back then. As well as cold, hard, and dirty.”
“You don’t mean the fun dirty, do you?”
“No, Charley, I don’t.” His smile was slightly mocking, but it wasn’t unkind. I was about to ask him more about his past when he clapped my shoulder, cocking his head to one side. “And here’s your dinner. Or rather, your dessert. Come on, I’ll introduce you to your first fan.”
19
LUC
Pavel had requestedI meet them both in yet another part of the house, a more modern sitting room this time, and I realised why as soon as he showed me inside. It was warm — a lot warmer than the rest of the house. Made sense to keep a human at the optimal temperature if you wanted to suck from a vein.
The door opened. Charley looked like he was about to puke when he reappeared beside Dalziel. I waited, and let him come to me. Dalziel was being very polite, but he’d also made it crystal clear he disapproved of any relationship between me and his precious offspring, so I wouldn’t antagonise him by making any first moves unless my wolf overrode me.
Charley gave me a sickly grin. “Sorry I legged it. Performance anxiety.”
I risked a quick squeeze of his shoulder. “You’ll be grand. Dalziel won’t let you mess up.”
A rap at the door came a second before Eleanor ushered in a blonde woman in her early thirties, who looked around her with excited, curious eyes. Her gaze lit on Dalziel and her demeanour changed instantly to one of thrilled subservience. “Mr Millar, it’s an honour.”
Dalziel cocked an eyebrow. “You’re not someone I’ve met previously. Does my reputation precede me?”
“Oh my god, yes! You’re mad famous in the…” She tailed off, a fiery blush staining her cheeks. “I mean, you’re spoken of with respect and awe by folk in the know.”
Dalziel’s eyes fuckingtwinkled. “I’ve no objection to being known as ‘mad famous’” he smirked, gently mimicking her strong Glaswegian accent. “‘Famously mad’ might be a harder pill to swallow.”
“Oh you’re that too,” she blurted, then her eyes popped, and her already red cheeks became full-on fire engine scarlet. “Oh heavens, just kill me now. I’m so sorry. I’m a bit excited.”
Charley’s muted snigger was my only warning before he stepped out from behind me. “If I were you, I wouldn’t suggest to the country’s most senior vampire that he should kill you. It could be taken as an invitation.” He looked every inch the haughty, old world vampire his father was as he stared down his nose at her.
Our guest jumped, and barely held in a squeak. “Oh mygod,”she breathed. “You’re so beautiful! Are you for real?”
Charley held her gaze and lifted one eyebrow, a trick I didn’t know he could do. “Well I’m not a mirage,” he drawled. “And if you’d like to come a bit nearer, I could press my point home.” He grinned, all teeth, with a hint of menace. My cock hardened at his blatant double meaning. Oh wow, this was fucking hot to watch, even if he was being a total brat.
Dalziel smothered a grin as he placed a proprietary hand on Charley’s shoulder, which made my teeth itch but looked good. “Charley is newly come into his vampire nature. He requires someone steady and reliable for his first natural feed. We’re both hoping this could be you, Miss…?”
“Anderson, but just call me Rosie.” She made a concerted effort to calm herself, smoothing her no doubt damp palms down her denim-covered thighs. She audibly swallowed, then raised her chin. “I promise you, I won’t let you down.”
Eleanor cleared her throat. “Excuse me, sir. It would appear that Miss Anderson is somewhat resistant to thrall. Just so you’re aware in advance.”
The woman nodded eagerly. “Doesn’t affect me for long. I’m like a soggy noodle when I get my memory wiped, and it’s dead easy to return me home like a blank slate, but boom, next morning I remember everything. Don’t worry though, I never tell a soul. Totally discreet, me.”
Dalziel blew a breath towards the ceiling. “Really, Eleanor, was this the best you could do?”
Eleanor pulled her shoulders back. “I did a thorough sweep of her social media, sir. Mostly Instagram pictures of wild flowers and herbs, and her cat. Not even a whiff of a mention of anything otherworldly.” She sounded aggrieved that Dalziel would think her incapable of her job.
Rosie nodded so vigorously I feared for her false eyelashes. “That’s right. I’m not about to spill the beans. You guard your privacy and I respect that. Must be hard to have the powers you do in a world like this that would try and experiment on you if they knew.” Her big brown eyes filled with tears that looked a lot like empathy. “I’m trustworthy, I swear to you.”
Charley suddenly took a step back. “You all right?” I muttered.
