Page 41 of Don't Bite the Botanist
“If you would let me finish,” Marquin said, his voice dangerously calm. “We could have him encounter another of our kind in a non-hostile scenario. Perhaps we tell him that we’ve been working with them to hunt down the rogues. It would give him exposure to a friendly vampire and let him see that even a young one wouldoverpower him in seconds.”
Tressa pondered his plan for a moment, then shook her head. If anything, the fact she actually considered his insane idea for even a minute made her realize just how far she was going with her deception. Cora’s words flitted through her brain multiple times a day, and she couldn’t deny it had all gone on too long. She’d been banking everything on Baylin finding Renata right away so she could tell Ethan the vamp was dead at the same time she revealed the truth about herself. Sort of like softening the blow with a head on a platter. Not literally of course, she wasn’t that gross, but if Ethan knew she killed the rogue for him, surely he could see that she was one of the good ones?
But days had passed, and they were no closer to finding Renata. It was time she accepted the truth of the situation. The sooner she ripped off the bandage and told him what she was, the sooner she could start repairing the wound.
“No,” she told Marquin. “I can’t keep piling on more lies and deception. I already have to deal with his inevitable feelings of betrayal when he hears about us. I don’t want to tangle up the web anymore. It’s time I told him what’s really going on.”
“Are you being serious?” Saiden asked, narrowing his eyes at her. “You’re going to confess everything to him?”
Tressa nodded. “I am. He deserves the truth.” She paused, then added. “Tomorrow. He deserves the truth tomorrow.”
Saiden quirked an eyebrow at her.
“Come on,” she said, backing toward the exit. “It’s after midnight. I’m not waking him up to shred his world.”
“I doubt he’s asleep,” Saiden replied.
Tressa continued to head for the door. “Best not to risk it. Tomorrow, I promise.”
“You better,” Marquin called. “Or we will, and I don’t think we’llbe as gentle as you might be.”
Tressa waved a hand over her shoulder as she left the pool.
Her hopes that she could put off telling Ethan the truth until after the rogue was dealt with had been delusional thinking born out of fear. There was no way Ethan would actually believe Renata was dead unless he saw it happen with his own eyes, and they would have to reveal their true nature to accomplish that. Which meant it was time to come clean and beg him to let her turn him.
She just needed to butter him up first.
Chapter twenty-two
Ethan
“Croissant?”
Ethan whipped his head around and nearly stumbled on the treadmill. He slammed his hand down on the emergency stop and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off his face. He ignored the blinking numbers reminding him how out of shape he still was and instead focused on the gorgeous creature holding out a plate of those delicious breakfast pastries.
“Um, I’m good,” he forced out. More than anything he wanted to hop off the damn treadmill and enjoy a buttery croissant with Tressa, but every time they started chatting, he lost hours of his life. Over the past week, they’d spent more and more time just lounging on the back patio at night or reading books together in the library. It felt right, being near her. Like that was where he belonged.
And maybe someday he could give in, but he couldn’t ignore the painstakingly slow progress of his recovery. Sure, Saiden had said the very fact that he was in the gym pushing himself daily was more than most coma patients could hope to achieve in such a short time, but it still didn’t feel like enough. Any day, Tressa’s cousin might locate thatvamp, and he needed to be ready.
“Come on,” Tressa said, waving the plate under his nose. “They’re freshly baked. And you can’t deny that you need fuel. What is it people say, flowers can’t grow without fertilizer?”
“Pretty sure that’s not a common saying.”
Tressa rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Doesn’t make it any less true. Seriously, Ethan, you know you want to take a break.”
He grit his teeth and shook his head. “I need to get more run time in.”
Tressa sighed and set the plate off to the side. “Ethan, you’re pushing yourself too hard. Can you even say you enjoy this?” She tapped a finger on the treadmill.
“Not really,” he admitted reluctantly, swiping his towel over the back of his neck. “Even before the attack, I hated running in a stuffy gym. But I need to get my strength back up, Tressa. Ineedto.”
She eyed him carefully, and he could practically see the gears turning in her brain. “Was there anything you used to do that you did actually enjoy? To work out, I mean.”
“I do usually love running,” he said, taking a swig from his water bottle. “Just not indoors. I used to hit my favorite trails whenever I had the time to get out of the city, but my latest project had me stuck in the lab pretty late most nights. I’ve had to make do with the equipment at my 24-hour gym. Still, there’s something incredibly peaceful about running in nature. Connecting with the plants and trees. No matter what I was struggling with in the lab, a good jog through the forest always put me in a better mood.”
Tressa’s eyes lit up like someone flipped a switch on the side of her head. “That’s perfect!” she exclaimed.
He cocked his head. “Perfect how? I know your compound is big, Tressa, but I don’t think you have a ten-mile trail out back.”He paused, considering the extravagance of the garden and the sheer amount of money this operation clearly had. “Unless you do. Does this property really go back that far?”
