18. Maeyve

Upon our return to the cabin, the scent of leather and tarragon hit my nose. I held the door open for Anevae and lingered outside, searching for the source.

Anevae watched me with curiosity in her gaze but didn"t comment as she stepped inside to find the watering cans. I continued sniffing at the air, on high alert for the intruder. By the time Anevae returned to me with the watering cans, I still hadn"t located anything or anyone unusual.

She attempted to hand me one, but I took both watering cans from her. "Why don"t you head inside? I can take these to the garden plots and water them carefully for you. I"ll meet you back inside shortly."

"O-okay. Thank you." Her brow furrowed as I kissed her on the temple and stepped back toward the plots.

The scent was so faint that I had a hard time picking up on it. The other smells—the dirt on my hands, the grass beneath my feet, the pine trees surrounding the cabin—were all so much stronger that they drowned out the smell of the being.

On constant alert, I watered the plants precisely as Anevae had instructed and placed the cans aside. Glancing back toward the greenhouse, I saw that Anevae had gone inside the cabin itself. Relieved, I considered my options: chase down the source of the smell and leave Anevae here—alone and unprotected—or go inside and stand guard for the rest of the night. A twig snapped just inside the tree line as I stood there. Whipping my head toward the source of the sound, I caught the outline of a man about twenty feet ahead of me.

Without another thought, I ripped off my clothes and shifted into my fox form, sprinting into the woods after him. He was fast—so fast I struggled to keep up with him. I jumped over fallen trees and large rocks until we came to a clearing, where he abruptly stopped and turned to face me.

Skidding to a halt, I bared my teeth and growled at the man. He was fairly tall, a couple inches over six foot, lean and muscular. His chiseled face was mostly hidden by a short, well-groomed beard and his black hair had been slicked back but trimmed short on the sides. Hissing at me, his full lips pulled back to reveal gleaming white teeth and elongated sharp canines. He was a vampire, and he had his deep red eyes fixed on me. Shit. What the hell was a vampire doing out here? Why was he running from me?

"Hello, little fox. Maeyve, is it?" the vampire asked, cocking his head to the side.

I snarled. How the fuck does he know my name?Who the fuck is this vampire?

"Ooh. My suspicions were correct, and I struck a nerve. I"ve been watching you and trying to figure out who you are; now I know. Madam Tanith will be pleased to learn that her most prized possession is still alive."

Inching forward, I barked at him.

He laughed before continuing, "You seem a little infatuated with her, following her like some sort of love-sick puppy. It"s pathetic. I hate to be the one to tell you this, little fox, but she"s not yours to have. If you know what"s best for you both, you"ll leave her be. I"ll gladly speak with Madam Tanith to tell her you"re alive and well… In the human realm, nonetheless. Anyway, I better be going. This sun isn"t good for my complexion. Buh-bye Maeyve."

Smirking, he darted in the direction of the portal. I followed him to make sure he returned to Caellaias and didn"t come back. I sat there for several minutes, watching the portal and thinking about what he said. What did he know about her?What did he know about me? How did he know about Madam Tanith? I wouldn"t go back there; I couldn"t. It"d been over fifty years since I"d escaped her. I needed to figure out what kind of being Anevae was and why the damn vampire was watching us.

When I reached my clothes, they were soaking wet and covered in mud. Shit. Scooping them up, I went back into the woods so I could shift back into my human form. I shifted behind the cover of a tree and rushed back to the greenhouse.

Entering, I quietly closed the door behind me. After the soft click, I cracked open the cabin door and hollered, "Anevae, I"ve gotta run home to get some more clothes—the ones I was wearing got all wet and muddy. And, of course, I don"t have any others here right now. I"ll be back shortly."

"Oh no! I"m sorry. I hope I didn"t fill the watering cans too full for you. I"ll be here. I might run upstairs to document this experiment before I forget absolutely everything."

Closing the door, I went back outside and shifted again. I returned to where I"d left my clothes and picked them up to take home.

After my encounter with the vampire, I had no plans to leave Anevae alone. Fuck his threat of exposing me to Madam Tanith. If she had really cared, she would have come looking for me a lot sooner. While at home, I needed to gather more clothes and other essentials so I could stay at Anevae"s for a while. The vampire couldn"t enter the house unless he was invited, but that didn"t make me feel any more comfortable leaving her alone.

About five minutes later, I walked up the steps to Anevae"s front porch in fresh clothes, with a duffle bag slung over my shoulder and a bag of groceries in hand. As I knocked on the door, I surveyed the area for threats, but the vampire was long gone.

"Are you planning to stay for a while?" Anevae asked, chuckling as she opened the door.

"Maybe. Is that okay?" I asked, concern lacing my voice.

"Of course! I love having you around. Did you seriously bring some of your groceries with you?"

My face flushed with embarrassment when I realized how much I had actually brought with me. "I don"t want things to go bad, and I also want to contribute since I"ll clearly be eating here with you."

Sauntering inside, I headed to the kitchen. I placed everything on the counter and then put away all the groceries I had brought. Anevae scooped up my toiletries and clothes to take upstairs.

My stomach growled as I scoured the cabinets and fridge for lunch ideas. I found all the ingredients for grilled cheese and tomato soup, so I rounded them up, pulled down a pan, and got started.

When Anevae walked in, she took a big whiff and smiled. "How is it that you know so many of the things I love without even asking?"

Grinning, I responded, "I didn"t know this was something you enjoyed. I guess I just have the intuition to know what you like. Help me out with this soup while I make the sandwiches. Please?" Looking over at her, I batted my eyelashes.

Giggling, she picked up the spoon to start stirring the soup. We stood there in silence for a few moments. I glanced at her every few seconds and admired how thoroughly she concentrated on her task. Her lips were pursed, and her eyebrows furrowed.

When she noticed I was staring, she furrowed her eyebrows further. "What?"

"You"re adorable when you"re concentrating," I whispered.

"You"re supposed to be paying attention to our sandwiches. Don"t let mine burn!"

Chuckling, I refocused on my task. After the last one was golden brown, I placed two sandwiches on each plate and retrieved bowls for the soup. Anevae took them from me and poured a ladle full in each bowl.

When everything was plated, we sat in silence and ate. After eating my last bit of food, I pushed my dishes forward slightly, then put my chin in my hand and watched Anevae.

"What would you like to do for the rest of the day?" I asked quietly.

"I"m not sure. I"d love to start more of my experiments in the greenhouse, but I don"t have to now. I already wrote down the important stuff for the one I started outside, so I won"t have to worry about that until I check everything in the next few days. What would you like to do?"

"I"ll do anything as long as it means being with you. I"d just rather stay inside. I think we"re going to get some rain later. The sky was looking a little dark when I got back," I lied.

"Well, come help me in the greenhouse, and then maybe we can come back inside and watch some more movies."

"Sounds like a plan. Let"s clean up these dishes first."