Captivated

ChapterThree

Salvatore

Ihadn’t meant to sound so dramatic when I told Angelina where her future lay. Honestly, I was a little frustrated about the whole situation. Others of our kind had mated successfully for thousands of years. As far as we knew, all those past unions were accepted by the female, or male, as this happened too, with the minimum of fuss. Instant acceptance. That’s what our parents had told us.

“Maybe it’s different because there are now three in this relationship, Sal. We are the only twins in vampire or angel history, at least for a very long time. The last twins were killed many centuries ago.”

“Fuck, don’t you think I realise that, Luca? I have no idea how to proceed.”

Luca’s laughter filled my head. “You’re the eldest… by five minutes. You need to make a decision.”

“Not funny, Luca.”

“Hey, excuse me. Seeing as this is one hell of a crazy day, I’m guessing you’re using telepathy.”

Damn, she was astute.

“Whatever you tell her next, Sal, I suggest you don’t let on how we actually bond forever. Well, at least until we’re closer.”

I swore in Italian in his mind, using the foulest curses I could think of. How we’d broach that particular subject could wait. We needed to save this situation, and fast.

“Do you think you could close the gallery for a couple of hours?”

The look in her eyes was murderous. “This is how I make a living. I can’t just take breaks when I want to. I don’t know which century you were born in, but modern-day women have to work.”

I ran a hand over my eyes, attempting not to growl with agitation. “Excuse me for a moment.” I left the gallery and took out my mobile phone. I needed help with this. “Hi, Diane. I need a favour…”

I went on to explain, briefly, to our housekeeper about our little problem. After the initial excitement, she settled down.

“Don’t you worry, Salvatore. Michael and I will be there as soon as we can. I am so excited for you.”

“Thank you, Diane. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.”

Ending the call, I headed back inside. Luca watched Angelina with his trademark cheeky boyish smile plastered on his face. That smile devastated most women. Not this one, though. Angelina eyed him with distrust… even though we could both smell her arousal. She wanted us, even though she had no comprehension why.

“We have someone coming to keep an eye on the gallery because we need to talk.”

She strode over to me, her anger and stimulation filling the air around us. Christ, if this situation wasn’t so serious, I’d be tempted to lay her out and love her into submission.

“Please, Sal, I don’t need to be turned on anymore. Her scent and her anger are driving me nuts.”

“You can’t presume that I’ll allow just anyone to look after my gallery. It’s taken me a lot of hard work to make a success of my business.”

“Angelina, Diane is our housekeeper, but she also has a love and deep knowledge of art. We have known and trusted her for a very long time. She won’t let any harm come to this place,” I replied.

At that moment, more tourists headed for the gallery.

“I don’t care if people can see you or not. Please go and wait in the studio. Now. And don’t you dare come out until I call you.”

“Come on, Luca. Do as the lady says.”

Luca shrugged and followed me into the studio.

* * *

Angelina

If it wasn’t for the fact that I had people in the gallery, I swear I would have laughed hysterically at this madness. I’d probably have been running around the grounds of the manor house, screaming about alien invasions and demons.

Even though I couldn’t see either brother, I could sense they were listening to me. If only I could get my body and temper under control I’d have been better able to deal with them. Their mate forever? What did that mean? And as for dying if I didn’t accept their declaration… my day was just getting better and better.

After seeing the last of the tourists out, I noted a woman striding towards the door. She was about forty. Long brown hair in a ponytail, and a warm smile on her lips. There was a man with her. He had close-cropped hair and was well-built. They held hands and headed towards me.

“You must be Angelina,” the woman said.

“Who are you?” I asked with a little more venom than I meant.

“I’m Diane, Salvatore and Luca’s housekeeper, among other things.”

What on earth did she mean by that?

“I’m Michael, Diane’s husband. I take care of their grounds, do maintenance, and chauffeur for them when required.”

“Oh, and what else do you do? Kill demons too?” My sarcasm was at its height, as it always was when I became nervous.

He grinned in response. “No. We leave that to the professionals.”

“Where are you, boys?” Diane called out.

The twins entered the gallery. As soon as I caught sight of them, my stomach flipped. They really were an impressive sight.

“Thank you for coming. We’ll take a walk with Angelina.” Luca inclined his head towards me and had the audacity to wink.

“Behave. Both of you. Sorry, Angelina. They mean no harm,” she said and looked at the paintings on the wall. “Did you paint these?”

“Yes, I did. It’s my passion, one that I can now make a living from,” I announced with pride.

“You have an amazing talent. I dabble a bit too. Maybe you can take a look at mine when you come home.”

Her words confused me. What did she mean, when I come home?

I glanced at Salvatore and Luca. Both raised their eyebrows with appraisal at me. Then they moved to me as one. Their movements were so in time with each other that I wondered if this was in their genes or had taken years of practice.

“Your gallery will be in good hands with my wife,” Michael assured me.

Something about the couple relaxed me. I’d always had a great bullshit detector, probably due to all the idiots Cassie had set me up with on dates. They were trustworthy. Intuitively, I knew it. I nodded, grabbed my coat, and headed for the door. With any luck, being out in the open instead of my gallery might release the tension building inside me.

“Treat her gently, please,” I heard Diane say to them.

I marched over to a picnic table close to some trees and plonked myself down. Instead of sitting on the opposite side, they sat at each side of me. Their scent, my lust, anger, and anxiety made my head spin. When I attempted to get up and sit on the opposite bench, they both placed a hand on each of my shoulders. I huffed out a long breath.

“Let’s get on with this so I can carry on with my life,” I demanded.

* * *