The disastrous soufflé gave him hope.
So did the dreams.
She’d had four more, all the same. All of them starting with her moving, nearly writhing against him as if in ecstasy but this would end abruptly in a blood-chilling scream.
Seconds later, he’d hear her words whispered in his head.
I love you.
Shortly after came the choking sobs, she’d wake and attempt to flee. He’d catch her and hold her until her trembling and tears ceased.
After the second dream they’d stopped talking about it. She would simply hold onto him in a way that felt desperate. He’d stroke her back or her hair until her body relaxed and she fell asleep in his arms.
Lucien closed his eyes tightly as the words sounded softly in his head.
I love you.
Those words, those three fucking words, whispered in his head.
It wasn’t even the words, it was the way she said them. As if she’d pulled them out of her soul and offered them to him like a gift.
And he knew she was talking to him, dreaming of him. She wouldn’t be in his head if she wasn’t. He wouldn’t be able to hear it.
He also knew she wasn’t lying when she said she didn’t remember. Something was blocking the memory, likely the power behind the emotion of whatever made her scream and sob in such a fucking heartbroken way it was difficult to witness.
Lucien didn’t know what to make of the intensity of her dream and the aftermath or what they meant to him or Leah except it was pretty clear her earlier hostility toward him, and now her deference to him, were defense mechanisms. He’d managed to establish a connection but she wasn’t allowing herself to embrace it.
Even so, he didn’t like that Leah had them.
Her terror was stark, her pain palpable and he was powerless to stop them, a feeling he never felt and one he didn’t much like.
But he had to admit, he was intrigued by the words and the intensity with which she spoke them.
Even if he felt somehow tortured by them.
It was the dream, and the soufflé, that made him think she’d never be able to continue her latest game.
However, the last two weeks, except for when she had the dreams or when he was feeding and even then she seemed to hold herself back, all that was Leah had vanished. It appeared not to be a struggle in the slightest.
None of his Leah came shining through even for a moment.
She was like every concubine he’d had for five hundred years. Perhaps not as worshipful as some or as obviously greedy for the feeding as others but mostly just the same.
He missed her.
He actually missed their verbal tussles, her comical one-liners delivered when she was angry, her strength of will, her stubbornness, her curiosity, her spirit which filled the house.
All that was gone, including his anticipation of coming home to see what she’d be up to next.
“Lucien? Luce? Helloooo, Luce! Are you in there?” Stephanie called and Lucien’s gaze moved to her.
“Sorry,” he muttered and Stephanie’s eyes narrowed on his face.
“Something’s not right in Lucien and Leah Land,” Stephanie noted.
Lucien took a sip from his drink before saying, “Everything’s fine.”
“Doesn’t seem fine to me,” Stephanie shot back. “Leah looks like Leah, gorgeous as ever. And she smells like Leah. And she walks like Leah. And talks somewhat like Leah. But she’s not Leah.”
Finally Lucien’s eyes focused on his friend. “This isn’t any of your business, Teffie.”
Stephanie was one of the very few (in fact, there were only two, her and Cosmo) who would look at Lucien’s face at that moment and issue a challenge.
And that was what she did.
“Well, I beg to differ. Leah’s become my friend and I’m worried. I’ve been over there twice this week. It’s like I drove into Stepford and it’s eerie. I don’t like it and Edwina is none too happy either.”
“Everything will be fine,” Lucien said, turning to look back toward the hall.
“I hope so, Luce, and I hope you make it soon. Because there is no way a woman like that can hold back that much without exploding and I’m not certain even you will want to be around when she lets it all out.”
Lucien sliced a glance at her, the tone of his voice making his words crystal clear. “We’re done talking about this.”
Stephanie held his gaze for long moments then changed the subject to one that was only slightly less annoying.
“Rumors are flying,” she informed him.
“Rumors always fly,” Lucien returned dismissively.
“Not rumors like this,” she retorted. “Heard word that The Council is going to open an investigation tomorrow into what you’re doing with Leah.”
Lucien glanced back at the hall with unconcern. “I’ve heard that too.”
“Well, I bet you haven’t heard that Rafe told Dante who told Hamish who told me that he’s considering moving in with Lana Buchanan.”
Lucien’s narrowed eyes sliced back to Stephanie.
“Thought that’d get your attention,” she muttered.
“Tell me you’re joking,” he demanded.
She shook her head.
“What’s he thinking?” Lucien ground out.
“I’m guessing the same thing as you. He wants more than Lana’s blood. The Buchanans are a tasty lot. I had one myself years ago, I know. You boys like different smells though and you want to get yourselves some of that.”
Lucien’s body moved, turning toward Stephanie in a way that made her tense.
“Are you bored, Teffie? Do you want me to challenge you?”
“I’m saying it like it is,” she returned.
“If all I wanted was a piece of ass, I would have seduced Leah twenty years ago.”
“Oh right,” Stephanie scoffed, “you want the taming.”
Lucien, who, these days with Leah behaving the way she was, had little patience, lost the little he had.
“What are you driving at?” he clipped.
“What I’m driving at, Lucien, is I’m all for this. Vampires being vampires. These ridiculous rules being shattered to smithereens. I want the hunt, just like we all do. I miss it. I yearn for it. The problem I have, right now, with you, is that you’ve gone off target. You’re messing with Leah and things are obviously not right.”
“Stay out of it, Teffie,” he warned.
“She’s changed,” Stephanie shot back.
“She’s changed before. You know how it is, how they fight it. She’ll change again.”
“I suspect she will but are you prepared for when she does?”
For the first time in days, Lucien smiled. Stephanie growled.
Then she hissed, “You don’t get it, do you?”
Lucien’s smile grew arrogant. “Not right now but I’m going to.”
Stephanie leaned in. “What, exactly, do you think she’s working so damned hard to protect herself from, Lucien? Have you ever thought of that? You’ve tamed many mortals, what happened with the one who gave you the toughest fight?”
The smile died from his face and Lucien felt himself flinch. Stephanie saw it and went in for the kill.
Speaking quietly, she said, “That’s right, she fell in love with you. Luckily for Maggie, you fell in love with her too and you could make her your mate. That isn’t an option for Leah. So what happens to her when she directs all that feeling and life-force inside her at you then, when you’re done with her, where does she go from there?”
I love you.
The words spoken in Leah’s heartfelt whisper, like they did time and again, day after day, came unbidden into his head.
Lucien didn’t like what he was feeling.
“Stay out of it, Teffie.”
“I’m in it, we all are.” She got closer. “If Rafe moves in with Lana, takes her as a lover, The Council is not going to look kindly on what you’re doing with Leah. They might have before, to pay back
their debt but this is spreading. They’ll want to nip it in the bud and the best way to do that is shut down its source.”
“I’ll talk to Rafe.”
“Yes? And what will you say?”
Lucien held Stephanie’s gaze and made a decision.
“I’ll congratulate him on his new home.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re talking about revolution.”
“Why are you acting surprised?” Lucien asked. “You knew that was a possibility from the beginning.”
She threw up a hand. “This is happening too fast, Luce. We’re not prepared.”
“It already happened, Teffie. I drew the line the minute you and Cosmo sheltered Leah from anyone declaring their intentions at her Selection. Since then everyone’s been taking their positions on their side of the line. The Council will have to take that into consideration when they make their judgment.”
“You think they’ll roll over?”
“I think they must understand on some level that their traditions are antiquated and I’m counting on them being forward thinking.”
“And if they’re not?”
Lucien leveled his eyes at her. “You took your position on the line, Teffie, are you changing your mind?”
“When I chose my side, I didn’t know Leah.”
Lucien’s brows drew together. “And what does this have to do with Leah?”
He watched, surprised, as Stephanie’s face grew pale, her mouth went slack and her eyes slid from his.
“Teffie?” he prompted.
Her eyes slid back and she whispered, “You have to ask that? You?”
Lucien, unfortunately, chose not to respond.
So Stephanie kept talking. “What did the last Revolution have to do with Maggie, Lucien?”
Lucien felt every inch of his body stretch taut.
“We’re placing her in danger,” Stephanie went on.
“Leah will not be in any danger,” Lucien clipped.
“You’re so certain?”
Lucien moved forward a very threatening inch.
“Yes,” he growled. “I’m very certain.”
Stephanie watched him, her eyes not moving from his, something that looked like understanding finally flashing in hers.
Then, seemingly appeased, even now actually pleased, she nodded and looked over his shoulder.
“She’s coming back,” Stephanie noted and Lucien turned.
Leah was moving toward them, squeezing between the bodies with more small smiles and murmured pardons. He noticed immediately she’d reapplied her lip gloss.
She was wearing an orchid-colored strapless dress. Simple. Elegant. No adornment on the dress only a deep slit up the center front that stopped at the swell of her thighs and a short train, the weight of which dragged the skirt back exposing her shapely legs. She wore the pair of high-heeled, burnished gold sandals he’d bought for her when they were shopping.
Her hair was not simple however, it was elegant. She’d let it dry in natural waves, then pulled it up and back in a way that was stylish but messy, innocent-looking but sexy. Strategically placed in it, she’d affixed the dozen tiny gold-filigreed butterfly hair clips he’d bought her and at her throat from a delicate gold chain hung another larger filigreed butterfly. The ones in her hair, the wings were near to closed, the one at her throat the wings where spanned.
He’d bought her the jewelry because he liked it, he thought it suited her and he wanted a reaction. He’d been cautious with her ever since the night he threw the wineglass and she’d had her first dream. He’d backed off and used extreme patience, attempting to draw her out gently. None of which, incidentally, was working.
He’d given the jewelry to her the night before, right before they went to bed when he told her they’d be going out that evening.
She had not been overwhelmed by this gesture. He’d received no radiant smile. In fact, she’d only ever smiled at him once and never repeated it.
Instead, she’d been only dutifully grateful. Nothing more.
He watched her get closer thinking he’d been absolutely right. The dress, the shoes and the jewelry all very much suited her.
The blank expression on her beautiful face very much did not.
She was less than ten feet away when a man’s hand curled on her upper arm, stopping her progress.
“Leah?” Lucien heard the voice, his eyes moved to the man. He recognized him and without delay Lucien moved.
He would have liked to have moved faster but he forced himself to go with a mortal’s slowness and it was at that moment Lucien hoped there was revolution, that vampires would be freed to be who they were and do what they liked.
For instance, being at Leah’s side in a split second, grabbing her and leaping across the room instead of having to wend his way excruciatingly slowly toward her.
“Justin?” Leah’s voice was stunned and not in a happy way.
“Leah, girl, what are you doing here?” Justin’s voice was also stunned, definitely in a happy way.
Lucien made it to her side in time for Justin to pull Leah into his arms.
She visibly stiffened. So did Lucien, a half a second before he moved closer in order to extricate her from an embrace with her ex-lover.
Leah got there before him. She put her hands to Justin’s waist and pushed away. Her shoulder met Lucien’s chest and her head jerked up to look at him.
And then she did something that stunned Lucien.
She turned to him, sliding her arm along his back, her fingers curling into his waist. She leaned the front of her body into his side, pressing close.
The act was smoothly done as if she curled into him all the time. It was also immensely proprietary in a beguiling, feminine way.
He liked it, a great deal, and therefore relaxed into it.
“Lucien, this is Justin.” She gestured with her hand then turned from him to Justin. “Justin, meet Lucien.”
Lucien looked at Justin who, Lucien was pleased to note, was now not looking so happy to see Leah. His eyes were darting back and forth between the two of them and his faced had paled slightly.
Unfortunately, Lucien had to break contact with Leah who’d burrowed under his right arm to shake the man’s hand.
“Justin,” he murmured.
“Lucien,” Justin murmured back, shaking his hand.
It took effort but Lucien stopped himself from crushing all the bones in Justin’s hand. Regardless, Justin winced behind the power of Lucien’s grip.
The minute their hands broke, Leah moved back in, assuming the same position but this time she rested her other hand on his upper abdominals.
It was a light touch but it spoke volumes.
As with most moments with Leah, but especially that moment, Lucien had the raging desire to kiss her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked Justin, her voice not entirely friendly, not exactly unfriendly. She was testing the waters and Lucien decided to give her the lead in this uncertain situation.
“I just asked the same thing,” Justin replied, his voice was entirely unfriendly, his pleasure at seeing her had evaporated.
“You first,” Leah said, she read his tone and her words were frosted.
Lucien settled in to watch.
Justin looked between Lucien and Leah again, his eyes traveling down to Lucien’s middle. Lucien slid his arm around Leah, cupping his fingers on her shoulder. Justin’s eyes shifted, he watched this and his mouth grew tight.
Then he spoke. “At the last minute, they changed their minds and instead of transferring me to Seattle, they transferred me here.”
“You live here?” Leah asked and Lucien felt her body tensing.
Not good news, at least not for Leah.
“Yes, I do,” Justin replied. “Now… you.”
“I live here too,” Leah told him and Lucien watched as Justin’s eyes grew wide with disbelief.
“You live here?” he whispered.
“Well, not here, in the city,
” Leah explained. “I live in Dragon Lake.”
Justin’s eyes, already wide, went huge.
“Dragon Lake?” His voice had dropped even lower then he whistled before stating, “That explains it.”
“Explains what?” Leah asked sharply.
“What would drag you away from that family and all those friends of yours. Obviously, if you can afford to live in Dragon Lake, you must have got a helluva job. That’s a pricey neighborhood.”
“We don’t actually live in Dragon Lake.” Lucien decided it was time to enter the conversation. “We live outside town, on the lake.”
Lucien didn’t put any emphasis on the “we” but then again, he didn’t have to. Justin caught his meaning, his eyes narrowed on Lucien and his jaw clenched. He again looked between Lucien and Leah and Lucien heard his heart start beating faster.
Angry.
Lucien bit back a smile.
Finally Justin’s eyes settled on Lucien and he asked, “Do you?”
“Justin –” Leah started, her tense body going solid but Justin’s eyes didn’t move from Lucien.
“Do you know who I am?” he asked.
“Justin –” Leah began again but Lucien talked over her.
“Yes,” Lucien replied.
“Then you know she broke up with me just five months ago.”
“Justin!” Leah snapped but Lucien again spoke over her.
“Yes,” Lucien repeated.
Justin’s eyes shot to Leah. “You’re a fast mover. Or were you with him before you finished with me?”
“Justin –” she started yet again, his name a shard of ice but this time Justin talked over her.
“Nice necklace, Ley-lo.” His voice was snide and it was Lucien’s turn to go tense.
“Do we have to do this?” Leah asked, her tone hard saying it was not a question at all and that they were not going to do “this”.
Justin disagreed. “Oh, I don’t know,” he drawled sarcastically. “Six months ago I was told I was being transferred, with a fucking great raise and a huge bonus. Not anything that would put me near Dragon Lake but it wasn’t anything to fucking sneeze at either. You said you wouldn’t move, no way, no how. Guess you were waiting for someone who could put gold around your neck and your ass in a two million dollar house on Dragon Lake.”