Page 70 of Filthy Rich Vampires: For Eternity

And as much as I wanted her—and I fucking wanted her—I knew I had to stop. I tore myself away, placing several feet of distance between us. Lia panted, her eyes wide with hurt.

“I can’t do this,” I told her. “I won’t.”

“Because we’re enemies?” she murmured.

That wasn’t the reason. It wasn’t even on the list. “Because,” I admitted in a low voice that made her squirm, “I won’t be able to stop.”

“I’ll stop you,” she said huskily.

I didn’t try to hide my smirk. Not now that I knew she wanted me as badly as I wanted her. “That’s the problem, Lia. You won’t.”

And maybe she knew I was right. Maybe she hated that I said it, but she didn’t so much as look me in the eye before she turned and left me standing there—more wound up than ever.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

JULIAN

“I don’t like it.”

A letter summoning Thea to an audience with the Vampire Council had arrived late last night. We’d been debating how to respond ever since. Or rather, I’d been debating while she patiently resisted all attempts to convince her it was a bad idea.

“You said that before.” Thea rolled out of bed, crossing to the armoire. She took a plum-colored robe from it. Slipping the silky garment onto her slight frame, she tied it loosely. “But I don’t think we have a choice. Not if we want answers.”

I looked at the paper in my hands, my eyes skimming the scrawling handwriting of the summons. “The Vampire Council has no authority to summon a Queen,” I reminded her. “Going will set a precedent telling them otherwise.”

The letter had arrived by courier just after dawn. I’d been annoyed when I was called from my bed to receive it, but I’d been murderous when I realized what it was about. The Council had demanded an audience with Thea this afternoon.

After what we’d learned from Kelly, I doubted this summons was as simple as a meeting between a new Queen and the vampire powers-that-be. If they suspected what the sirens did—that Thea and I carried the divine spark of some long-gone, but still pains-in-my-ass, Gods—this was an attempt to confirm their theory. Or worse, a trap. The vampires had killed all the sirens to avoid this very outcome, even if we didn’t understand why. Even with my mother on the Council, I knew they wouldn’t hesitate to assassinate anyone who stood in their way.

“You don’t have to go. You don’t answer to them,” I said in a strained voice.

She flopped onto the bed and reached out for the letter. I passed it to her, but instead of reading it, she balled it up and tossed it across the room. “I’m going,” she said firmly, and I tensed. “I know it’s dangerous. Don’t think I can’t hear you worrying.” She tapped her head to remind me my thoughts were always laid bare to her. “I know all the reasons to be careful, but we aren’t going into this blindly. You’re forgetting that we have one advantage over them.”

I lifted an eyebrow.

Thea’s lips curved into a dazzling smile. “They don’t know that we know about the Gods.” She paused, and her smile fell. “Not that I’m sure I’m buying everything my mother told us.”

For days that had been the source of our debate in her quarters. We hadn’t bothered to leave them as we discussed and researched until we were exhausted. When we reached that point, we reached for each other and stole moments of peace, our bodies joined. After her disastrous first appointment at court, everyone was lying low, her sister-queens included. That had bought us time but not answers.

“Do you think she lied to us?” I asked.

Thea shook her head and beckoned me closer. I moved toward the bed and kneeled before her. “I think she struggles with the truth. She’s been keeping things from me for so long, how couldn’t she?” She brushed her fingers down my cheek. “I know this freaks you out, but the Council might hold the key to all of this — and understanding this is the key to our future. They could give us the one piece my mom may have held back. I have to go.”

“Fine.” Between Jacqueline, Aurelia, and I, we could hold our own, even amongst some of the world’s oldest pureblooded vampires. “When do we leave?”

“It’s not your job to protect me.” She brushed a strand of hair from my forehead. “It’s your job to love me, so I need you to stay calm while I’m gone.”

“While you’re gone?” I repeated. “Thea, you aren’t going alone.”

“The invitation is for me,” she started.

“It’s not an invitation,” I growled. You aren’t serious.

“I am. They need to respect me.”

“I thought we were equals? Isn’t that why you’ve been avoiding court?” I said, reminding her of the bold move she’d made.

“We are equals, which is exactly why you don’t need to go. Both of us going sends the message that we aren’t strong enough on our own.”

---