Page 11 of Daddy's Friend’s Mate

He gritted his teeth, the sound making my skin crawl. “I’m only doing this for Steven. That’s it. He deserves to be able to rest without anyone trying to judge the situation.”

“Well, it won’t be easy with that attitude.”

His voice dropped to a dangerous baritone as his eyes narrowed. “Vampires are ruthless creatures, Regina. Do you know how many of them are still angry about the war? How are wolves still recovering their numbers?”

I shrank back.

Research told me those approximate percentages. Battles from that particular war had been unforgiving on both sides—and it wasn’t up to me to tell Eric how to feel about it. Because it was clear that what he experienced had done more damage than my words. Though currently, my words were, at the very least, something I could change. “I’m sorry, Eric. You’re right—it won’t be easy. I think that’s why my father wants me to go with you.”

His eyes softened, some of the anger drifting back. It didn’t quite disappear. It was just being saved for another day. “Alright, I get it.”

I smirked. “That’s all I get for my apology, huh?”

“That’s all you get.” He focused on the fireplace across from us, his sculpted cheek interrupted by part of a grin. “For now, that’s all. We’ll leave on Friday. You can bring your things inside and put them in the guest room upstairs.”

His tone told me I was in for a very long weekend.

Chapter 5 - Eric

The morning after Regina came to my door, I was too preoccupied with my suitcase to worry about the sound of the shower running from the guest suite. There was a woman in my house, in my guest bathroom, singing like she was preparing for an audition.

Honey-smooth tones as rich and pure as cane syrup drifted into my ears while I plopped shirts, jeans, and deodorant into the suitcase on my bed. Beside me, the windows streaked with light, radiant orange dashing into the room and slicing across the bed in a long, sharp triangle.

I glanced at the door. Beyond that threshold was a different world than the Zen-like getaway I had built in my room. We were about to travel the next morning to Athens, where we would have to face one of the oldest vampires on the east coast—one by the name of Ander.

That name had floated through plenty of my Marine shifter circles, and it usually came with another word, one that wolves, in particular, weren’t happy about hearing: fire.

Steven should have known. He should have been fully aware of that vampire’s capabilities. What was so special about this emerald pendant that it couldn’t be placed into the mail and sent with some extra magical wards surrounding it?

I turned around and headed for the closet in which the cherry-stained wooden box sat. Inside, the emerald pendant was safe. I lifted the lid again, staring into the cosmic scope that made it feel like I was peering into another dimension.

That bastard of the best bud had most certainly spelled this chest so that my fingerprints would unlock the padlock and activate a dirty spell that I couldn’t possibly resist, no matter my experience level with magic.

A spell that made it impossible not to think about taking the necklace to its rightful owner.

Not like I could do magic. What power I had resided in my body as a supernatural creature. That was the extent of my abilities. However, for humans, those abilities would certainly be considered magical for many reasons. Changing from human to beast, sprinting up to a hundred miles per hour, and scaling buildings were among my best skills

I scrubbed the bridge of my nose. “You jerk. You absolute fool.” Nothing but love accompanied my comments. With a grunt, I shut the box. “You know I hate vampires. Why did you do this to me?”

I heard the water cut off when I set the box in my suitcase. Regina continued to sing a mesmerizing tune that inspired me to close my eyes. Tendrils of affection wove into my awareness, the kind of arousing feelings that came with a tender mouth coasting my shoulder.

I shook my head like a wet dog.

She was my buddy’s daughter. There wasn’t a word written forbidding us from doing anything as consenting adults, but I knew there was a fine line with my own daughter. I didn’t want to sour their friendship with a passing fling. Yeah, Regina might go back to wherever she came from, but I’d have to live across the street from my daughter.

For however long that lasted, anyway.

When the singing ceased, I hauled air into my lungs and shut my suitcase. One more night until we had to leave for a weekend of gambling with our lives.

Didn’t witches get tired of being in danger all the time?

***

After waiting around on the porch for twenty minutes, Regina finally made her appearance accompanied by the scent of clove and ginger. She waltzed out into the sunny afternoon—because late morning had turned into after noon by the time she was ready—wearing a pair of black cotton flares that hugged her curvy waist, a skintight red blouse with a yellow carnation painted on the front, and a rainbow shawl that she wrapped snuggly around her shoulders.

Loose curls of lavender draped around her shoulders as her gray eyes landed on me. A dash of amethyst sparked in her pupils, then disappeared like it had never happened. I blinked a few times, frowning when I scratched the back of my neck.

“I thought you, uh…” I grunted curiously. “Thought your curls were tighter than that.”

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