“Then I wish to welcome you both.” Elliot opened his arms. Both boys hesitated, looked at each other and smiled before stepping forward to embrace him.
Ivana’s throat hurt from suppressing a wealth of emotion. She moved to the bed and hauled Christoph up into her arms.
“Come, children,” Evelyn said, “let us all go to my chamber and continue with our story.”
There were cheers and chuckles and soon only Ivana, Elliot and Christoph were left in the room.
Elliot stared at the boy she held close. “I see a definite similarity in the eyes.”
“And the hair, and the lips and ears by all accounts.” She stroked Christoph’s mop of ebony locks. “Do you wish to tell him the nature of your relationship or would you prefer to wait until the sun rises?”
He remained silent for a moment. “I shall explain the connection once we are home.”
Ivana nodded. “Of course.” She cuddled the boy, knowing it would be a long time before she got the chance to do so again. “You will be going to England, Christoph,” she said as she kissed the child on the cheek. “You will live in a grand house with Lord and Lady Markham. Would you like that?”
Christoph’s emerald eyes lit up, but he did not answer. Instead, he held his arms out to Elliot, who scooped the boy to his chest and held him there for the longest time. Guilt threatened to flare again, for the pain she had caused him, but she stamped it down knowing her intervention had served to lead him to his destined path.
“Would you like to come and live with me in England?” Elliot’s voice sounded fractured, the pitch unusually high. When Christoph nodded, Elliot kissed him on his head, closed his eyes and breathed deeply.
Grace appeared at the door. “I hope I am not disturbing you.”
Elliot shook his head. “Not at all. This moment would not be the same without you.”
She rushed over to him, and he draped his arm around her shoulder.
“I shall leave you all in peace.” Ivana inclined her head. She had achieved all she had set out to do for the children. The Bruhns were part of her family, and she would continue to give them her support. But now it was time to be selfish. “I shall go and find Leo. There is something important I must ask him.”
Elliot stared at her, his gratitude reflected in his eyes. “Thank you,” he said quietly, “for everything.”
“Take care of my beautiful boys.” She had confidence in their ability to provide a good and loving home. “Raise them to be honest men, to appreciate all that they have, to give to those who are not as fortunate.”
Grace smiled. “We will continue the work you have begun. We promise you that.”
Ivana knew if she spoke the tears would fall, and she had shed a lifetime’s worth of tears in the space of a few days. Offering them a smile, she left the room and went in search of Leo.
She found him sitting against the wall on the floor in the crypt. His eyes were closed. Had he been human she would have assumed he was asleep.
“What are you doing down here?” she asked as she came to sit at his side. She put her head on his shoulder, threw her arm around his waist.
“It has been a wild few days,” he said rubbing her arm in soothing strokes. “I wanted to take a moment to gather my thoughts.”
Ivana could feel the strange mixture of emotions swirling around in his chest. She looked up at him. “While you are happy that your brothers no longer suffer from the affliction, I sense that you do not want them to leave.” She would not want him to stay with her out of obligation. “If you want to go home with them, you know I would understand.” She would be devastated; the pain would be unbearable.
Leo jerked his head in surprise. His frantic gaze searched her face. “Do you want me to go?”
How could he even think such a thing?
“Leo, I am in love with you. I never want to be without you. But I want you to be happy, and I can see what your family mean to you.”
He tugged her arm, pulled her to sit astride him. “Yes, I will miss them. But you are the most important person in my life.” He placed his hands on her shoulders, gave a sinful smile as they drifted down to caress her breasts. “I love you and never want to be without you.”
Unable to suppress the surge of desire, she rubbed against him. “Perhaps you should show me how much you want to stay. As creatures of the night, we will have to find something to occupy us during the day.”
He raised a sinful brow as his hand skirted beneath the hem of her dress to massage her bare thigh. “Only during the day?”
She sucked in a breath as his fingers crept higher. “At night, we will behave like other humans. We will play cards in the tavern. I will watch you while you drink Herr Bruhn’s ale. We will walk back through the forest. You can love me beneath the canopy of stars.”
“And during the day, we will lock ourselves in a dark chamber, indulge our deepest desires.”