They followed Nellie to the dining room. Kimber took a seat at the dining table as Nellie fussed around her and dished up a pile of food. Kimber’s face was trained on Suzette when she cocked her head to the side, her green eyes flickered up to Victor before returning to his PA. “Why not, Suzette? It’s the truth.”

Suzette sat down, pouring herself a coffee before shaking her head at Kimber. “The truth isn’t what people want to hear. They might be aware of Supernatural beings now but they don’t want the harsh reality that there were Werewolves roaming free in Central Park while their children played nearby. They don’t want to know that Victor had to race to your rescue because those Wolves were going to do goodness knows what right there in the middle of New York while they walked by going about their business. No, Kimber, humans do not want to know that. That type of information will just add fuel to the fire of the radicals who hate all things to do with any kind of Supernatural beings and I won’t do that to Victor . . . or you.”

Kimber picked up a piece of bacon, nibbling on it for a moment before sighing. “I see. I guess I didn’t think about it like that. I’ve never had to look at the bigger picture before and was brought up to always tell the truth. I suppose there are times when that might not be the best option.”

“Indeed,” Victor broke in from his position beside Kimber. He was leaning against the wall watching her interaction with Suzette, waiting to see how she handled herself and how his PA reacted to his Bloodmate. So far he was impressed with both of them. “Kimber it’s difficult nowadays on what is released to the press, because once a story is out there it can never be taken back. I wouldn’t want to add fuel to the fire, so to speak, and there are some factions that are rising to speak against any and all beings that are not human. I would not advocate telling them what transpired earlier.”

Suzette inclined her head. “I agree. So, what are we going with?”

Victor shrugged. “A mugging is more believable . . . it is Central Park after all.”

Kimber looked up at him, frowning. “And what about you running to my rescue? How do you explain that?”

Flint chuckled. “She has a point. We did make a spectacle of ourselves.”

“You’re a Vampire, that’s common knowledge . . . right?” Suzette tapped her chin with a painted nail. “You have super acute vision . . . right? Your balcony has a prime view right into the park, so, you saw her being chased and you went to her rescue. You were being chased in the park, weren’t you?”

Kimber nodded as Victor stepped away from the wall. “I think we could get away with that, barely, but how do we explain Kimber staying here?”

Suzette waved a hand around dismissively. “We can cross that bridge when we come to it. It can be a love story borne from you rescuing Kimber, but that’s for the future, for now I’ll go and draft the story for release. I’ll let you see it before I send it out but it needs to be done fast, Victor, before the rumor mill takes over and all sorts of rubbish gets out there first.”

“Fine,” Victor huffed. “Go and work your magic, Suzette.”

“On my way.” Suzette jumped up, snatching a hot bagel as she rose. “I’ll email my draft and as soon as you approve it I’ll send it out, but I’m warning you that there’s going to be a scramble for interviews, Victor.”

“No,” Victor snapped. “No interviews. Not today and not for a few days.”

“Victor! This is going to be a frenzy and you know it. I have to give them something or they’ll just keep coming at us.” Suzette stood her ground, scowling up at him. “You know how this shit works, so tell me what you’ll give me and I’ll do my best to work with it.”

“I’ll do one interview in two days’ time. That’s all you’re getting and it’s up to you to decide who it’s with. Go get the best deal . . . I can already see the cogs working in that head of yours.”

“Clothes, shoes . . . she’ll need everything, Victor.”

“I know,” Victor sighed. “Schedule a personal shopper . . . one hour from now. You can take a guess at sizes and we’ll require an entire wardrobe. Simple, understated chic I think would suit her best.”

“Wait a minute . . . what are you talking about?” Kimber pushed her seat back, standing to look between them with a fierce glare. “I’m right here! Stop talking about me as if I’m invisible.”

“Clothes, darling.” Suzette looked her up and down. “You can’t appear in front of the national press looking, well, like you are now. We need you to look more . . .”

“More what?” Kimber snarled. “I’m not a show pony. I’m a person.”

Flint let out a long sigh as he slipped past. “I’m going to get more security organized. I’ll leave you to sort this out.”

Victor slipped an arm around Kimber’s waist pulling her up against him, feeling her anger coursing through her as well as fear. “I’m aware you’re not a pony, Kimber, but we made a spectacle earlier and I have to deal with that. I’m sorry but it’s necessary to put a stop to potentially harmful press that could impact my businesses. If it were just me I’d tell them to go fuck themselves, however, it’s not. I also have many interests in charities that could take a hit with bad press and I wouldn’t like what happened to hurt those.”

Suzette nodded emphatically, her voice soft as she added, “The power of the press is huge, Kimber, and if we don’t get on top of this fast, then it could have devastating results for many of Victor’s charitable organizations. His businesses would survive without a blip, they are strong and are fully funded by his money alone, but the charities are not. Those are the ones we’re worried about.”

“I see.” Kimber’s eyes lowered briefly before she looked up at him. “I’ll do it but I’m not sure how to do any of this. I’ll probably make a fool of myself . . . and you.”

“No, you won’t. I’ll be right there with you and Suzette will coach you beforehand on what to say. If all else fails you simply say ‘I’ll let Victor answer that one.’” Victor reached up, his finger trailing down her face. “Don’t worry, baby, I’ll make sure it’ll be a short interview and Suzette will ensure that the interviewer is friendly. Won’t you?”

“I sure will,” Suzette agreed, sidling out of the room. “I need to go. I have to deal with this before it blows up in our faces.”

Kimber’s body trembled in his arms, her scent wafting around him to engulf his senses, and he could feel her unease at everything that had just transpired. Her heart rate had increased, her blood thundering around inside her and calling to him like none other had in his very long life. His gums ached as his fangs fought to break free but he forced them to remain where they were and instead he sought to calm his Bloodmate’s fears, wrapping her body tightly against his and whispering against her dark locks, “I’m sorry, my darling. This is moving so fast for you and it must be overwhelming and strange but I’ve got one thing I need to ask you . . . Kimber, do you feel it. Do you feel our connection? It’s burning me up inside, sweetheart. I’m longing to kiss you senseless. Feel your lips beneath mine and taste you on my mouth but I won’t. Not until I know you feel it too. I don’t want to scare you away and after what happened earlier I understand if you want to shower and sleep but please, just answer that one question . . . do you feel it?”

Her body quivered, a soft moan escaping her throat as her head canted to the side, her breath quickening and the vein in her neck fluttering wildly. “This is weird, Victor. It’s been only hours since you appeared before me but I feel like I’ve known you for such a long time. In here, in my heart, it’s as if you’re right there and I can’t explain it . . . so the answer to your question is yes. Yes, I do feel it, but I’m scared. Scared of how you make me feel. Scared of what any of this means. And I’m downright terrified of what it means to be your Bloodmate. I’m just me, Kimber, and I’m not used to this lifestyle and I sure as hell am not used to being so close to Vampires. Usually they’re hunting me, so to stand here in the arms of one and feel the way I do right now scares me senseless.”

“I’ll never hurt you, baby.” Victor lowered his head, kissing the top of her head. “I’ll always protect you. I’ve told you that already and I mean what I say. My men will die to protect you. You’re safe here. You don’t need to run any longer, beautiful. We’ll be good together, you and me. I’ll take care of you. I promise.”

“Safe,” Kimber whispered the word as if it were the Holy Grail and it tore at his heart.

“Safe, my darling.” He peppered the side of her face with feather light kisses before she turned in his arms, opening her mouth to him. Desire flooded him, overtaking him entirely as their mouths clashed together in a frenzy of lips, tongues and teeth.

Her hands tangled in his shirt, and the soft mewling noises she was making almost made him lose his sanity completely. Her long tresses falling down her back calling to him and his hand flew to grab it up to wrap around his fingers, pressing against the back of her head to hold her tighter against him. Rational thoughts fought inside him . . . he knew he should be giving her time to rest, shower, damn it, get to know each other but nothing else mattered at that precise moment other than tasting her, implanting her unique flavor inside him forever. Victor knew, from this moment on, no other would ever satisfy him. No one else would quench his lust or his need for blood.

Rearing back as that thought speared through his mind, Victor stared down at Kimber’s glassy eyes. The knowledge that ran through him caused his stomach to clench and his fangs to press painfully against his gums. What the hell?

“Victor?” Kimber looked up confused and worried. “What’s wrong?”

He shook his head, pasting a smile onto his face as he led her upstairs. “Nothing. I’m sorry, I’m being selfish, darling. You need to shower and be ready for when the Personal Shopper arrives. Come, I’ll show you to our rooms.”

Our rooms. It sounded good in his head but also strange. He’d never shared his personal space with anyone. He didn’t need to. His home had plenty of spare bedrooms to use when he entertained women and his personal rooms were just that: personal. But Kimber was his Bloodmate and his life was forever changed. She’d be by his side from this day on and there was nowhere safer for her. The only place she’d be sleeping was in his bed and she’d be the first female to do so.

He guessed she’d like his bathroom after her revelation of her love of water. With its massive sunken bath and oversized separate shower, Kimber would probably spend hours in there, and he imagined she’d have many midnight swims on the rooftop too. Now, that was something he looked forward to, but first he had to figure out why he’d felt like he’d be feeding from her. That hadn’t been something he’d planned on. Hell, it would probably terrify her and send her running from him far and fast, and that wasn’t something he could allow. So, he’d just have to ensure he fed on donor blood as he usually did and not be hungry when around her.

Yes, that’s what he’d do. He would not go anywhere near Kimber unless he’d fed, in fact, as soon as he’d shown her where the shower was he was going straight to the kitchen to get himself some blood to tide him over. The last thing she needed was for his fangs to descend and scare the life out of her while they were having a passionate moment. He’d lived for centuries by keeping a steely control over his dark side and he refused to lose the most important person in his life, in his future, by losing control now.