Page 48 of The Vampire's Guide to Wooing a Scholar
She placed her fingers gently on his chest. “I’m not afraid, Marcus. If the worst happens, I won’t blame you.”
If there was the smallest chance that biting her would heal him, then she was willing to try. Even if it meant giving up the sun and her mortal life. None of that mattered because Marcus had become her entire world. She could not imagine a future without him. Plus, he’d lived for centuries. As a vampire, she would have ample opportunity to research any subject she wished. She could visit the sights of natural disasters—once Marcus could better manage his attacks. They could live through history together. There was the problem of feeding, but if Marcus had abstained from killing humans for so long, she was certain she could adapt as well. The more she thought about it, the more promising the idea seemed.
Unfortunately, he did not share her enthusiasm.
He stepped back. “Visit Glasgow. Walk beneath the warm rays of the sun and rescue your cousin if you can. But be cautious. It is unlike hunters to allow a vampire to live. When you return, if I have not found a viable treatment, then I will do as you ask.”
Once again, it was what hedidn’tsay that angered her. He obviously expected that the threat of her returning before he’d succeeded would be sufficient motivation to work through his pain.
She crossed her arms. “I’m not going anywhere. Not if there’s a chance I’ll return and find you dead. I will send a maid to Glasgow with instructions to escort my cousin back. Felicity’s urgent matter will have to wait.”
“Winifred, please. I don’t want you to walk into a trap, but Icannot—”
“I said no. I am not leaving unless you drink my blood.”
He swayed on his feet. “Do you know what happens after a vampire is turned?” His hair seemed to float away from his head. “If the maker is strong, the fledgling might last a few hours before blood lust consumes them. My maker did not stop me. I killed dozens, Winifred, before I came to my senses. Perhaps hundreds. I hated her for it, and for making me into a monster.”
She couldn’t imagine how awful it had to have been to realize what he’d done, and to feel such anger toward the woman who had turned him. But as much as she understood his logic, she would not accept it.
“It’s not the same,” she whispered. “I trust you to stop me.”
Then his expression shuttered. “I will not risk turning the descendant of a hunter into a vampire.”
It felt like he’d plunged a dagger into her heart. “You don’t mean that.”
When he did not respond, she stumbled backward, then fled the room.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Marcus stared outthe window, willing Winifred’s carriage to reappear. His instincts urged him to find shelter, but he didn’t care. The pain of knowing he’d hurt her was worse than the glare of the sun.
Why hadn’t he just bitten her?
He closed his eyes. He knew why. If he gave in and drank too much, he would be forced to let her die or turn her. As the former was impossible, the latter meant she might come to hate him as he hated his own maker. There was love in his heart for Marguerite, but it was small compared to his resentment that she’d robbed him of his mortality and allowed him to kill so many innocents. Winifred was upset now, but her anger would fade.
He wrenched himself from the window and reached out with his senses for his brothers. They might not have approved of his marriage, but he hoped he wouldn’t have to command them to follow Winifred and guard her against hunter attacks.
“You have really done it this time,” Cordon said from behind him.
Marcus sighed and turned to face his siblings.
Cordon wore a silver-and-black plaid suit jacket and matching trousers. The colors and slim fit suited his tall frame looked as if he hadn’t rested in days and met Marcus’s look with a scowl.
“Winifred has gone to Glasgow,” Marcus said. “I want one of you to follow her.” The words sounded weak, even to him. He wondered if this was how Cordon had felt when he’d thought he’d been dying.That made Marcus feel even worse about not coming to his brother’s side. He truly was a failure as head of the family. Maybe it was time to let someone else take over.
“You allowed her to leave?” Cordon asked. “It could be a trap.”
Marcus slouched over his desk and put his head on his folded arms. “What am I to do, brother? Lock her in her room?”
He would not make the castle a prison for her because he knew how it felt to be confined.
Cordon made a rude sound. “You have known this woman for mere months.”
Jonathan let out a sharp laugh. “You betray yourself, Cordon. How long after you met Katherine did you marry her?”
Cordon scowled. “It is not the same. Kitty was my mate.” His expression softened. “It was love at first bite.”
Marcus straightened. “What do you mean?”
