A Vampire's Embrace (Blood Rose Time Travel 2)

Rosamunde.

A new, disturbing thought arose. She was a blood rose and Rez had gone after her. That’s why Stone had beat him to a pulp.

She glanced down at her hands. They were once more in the shapes of claws.

Blinking several times, she realized she didn’t like the thought that Rez had been ready to feed from Rosamunde. She didn’t like it at all.

She forced herself to calm down. She put a hand to her chest and felt the extra supply she’d been building. She didn’t want this, yet from what Vojalie had told her, she was genetically pre-dispositioned to function in this way.

Terrific.

When she returned to the living room where she’d left Vojalie, the fae was on her phone, her color heightened. “I know, my love. Me, too, but I don’t know when I’ll be home. Oh, I didn’t know that. Excellent. I’ll see you soon.”

Vojalie stood facing the wall of windows overlooking a northern panoramic view of the Dauphaire Mountains. Holly had chosen the location for exactly this reason. The snow-capped peaks formed the opposite range to a forested valley that led to the Sterling River. Her view was nothing but distant forest and so beautiful it was breathtaking.

Vojalie smiled softly as Holly drew near. She lifted her phone. “Davido will be joining us as well.” She frowned suddenly. “Oh, dear.”

“What?”

“Sometimes, I can be so dense. I always think romance first, that he’s coming to dinner to see me. Now, I know it’s because of what’s going on with you and Rez, what it all means.”

Holly once more touched her chest. Her heart wasn’t laboring yet, but it would be soon. “What is going on?”

Vojalie slid her phone into the pocket of her long blue tunic. She wore a pair of black silk pants beneath and her hair was in an intricate crown of braids. She was a mother again of a troll baby named Bernice. “Well that’s just it, Holly. I don’t have an answer to that kind of question. Do you?”

“Me? No.” She snorted. “I mean I’m caught up in events I don’t understand involving strange Invictus wraith-pairs and I’m a blood rose. Beyond that, I’m at a loss.”

Holly was somehow relieved by Vojalie’s somber expression. She released a long difficult sigh. She was still feeling time-lethargic.

“Can I help a little more with that?”

Holly nodded and closed her eyes. Vojalie had done this several times before when she’d been too long in the continuum.

As the powerful fae touched her and healing cascaded through Holly’s mind, she swore nothing felt better. Not even the soothing hot water from the shower matched the peace she felt as Vojalie shared her healing waves.

Holly began to breathe more easily and a lot of the night’s tension dissipated.

When Vojalie withdrew her hands and the powerful healing energy ceased, the remnants of her lethargy were gone. Her mind felt clearer as well.

“Better?”

“Yes, thank you. Did you know I fell asleep against the bakery wall at Boylbury?”

Vojalie chuckled. “When I was first learning to time-path, I did that more than once myself. I couldn’t have stayed awake for anything.”

She smiled then realized there was one thing she wanted to discuss with Vojalie. “I had sex with him, with Rez.”

Vojalie’s brows rose. “So soon?”

“I know. I know. I know.” She put a hand to her cheek.

“What a foolish thing to do.” But her eyes danced.

“You’re laughing at me.”

Vojalie smiled. “A little.”

“I’ve never done anything like that before. Been so reckless …”