About a Vampire by Lynsay Sands Page A

a bit of a nag, or your father was anal and sometimes seemed to care more about a bunch of bones than he did the living breathing women in his life?”
    Holly’s eyes widened. “You read my mind,” she realized and breathed out a little sigh before admitting, “Yes, I’ve thought both those things . . . and I guess they would be hurtful to my parents.” She grimaced and added, “And I suppose they may have had the occasional unpleasant thought about me too.”
    Gia smiled faintly and shrugged. “No one’s perfect. We all have moments when we’re stubborn, or selfish, or act like a spoiled brat. ­People who truly love us know this, and love us despite it. The ones who ignore those tendencies and pretend we’re perfect don’t really see us at all, they see what they want us to be . . . and that’s not really love. Anyway,” she added, standing up and smiling now. “Enough of this serious business. We should see you changed and take you downstairs. Justin and the boys are waiting for you to wake up before deciding what to do about dinner.”
    â€œThe boys?” Holly asked uncertainly.
    â€œAnders and Decker are here too.”
    â€œRight,” Holly breathed with a frown. She didn’t recognize either name.
    â€œThey work with Justin,” Gia explained. “Lucian dropped you all off before heading home to Leigh and the bambini.”
    Holly thought bambini might mean “baby.” She had no idea who Lucian and Leigh were though. Frankly, she didn’t much care either. She was too busy being relieved that Justin was there, and at the same time confused by that relief. He was mostly a stranger too.
    â€œBambini means babies,” Gia explained, turning to head for the door as she continued, “Lucian and Leigh have twins. And of course Justin is here. You are his life mate. He turned you. It is his job to train you to survive as one of us.”
    â€œRight . . . as a vampire,” Holly muttered. Standing to follow her, she asked. “So, you can read my mind because you’re one?”
    â€œOf course. So are the boys,” Gia said on a laugh.
    â€œSo is this a . . . er . . . like a hive of vampires? You all live together and . . .” She let the question trail off because Gia had paused at the door and turned back, chuckling at the suggestion.
    â€œNo. This is not a hive, as you call it. This house belongs to Lucian’s nephew, Vincent Argeneau. He and his wife, Jackie, are out of town and I offered to house-­sit.”
    â€œOh.” Holly tilted her head. “So why are the rest of us here?”
    â€œAh.” Gia wrinkled her nose. “Well, Lucian was going to take you back home to Canada for your training, but—­”
    â€œCanada!” Holly squawked with horror. She’d simply assumed she was still in California, but the mention of Canada made her wonder.
    â€œYou are still in California,” Gia assured her.
    â€œOh,” Holly murmured, wishing the woman would stop this mind-­reading business. She let that thought go as she realized that Gia had said “back home to Canada.” The words seemed to suggest that Justin and the others were just visiting California, that they hailed from Canada. Weather aside, it was hard to believe vampires came from there. Canadians were known for being so polite, so . . . nice. Heck, James liked to joke that if America ever invaded Canada, Canadians would probably apologize for being in their way. It seemed the unlikeliest place for vampires to come from.
    When a burst of laughter slipped from Gia’s lips, Holly realized the woman must still be reading her thoughts, and flushed with embarrassment.
    â€œWell,” Gia said with amusement. “Vampires, or immortals as we prefer to be called, aren’t exactly from Canada. I mean they didn’t originate there, though that