and relocate to another part of the country,” he continued. “And as for vampires, I see that with some of our kind, even honest misunderstandings might prove fatal. Although I’m interested to hear if reasonable restitution might be possible in my case.”
She nodded imperceptibly and sat forward on the edge of the couch, allowing herself easy access to the combat knife hidden at the small of her back beneath her leather jacket. The time had come to make a decision.
“Devon, I appreciate your taking the time to tell me a little about yourself,” she acknowledged politely. “And I can honestly say you have an intriguing and compelling life story.”
He tensed slightly and quipped, “At least I was able to recite it out loud one last time, if nothing else.”
The corners of her mouth upturned slightly in amusement. “There may be an opportunity to recite it again to others, if we can reach an agreement.”
His eyebrows rose slightly. “What did you have in mind, exactly?”
“You seem to be well versed in security, so your skills might be helpful to me from time to time,” she suggested tentatively. “I may need for you to check into concerns within the pockets of territories that I plan to claim. There may also be times when Caleb might need some additional assistance in the area of personal security.”
He adopted a slightly amused expression. “Somehow, I think your mate may not be pleased to hear that right now.”
“Very true, I’m afraid,” she admitted. “But I preside over matters concerning his security, either with or without his acceptance. And not everything has to be done so overtly or even within his spectrum of awareness.”
The large-framed vampire seemed intrigued by that statement. “Would I need to take orders from Caleb?”
Katrina’s eyes narrowed. “Within reason, of course, though never when they countermand my explicit instructions. But no matter the instructions, one rule is paramount: he must be protected or defended at the expense of any other objectives.”
“Your mate means a great deal to you,” he observed respectfully.
“He’s everything to me,” she stated flatly. “Above all other concerns, goals, or interests.”
Devon nodded with comprehension, but frowned with some confusion. “I think I get the picture. Now, pardon me if what I’m about to ask seems odd. But if that’s true, and if he likely hates me right now for attacking him, why am I not dead already? Though, not that I’m complaining or anything, you understand.”
Katrina fell silent as she considered his pertinent question. “You might be surprised to learn I don’t have a precise answer for you on that right now. However, rest assured that I’m prepared to reconcile any incongruities in my logic as I deem necessary,” she stipulated.
The broad-shouldered vampire appeared slightly unnerved by her statement and arched an eyebrow in surprise.
“Suffice to say that, in all honesty, I thought there was something about you that merited further investigation,” she continued. “And yet, your continued longevity strongly depends upon your sense of personal integrity and in not proving me to be mistaken in my leniency.”
His eyes widened. “Just before you arrived tonight, I checked my email, and I had received a message from another vampire who explained she had been seeking me out to perform a background check on your behalf. I believed her only because of the warning in her message.”
“Warning?” Katrina asked with an arched eyebrow.
Devon nodded. “Yes. I thought it rather strange, because her message emphasized you were an alpha. She suggested you’re quite experienced at killing both humans and vampires. She recommended I accept any reasonable offer made to me and stated that if I weren’t on my best behavior for our meeting, I probably wouldn’t live through the night,” he recalled warily. “She also had a nickname for you,” he added with a hint of
She nodded imperceptibly and sat forward on the edge of the couch, allowing herself easy access to the combat knife hidden at the small of her back beneath her leather jacket. The time had come to make a decision.
“Devon, I appreciate your taking the time to tell me a little about yourself,” she acknowledged politely. “And I can honestly say you have an intriguing and compelling life story.”
He tensed slightly and quipped, “At least I was able to recite it out loud one last time, if nothing else.”
The corners of her mouth upturned slightly in amusement. “There may be an opportunity to recite it again to others, if we can reach an agreement.”
His eyebrows rose slightly. “What did you have in mind, exactly?”
“You seem to be well versed in security, so your skills might be helpful to me from time to time,” she suggested tentatively. “I may need for you to check into concerns within the pockets of territories that I plan to claim. There may also be times when Caleb might need some additional assistance in the area of personal security.”
He adopted a slightly amused expression. “Somehow, I think your mate may not be pleased to hear that right now.”
“Very true, I’m afraid,” she admitted. “But I preside over matters concerning his security, either with or without his acceptance. And not everything has to be done so overtly or even within his spectrum of awareness.”
The large-framed vampire seemed intrigued by that statement. “Would I need to take orders from Caleb?”
Katrina’s eyes narrowed. “Within reason, of course, though never when they countermand my explicit instructions. But no matter the instructions, one rule is paramount: he must be protected or defended at the expense of any other objectives.”
“Your mate means a great deal to you,” he observed respectfully.
“He’s everything to me,” she stated flatly. “Above all other concerns, goals, or interests.”
Devon nodded with comprehension, but frowned with some confusion. “I think I get the picture. Now, pardon me if what I’m about to ask seems odd. But if that’s true, and if he likely hates me right now for attacking him, why am I not dead already? Though, not that I’m complaining or anything, you understand.”
Katrina fell silent as she considered his pertinent question. “You might be surprised to learn I don’t have a precise answer for you on that right now. However, rest assured that I’m prepared to reconcile any incongruities in my logic as I deem necessary,” she stipulated.
The broad-shouldered vampire appeared slightly unnerved by her statement and arched an eyebrow in surprise.
“Suffice to say that, in all honesty, I thought there was something about you that merited further investigation,” she continued. “And yet, your continued longevity strongly depends upon your sense of personal integrity and in not proving me to be mistaken in my leniency.”
His eyes widened. “Just before you arrived tonight, I checked my email, and I had received a message from another vampire who explained she had been seeking me out to perform a background check on your behalf. I believed her only because of the warning in her message.”
“Warning?” Katrina asked with an arched eyebrow.
Devon nodded. “Yes. I thought it rather strange, because her message emphasized you were an alpha. She suggested you’re quite experienced at killing both humans and vampires. She recommended I accept any reasonable offer made to me and stated that if I weren’t on my best behavior for our meeting, I probably wouldn’t live through the night,” he recalled warily. “She also had a nickname for you,” he added with a hint of
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