8. Claude

EIGHT

CLAUDE

C laude felt like he was floating as he drove off to Aria's house. The sex rattled off in his mind like a stunning orchestra, painting images with vivid reimagining. Claude had his fair share of dalliances and escapades—but nothing as intense and primal as it had been with Leigh.

Vampires were thirsty not only for blood, but for everything else that felt divinely pleasurable. With their long lifespans, sometimes sex grew dull. For some, it became as customary as picking up fast food. A good fuck each day, but nothing nutritional, nothing that really stuck to your bones.

Leigh really was sticking to Claude's bones. The way she moved with him was like a harmonious, dark dance. Her cries of rapture when she reached her climax. He wanted to hear it again, to feel the sounds rumble from the depths of her diaphragm, through that beautiful throat.

He wanted more of her, and soon. Claude was insatiable for the wolf woman, which struck him as concerning when he considered it with a clear mind. But every part of his body ached for her, making it difficult to take the very obvious issues seriously.

Seeing Kim with her jaw hanging open and canines glistening under the swinging lamp had ignited something in him. It had taken everything within his self-control to keep from killing her. He knew the situation. Her mate was dead, and she was furious. Furious with grief.

Killing her would have caused a tidal wave of bullshit. And an internal conflict between vampires was the last thing he needed, especially when trying to mend fences between his own kind and the wolves.

She had fled fast enough for him to let her go. The sight of Leigh, defenseless but snarling and ready for a fight to the death had stolen all of his attention.

She was utterly riveting. The sex that followed engulfed him.

But then the haze of lust had dissipated. But only slightly. Claude was a practical man and knew that with everything he had on his plate, he had to delegate, and he had to delegate efficiently.

First, he had to talk to Aria about Kim. Warn her and seek counsel.

He drove through yet another dreary day in Blue Creek, the grass lush with moisture, flowers sprouting with the promise of spring. He was showing up unannounced, but that wasn't uncommon for him. Aria was his cousin, after all, a powerful leader of his kind, and he was working directly under her leadership.

Plus, it wasn't a conversation he wanted to have over the phone. So he pulled into the driveway of the magnificent mansion, appropriately embellished in Gothic architecture and ruminating gargoyles perching overhead.

When Claude rang the doorbell, it wasn't one of Aria's housekeepers that answered. It was Trevan, Aria's mate.

He internally cringed as a mist of rain rolled in by the hillside.

"Claude," Trevan said with a faint, polite smile. "What brings you here at this hour?"

Claude didn't think it was too late or too early. He frowned and peered at his watch.

"This hour?"

Trevan's smile grew bigger. Claude wasn't one for sarcasm. He found it wasted time. Trevan seemed to be teeming with it, and it often made their interactions clunky.

"It's a joke. No, it's fine, but Aria is asleep. This third trimester is really kicking her ass."

"Oh."

Claude shifted from one foot to the other and considered disappearing until Aria was well enough to chat. But then he thought about Leigh and remembered that Trevan was half-vampire, half-wolf. That, along with Aria's encouragement to aid in the merging of wolf and vampire relations, made him think again.

"You can come in, if you'd like. I just made some tea. It's a chilly one this morning."

Claude stifled a grunt, then took a step inside. He would try to ingratiate himself with the wolf, for Aria, and for Leigh.

"I came here to speak with Aria about something in particular," Claude said while Trevan closed the door behind him. "If she's resting, then perhaps we can talk."

Trevan could not conceal his shock. Claude consciously ignored it as they sailed into the kitchen together, where tea was indeed brewing in an olive green teapot. Next to it were freshly cut lemon slices.

"Lemon?" Trevan said.

Claude nodded, then shoved his hands into his pockets. Trevan quietly poured each of them a mug of steaming hot orange pekoe, then squeezed a hint of lemon into each with vigor. There was an awkwardness to the silence of the giant home, but Claude forced himself to push through it.

"Sugar?"

"No, thank you."

"Milk?"

"Lemon works for me," Claude said.

He took the mug and saucer from Trevan, then leaned up against the kitchen counter. Trevan stayed where he was, stirring a comically small silver spoon. He was still smiling with a smugness that bothered Claude.

The silver clinked obnoxiously against the glassware.

"I know you aren't much of a talker," Trevan said, breaking the silence. "Aria says so. But I'm here and listening. Have a go. Let's see what I can do."

Claude held the mug and saucer in front of his face, blowing at the steam. He spoke while gazing down into the reddish-brown liquid as if scrying.

"I have been asked to oversee the reconstruction of Embraced. I'm sure Aria has told you that. And I'm working with a wolf. I'm sure you knew that too."

Claude could see Trevan nodding in his peripheral vision. He went on, treading carefully.

"While I was there, a vampire named Kim showed up. She didn't seem very fond of the idea of wolves and vampires working together. She attacked the woman I was working with. She's fine, but if I wasn't there, I'm not sure what would have happened."

Claude gazed up at the wolf-vampire just in time to see the smug expression fall away like an autumn leaf. He turned somber, lifting the mug up to his lips, and muttered.

"Kim is Damon's widow," Trevan explained. "When Damon died, Kim disappeared. No one could find her. We would have reached out to her otherwise. That was nasty, nasty business."

"Indeed."

Silence hung like a heavy shroud between them. Claude had no interest in excavating the past or making Trevan feel guilty. He placed the mug on the island of marble between them and laid his palms flat against the cool surface.

"Aria needs to know. Kim fled before I had time to confront her. So if you could pass that along…"

Trevan nodded, his eyes glassy.

"I will. Thank you for coming, Claude."

Claude considered leaving, feeling his own wave of guilt for bringing up the necessary deed of taking out Damon. But then something else rose in his mind, so he went for it.

"Trevan, there's one more thing."

A diluted version of the shock that had moved over Trevan's face when he'd first arrived rippled over the wolf-vampire, then disappeared just as fast. His voice that time seemed genuine and compassionate.

"Anything for family," he said.

"How are things with Aria? Living life with a vampire leader like this?"

Claude waited for him to scowl, but that didn't happen. Instead, he was met with a blank stare.

"Things? In what capacity?"

"You are half-wolf, half-vampire. You spent most of your life loathing us. Now you're mated to one of the most influential and powerful of our kind. What allowed you to do that?"

Trevan sipped at his tea, and Claude felt a stab of impatience. He guzzled all of it down, then placed both the mug and saucer in the sink. He turned, leaning against the kitchen counter.

"Love is a mystical thing, isn't it? As mystical as you and I. Maybe even more so. It can help you heal from old wounds in ways you never thought possible. That was what it was like with Aria and me. Loving her is the best thing I've ever done."

Trevan was clearly smitten, and Claude was happy for his cousin. He could also recognize the feeling he exuded when one thinks about their fated mate—a delicate but robust sensation that is both disarming, and tantalizing.

A thrill ride you never want to escape from.

"Thank you," Claude said, finishing off his tea. "Sorry to intrude on your day. Please let Aria know I visited and relay the information about Kim, if you would."

"I will."

Claude waited for Trevan to ask about his line of questioning, but instead, he merely thanked him for his visit. There would be time later, once he talked to Aria perhaps, to consider the entire matehood concept with Leigh—-if he was ever ready to consider it himself.

Trevan led Claude to the front door and watched him as he climbed into his car. The wolf waved at him as the mist faded, that fool-in-love, dumbstruck smile still plastered on his face.

Claude drove off into the growing daylight. He squeezed the steering wheel, his mind back on Leigh. He wasn't accustomed to such strong, delightful feelings, not only as a vampire but also as a man who naturally clung to the shadows. Telling Leigh about how he felt wasn't on the table, not even within the same vicinity, but he had to confront it himself. That way, he could figure out what his next move would be.

Reconstructing Embraced and re-opening the establishment was the goal. But how much would Leigh get in the way of that? And what if he really didn't mind if she did?

If it meant them doing what they'd done the day before, there was no way he could resist.