Reyna’s hand instinctively went to her neck. “He doesn’t like to drink from me.”
Washington sighed. “I understand his concerns. But…convince him. I believe your blood match saved his life, that having your blood in his system helped bring him back. I can’t prove it, but that’s what my gut tells me. And if that’s the case, then your blood may be the key to helping him finally heal completely.”
Reyna nodded. She would convince him.
“There, I’m better,” Beckham snarled as he walked back into the basement laboratory. “Let’s collect a sample and get this over with.”
Reyna exchanged a glance with Washington, who nodded at her.
They needed Beckham at full strength. She would be happy to give him more of her blood if it got him there. Now to figure out how to make that happen.
Chapter 14
The snow fell ceaselessly for the next two days straight. Despite the wonderful reprieve from the real world, Reyna felt restless. It was too cold to go outside or really to venture far from a bed or a fireplace. And Beckham ignored any attempt she made to get him to drink from her again. It was as if he knew what she and Washington had discussed. With his preternatural hearing, he probably did.
“Today is the day,” Beckham said against her skin. He pressed a kiss into her shoulder blade. She yawned and rolled over to face him.
“For what?”
“The snow has finally stopped. The sun is out. We’re leaving this house.”
Beckham slipped out of bed. She tilted her head to the side and admired his naked body. The hard contours of his shoulder blades. The sharp line down his back. The little dimples in his lower back. The rounded, muscular ass. And those incredible legs. Her mouth watered at the sight of him. He was magnificent. Sculpted and hardened. A dark, deadly Adonis.
She sighed as he slid into clothes, watching every inch of skin get covered. “You should walk around naked.”
“I think you would not be the only one ogling as you just did.”
“I wasn’t ogling,” she lied.
“You certainly were. I could sense every single time your eyes touched on me.”
“Oh?” She leaned forward out of bed and pulled him back toward her. She was still naked beneath the covers and his pupils dilated at the sight of her bare breasts. “I can give you more than my eyes if you like.”
He kissed the hollow of her throat. Her eyelids fluttered closed as a fang grazed the delicate artery. “Perhaps after we’ve put some work in.”
He stood again and was out the doorway before she could even cover herself. She humphed noisily and then slid out of bed. She put on every single layer that she had in the bedroom before stuffing her feet in black furry snow boots and trudging downstairs.
Jodie laughed when she saw her. “You look like an Eskimo.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Good news though! Zoya finally cracked another safe house. So we get to dig them out of the snow once we can dig ourselves out of the snow.”
“That’s excellent!” Reyna said. “Any news from the anti-vamp cult?”
“Drew called this morning. Said Everett is being a pain in the ass and his friends are trying to convert the rest of Elle to their vamp-hating ways, but otherwise all is good.”
Reyna blew out a heavy breath. “Well, just fucking great.”
“Pretty much. The world is a toilet and we’re all getting flushed.”
“I love you.”
Jodie winked. “I know.”
Reyna found Beckham standing on the porch, looking out across the white expanse. She had no clue how she was going to survive this cold. At least Beckham had been right about one thing. The sun was out. Not that it seemed to make it much warmer, but it was better than the cloudy weather and the horrible biting wind that dropped the temperature a good fifteen degrees.
“Ready to go?” he asked.
She nodded. Though she was not looking forward to the cold.
Someone had come out and cleared the driveway so that it wouldn’t completely ice over once they were free of this place. Reyna followed Beckham down the drive until he stopped at another path that someone had tramped through. She frowned but followed him off the road and through the snowbanks. She was still in snow up to her knees for most of the walk. They moved deeper through the woods until she saw a small cottage appear before them.
“What’s that?”
“The original home on the property.”
“Original? Like 1800s original?” she asked with wide eyes. Beckham nodded.
When they reached the tiny cabin, Reyna was surprised to find a fire already lit in the hearth. Beckham must have come out here earlier to build it for her. She smiled brightly up at him and hurried over to it. She was having trouble feeling her toes already.
The cabin had only one room, with marginal furnishings that centered around the hearth and a small bed in the corner. A thin layer of dust coated most everything. Light filtered in from the window at the front of the cabin and another small one by the makeshift kitchen area. Some off-white wax candles were burning throughout the room to give it more light. Reyna decided instantly that she loved the place. It was homey and comfortable and felt worlds away from the mansion.