Page 40 of Bound by Vengeance
“What are you doing tonight?” he asked.
“I’ll meet up with Duncan again and exploresome of the other groups in the sewers.”
“I don’t like the idea of you goingalone.”
“Lucky for me, what you like doesn’t matter,and I’ll have Duncan with me.”
A muscle twitched in the corner of his eyeas he held back from commanding her to wait for him before she wentdown there again. It would be useless. She wouldn’t listen to him,and she was right, he had no say over anything she did.
“Be careful,” he said.
“Always.”
CHAPTER 19
“Nathan!”
Nathan stopped and turned when someonecalled his name. His heart sank when he spotted Simone strollingtoward him, but he made himself smile as she approached. Her grayskirt revealed only the tips of her black boots as it swished abouther ankles. The matching gray blouse was something a schoolmarmwould have worn in the eighteen hundreds.
Her glossy auburn hair was pulled into thesevere bun many of the hunter women wore. However, instead of theaustere style and unattractive clothing detracting from her beauty,they only emphasized the perfection of her slender nose, highcheekbones, and full, pink lips.
“Simone,” he greeted when she stopped beforehim.
Her clover green eyes danced with merriment.“How are you?”
“Good,” he replied. “And you?”
“Busy as always. The greenhouse is comingalong well. I harvested some tomatoes from it earlier.”
His eyes fell to the large, red tomatoes inher basket when she hefted it a little higher. “They lookgood.”
Already bored with the conversation, Nathanglanced at the main house, more than a hundred yards away, andwished he’d returned to it sooner. A couple of hours ago, he’d comeout to walk the grounds, take inventory, and see how everyone wasfaring in their new places. He’d listened to countless complaints,fixed the ones he could, and made a note of the ones that couldn’teasily be remedied. Asher and Logan stayed with him throughout mostof it, but they both jumped ship as soon as he said they couldgo.
Knowing it was expected of him, especiallysince everyone believed they were about to be betrothed, Nathanasked the question he’d prefer not to voice. “Would you like towalk with me?”
“I would.” Her smile would make the angelsweep at the beauty of it. “I’ll put most of the tomatoes in thepantry, but I’m going to make a big salad for dinner tonight,” shecontinued as they fell into step beside each other.
“Your mother will enjoy that.”
“She will,” Simone agreed.
As they walked, he couldn’t help but examineher with a more critical eye. Was this really what he’d believedwould one day make him happy? No one could deny Simone wasbeautiful, more so than Vicky. She was sweet and kind andeverything she was raised to be. She would be the perfect wife of ahunter leader.
And he felt zero desire for her. He’d neverbelieved he would, but he found himself wanting to be annoyed,excited, challenged, and tormented by a woman. He desired a shorterwoman with pale blonde hair and eyes the color of an emerald. Awoman he could never have.
Vicky was the exact opposite of the wifehe’d always imagined for himself, but he found himself wonderingwhat it would be like to have her by his side. His shouldersslumped when he realized it would be anarchy as most of the hunterswould riot against a vampire in their midst.
So absorbed in thoughts of Vicky, he hadn’trealized Simone was still speaking.Focus,he toldhimself.
“I’m hoping the new sewing room is completedsoon,” Simone was saying. “I’ve kept up on all mine and mother’smending, but I’d like to make some new clothes, and the trailer istoo cramped to take on such a project with all the other ones Ihave going on.”
“What other projects are those?” heasked.
“Oh, you know, a bit of this and that,” shereplied. “I’m trying to grow my own herb garden, so I don’t alwayshave to go to the greenhouse for them. My sketches are alsostarting to progress, and, of course, mother loves to play hercello, but it does take up a bit of room.”
“Of course,” he murmured as he pondered whatVicky was doing now.
He should find someone to take his place onthe hunt tonight so he could make sure she remained safe in thesewers, but he couldn’t neglect his duties.
