Captivated

Salvatore

I carried Diane as we flew back to our home. The poor woman was still reeling from her experiences. Although she’d seen demons in the past, she’d never been in the path of danger, and so close to losing her life. Luca and I were so proud of our mate. She proved herself more than worthy and would become an awesome warrior. Seeing her killing the familiar was a turn on. It may sound wrong, but seeing her in full battle mode was hot.

“Not wrong at all, Sal. She was sexy as hell. Plus, she’s utilising her skill with very little training.”

The pride in my brother’s words made me smile too. Luca had offered to take the shopping from her, and she’d snatched the bags away. I couldn’t wait to see what she’d be wearing.

“You’ll just have to be patient, won’t you?” she teased in our minds. “Is Diane okay, Salvatore. She’s very quiet.”

“Just a little shocked. She’s flown with us before, so she’s used to this. Best thing for her will be to keep busy. That’s how she’s always coped with stress.”

As we alighted on the steps up to the front door, Michael was already waiting for us. Angelina had called on ahead to let him know what had happened. He took Diane from my arms and held her in a warm embrace, stroking her hair and whispering words of comfort to her. After a short while, she regained her composure.

“I think we could all do with something to eat. I don’t think I’ll be going back to that bistro for a while.” She shuddered.

“Do you need a hand with lunch?”

“No, Angelina. I’ll be fine. Michael can help me. Shall we eat in the kitchen in about an hour?”

We all agreed. We headed off to our private apartment. Luca and I were surprised when Angelina ushered us out of the bedroom.

“I am going to hang my dress up. You are not to look at it. The first time you see me wearing it will be the night of the ball. Understood?”

We nodded, loving it when she got all feisty. We sat in the living area, and after she’d hung it up, she came and sat between us. It felt so right to be cosied up with her between us; it would never get old.

“Is Viktor pulling stunts like this to test us?” A frown creased her brow and she worried at her lower lip.

“It’s possible. Since our relationship is such a rarity, he probably wants to know what he’s up against,” I said, playing with a lock of her hair.

“Yeah, Sal’s right. And that asshole should be running for cover. He can see through the eyes of his minions and will realise he’s got a lot to contend with.”

“I was on autopilot at the time of the attack. You know, acting on instinct. But now… I keep going over what could have happened… especially to Diane.”

I cupped her face in my hands. “But you saved her, and by now, Viktor is probably pissing his pants.”

“Right again, Sal. Because he knows he hasn’t got much time left in this world.”

Angelina got up and turned to face us. Her expression was troubled, and even before she voiced her thoughts out loud, we could hear them in our minds.

“That’s exactly what I’m afraid of. If this was just a test run to see how we performed, then he’ll have something much bigger in mind for his finale, surely.”

I wanted to say no. To tell her that he’d just mess up and we’d catch him off guard. But Viktor had been around a very long time and would’ve planned for when we finally found our mate. We couldn’t rely on other Hybrids to keep watching our backs. They all had territories of their own to watch over. Knowing this demon, he’d already have a strategy in place to try and trap us and end our lives. We’d just have to be ready and waiting for him.