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Kenton pointed to where his fangs had been. “That is precisely what these are for.”

“Where? Where do you drink from?”

He pointed to his wrist. “Here primarily. And rarely”—his fingertips touched the jugular vein in his neck—“here. Though it’s not common for most. Doing so is considered intimate . . . almost erotic.” He stopped short of explaining the reason it was rare. After they’d been turned, before learning to control their senses, feeding from the neck left them vulnerable and was something to be avoided.

“And you kill people.”

He’d lied to her more than he’d liked and wouldn’t lie to her about this. “Occasionally,” he said, watching her reaction. If Alessandra were not Cheld, she’d be shaking with fear by now. That she was not underscored how dangerous she was, especially to him.

And yet he sat here, answering her questions as if this were a casual conversation.

“On purpose?”

“Always.” He clarified, “At first, it was not so, but I learned to control my hunger. That has been the way for all of us.”

“So it’s possible to drink someone’s blood without killing them?”

“Yes.”

“Then why do you kill people at all?”

That was one question he would not answer.

“Are you worried I will kill you, Alessandra?”

She didn’t flinch. “No.”

The conviction in her answer sent a surge of pleasure through his body.

“You cannot die,” she correctly surmised.

He smiled, amazed it had taken her so long to get there.

“I was born in 1245 in Northumbria, just south of the Anglo-Scottish border, to the Earl of Rockford. At the age of thirty, I became”—he gestured to himself—“this.”

“You look pretty good for your age.”

That she could joke at this moment made Kenton want to dispense with the Q&A session and pull her onto his lap.

“Thank you,” he said instead, a smile tugging the corners of his lips.

“But you . . . I’ve seen you in sunlight. And you can eat!”

Here we go.

“Most of what you think you know about vampires comes from nineteenth century literature. And most of it is not true. I can walk in the sun, although not into your home uninvited. But mirrors, crosses, and garlic don’t bother me in the least.”

“Consecrated ground?”

“No problem.”

“What about all of the other vampires? Like Vlad the Impaler?”

A common question.

“A ruthless leader, bloodthirsty to be sure. But not a vampire. Though others have made themselves known, usually inadvertently, throughout the ages.”

“Can you have children?”