He closed his eyes, resigned to the intrusion of the outside world.
She lay next to him later that night, curled peacefully into his side as he read a book before dawn. She’d not had another disturbing dream since the night he had woken her and taken her to his bed; she had slept there every night since.
He thought about a quote from Aristotle he’d never paid much attention to until more recent months. “‘Love,’” he whispered in Italian, “‘is a single soul inhabiting two bodies.’”
He stared at her, wondering if it was so simple, watching in fascination as her eyelids flickered with dreams, and a small smile played at the corner of her mouth.
She still said her father’s name often, and he wished he had more answers for her. Stephen De Novo remained impressively elusive, despite Giovanni’s most persistent inquiries. He had to admire the young vampire’s skills in remaining hidden. He had evaded Lorenzo for years, and even now, remained stubbornly out of Giovanni’s reach. He knew he would not stop looking for him, if only to let the vampire know that his daughter knew about him and wanted to find him.
“Gio?” she murmured and reached for him as she slept. Setting his book to the side, he slid down and took her into his arms, wondering again how he would ever let her go.
Two days later, they sat next to each other as the plane flew north to land at the small private airfield where Beatrice had left Houston over two months before.
“And my grandma and Caspar are at your house?” she asked, clasping his hand in her own.
“Yes, and Carwyn and Tenzin, as well.”
“And none of his people are going to come after me?”
“We killed most of them. My negotiations in Rome and Athens should have secured your safety from the rest of his allies.”
She nodded quickly, but tightened her grip.
“He’s not dead though, is he?”
He felt his fangs fall. “No, I suspect he will be recovering for some time, but he still has resources.”
“And he’ll come after me again. To get to my father.”
He tilted her chin up so she would meet his gaze. “I’ll kill him before he gets to you.”
She may have nodded, but Giovanni could see the infuriating doubt lingering in her eyes. She leaned her head on his shoulder, and held onto him for the rest of the flight.
His stomach dropped when the plane landed, but it wasn’t from any turbulence. She stood as the plane came to a halt, but he grabbed her hand before she could exit.
Pushing her up against the door, he leaned down and kissed her. He felt the current of desperation run through him, but he held fast, clutching her back and gripping the nape of her neck. He forced himself to back away, suppressing his instinct to bite and claim her when he saw her red swollen lips and the desire that lit her eyes.
“Gio-”
“We should go,” he breathed out. “Now, tesoro, before I tell the plane to take us back.”
“I want-”
“Your grandmother, Beatrice,” he growled. “She’s waiting for us outside.”
She bit her lip and her eyes narrowed in anger when she picked up the small leather case he had bought for her in Puerto Montt. She pushed past him and opened the thick door that shielded the plane’s sealed compartment.
He closed his eyes, burying his frustration and breathing slowly until he regained his self-control. By the time he left the plane, Beatrice was wrapped in Isadora’s fierce embrace as Caspar watched them with tears in the corners of his eyes.
“Gio,” Caspar said as he strode toward him and embraced his old friend. “It’s such a relief to see you both.”
“Is everyone at the house?” he asked as he patted Caspar’s back.
“Tenzin and Carwyn are both out hunting. They’ll be back before dawn, but you need to rest. Have you fed-”
“I’m fine. We’ll go back to the house. Tomorrow is soon enough to meet with them.”
“Isadora has been staying at the house with me.”
He nodded. “Of course, my friend. Of course.”
They drove to the house and Beatrice sat next to him in the back of the car, keeping her hands carefully folded in her lap. When they arrived, Caspar and Isadora retired to his apartment, and Beatrice and Giovanni went upstairs. Beatrice went to her old room as he slowly climbed the stairs to his. He peeled off his rumpled shirt, petting Doyle as the cat curled around his legs in welcome.
“Hello, Doyle,” he murmured as he bent down to pet the cat. He sat on the edge of the bed in his outer room and inhaled the familiar scents of Houston.
Caspar had left a window open to air out his room and he could smell the faint scent of honeysuckle drift in on the breeze.
Giovanni closed his eyes when he heard her footsteps on the stairs. He sat hunched over, his elbows leaning on his knees as she entered his room and came to stand in front of him. He sighed when he felt her small hands stroke his hair, run down his neck, and trace his shoulders as he lay his cheek against her and put his arms around her waist.
“Beatrice-”
“One night, Gio. One more night?” she asked softly as she placed her hand on his cheek, holding him against her. He closed his eyes for a moment and nodded. Finally looking up to meet her dark gaze, he pulled her into his lap and framed her face with his hands, searching her eyes before he kissed her. Their lips sparked when they met, and he could feel the heat rising on his skin, but he couldn’t pull his mouth away, or stop his hands from pressing her closer as she moved against him.
Standing up, he carried her into the small room where he spent his days, and laid her on the narrow bed.
“One more night,” he whispered before he shut the door.
The following evening, Giovanni, Beatrice, Carwyn and Tenzin gathered in the library. The priest and the small woman greeted her warmly, though Beatrice was annoyed Tenzin didn’t even pretend to be sorry about using her amnis to knock her out in Athens.
“You needed to go. You’re better now.”
“And you knew this? Or you were just being domineering?”
The tiny woman shrugged. “I knew
Beatrice narrowed her eyes. “Are you always this arrogant?”
“No,” Carwyn muttered. “Usually she’s much worse.”
“At least I don’t have the arrogance to believe there is only one god, priest.”
“But you do have the arrogance to believe that fate dictates-”
“Hush,” Giovanni broke in. “I doubt Beatrice wants to listen to your old argument.”
He had been sitting in one of the armchairs, sipping a glass of whiskey as he watched the three of them gather around the large library table in the center of the room.
She noticed that both Carwyn and Tenzin looked disappointed to be distracted from their debate. Beatrice pushed back her own smile and hopped on the edge of the table to sit cross-legged as Giovanni watched her from his chair.
“Catch us up,” she said. “What did we miss?”
“Well, other than a sale at the Tommy Bahama store-don’t worry, Gio, I helped myself to your safe when I ran out of cash-most of the big excitement is old news.”
“Did you find Scalia?” Beatrice asked. She had briefed Carwyn on the professor’s role in her abduction while they were on the boat to the Greek mainland, and he had promised he would look into the professor’s background.
