Curse of Night (Thorne Hill 5)

Eliza slowly shakes her head. “I don’t know. What I thought I knew about religion went out the window when I awoke in the ground with Lucas’s arms around me. Everything changed. I thought it was all bullshit. Angels weren’t real. No one was up there looking out for us. But then…” She sweeps her hand at me. “Though I still don’t know how well they’re looking out for people on Earth. Life is pretty shitty, though with the way humans are destroying the fucking planet, maybe they deserve it.”

“I think that’s a blanket statement and doesn’t apply to everyone.” I let the guinea pig go, and it scurries over to a half-eaten carrot another one dropped. “I don’t live off the grid or anything, but I don’t think I’m ruining the planet more than anyone else.”

“Fine,” she huffs. “I’ve been undead for over three hundred years, and one thing I can count on is the fact that humanity fucking blows.”

“I kind of agree with you there, but there is good in the world. You know…like designer shoes and these little guys.”

Eliza rolls her eyes. “Don’t go all sunshine and rainbows on me.”

I let out a snort of laughter. “Trust me, I’m the last one to do that.”

“You’ve been dealt a rough hand,” Eliza goes on, tone softening. “You have every right to hate the world, yet you continue to look for the good in it.”

“I’d say it’s human nature, but I’m not quite human.”

Her blue eyes look almost glossy as she stares at me, smiling a genuine smile. “I think that’s what I like about you. Plus, you have great tits.” She winks and gets up. “I have to get ready for my date.” She zooms up the stairs, leaving me in the living room to play with the guinea pigs. The entire room is roped off with little metal fences, keeping the little guys in one room.

I move back to the couch and get my phone from my purse. I open my Kindle app and start reading, making it through a few pages before Lucas comes back.

“Everything go okay?” I ask him, sitting up.

“It’s fine now. Are you ready to go spellcasting?”

I smile. “Always.”

Someone rings the doorbell right as I’m gathering my spell supplies. Lucas answers the door, startling the guy on the porch. He’s wearing a suit and is holding a bouquet of roses.

“Hi,” he says nervously, eyeing Lucas up and down. “H-how are you doing tonight, sir?”

Lucas responds with a growl as he draws his fangs. “What do you want?”

“I’m here f-for Eliza,” the guy says, and I don’t have to have super vampire ears to know this guy’s heart is racing. I hurry through the foyer, socked feet slipping on the slick marble.

“It’s her date,” I tell Lucas. “Be nice.”

“A date?” Lucas smiles, but instead of looking friendly, he looks even more dangerous. “Well, then, come in.”

The guy swallows hard, Adam’s apple bobbing up and down, and steps inside. He looks at me, trying to figure out if I’m a vampire, too. The second the door slams shut, Lucas has the guy spellbound and up against the wall.

“What are your intentions?” Lucas asks, and I find myself pulling an Eliza and rolling my eyes.

“To take Eliza out on a date,” the guy replies slowly, looking at Lucas, unblinking.

“You think you’re good enough for her?”

“No. I don’t.”

“Good,” Lucas growls. “Because you’re not.”

Eliza stomps down the stairs, hair and makeup done already. Super speed must be nice. “Bloody hell, Lucas, stop it!” Her blue eyes flash like broken glass, and I remember her complaining about how hard it is to date anyone with Lucas as her maker.

“Not until I make sure he doesn’t have any ulterior motives.”

“His motives are to get me to bed,” Eliza snaps, sounding very British when she’s angry. “Which are mine, too.”

“Just ask him,” I say, not sure if I should get involved in this family drama or not. Lucas and I are married, so I’m already involved. “Ask him if he plans on staking her or selling her to the Anti-Vampire Coalition. And then erase this from his memory, have him go outside, and let the night start again—with Eliza answering the door.”

“For once I completely agree with her,” Eliza says, eyeing me. “And I suggest you listen to your wife.”

Lucas growls but retracts his fangs. “Do you plan to harm Eliza or lead her to harm in any way?”

“No,” the guy says, head slowly moving back and forth. “I’m more scared she’ll harm me.”

“She won’t be the only one,” Lucas starts, and I clear my throat. “Fine,” he huffs. “Go back on the porch. You never came in the house. You never talked to me. But know if anything happens to Eliza, there will be hell to pay.”

Eliza huffs and rolls her eyes again. “You know, it’s probably a good thing you two can’t procreate. Can you imagine him fathering a biological child?”