CHAPTER SIXTEEN | Present Time

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Present Time

“WILL YOU STOP IT.” Sofia laughed as she slapped Lance on his solid and very sexy chest. “This is the third time I’ve redone my lipstick.”

“Totally worth it,” Lance said, pulling her toward his lips again.

It really was. She’d never tell him that, though. If she’d learned anything in the past few months living with all these alpha males, it was that if you gave an inch, they’d take a mile. Not that she minded Lance taking all the miles when it came to her body and the pleasure they shared.

“You look fucking gorgeous,” he purred against her mouth. “If any of those humans even look sideways at you, I’ll snuff them.”

“Snuff them?”

“Yeah. You know, like the godfather.” He grinned.

“I’m not sure that’s...” Sofia started as her phone began ringing. She wriggled, and Lance placed her back on her feet reluctantly.

“Better be important,” he mumbled, turning back to the mirror to straighten his suit. They were getting ready for the dinner tonight, and Lance was looking so damn sexy she didn’t want to leave the room.

Sofia lifted her phone and saw her brother’s name.

“ Ciao, Ben,” she greeted, happy to hear from him. They had been separated for over seventy years, and she loved having him back in her life. Not that she had seen much of him since she’d moved into the castle.

In fact, Sofia had sent him multiple invitations to join them for a meal, much to the chagrin of her mate, and so far, Ben had declined every single one in his own cheeky way.

They had met for dinner in Rome, where Lance had paced the footpath nearby, even when she had assured him she was safe with her own brother. And not just because Ben was her brother.

Her big brother was, well, huge.

Ben looked as big as one of the senior lieutenants in King Moretti’s army. He definitely hadn’t looked like that seventy years ago. He’d never been a slim, small male, but now, his body was toned and powerful. Even Sofia could see that.

She’d overheard discussions between Lance and Craig. They were worried. She didn’t understand why; it wasn’t like they were the only strong vampires on Earth. One day, she had finally snapped and told them to stop being dramatic, reminding them there were gyms in America where he could have gotten into shape.

“ No, Sofia, there aren’t ,” Craig had responded darkly. “ Not a warrior’s body like that. ”

“ It’s not just his body, Sofi. It’s the way he holds himself. He’s trained, ” Lance had added.

“ By fucking who, though? ” Craig had asked as if she wasn’t there.

She’d scoffed at them. “ Don’t tar Ben with being the enemy just because I was. He left. Seventy years ago, ” she had reminded them. “ He’s not part of the rebellion. It’s why he fell out with my father and left in the first place .”

“ That’s the problem ,” Craig had growled. “ We don’t think Ben is a member of the rebellion. But he’s also not with us. That’s the damn mystery. ”

Sofia had shaken her head and left them to their conspiracy theories.

She was just grateful to have Ben back in her life, especially after discovering her parents had been responsible for brainwashing her her entire life about the rebellion and had single-handedly sold her to the leader who had kidnapped her then attempted to rape her. Again.

Having a family member she trusted was important to Sofia, and she really wanted to believe she could trust him. She wasn’t being naive, but Ben had done nothing to show he was untrustworthy. In any case, it was her mate’s job to worry about the king’s safety, so she couldn’t blame him, but it didn’t mean he was right.

“ Hey, babycakes, how’s it going? ”

Sofia rolled her eyes and grinned at the very American greeting. He’d been away from Italy for far too long.

“It’s going good, thank you. We’re about to head to an event. Is everything okay?” she asked.

“ For sure. I was just wondering if the invite to visit was still open? ” Ben asked, and she could nearly see the dimples that would be on display by the cheeky tone in his voice.

Her face lit up.

Sofia poked her tongue out at Lance when he shook his head at her, his vampire hearing giving him full access to her private phone call.

“ Sì , yes, when?” she asked eagerly.

“ How’s tomorrow? I could pop by late evening .”

“Lovely. Great. Around ten?”

She was working but would be finished around that time and be able to spend a few hours with him. The thought of him coming to see her new home filled her heart. Their dinner had been short, and with Lance pacing outside, Sofia had been stressed. His twenty-five texts hadn’t helped. Having Ben at the castle meant Lance could relax knowing she was safe inside the walls. In theory.

The look on his face was making her wonder if her theory was a little off.

“ Perfect. I can’t wait to see where you live, Sofi. I hear it’s pretty big .” Ben laughed.

“Yes, you should see the mortgage I have on this place.” She grinned. Lance rolled his eyes, and she turned away, ignoring him. It was so fun to be joking around with her brother again. As kids, they had been close, but over time, they had grown apart.

She now understood why. Their father. Obviously, when Ben had shown signs of disagreeing with the rebellion, he had kept them apart.

Now they were free to reconnect and get to know one another again.

Ben laughed. “ See you tomorrow .”

Sofia put her phone down on the bed and turned to face the music.

“You’re not meeting with him alone,” Lance said, not missing a beat.

“Yes. I am,” she replied, crossing her arms. “If you ever want to have sex again.”

Lance raised his eyebrows at her.

“Seriously, what do you think is going to happen? He has to go through security— your security—and then he’ll be surrounded by Moretti soldiers. He’s my goddamn brother.” She shook her head. “You are being ridiculous.”

Lance let out a long sigh.

“You know what, do what you want. You’ll just watch us on the cameras or from the shadows anyway,” she sighed back at him.

Lance took her face in his hands. “Because I love you. It’s my job to protect you, and nothing you say will stop me from doing that. God, Sofia, if anything happened to you...”

She glanced down.

After what they had been through, what she had endured, she knew Lance was overly protective, even for a mated vampire.

“I know. But he’s my brother, Lance.” She looked back at him, need in her eyes. “I need my family, and he’s all I have.”

“Fuck,” he cursed, dropping his forehead to hers. They stood like that for a little while before he lifted his head and sighed again. “I’ll have to brief the team, and then it’s up to Craig to decide what happens from a security standpoint. That’s not my call. But I will give you some space with your brother if it’s within my power to do so.”

Neither of them had any control over that, Lance was right.

Sofia nodded and whispered thank you.

She knew Craig would make sure her brother was well aware he was being watched.

And intimidated.