Page 17 of Seduced By Moonlight

“Perfect. Then we’ll meet next week, again, after sunset, of course. I need you to send me pictures of the type of aesthetics you like. I know you want to keep it realistic, but I want to see what your tastes run to. I’ll have blueprints drawn up and some samples and mock-ups by the time we meet again.”

“I can do that.”

Kayden fished out his business card and handed it to Ward. “My work number and email are on there, along with my personal phone number. Try to send me those inspiration pictures this weekend, please.”

Ward took the card and slipped it into his front pocket. Turning, he motioned for Kayden and his crew to follow him back toward the castle entrance. “I will.”

“The sooner you get those to me, the sooner I can get to work,” Kayden said as he walked beside Ward. “After the initial consult, I’m going to need a day or two for my crew to switch over from days to nights too.”

“Of course,” Ward said as they returned where everyone was parked.

“And I would also like to reassure you that we’ll be meticulous in our work and that we’ll go to extreme lengths to protect the rich history I’ve seen here.”

Ward was pleased with that assurance. “I’d like you to know there was another reason that I chose you for this job.”

“Oh?”

“You come highly recommended not just for your craftsmanship but for your ability to see beyond what is there—to understand whatcouldbe there. It is said you have vision.”

Kayden grinned. “Why thank you. I appreciate that. Your home is breathtaking. I’ve never had the privilege of seeing a real, honest-to-goodness working castle, but I promise you, by the time I’m done? You won’t even know that we’ve been here, but everything will be in working order.”

“That’s perfect,” Ward said. “I’ll send you those pictures by Saturday. I trust that’ll give you enough time?”

“Absolutely,” Kayden responded. “You know, most of my projects haven’t been nearly this exhilarating. There’s usually a straightforwardness to them—restore this, fix that—but here, I feel like I’m becoming part of a story.”

Ward chuckled lightly even as he wondered if Kayden felt a sense of welcome there. “Every stone in this place could tell you a story. Perhaps one night during our project, if you’re interested, I could share some of those stories with you.”

“I’d like that,” said Kayden. “Until tomorrow, then, after sunset?”

“Until tomorrow,” Ward agreed, extending his hand.

Kayden’s hand was warm in Ward’s grip, and he was so very tempted to run his finger over one of the letters on Kayden’s knuckles, but he didn’t want to make things weird.

Well, he was already acting weird. Maybe he should say he didn’t want to make things weirder. And what was with the static electricity? It shocked him that first time when they touched.

As Kayden and his crew left, the moon dipped behind a cloud, casting elongated shadows that danced across the castle’s ancient stone walls. Ward watched them go, a mixture of anticipation and dread churning within him. The restoration was necessary—vital even—but the coming disruptions gnawed at him.

Once the sounds of the departing vehicles faded into silence, he walked back inside. Both Emmett and Luna looked at him, but he shook his head. He needed a minute to think about what all he’d learned.

They both headed for the kitchen as he made his way to his private chambers, then stepped onto the balcony, letting the night breeze ruffle his hair. In the distance, he heard the caws of ravens.

Pulling out Kayden’s card from his pocket, Ward turned it over, contemplating the modern world pressing in on all sides of his ancient refuge.

With a deep breath, he accepted the necessity of change, and he knew that creatures with such long lives did not alwayswelcomeit. But change, unwelcome or not, was inevitable. It had to be.

Ward gazed over the sprawling grounds that had been his and his kind’s sanctuary for centuries. The moon emerged from behind its veiled curtain of clouds, bathing the land in a ghostly silver light. He could hear the distant calls of the nocturnal creatures that roamed his lands freely.

He sighed and rested his elbows on the cold stone of the balcony railing. A flapping sound caught his attention. A few seconds later, Tank landed next to Ward, folding his wings behind him. Tank’s real name was Dean, but everyone called him by his nickname.

“Everything okay?”

“Everything is fine—just the weight of being king,” Ward joked. He should’ve known Tank would check on him.

Tank turned to stare out at the landscape too. “And they say it’s good to be king.”

“Yes, well, ‘they’ have no idea what they’re talking about,” Ward replied, managing a small smile.

Tank turned toward Ward. “You know, change is often heavy before it becomes liberating.”

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