Page 21 of Tempting the Dhampir

“You guys are nice, but I need nature, man.” His whole body shudders as a tremor works its way down his spine.

Harvey, ever the empath, says, “The sooner we find an answer, the sooner we’ll all be back.”

I smile as I recall those two during our physical education classes. I had to mentally restrain myself from running too fast during soccer, but Harvey and Sawyer—being a minotaur and bear shifter, respectively—struggled against their natural inclinations to run and bulldoze us out of the way. They were terrifying when barreling down on us, even in their glamoured forms. Thank the fates they’re good guys and not typically competitive, or else we’d probably have been trampled by them.

I continue to make my way through the shelves, scanning Elvish titles, but my mind keeps drifting to Sadie. She seemed to be handling all this fairly well. Amazingly, actually. But I can’t help wondering how she’s really doing now that she’s got some space and time to process.

I know from personal experience that in those quiet moments in the dark, surrounded by nothing but your thoughts, you’re finally forced to face the things that make you uncomfortable.

She’s a fascinating woman, and I don’t feel like this is the end for us quite yet.

After the seventh shelf of running my fingers down spines, they stall on a title I translate to Signs of Magic Through the Ages. This could be something. I take it over to the desk Bertie and Edmond are at. Piles of discarded books litter the surface.

“Can I get you a whiskey, maybe? Coffee? Tea? You’re looking a bit stressed,” I ask Bertie quietly, even though I know everyone in the room can hear us.

“No time. Got to keep going,” he says, eyes never straying from the page in front of him. “Thanks anyway.”

Bertie’s normally impeccably coiffed hair is looking wild with the way he’s constantly running his hands through it. I wonder if this is a new nervous tic he has picked up or only due to the stress from tonight. I should probably make some time to visit him at his home in the Black Forest, which is within walking distance from Alberad—once all this has blown over, of course.

“I think I’ve found something here. Anyone else have any luck?” I ask, raising my voice.

“None so far. Let me see.” Bertie doesn’t even look up at me, just stretches out his hand and waits for me to place the book in it.

“Nothing in this one. I read the English version already.” He lets out an exasperated sigh. He’s even dropped his formal speech—composure slowly slipping along with his control of the situation.

“Bertie, it’s okay. We’ll find something. If not here, then we’ll go to Alberad and search the library there.”

“And how will that look? A group of human women showing up with monsters who graduated ten years ago. My father would laugh at my ineptitude.”

“What other option do we have?” I ask as the other males move closer to the desk, halting their search for the time being in order to join the discussion.

“I’ve gone through about a hundred possibilities. Considering we have a time limit with the women having to check out of their accommodations and needing to return to their responsibilities, I’ve narrowed down our options to two. One really. It’s a wild idea, and no one is going to like it.”

“Let’s hear it, then,” Edmond suggests calmly.

Chapter eleven

Sadie

Waking up in the softest—and possibly most expensive—clothing I’ve ever worn to the peaceful sounds of the Caribbean jungle stirring to life around me might even be more surreal than last night. I get up from the ginormous canopied bed I shared with Cece and head to the wall of windows.

She’s already awake and sitting on the balcony, curled up in a wicker bubble armchair with a light throw blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She smiles serenely up at me and inclines her head toward the other chair, which I plop down onto all too gladly. I grab another creamy throw and wrap it around my own shoulders, cuddling into the cozy cushions.

We sit in comfortable, companionable silence as we stare at the slowly lightening sky, framed by palm trees around the perimeter of the property. The lull of the ocean in the distance and the chattering of the exotic birds create the most perfect ambiance to accompany the majestic sight.

Cece is inherently an artist, and knowing how she appreciates color and composition, this view must be inspiring to her. We spend so much time together that I’ve learned to admire how different hues blend, and I’m already wondering how she’ll recreate our current view with thread.

The sunrise paints the sky a bruised navy blue in the early dawn light, incrementally brightening to cobalt blue and finally settling on a magnificent azure. The sun’s rays dance on a bubbly cloud crawling over the horizon, rendering it in shades of buttermilk, amber and gold, pastel and baby pink, and tipping it in snow-white.

The sea mirrors the symphony of colors, keeping me entirely fascinated, too enraptured to speak.

Yet I somehow find myself wondering about Everett. Is he also sitting on his balcony enjoying the view? Or are dhampirs more night owls? There’s something about him that really piques my curiosity, the male occupying most of my thoughts since my first glance at his jade-green eyes.

A soft knock at the door breaks our bubble of tranquility.

“Come in,” I croak, not bothering to take my gaze off the spectacular view.

“Beautiful.”

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