Chapter Forty-Five
Andrei dropped their suitcases on the ground. “What the hell!”
Tessa stared at the burned-out wreckage of what had been Andrei’s home. The front door hung askew, wisps of smoke curled through the broken windows, the luxurious velvet drapes were little more than blackened cloth.
She shook her head. His beautiful house, all those wonderful antiques, gone. “How could this have happened?”
He swore a vile oath. “Katerina happened. Damn her black soul to hell!”
“She did this? How can you be so sure?”
“Even the acrid smell of the fire can’t cover her foul stench.”
Frowning, Tessa opened her vampire senses. And then she smelled it too. The unmistakable scent that was Katerina. “But, why would she do this?”
“Because she’s an evil, vindictive, selfish . . .” Clenching his fists, Andrei took a deep breath and let it out in a long, slow sigh. “It doesn’t matter why,” he said flatly. “It’s done.” He glanced at the sky. It would be dark soon. Picking up their luggage, he clasped Tessa’s hand. “Looks like we’ll be spending the night at your place.”
* * *
Her condo seemed empty without Bailey there, waiting to welcome them home. Putting their Christmas gifts on the coffee table, Tessa walked through the house, turning on the lamps. She could see perfectly fine in the dark, but it just seemed more like home with the lights on.
Someone—Bailey, she guessed—had cleaned out the refrigerator and the cupboards, disposing of all the perishable food items. The bed in Bailey’s room was neatly made, the drawers empty of the clothing Tessa had bought her.
With a sigh, Tessa sat on the edge of the bed. How quickly her life had changed.
“You okay, love?”
She looked up to see Andrei standing in the doorway, arms crossed, his shoulder resting against the jamb. “I’m fine.”
“You look like you’re about to cry.”
“Maybe I am. I guess it just hit me. Bailey’s gone. Jilly’s married. I’m a vampire. My life will never be the same again.”
A muscle twitched in his jaw. “Regrets?”
“What? Oh, no. It’s just that it all happened so fast. I guess I need to call Mr. Ambrose and let him know I won’t be coming back to work.”
“Is that what you want?”
“I don’t know. I love my job, but . . . it just doesn’t fit anymore.”
“Well, I know how to fill your days and nights.” Moving to the bed, he sat down beside her. “We need to find a place to live. So, do you want to stay in Cutter’s Corner?”
“If we can. Jilly’s here.”
He nodded. “Then the next question is, shall we rebuild or buy something new?”
“I don’t know. What do you want to do?”
“Rebuild. It’s hard to find a new home with a big basement and we need a secure place for a lair. Something defensible,” he said. “And fireproof.”
Smiling, Tessa rested her head against his shoulder. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. There’s just one more thing we need to decide.”
“What’s that?”
“When we’re getting married.”
She looked up at him, eyes wide. “Seriously?”
“Damn straight. We’re through living in sin, woman. It’s time to make it legal.”
“The question now is where?” She grimaced, remembering what had happened to the justice of the peace.
“Here,” Andrei said. “In the living room. That way we don’t have to worry about any unwelcome visitors.”
“Then I guess the next question is when?”
“I’ll leave that up to you. Just make it as quick as you can.”
Tessa nodded. “I’d like to invite my parents, but they’d expect us to get married in a church, and probably the one they attend in Ashland.”
“Whatever you decide is fine with me.”
“I’m not willing to take the risk of having it in a public place. I originally planned to say we eloped and I think I’ll just stick with that and tell them that we’ll come visit them again in the spring.”
* * *
Sunday afternoon, Tessa called Jilly to let her know they were back in town and staying at her place.
“She burned down his house!” Jilly exclaimed. “Well, I’m not surprised. It sounds just like something that evil woman would do.”
“I know, but still . . . anyway, we’re going to rebuild. But that’s not why I called. We’re going to try getting married again, only this time at my place. I’m not sure when. I need to find another dress because I sure can’t wear the other one.”
“Do you want me to come along?”
Tessa paused. Was it her imagination, or did she hear a hint of reluctance in Jilly’s voice? Was her friend afraid to be alone with her? “Sure, if you want. I’d love a second opinion.”
“All right. Just tell me when. Are you coming to work Monday?”
“No. I’ve decided to quit my job.”
“It won’t be the same without you.”
“I’m going to miss it, but . . . I just don’t think I can handle it right now.” It had been difficult being around her parents, listening to the sound of their hearts, smelling their blood. How much worse would it be in a crowded office building, surrounded by coworkers and people she didn’t know? What if she couldn’t control the urge to feed? What if Katerina came looking for her?
“I understand, I guess. Listen, I need to go make Luke’s lunch . . . anyway, I’m free any night you want to go dress shopping.”
“Okay, talk to you soon. Tell Luke hi for me.”
Tessa’s next call was to Bailey, but she didn’t answer the phone, so Tessa left a message, then went into the bathroom to fill the tub, thinking a nice hot bubble bath was just what she needed.
She was relaxing in the tub, eyes closed, up to her chin in lavender-scented bubbles, when Andrei slipped into the tub behind her. She sighed as his arms slid around her to make a slow exploration of her body from her hips to her shoulders, lingering at the interesting hills and valleys in between.
There was magic in his touch and she moaned with pleasure as his hands drifted over her skin.
He nipped at her ear, then nuzzled her neck. And all the while his hands moved over her, arousing her. When she thought she might burst with wanting him, he rose in a single fluid motion with her in his arms and carried her to bed.
At any other time, she might have worried about dripping soapy water on the mattress, but not now, when she was on fire for him.
He fell back on the mattress with her straddling his hips and it was her turn to tease and touch and taste until, with a wordless growl, he rolled over, carrying her with him. His eyes burned with heat as his body melded with hers, the fire between them so intense she was surprised the sheets didn’t go up in flames.
And then there was only wave upon wave of sensual pleasure beyond words or description, and Andrei’s voice, whispering that he loved her, would always love her.
* * *
Later, after Tessa had fallen asleep, Andrei returned to the ruin that was his former lair. He picked his way through the debris, quietly cursing Katerina. He’d had a fortune in antique furniture and paintings, pieces he had collected in the last seven hundred years. His insurance would cover the cost of rebuilding the house, but the paintings by some of the Old Masters—Botticelli, da Vinci, Raphael, Tintoretto—could never be replaced.
The stairs leading down to his lair were gone but it was an easy jump for a vampire. He brushed aside the wreckage of his bed, revealing a floor safe. It opened with a creak of protest. He withdrew several small velvet bags, a metal box, and an ornate sheath that held a silver-bladed knife. The weapon had been doused in holy water and blessed by an Italian bishop over five hundred years ago. The hilt was encrusted with rubies that glittered like drops of fresh blood in the pale shaft of moonlight that penetrated the gloom in his lair.
It was an antique more valuable than anything else he had ever owned—an ancient, deadly weapon crafted solely to destroy master vampires.
He felt the power of the blade hum in his hands as he turned it over. He had acquired it a century ago, solely for the purpose of destroying his sire.