Garrett obeyed, stepping into the center of the warehouse. He took his clothes off and stood stark naked in the middle of the room. Before I could object, he bent over slightly and his body began to contort and morph. His face protruded outward into a muzzle as he doubled over, and his hands turned into massive paws just before they touched the floor. A moment later, a giant brown wolf was standing in the center of the room before me, snarling, growling menacingly.
“You’re werewolves,” I said in disbelief. Why the hell not? I had already met vampires and witches. Why not werewolves, too? Abruptly, I realized that I had been living a blissfully sheltered life.
The brown wolf growled.
“Although we are werewolves, we can change at will,” Leo said as a smile played on his lips. “That wasn’t always the case, but I developed a serum.”
“And what do you want with my baby?” I asked, trying to fit all the
“Yes, well, not if our men find him first,” Charlotte said, her eyes flaring. “After he’s eliminated, then his coven will follow, after we make them all human. Then, there will be no one left to stop us.”“If you really loved him,” I said, “then you would let me go … for him.”“Nice try,” she said, leaning back in her chair again.Just then, Amy walked into the room, carrying a tray, and set it on the table. There were three blood bags lying on it and a covered plate. I didn’t care what was under the plate. I grabbed one of the blood bags, shoved a straw in the side of the bag and drained it.“My, my,” Charlotte said, reaching for one of the blood bags, too. “Aren’t we hungry?”Ignoring her, I quickly reached for the other blood bag and downed it, moaning as the luscious liquid filled my system. The baby stirred in my stomach, happy for the
I woke and looked around. It was pitch black and I could barely see my hand in front of my face. I wondered why they hadn’t kept a light on, but then I realized that vampires could see perfectly in the dark. Suddenly, a sharp pain jabbed my stomach. I ran a hand along my stomach and tried to sit up, but another sharp sting gripped me, punching me from within. I could feel that some of my ribs had cracked. “Uuuhhh!!” I screamed out, holding my ribs as I lay back onto the hospital bed.Within a moment, cold hands were on my forehead. “What happened?” Yes, it was Amy.I said nothing.“Leila, you have to tell me when you’re hurting,” she said in a low voice, “for the baby.”Someone took a deep breath, standing not far away. “What’s wrong with her?” It was Charlotte. Amy and I weren’t alone.“I’m sure that she’s fine,” Amy said, pushing me back ag
With thrusts of his hand, he slammed werewolves against the wall without touching them, using his telekinesis as he marched purposefully across the room with his eyes locked on Charlotte.Amy pulled me behind her, fighting off a werewolf that had leapt toward us. She fought valiantly, ripping off heads with her sickle and ripping out hearts as blood sprayed across the room.Suddenly, Drake entered the room with his fists doubled at his sides, dressed in a black T-shirt, black jeans with boots. He took off a werewolf’s head in one swift movement, and threw another against the wall, then turned to take on more.Lance was halfway across the room from Charlotte, glaring at her menacingly, when a werewolf jumped at him, but Lance hit him effortlessly, sending him flying across the room and crashing into a far wall. Then, Lance looked over at him and squeezed his hands tightly and the werewolf gasped, unable to breathe, until he finally passed out and turned int
Immediately, something went around my waist and I was being lifted. I looked over and Lance was holding me up so that Amy could slide a heart monitor around me for the baby. Suddenly, a quick flutter beeped into the air. “Is he okay?” I asked, barely conscious. “Lance … the baby … is he okay?”“Shush … he’s fine, honey. Hang in there,” Lance said, and then held his wrist up to my lips again. “Drink, Leila. God! I’m begging you, drink! You’ve lost too much blood. You need my blood to heal yourself! Drink!”“Aaahhhhaaaa!” I moaned, trying to grip my stomach, but I was too weak to raise my arm. This was different than normal labor, I could tell. Everything was too quick and too painful. “Lance?” I asked, between contractions.“I’m right here, baby! Stay with me,” Lance said, still holding his wrist to my lips as tears filled his eyes. &ld
I rocked slowly back and forth with my son in my arms, feeding him a bottle of formula. He was beautiful with dark blonde, soft curls and bright green eyes, a normal six-month-old baby, even though he was only a few weeks old. Amy said that Jase would be full grown within ten years and I planned to enjoy every moment of it. He would also live a long life. Amy was living proof of it. She was technically sixty-two years old, but didn’t look a day over twenty-five.“Are you ready?” she asked as she walked through the door. She crossed the room and held her arms out to take my son, my Jase. “It’s time.”I handed him to her with a sigh. “If I must.”“Unless you want to give your honeymoon tickets to me,” she teased. “I’ve always wanted to go to Aruba.”“Not on your life,” I said, smoothing my white dress as I rose from the rocker. It wasn’t your typical wedding dres
VOLUME 2: CROSSROADSMy name is Lance Steel. I’m the owner of Caprice Casino and Club Moroii, located on the Las Vegas strip. I’m a husband, a damned good father and I’m also a vampire. I’ve lived many lives over the years, having been turned in the twelfth century … the year 1113 AD, to be exact. I’ve had many loves, but none have touched my heart and very soul like my wife, Leila.Not long ago, I seduced her, a fact I’m not proud of, but not sorry for, either. Her association with me indirectly caused the death of her then husband and wrecked her life. After her life fell apart, I was there to help her pick up the pieces. I’ve had many regrets over the years, but Leila wasn’t one of them. In over nine hundred years of living on this earth, Leila has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me … well … she and our son, Jase.Yes, we have a son. Not long after we met, we
A broad smile spread across my face as I forced the memories from my head. This was the happiest day of my life, and I intended to enjoy it. “After you,” I said, gesturing to him, then I followed him out.Drake was my best man and was also escorting Leila down the aisle, since her own father had passed away from a broken heart after losing her mother to cancer years ago. It was tragic, but very romantic.Kellen smiled and walked through the side door leading into the church, and I followed, taking my place at the altar. Kellen sat beside Crissy, who snuggled into his side. I smiled, glad to see that Kellen had finally found someone. Looking out over the rest of the church, it was filled with our family and friends who had flown here to be with us.The Wedding March started and I adjusted the vest under my tuxedo one last time, more out of habit. I took a deep breath and waited for my bride as I clasped my hands in front of me. This was it; the moment
Then, I crushed my lips down onto hers as I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her to my chest. My lips moved passionately with hers, and she took me inside, as my tongue danced with hers before our family and friends. At that moment, there was no one else in the world, just Leila and me.“Ahem,” the minister discreetly cleared his throat a few minutes later, gaining our attention as everyone laughed.I didn’t want this moment to end, but Leila pulled back, and her cheeks filled with a lovely rose as she looked up at me through her long eyelashes, laughing.I pulled back and gave my sweet Leila one last kiss. “This is just the beginning,” I promised.“I’m counting on it,” she said, nestling her head onto my chest just under my shoulder. “I love you.”“Always and forever,” I agreed, then turned her around and we faced our family and friends. The whole church erupted into a roun
LeilaJase started toward me, but Selestra held up her hand, stopping him. “Wait!”“Selestra,” Lance growled, his eyes flaring a brilliant green. “If you do not release the children now, I will personally tear you to pieces.”“As a show of good faith, I’m giving you back the children,” she replied. “But Raif is crazed with vengeance. I couldn’t take his abuse anymore, and I left him and took your children with me.”“It’s a lie!”“Lance, wait!” I held my hand up, stopping her. “What if she’s telling the truth?” Then I turned to Selestra. “So, give us the children. Once they’re safe, then we’ll talk.”Selestra nodded. “Agreed.” She motioned for Jase and Addie to go to us, and they both rushed toward me and hugged me.“She’s alone,” Addie whispered, keeping her voice so low only I could hear.I nodded once. “Jase, Sirena, go home with Raven. we’ll talk when we get there.”Jase looked between us and said, “Be safe.”Lance pulled them both in for a quick hug, making it look good. But he ki
Leila“I spoke with Kellen,” Lance said, quickly crossing the room. “He’s called an emergency and is locking down the castle as we speak. He’s also agreed to stay with Sirena and Emma, too.” He let out a deep breath, placing his hands on his hips. “It may be overkill, but I don’t care. Sirena needs all the protection we can give her.”A moment later, there was a knock on the door.Lance held up his hand to me and quickly crossed the room. He looked through the peephole, opened the door, and extended his hand to Emma. “Thanks for this. I’m so sorry we had to phone you on such short notice.”“Not a problem. I’m glad to help.” She walked in dressed in a pair of jeans, a floral shirt, and boots, similar to what I was wearing. I was sure she had come prepared to fight, too.“Thank you so much for this.” I pulled her in for a quick hug. “After Kellen locks down the castle, he’ll come stay with you.”Emma nodded. “That’s fine.” She pointed down the hallway. “Is Sirena in the family room?”I
Leila“What do you mean ‘they’re missing?’” Lance demanded, taking a step closer.Raven took a deep breath, the most flustered I’d ever seen her. “After dinner, they were dismissed and were in their common rooms. One of the other students said that Jase got a call... from you.” Her head snapped up toward me. “So, he stepped out into the hallway with Addie and never came back in.”“From me?” I asked in disbelief, shaking my head. “It wasn’t me.”“Well, the student said your number popped up on his phone.” Raven shook her head. “I’m so sorry—”“Who was the student?” I asked.Raven let out a deep breath. “Kian Medine. The Medine family is important in the witch community and very trustworthy.”I nodded. “Can you do a locator spell on him like you did last time?”“That’s what I planned to do.” She looked into Lance’s eyes. “I knew you would want to be present.”Lance nodded. “Thank you.” He gritted his teeth. “If Raif and Selestra have them, there will be no place they can hide. I’ll tear
LeilaI nodded. “I know you will.” I rose to my feet and pulled her in for a hug. “My husband and I will discuss this and will get back to you. Thank you for coming.”“Would you like to meet our daughter before you go?” Lance asked.Emma nodded. “Yes, please.” Her eyes brightened. It was clear that she loved children.I nodded. Whether or not we hired her, what harm could it do to introduce Emma to Sirena? “Right this way.”I walked down the hallway, and Emma walked beside me as Lance followed behind. When we entered the family room, Sirena was playing Chess alone, switching seats at each turn. It was the funniest thing I’d ever seen. Then guilt filled my chest for not having anyone her age to occupy her. “Sirena, honey, I’d like you to meet someone.”Sirena looked up and smiled, her game forgotten as she crossed the room purposefully toward Emma and thrust out her hand. “Hello. My name is Sirena. What’s your name?”“My name is Emma.” She tilted her head to the side, smiling. So, you
LeilaEmma sat on the edge of her seat and smiled, folding her arms on her lap. “My name is Emma Fitzroy.” She had the type of British accent that I could listen to all day.Lance’s head snapped up, a crease between his eyes. “Fitzroy? As in ‘the bastard son of a king?’”“Lance!” I scoffed, unable to believe what he had just said.“Please, pardon me, both of you.” Lance looked over at me and smiled. “The word was more commonly used in our time. Please, forgive me.”I nodded cautiously. “It’s okay.”But Emma smiled, unaffected. “It’s okay. I used to hear it all the time years ago. But not many people know the meaning or connotation today.”Lance nodded. “So, who was your father?”She let out a deep breath. “My father was King Henry I, and I am one of his illegitimate children.”My eyes nearly bugged out of my head, but miraculously, I maintained my composure. “Could you explain that to us? I mean, how did you come to be in our coven?”She nodded. “I was born the twenty-sixth of June, i
LeilaLance let out a deep breath. “After hearing everything, the Council agreed with my reasoning. They couldn’t believe all the threats Raif had leveled against you and the children, and they agreed that if he defeated me, he would also take over the Council, the vampire world, and the rest of the supernatural creatures. When I told them he wanted to be king, they agreed that we can’t let that happen.”“Well, let’s eat, and then you can take a shower before Emma gets here.” I made a sandwich out of a biscuit, an egg, and a slice of bacon.Lance laughed. “What are you doing?”“I used to do this all the time when I was human.” I picked it up and took a bite. “You should try it! It’s good!”“Can I have some?” Sirena asked, looking at my biscuit sandwich with curiosity.“Sure!” I slid her onto my lap and made her a sandwich with the other biscuit, egg, and bacon. Lance got up and made another one for me and warmed up a bag of blood for her.“Here you go!” I handed her the biscuit sandw
LeilaLance raised up and kissed my shoulder, smiling as he laced his fingers through my hair. “Why don’t you shower, and I’ll fix the coffee?” He traced lazy circles over my body, raising my nipples to peaks and sending chills over my body. “I would take a shower with you, but Sirena will be up in a few minutes, and her seeing her mommy and daddy naked may cause unnecessary trauma.” He chuckled. “It’ll cost me a fortune in therapy for the rest of her life.”I laughed, running my fingers through his dark brown wavy hair. “We really need to find her a nanny.”He laughed. “Yes, we do.” Then his lips descended upon mine in a passionate kiss as my tongue swiped over his, all heat and desire. He pulled back a moment later and gave me one last sweet kiss. Then he slid out of bed and slipped into his sleeping shorts and a white T-shirt.“Ahh,” I moaned, reaching for him. “Come back to bed.”He chuckled, one corner of his lips curling into a sexy smile. “You don’t know how tempting that is.”
LanceI nodded. “So, what say you? I will poll each of you. An answer of Yay will be in favor of banning together to fight. An answer of Nay will be against.” I looked around the room. “Xander.”“Yay.”I nodded. “Drake.”“Yay.”“Annette.”“If he would go so far as to threaten you and your family and then take over the Council, then my answer is Yay,” she replied.I nodded. “Felicia.”She let out a deep breath, a crease forming between her eyes. It was clear that she was not making her decision lightly. “Yay.”“So, it’s unanimous. We will stand and fight. I appreciate your support.” I placed my hands on the table as I leaned forward. “I’ll coordinate with you and will let you know when we plan to attack. But as of this moment, we are at war with Raif Cavanaugh, Leader of the East Coven.” I let out a deep breath. “I asked Chef Faustino to prepare a special buffet for you. So, please. Enjoy.” I motioned toward the buffet lined up against the wall, filled with all sorts of delicacies incl
LanceLeila and I went through several applicants for Sirena’s nanny but didn’t find anyone suitable. The successful applicant needed to be a vampire with fighting skills, capable of protecting Sirena during a crisis. He or she would also have to have good nanny and child nurturing skills. Not an easy combination to find in one person.“So, did you have any luck finding a nanny for Sirena?” A smile spread across Kellen’s face as we headed toward the main conference room for the meeting with the Supernatural Council, consisting of the heads of all the covens and packs in Las Vegas.I scoffed. “No. Not yet. It’s proving to be as difficult as it was to find a nanny and protector for Jase.”Kellen nodded, stopping just outside the door. “I think I may have a solution for you.”“Oh?” My eyebrows shot up.“I know a young woman that reminds me a lot of Addie, but she was a little older when she was turned.”“How old was she?”“Eighteen,” he replied. “I think Addie was sixteen when she was tu