Of course, so long as Bride bore his mark, she bore his scent, and even if he left her, they were just as likely to pick up that and appear to her as they were to find him.
More so in fact, since Bride didn't know to hide herself.
He was desperate for a taste of her and he knew she wouldn't deny him. But he couldn't take her again. Not unless she understood the full impact of that decision.
And the inherent dangers.
He shouldn't be here, in human form. But unlike Fury, his stronger incarnation was that of human. It was how he could protect her best.
It also made him even more vulnerable to her.
Leaning over, he brushed the exposed skin of her neck with his lips. "I wish you were mine," he breathed, inhaling the warm scent of her skin.
Bride couldn't breathe as she heard the deep, growling tone of his voice. She felt like this was some kind of strange dream. How could this be real?
She leaned back against Vane's chest so that she could look up at him.
The look on his face seared her.
A playful smile lightened the intensity of his stare. "We took things too fast, didn't we?"
She nodded.
"I'm sorry for that. When I see something I want, I have a bad tendency to take it first and then think later about whether or not I should have."
He moved away from her and headed for her door. "C'mon," he said, indicating the door with his head. "I'll escort you to the bank and we'll get the wine."
She slid off her stool and followed after him. Outside, there was a hint of a chill in the air. And an aura of danger around Vane. She had the feeling that he was paying way too much attention to the streets around them. Every time someone came near, he watched them intently as if expecting them to leap at them.
She made her deposit and then let him choose their wine after they crossed the street and entered a package store on Canal Street. When she tried to pay for it, she could have sworn he growled like an animal at her.
"I've got it," he said.
"You know, I can take care of myself."
He smiled at that as he took the wine from the clerk. "I know. Where I come from the only thing deadlier than a man is a woman. Believe me, I have a healthy respect for what a pissed-off woman can do."
Was he talking about the commune again? For some reason she didn't think so.
"Where do you come from?"
"I was born in England."
Bride paused at that, surprised. But then, Vane had a habit of constantly surprising her. "Really?"
"Aye, luv," he said in a perfect English accent. "Born and bred."
She smiled. "You do that well."
He opened the door of the package store for her without comment.
"Funny," she said, entering the store. "I never really thought of Englishwomen as particularly vicious."
He snorted at that. "Yeah well, you never met my mother. She makes Attila the Hun look like a fluffy bunny."
There was a lot of anger and hurt in his tone and face as he said that. His mother must truly not have much of a maternal instinct. "Do you ever see her?"
He shook his head. "She made it clear a long time ago that she wasn't interested in having any sort of relationship with me."
Bride wrapped her arm around his and gave a light squeeze. "I'm sorry."
He covered her hand with his. "Don't be. My kind don't have mothers like"
Bride paused in the street. "Your kind?"
Vane stood there in shock at what had slipped out of his mouth. Damn.
Bride was a lot easier to talk to than she should be. He was used to being on his guard around people. "Lone wolves," he said, stupidly borrowing Fury's term.
"Ahh, so you're one of those macho I-don't-need-no-tenderness types."
He used to be, but after spending time with Bride What he felt for this woman scared the shit out of him. "Something like that."
Bride nodded as she started back toward her shop. "So it's just you and your brother, then?"
"Yeah," he said, his throat tight as he remembered his sister. "It's just us. What about you?"
"My parents live in Kenner. I have a sister in Atlanta who I get to see a couple of times a year, and my older brother works for a firm in the business district."
"Are you close to them?"
"Oh yeah. Closer than I want to be sometimes. They still think they should all run my life for me."
He smiled. That was how Anya used to feel about him and Fang. It brought a bittersweet pain to his chest. "You must be the youngest."
"You know it. I swear, my mother still cuts my meat for me every time I go home."
He was unable to imagine a doting mother like that. It must have been nice to know such love. "Don't knock it."
"Most days I don't." Bride frowned up at him. "Why do you keep doing that?"
"Doing what?"
"Scanning the street like you're afraid someone is going to jump out at us."
Vane rubbed the back of his neck in nervousness. He had to give her credit, she really was observant. Especially for a human.
The last thing he could tell her was that he did in fact fear just that.
If Stefan or the others ever tracked him down
He didn't want to think about the consequences.
"I don't suppose I could talk you into closing your store for a couple of weeks and taking off to some exotic island with me, could I?"
She laughed at him. "Good one."
Yeah. Little did she know, he was quite serious. Part of him was tempted to kidnap her, but after what had happened between his parents, he knew better than to chance it.
Four hundred years later, his mother was still emotionally scarred over his father's kidnapping her against her will. He didn't want to destroy Bride's kindness. Her open smile. God help her, she trusted people, and that was so rare that he would do anything to keep her that way.
She opened the door to her yard and led him to her apartment where Fury was waiting for them.
Rushing toward them, Fury went straight for Vane's groin to rack him in typical dog fashion. "Get down," he snapped, brushing the wolf aside.
"He likes you."
Likes annoying me. "Yeah, I noticed."
Bride frowned as she walked over to the stereo, which was blasting the old Troggs song "Wild Thing."
"How strange," she said, turning it off. "I didn't leave the stereo on."
Vane tightened his grip on Fury's neck.
"That hurts, Vane. Let go."
He did so reluctantly. "What else did you do? "