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“What new show?” Jack asked.
Lara huffed. “I told you about it a dozen times. It’s the latest celebrity talk show on DVN. Real Housewives of the Vampire World. The debut is tonight!”
“I tried to forget that,” Jack muttered.
“I know. ” Lara gave him an exasperated look, then turned to Brynley. “Maggie asked if we would do the next show at our palazzo in Venice. ”
“Wow,” Brynley breathed. “You have a palazzo?”
“Yes!” Lara’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “It would look fantastic on television. And I could show off all my favorite places in Venice. ”
“It’s an invasion of privacy,” Jack grumbled.
“Heather and Jean-Luc did the show for tonight,” Lara said. “If they can do it, why can’t we?”
Jack gritted his teeth. “We’ll talk about this later. For now, we need discuss who is going to Phil’s cabin in Wyoming. ”
“You, me, and Zoltan,” Lara answered. She glanced at Brynley. “There’s a television, right?”
“Yes. ” Brynley nodded. “In the basement. ” She turned to Phineas. “I want to go, too. ”
“No. ” He held up a hand when she started to argue. “Think it through. If your father’s minions show up at the cabin and find these three guys watching television, they’ll just think they made a mistake and leave. But if you’re there, they’ll attempt to take you, by force if necessary, and it’ll turn into a battle. Do you want to risk any of these guys getting wounded or killed?”
Brynley swallowed hard. She hardly knew Lara, Jack, and Zoltan. She assumed they’d fought in the battles at Mount Rushmore like she had, but she’d been in wolf form at the time and too involved in the battle to pay them any mind. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt because of me. Even without me there, my father’s men might give you some trouble. ”
“Don’t worry about it,” Jack told her.
“We are pleased to be of service,” Zoltan added.
Lara touched her arm. “We’re all one big family here. We’re happy to help—”
“But I’m not . . . one of . . . ” Brynley started.
“You’re Phil’s sister,” Jack said. “You are one of us. And we look out for our own. ”
Brynley’s heart squeezed in her chest. A family that truly cared and protected one another? Instead of using one another as pawns? It was a beautiful thought. And it struck a deep need inside her that had long been neglected. This was the way a pack should act. Truly caring for one another. Never banishing boys who showed great potential. Never treating women like bargaining chips.
“Hot damn!” Freemont punched a fist in the air. “We’re like the Musketeers! All for one, and one for all!”
Everyone chuckled except Brynley, who blinked to keep tears from crowding her eyes. All this time she’d hated the Vamps, but they were willing to endanger themselves to protect her. They considered her family.
“I’ll teleport you guys to the cabin so you’ll know the way,” Phineas offered. He patted Brynley on the shoulder. “I’ll be back soon. ”
She nodded, her face averted so no one would know she was struggling not to cry.
Phineas turned off the alarm system, then teleported away with Zoltan. While the rest of them waited, Brynley explained their theory that Corky might be hiding at a ranch once owned by the Haggertys. And that the new owner might be a werewolf.
“I’ll see what I can find out. ” Freemont sat at the desk and started a search on the computer.
Phineas and Zoltan reappeared in the office, then teleported away, taking Jack and Lara with them.
Less than a minute later, Phineas materialized and turned the alarm system back on. “Everything’s set. Zoltan took the first watch on the porch, and Jack and Lara are in the basement watching television. ”
Brynley nodded. She still ached to return, but she knew this arrangement was for the best. “I can still go back tomorrow night for the full moon, right?”
“I believe so. Like you said, it’s a big place. We should be able to find someplace safe for you to shift. ”
“Thank you. ” Her inner wolf grew calm, and she smiled with a sudden comforting feeling of peace. The wolf was happy, and she was happy to be surrounded by people who were willing to help her. “By the way, your brother’s investigating the Haggerty ranch on the computer. ”
“Great. ” Phineas gave his brother a thumbs-up.
“I got it going on,” Freemont murmured, his eyes focused on the monitor. “The Ice Man is too cool for school. ”
“Speaking of ice, would you like some ice cream?” Phineas asked her. “I could take you to the cafeteria. ”
“Oooh, it’s never too late for a red-hot date,” Freemont whispered.
Phineas shot an annoyed look at his brother, then turned to Brynley. “The cafeteria is closed, but the soft-serve ice cream machine is always working. ”
“Oooh, a little chocolate swirl for the wolfie-girl. ”
“Enough, Freemont,” Phineas growled.
Brynley bit her lip to keep from grinning.
Freemont’s mouth twitched. “Ooh, look who’s pissed, when he’d rather be kissed. ”
“Let’s get out of here. ” Phineas grabbed Brynley and led her out the door.
“Wishing you luck,” Freemont called after him. “So you’ll have a good—”
Phineas whirled around to glare at him.
“—time on your date,” Freemont finished, his eyes twinkling.
“I’m sure we will. ” Brynley grinned as she looped her arm through Phineas’s. “Our first date, Phin. ”
His dark chocolate eyes gleamed. “Let’s do it, Bryn. ”
“Look what I found in the kitchen. ” Phineas set a chocolate brownie on the table next to Brynley’s bowl of chocolate swirl ice cream and glass of milk.
She smiled at him. “You’re spoiling me. ”
“I hope so. ” Anything to keep her mind off going back to Wyoming tonight. He sat beside her and plunked his bottle on the table.
“Where is everybody?” She pinched off a corner of the brownie and popped it into her mouth.
“Most of the night shift are Vamps, so we don’t use the cafeteria very much. ”
She sniffed when he twisted the top off his bottle. “That smells like beer. ”
“It’s Bleer, a mixture of beer and synthetic blood. ”
Her mouth twitched. “Shouldn’t you be drinking Blardonnay?”
He winced. “Don’t tell anyone, but I don’t really like Blardonnay very much. ”
She grinned and spooned some ice cream into her mouth. “Well, you do a great job on the commercials. Do you have a lot of fans fawning all over you?”
He shrugged. “A few. ”
She pointed the spoon at him. “I think it embarrasses you to be a sex symbol. ”
He made a face. “It’s kind of . . . artificial. I want to be liked for the real me. ”
“I sure understand that. ” She took another bite of ice cream. “I hate it when people pretend to like me because I’m Caddoc Jones’s daughter. I want to be liked for the real me, too. ”
“I do like you just the way you are,” he reminded her, and she looked away, her cheeks growing pink.
He touched a lock of hair that rested on her shoulder. It was silky smooth against his fingertips. “I’m beginning to think we have a lot in common. We can both live for a long time. We have lousy fathers. We lost our mothers. ”
“We’re both survivors,” she whispered. “Wounded souls. ”
That seemed a little dramatic. He swiveled in his chair to face her. “What wounded your soul, Brynley?”
Her face grew pale. “I-it’s just an expression. ” She bit off a chunk of the brownie. “This is so good. Thank you. ”
“Brynley. I told you my story. Why won’t you share yours?”
She
swallowed and sipped some milk from her glass. “I don’t talk about it. To anyone. ” She avoided looking at him, and focused on the flat-screen television mounted on a wall.
Someone must have hurt her bad. It made him angry just to think about it. “I’m not just anyone. ”
“You’re . . . you’re on TV!” She pointed at the flat screen.
He frowned at the Blardonnay commercial that had just started.
“Quick!” She shoved at his shoulder. “Turn up the volume!”
With a frustrated groan, he zipped over to the TV and punched the volume button.
“Hello, ladies,” his voice filled the room.
Brynley grinned at him. “I love it!”
He shook his head and returned to the table with the remote control. She giggled when he said he had the family jewels in his hand.
He grunted and took a long swig of Bleer. He’d come so close to getting past her defenses until he’d been interrupted by himself.
“Oh look. ” She gestured at the flat screen. “It’s the show Lara was talking about. Real Housewives of the Vampire World. ”
On the television screen, Maggie was standing with Heather Echarpe, who was introducing her husband and children.
“Of course, everyone knows that Jean-Luc is a famous fashion designer,” Heather said, glancing at her husband with adoring eyes. “But he’s so much more. A wonderfully loving husband and father. ”
Jean-Luc shifted his weight, looking uncomfortable.
“And these are your children?” Maggie asked.
“Yes. ” Heather drew a pretty girl close to her. “This is our daughter, Bethany. ”
“I know her from the academy,” Brynley said. “She’s a sweetheart. But those twins—my God, they’re a handful. ”
After Heather showed off the toddlers, Jean-Pierre and Jillian, she gave her husband a hug. “Did you know Jean-Luc is a champion swordsman? The best fencer in all of Europe. ”
“Amazing!” Maggie said.
Jean-Luc smiled, looking much more at ease.
“Would you mind showing us around your home?” Maggie asked.
“I’d love to,” Heather replied.
Maggie smiled at the camera. “My associate will be taking the tour with Heather. Darcy?”
The screen shifted to a sunny day outdoors and showed Darcy in front of the camera.
“This is Darcy Erickson, reporting from Schnitzelberg, Texas. We have a special treat for you. You’ll be the first Vamps to see the Echarpe home in daylight!” She turned, and the camera turned with her to show Jean-Luc’s house behind her.
“Wow. ” Brynley sat back. “That’s their house?”
“Yeah. ” Phineas frowned at the screen. “I’ve been there before. ”
“It’s huge. Is it real fancy inside?”
“Yes. ” He sipped more Bleer. “You know, I’m not rich like the old Vamps around here. I can’t afford a place like that. ”
“I know. ”
He gave her a worried look. “That’s something we don’t have in common. You grew up rich, and—”
“And I was miserable,” she interrupted him. “I don’t care about wealth, Phineas. ”
He heaved a sigh of relief. “I make a good salary here, and the commercials pay really well—”
“Phin. ” She touched his arm. “I like you just the way you are. ”
His heart swelled. He grabbed her hand and kissed it. “You don’t mind anymore that I’m a vampire?”
She winced and withdrew her hand from his grasp. “I was wrong to hate Vamps. I feel bad about it now. I was just . . . so angry. ”
“Why?”
She picked up her spoon and swirled it around in the ice cream. “I was devastated when my mom died. And then right after that, Phil got into a terrible fight with my dad and was kicked out. I thought he would come back. But he didn’t. ”
Phineas muted the volume on the television. “It must have been hard on you. ”
She grimaced. “That doesn’t even begin to describe it. I was abandoned by the two people I loved the most. The only two people whom I could talk to and trust. I—I’ve always felt like my mother didn’t fight the cancer. She just gave up. ”
“Why?”
Brynley sighed. “Remember how you were in denial over your father? I did the same thing. I was about twelve years old before I could admit what was happening. You see, as Supreme Pack Master, my father believes he has the right to take any female in the pack he desires. ”
Phineas gritted his teeth. “He cheated on your mom?”
“Yes. She endured years of humiliation. Not only was it demeaning to her, but to the other women, too. Some of them were married and didn’t want to be unfaithful. But their husbands didn’t dare say no to the master. Some of the women actually considered it an honor, but the whole thing made my mother so ashamed. She—she didn’t want that kind of life for me. ”
Phineas squeezed her hand. “I think she would be proud of you now. ”
Brynley smiled with tears in her eyes. “Thank you. I miss her so much. Her death was hard on my younger brother and sister, too. They were just eleven, so I tried to be a mother to them. When they were fourteen, they shifted for the first time, and then Howell thought he was too old to be babied, so he grew more distant. But my sister, Glynis, she’s always depended on me. I hated leaving her there alone. ”