Page 129 of Filthy Rich Vampires: For Eternity

“—to save me,” he pointed out.

“—I stole our future. I stole your future.”

“There is no future for me without you,” he vowed and I knew he meant it.

“You might change your mind after a few centuries. I hear vampires often do,” I teased, trying to lighten the mood.

But Julian growled, lunging forward to capture my lips in a fierce kiss that told me exactly what he thought of my joke. After a moment, his mouth softened into something more like a promise as though he needed to not only erase any doubt I had but also replace it with the truth.

When we finally broke apart, he rested his forehead against mine. “Forever with you would not be long enough for me.”

“Good thing we have eternity,” I murmured.

For a moment, we stayed like that, lost in each other’s embrace, lost in the realization that we had forever—so long as one of us drew breath.

Finally, Julian pulled away and stood up, offering me his hand. “If we’ve got forever. We should probably start sorting our shit out now.” His small grin made my heart leap. Guilt still shadowed his eyes, but it was a start. “I guess we need to talk to my family.”

I nodded, my fingers tightening around his, but I only made it one step when something hit me. “Your mother.”

Julian went absolutely still.

“She knows.” I’d been too overwhelmed to process that earlier.

“The others will, too,” he told me gently. “They’ll be able to smell it. Maybe hear the heartbeat.”

“I guess eternity doesn’t come with any privacy,” I grumbled. This time he actually laughed, and the last of the heaviness between us lifted.

He followed behind me on the stairs, still protective despite what we’d learned. As soon as we reached the deck, we heard raised voices.

“Oh good, they’re fighting. How novel.”

Julian didn’t say anything; rather he stayed close to my side. A wary energy pulsed from him, stronger than ever before even as he tried to check it. “If things get violent.” He paused to draw in a deep breath before turning to face me. “I don’t want to tell you what to do.”

“But the baby,” I voiced what he didn’t say, and he nodded. Pushing up on my tiptoes, I offered him my lips one more time before we joined the others. His mouth slanted over mine, the kiss swift but scorching. I sighed as he straightened back up.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“Just wondering if it’s normal to be this turned on by you acting like a badass daddy.”

A low growl rumbled through him and my knees went weak. “I apologize in advance if I act a little...”

“It’s okay,” I said, pressing one hand to my stomach. “I feel the same way. If someone tried to hurt...” I practically choked on the words just thinking about it.

His head bowed once in solemn agreement. “When I find out who gave those orders, they’re dead,” he said, the words barely a whisper despite their lethal promise.

I didn’t try to change his mind.

“Do they know who it was?” I asked as we finally made our way to the large sitting area on the outer deck. Wind battered us as the boat sped toward some unknown destination. Before he could answer me, we were surrounded.

“Thank the Gods!” Jacqueline rushed us, throwing her arms around my neck. She pulled away just far enough to clasp my forearms with her gloved hands. “Thea, are you...” She trailed away in wonder, looking to both of us in turn.

I lifted my eyes to Sabine, surprised she hadn’t spilled the news. Her face remained completely unreadable.

“What?” Sebastian ambled over, a bottle of whisky in one hand. But as soon as he got nearer, a wide grin split his face. “I guess it’s official. You’re off the market.”

“I’ve been off the market for months,” Julian said sourly.

But Sebastian elbowed him, the gesture one of purely masculine posturing. “I meant Thea.”

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