Lucas is sparing no expenses when it comes to our “forever home.” For him, it really will be forever.
Blinking, I hurry upstairs, use the bathroom, and rush back down. We don’t have a ton of time before Kristy and the twins arrive.
“Ready, my love?” Lucas asks, standing by the front door.
“Yeah,” I tell him and call for Scarlet to come with us. I look at my puppy, biting my lip.
“What are you thinking?” Lucas asks in such a way that he knows exactly what I’m thinking.
“Do you think she feels crammed like that? It’s a glamour, but it does bind her powers in a way.”
“She seems fine to me.” He opens the front door, and Scarlet rushes out, leaping off the porch.
“I think so, too. I’m sure she’d give me some sort of clue if she wasn’t.”
Lucas takes my hand as we start down the street. Scarlet runs ahead, jumping and yipping with excitement. We walk in silence, enjoying the sounds of the night.
“Will the vampire crew be at the house?” I ask.
“They arrive at eight-thirty. And the humans will have all left.” He takes his hand from mine and wraps his arm around my waist. “We’ll have the house to ourselves, don’t worry.”
“You’d just take me in the attic and shut the door,” I say with a shrug.
“That is true.”
Suddenly, Lucas jerks his head up and sniffs the air. A second later, Scarlet growls, and the deep and harrowing sound coming from her is all hellhound and not at all cute fluffy puppy.
“What is it?” I ask, conjuring an energy ball.
“Smells like a vampire.” Lucas turns toward me. “Stay here.”
“Lucas,” I call as he takes off, zooming away. I hold my hand up, narrowing my eyes as I look down the road. Scarlet backs up next to me, and I debate calling for my familiars—and taking Scarlet’s collar off. “Do you smell anything, girl?” I ask and increase the intensity of my energy ball. Vampires are attracted to magic. If any are lurking about, they wouldn’t be able to resist me. “I don’t, either.”
A minute later, Lucas comes back, hair blown from running through the woods.
“Anything?”
“No, whoever was here is gone.”
“And it was a vampire?”
He nods. “An old one.”
I bring my fingers in toward my palm, shrinking the size of the energy ball. “Older than you?”
“I can’t be certain.” He takes my other hand, and I toss the energy ball up and snap my fingers, making it explode into a hundred tiny pieces that shimmer and shine above us like stars.
“That’s a new trick.”
“Yeah.” I look up, mesmerized by my own magic. “It’s so pretty.”
“It reminds me of the sky before the Earth filled with light pollution.”
“That had to be incredible.”
“It was.” He steps closer, pulling me into an embrace, and we take a moment to look at the glittering magic above us. “I will never understand how anyone can say your magic is wrong.”
“I don’t, either,” I whisper back. “It will follow us. We can go.”
Lucas takes my hand in his, and we continue down the road. He doesn’t say anything, but I know he’s on high alert.
“Maybe the scent you picked up on was one of the construction workers,” I offer as the dark shadow of the house comes into view.
“Maybe,” he says, not believing it. “If a vampire shows up tonight and even looks at you wrong, I’m going to rip its heart out and shove it up its ass.”
“Won’t its ass be a pile of goo after you rip its heart out?”
“Sometimes you’re too literal,” he chuckles and then comes to a stop, looking at our house.
“Wow,” I say after I toss the particles of energy into the air, shining light down on the house. “They repainted more siding today. It looks amazing.”
“It’s come a long way from the shit-hole I bought you months ago.”
“Hey, don’t insult our house!”
“I’m not. It was a shit-hole. Did you forget about the black mold? The water-damaged floors? The lack of any working plumbing? Oh, and the water in the basement?”
“Okay, it was a little rough.” I rest my head on his shoulder. “But you’re the one who bought this shit-hole.” I playfully elbow him.
“I really wanted to get in your pants.”
“You’d already gotten in my pants quite a few times before I even mentioned the house.”
“Fine. I’m pathetically helpless when it comes to wanting to make you happy. I’ll do anything.” He looks at Scarlet. “Anything.”
“You have spoiled me.”
“And I’ll never stop.” Lucas picks me up and carries me to the front door. I use magic to let us in, and we slowly walk through the house, looking at everything that’s been renovated, stopping our tour in the master bedroom.
“Take your cloak off.” Lucas demands, voice deep and gravely. “Fuck, I haven’t said that in centuries.”
“Should I keep my petticoat on, too, mister?” I slowly pull the ties on my cloak. “I’m not one hundred percent certain I know what a petticoat is, though.”