Page 25 of Destined to Fight

“Aye, quite the power of observation ye have there.”

Glaring at him, she tried to hide her smile. “Smart-ass.”

His sideways grin made an appearance, and he shrugged at her.

Kelly would never admit it to even her closest girlfriend—not that she had one—but Kade was starting to grow on her just a little bit. He didn’t seem to know how to act around her, but when he relaxed, he was kind and funny. He matched her strength and tenacity with his own, which made things difficult, but she much preferred a strong man to one who was weak and followed the orders of others. Kade seemed to set his own path and only cared slightly about what others thought.

Before her mind started to wander from his personality to his looks, Kelly tried to redirect her mind. “So, how long have you had Clyde?”

“He’ll be five this month.”

As if on cue, there was a meow from the back of the car, and they both laughed.

“He has to be the strangest, coolest cat I’ve ever met. Not that I’ve met a lot of cats.”

“Aye, he’s something else. He keeps me company without offering too much of an opinion. I dinnae like having people around while I work, but I’ve grown to enjoy his company.”

“What made you get him?”

“Mah mum got him for me. Said I needed something to keep me grounded.”

“She sounds like a smart woman.” Kelly smiled, thinking wistfully about a mother who actually cared about her child.

“She’s very smart. Ye’ll like her.”

“What?” Kelly almost choked. “I’m meeting your mother? When?”

“Aye, today if she’s home. She lives here with me in Edinburgh,” Kade’s replied casually. He obviously didn’t understand the significance of meeting a man’s mother.

“Oh, okay,” was all she could say. The thought of meeting a vampire’s mom was up there on the list of weirdest and most intimidating things she’d done. Kade’s mother had to be old, and she would probably loathe Kelly. Moms never liked her anyway, not even her own. She was too independent and stubborn for their liking.

The front doors of the car opened, letting a blast of cold air in. Fabian and Asmund got in, closing the doors quickly behind them. Asmund didn’t ask for a destination this time, clearly more comfortable here than in Dallas. He eased the car out of the airport and pulled onto the road without a word.

Fabian turned back to her, handing her a dark-blue booklet with “Passport” on the front in gold lettering. She took it without a word and opened it. Her picture, the same one that was on her driver’s license, was on the page, along with all her information. She turned the page to see a stamp on the next page that read Edinburgh. She wanted to ask why they didn’t have to go through customs, but decided against it, knowing she would get a vague answer in return.

Kelly turned to look out the window and watched as they drove. They passed through parts of town, then what seemed like farmland, then past more buildings and houses. It was such a change from Dallas, where there wasn’t an open plot of land anywhere. Here, there was room to connect with the earth without a slab of concrete in the way. She loved it already.

It couldn’t have been more than fifteen minutes before the car slowed and pulled up to a large gatehouse. Asmund rolled down the window and nodded at a guard, and Kade did the same. The gate in front of them began to retreat, and Asmund drove them through as soon as the coast was clear.

As the SUV made its way down the road, it began to rain steadily. A narrow road with trees on one side and an open field on the other as they drove. Kelly shifted her focus from the side windows to the front and saw a magnificent castle up ahead complete with towers and two solid stories of stone.

They pulled into a large courtyard with a circular drive and a large fountain in the middle.

“Holy shit,” Kelly said before she could stop herself. “You live in a castle? A real castle?”

“Aye, this is my home, Castle Laoch.”

“It’s beautiful,” she managed in awe.

“Thank ye.”

Asmund parked the car near the front entrance of the huge medieval castle. Kelly gawked as much as she could from the back seat, leaning forward between the front seats to see out the windshield. The men opened their doors to get out, and Kelly quickly opened hers, too, excited to see the castle.

Kade was immediately at her side, helping her out with a gentle hand. She really didn’t know how he moved so quickly.

“Kade, it’s…” She planned to tell him how spectacular it was, but something cut her off.

A whoosh came from above, and Kelly looked up to see a black blur dropping straight down from the sky, landing with a splash directly in front of the castle’s entrance. A man crouched on one knee, hand braced on the ground. His eyes went straight to Kelly’s, letting her know she was the reason he was there. He slowly stood, and just as he reached his full height, a blast of power surged through the air, hitting Kelly’s chest hard enough to knock the breath from her lungs.

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