Page 85 of The Vampire’s Temptation

Few secrets were kept between them. Living around someone for an eternity made it difficult to hide anything from them.

But this time was different. This time Alessandra’s life was on the line.

“If you believe that to be true, we both know further conversation is futile.”

Indeed, Rowan would rather be locked in a room with Lawrence wielding an aspen stake than admit to being wrong.

“So much for a happy reunion, brother.”

He ignored the comment. “You need to be more careful.”

Rowan looked back at Murphy’s Pub, waving a dismissive hand. “They won’t remember a thing.”

“And if a threat had materialized while you fed?”

His brother’s unconcerned shrug didn’t surprise him. This wasn’t the first time they’d had a discussion about his brother’s habits. Rowan simply didn’t care.

“This small town has a remarkable number of good-looking women,” he said. Then, with a leer, he added, “Those three won’t be the last.”

Kenton’s pulse raced. The idea of Rowan here, in the same place as Alessandra . . . he couldn’t do it. Not yet.

“They will be the last here, in Stone Haven,” he said. This time it was the earl, not the brother, speaking. “I will stay here to ensure no threat arises. I want you to go to Drake.”

His brother did not do well with demands, but just before Rowan could tell him to screw off, he added, “I’m worried about him.”

That, he would not ignore. And it also happened to be the truth. He couldn’t place a source for his concern, but Kenton had learned to trust his instincts.

Rowan’s nostrils flared. He wanted to argue.

But he wouldn’t.

“As you wish, my lord,” he mocked finally, delivering a sweeping bow. “But I will be back.”

Leaving as quickly as he’d come, Rowan disappeared into the darkness. He waited until he could no longer feel his brother’s presence, and then turned back toward the hill behind him. Aching with the need to see Alessandra, to feel her in his arms and know she was safe, Kenton walked home, toward the side entrance of his mansion.

That was when he felt it.

Turning, Kenton cursed when he saw Lawrence.

“Where is she?”

“Home asleep. Laria is staying there tonight. Did you find him?”

He needed a drink.

“No. I’d hoped he would turn up here.”

Both men looked up at the darkened mansion, the only light from the electric candles in the windows Mary insisted on lighting before she left each night. They were a staple, she argued, when it had been a bed and breakfast, and everyone in town loved to look up the hill to see those lights, a reminder of the town’s not-so-distant past. Having given her the week off, he continued the tradition.

In his experience, artifacts of the past rarely brought comfort in any true sense. No doubt his Alessandra would argue, but he believed the past was better left where it belonged, behind you.

“She’s safe?”

He knew the answer already but had to ask.

“Yes.”

There was something Lawrence wasn’t telling him. They stood in the small courtyard, the only sound a nearby rock waterfall. He waited, listening, determined not to ask for what he wanted to know.