As Robert poured a glass of wine for Sharon, he debated whether he was doing the right thing. By telling her the truth, he was disobeying Kian’s orders and taking a considerable risk. If this was discovered, it could have dire consequences for him.

Could he trust Sharon to keep this a secret?

As a detective in training, she was accustomed to confidentiality and was aware of its importance. Eva, who knew her well, trusted her, which was another point in her favor.

Except, Sharon was a young woman and as such easily excitable. She could change her mind about him the next day or the next week or the next month, and he would be in worse position than he’d been after leaving the Brotherhood. At least then he had Carol’s support and the clan’s gratitude. If Sharon left him and revealed what he’d told her, the loss would be catastrophic. Kian would lock him up and throw away the key, or put him in stasis like he’d done with the other Doomers the Guardians had captured.

Not executing them was a mercy, but only to an extent. Stasis was death, just not permanent.

Robert rubbed the back of his neck. Did immortals dream while in stasis?

He’d read that some humans dreamt while in a coma. But stasis seemed like an even deeper state than a coma. His guess was that there was no brain activity other than the minimum required to keep the body’s systems from shutting down completely.

Perhaps he could ask Julian about that. Except, his questions about the Doomers resting down in the keep’s catacombs might raise suspicions as to his intent. Not a complication he needed.

With the wine in one hand and another bottle of Snake’s Venom in the other, Robert walked back into his bedroom to find Sharon in exactly the same position he’d left her.

She looked up at him with worried eyes. “Perhaps we should have this talk in the living room?”

He shook his head while closing the door behind him. It was better for Julian to assume that they were getting busy in the bedroom so he would put his noise-canceling headphones on.

Handing Sharon the wine glass, Robert sat next to her on the bed. “You know all those science fiction shows and those about paranormal stuff that you like to watch?”

She lifted a brow. “What about them?”

“Not all of it is fiction.”

“Well duh, I know that. Paranormal phenomena are real, and I’m sure we are not the only intelligent living beings in the universe. Believing that is as absurd as believing that earth is a flat disk. Just because we can’t see them or communicate with them doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”

As he’d expected, Sharon had an open mind.

“There is more to it than just inexplicable phenomena and alien life on other planets.” He looked into her eyes as he continued. “A divergent humanoid species has lived among humans since the beginning of history. In fact, according to legend, this divergent species created humanity, or rather jump-started its evolution.”

“You mean the God myth? The one about creating Adam and Eve?”

“Gods. Plural. Did you ever read about the Sumerian gods?”

If she had, Sharon was much better informed than he’d been up until recently. History lessons hadn’t been part of his education in the Doomer camp. It seemed that Lord Navuh preferred his warriors as ignorant as possible even about their own origins.

Most of what Robert now knew about immortal history, he’d learned from Carol, like the fact that the Doomers and the clan had shared ancestry. He hadn’t known that. There were rumors, of course, most of them so misleading and absurd that they were most likely planted on purpose to further confuse the soldiers and keep them from asking questions.

She shook her head. “I’ve read a little about the Egyptian pantheon, but I’m more familiar with the Greeks and the Romans.” She tilted her head. “Is this what you wanted to talk to me about, or are you stalling?”

“I’m not stalling. I’m providing background.”

“About mythology?”

Perhaps it was the wrong place to start. “Have you noticed anything strange about Eva?”

Sharon regarded him as if he had a screw loose. “Talk about a random subject change. But yeah, I’ve noticed a lot of strange things about my boss.”

“Like what?”

Sharon took a few sips of her wine and then put the glass on the nightstand. “She looks like she is in her late twenties but talks and behaves like she is in her fifties. She is secretive, but that is probably because of what she does for a living. She used to disappear for days without telling us where she was going, and it wasn’t on any jobs we knew of. But after she’d met Bhathian, she’d stopped doing that. There are many other little things. She’s just odd.”

“In all the years you’ve known her, did she change at all?”

Sharon waved a hand. “She must have damn good genes. Not even one wrinkle. And that body, you’d think she exercised every day to maintain that figure, but she doesn't. I don’t know how anyone can eat the junk she eats and not gain weight. I’m green with envy.”

Robert was taken aback. “Why would you envy her? You have a beautiful body.”

Sharon patted his knee. “You’re sweet. But please don’t lie to me just to make me feel good. I could lose a few pounds.”

Robert shook his head. Human females were obsessed with being thin. It hadn’t always been like that. There had been times when voluptuousness was appreciated. With her slight feminine padding, Sharon would have not even qualified as such.

But that wasn’t what this conversation was about. He needed to steer her back to the subject of Eva’s ageless appearance.

“Would you say that Eva looks exactly the same today as she did when you first met her?”

Sharon nodded. “Except, she is happier now that she has Bhathian and is expecting a baby.”

He’d been building up to this moment, but now that it was time for the punchline, Robert lost his nerve. Lifting the beer, he gulped the rest of it and then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Eva didn’t change at all during all the years you’ve known her because she is immortal. And the reason she often sounds and behaves like a grandmother is that she is probably older than yours.”

Sharon snorted. “Good one, Robert. But you need to work on the delivery. A joke is not funny if it takes more than a minute to set up.”

He took in a deep breath. “I’m not joking. Eva, Bhathian, Nathalie, Amanda, and everyone else Bhathian introduced you to, are all immortal. I’m one too.”

Reaching for the wine glass, Sharon picked it up, threw the rest of the liquid down her throat, and then put the glass back down.

“I knew you were too good to be true. Delusional much?”

It wasn’t going the way he’d thought it would. Sharon didn’t believe him.

“If I showed you proof, would you believe me then?”

“What proof?”

“Kiss me, and I’ll show you.”

He’d planned on getting to the part about fangs and venom last, letting her absorb all the possible benefits of immortality before scaring her with his vampiric transformation, but this was the best proof he could provide.

She grinned. “I knew it was a drawn-out joke. Okay, I’ll play along.”

Up until now, he’d always controlled the kissing, not letting Sharon’s tongue pass his lips. She was in for one hell of a surprise.

Used to Robert’s mild dominance, Sharon didn’t expect him to retract his tongue from her mouth and invite hers to follow. A long moment passed before she’d responded, but when she did, it was with gusto.

Climbing onto his lap, she plastered herself against his chest and kissed him while grinding her bottom into his groin.

His glands and fangs’ response was predictably quick, and Robert braced for the moment Sharon would discover that.

“Ouch.” She pulled away as her tongue scraped against one of his fangs. Focused on her injury, Sharon didn’t look at him as she touched a finger to the bleeding spot and lifted it up to look at it. “I think you should see the dentist. You must have a chipped tooth.”

“Look at me, Sharon,” he slurred.