Addison awoke with a start, her eyes darting around the roomchecking all the darkened corners, the hall just beyond the opendoors. She was alone, except for the white wolf lounging on theother end of the long sofa, his head resting on her calf. The redembers from the fire cast an orange glow against his fur. With asigh, she realized it had all been a dream.Andre’s ear jerked and he lifted his head, staring at her. Openinghis mouth, he yawned, making her smile.
“Sleep well, Andre?” she asked.
She would swear he made a face before morphing back to his humanform. His head rested just at her hip, his white hair perfect, hissmile devilish.
“Nice spot to find myself,” he said with a grin as he leaned down toplace a kiss on her hip through the blanket.
Ignoring the heat traveling up her thigh, she asked, “I initiallythought you were a werewolf, but you’re not, are you?”
“No. Shape-shifter.”
“Can you change into anything else?”
“No. Just the wolf.”
“How long have you known Julian?”
He rested his chin on her hip, studying her, a slight grin tuggingat his lips. “Are we playing twenty questions? If so, when is it myturn?”
She snickered, rising to her elbow, then shrugged one shoulder. “Ijust wanted to know about the men assigned to protect me. I’ve spentmost of my life on a farm in a small Midwestern town, Andre. I don’tknow a lot about the world or the various species that occupy it. Ididn’t even know until a few months ago that my father was avampire.”
He gave her thigh a soft pat and sat up, leaning his back againstthe opposite arm rest. Outside the sky was still light, thoughtinges of red and gold lined the horizon. Sunset would be on themsoon and Julian would be awake. Sitting up as well, she turned to face Andre.
“Ask me anything, Addy. I’m an open book.”
“Addy?” she asked. No one had ever shortened her name before and shefound she actually liked it.
“Don’t like it?” he asked. “Would you prefer Add?”
She scrunched her nose. “Addy’s good.”
With a chuckle, Andre adjusted his white shirt, allowing her aglimpse of the white hair covering his chest. When she raised hereyes back to his face, she noticed with embarrassment he’d seenwhere she’d been staring. Heat flooded her face and she glanceddown, fiddling with the blanket still covering her legs.
“Are you and Julian lovers?”
“Depends on your interpretation of lovers.”
She glanced up at him. “Do you have sex with each other?”
“No.”
She nodded, nervously licking her lips.
“We share women and we have been known to touch and kiss each otherwhile making love to a woman, but I have never fucked him.” He grinned. “Nor has he me, just in case you were thinking of asking.”
Addison shrugged, her embarrassment growing. “Marcus made that comment about Julian killing his lovers and…”
“Julian has had male lovers. So have I. But that’s not what our relationship is. We’re very good friends. I suppose you could sayI’m his servant.”
“Servant?” she asked, frowning.
“Yes. I’ve been with Julian many years. He saved me as a child, so I felt indebted to him. We grew to be very close. He’s a good man…deepdown.” He grinned. “Way deep down.”
Addison smiled, but it quickly faded. “Has he killed his past lovers?”
Andre’s lips twitched in amusement. “You’ll have to learn to takewhat Marcus says about Julian with a grain of salt. He loves to goad his father. Julian has only killed one lover. He was trying to kill Julian’s son. He didn’t have a choice.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed how the two of them…” — Addison raised herhands and arched the first two fingers on each hand, emphasizing hernext words –. “…pick at each other.”
“Those two have a very strange relationship, but they’re trying.Julian loved Marcus’s mother very much and she broke his heart. I’mnot sure he’s ever been the same.”
“Andre,” Julian growled from the far side of the room.
He stood in the shadows, careful to keep his feet on the outside ofthe last rays of light streaking across the hardwood floors. Addisoncouldn’t take her eyes off him. He wore all black — black trousers,black turtleneck, black shoes. His eyes, though, shone the mostintense shade of blue, standing out in stark contrast to the blackof his hair and lashes.
“She asked a question, I answered it. Get over it.”
Julian rolled his eyes. “Did you sleep well, Addison?”
“I suppose.” She frowned, watching him as he followed the shadowacross the room. Was he always so gruff? So cold? “What did myfather look like?” she asked as her thoughts traveled back to thedream and the man in it.
“He was tall, white hair like Andre, broad like me. Why?”
“I dreamed of him,” she whispered. “He said I was his link to life.”
Julian and Andre shared a look that made her nervous.Andre turned back to her. Reaching out, he rubbed at her calf. “Itwas probably just a bad dream brought on by what we talked aboutyesterday. Nothing more.”
“Then how did I know what he looked like?”
“Maybe you have a little psychic ability. It’s not unheard of among witches,”
Julian offered as he moved further into the room,following the fading sunlight.
“Maybe,” she mumbled, but doubted it. She’d never had that ability before. Only the most powerful of witches were able to catch glimpses of the future. Powerful was certainly not how she would describe herself. Shy, quiet, reserved was more her style. Her mother had been so protective of her growing up. Was it because she knew what would happen? Had she known whather father had in mind for her?
“Are you hungry, Addison?”
She glanced up at Andre and frowned. Hungry? No, she wasn’t hungry.Matter of fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she ate and herfrown deepened. “I, ah…I haven’t been hungry in a while, actually.”
“How long has it been since you’ve eaten?” Julian asked as he leanedcasually against the edge of the fireplace.
“I’m not sure. Day before yesterday, maybe.”
Andre raised one eyebrow. “And you’re still not hungry?”
She shook her head, her stomach knotting in apprehension.
“Her body is starting the process,” Julian explained. “She’ll eatvery little over the next couple of weeks, if anything at all.”
“Won’t that make me sick?”
“No. You’re body’s dying, Addison.”
She scowled at his cold attitude. “You have one hell of a bedsidemanner, do you know that?”
He shrugged. “Would you prefer changing then, as opposed to dying?” Pushing away from the fireplace, he walked toward her. With one hand on the arm rest behind her and the other on the back of the sofa, he leaned down, putting his nose close to hers.
His gaze held herscaptive as she pressed back against the armrest to get as muchdistance between them as possible. This close, she could see tiny flecks of lighter blue around his pupils. The smell of musk and mintinvaded her nose, making her inhale deeper, both to capture more ofthe scent as well as calm her nerves.
“You are dying, Addison, and you will become another member of theundead. Face it. It’s how you choose to use your new abilities thatI’m curious to see. Will you be your own person or will you turn outlike your father?”
“I don’t even know my father,” she snarled.
“It’s probably best you don’t. That will make your killing him somuch easier for you.”
She stopped breathing. “What?”
“If you’re to survive, that’s what you’ll have to do. If they get you and take you to him on the night of your ascension, it’s you or him. If he survives, it will be a war unlike any mortals have ever seen.”
“And if I survive?” she demanded.
“That remains to be seen.”
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