I swallowed down the ball of nerves that was now thoroughly lodged in the center of my throat. After a prolonged second, he finally turned and headed down one of the side hallways and out of sight.
And all I did was stand there, staring at the front doors, seeing his dark form move away until I could no longer make it out.
After breathing out a pent-up lungful of air, I made my way down the stairs until I reached the bottom landing. I looked to my right, to the hallway that would lead me to Adryan’s study… that would lead me to the man—male—I ached to see and touch and just breathe in.
Instead I took a left and walked in the opposite direction. I checked out the dining room again, then made my way into the kitchen. I let my fingers trail over the smoothed grain, along the polished wood cabinets.
I stood in front of the large picture window, and although I couldn’t see anything through the heavy shutters covering the glass, it didn’t matter, because it wasn’t the scenery I was focused on. It was everything else.
I was lost in thought when I felt something nudge me. I looked down and saw Bear, and I actually found myself smiling and reaching down before I even knew what I was doing. I stroked his head and moved my fingers behind his ears, giving him a little scratch and hearing his tail wag and thump against the tiled floor. How strange that I’d become used to and comfortable with this gentle giant, and that’s what he was turning out to be.
The sound of the shutters moving out of the way as night descended had me lifting my head and staring out at the property that was revealed. Although the sun had set, there was still a leftover faded glow in the sky.
Time was melding together. I thought I’d been here a couple of days, two, maybe three at the most, but to be honest, I didn’t know. Day and night were one and the same, my time spent with Adryan making everything seem a little less real and a whole lot hazy.
I stood, looking out the window for several more moments before I turned and started exploring again, Bear staying close to my side. I checked out a few other rooms and ended up at the very back of the house, where I found an indoor pool. I pulled a heavy glass door open. Bear sat down and looked up at me, silently telling me his big, furry ass wasn’t going into that humidity pit. I laughed softly and stepped inside, letting the door close behind me.
The air was hot and wet, the scent of chlorine and chemicals filling the wall-to-wall glass enclosure. I tipped my head back and stared at the ceiling, able to see the stars starting to glitter in the sky. I found it weird as hell that a vampire had a swimming pool that was completely exposed to sunlight.
There were some lounge chairs on either side of the pool, a sauna, steam room, and another door to a visible shower. There were double doors that opened up to the stone patio outside, the garden lights showcasing the perfectly manicured landscaping.
I left the pool, Bear following once again when I came to the end of another hallway. Bear gave a huff before trotting off, and I watched him disappear down the hall and out of sight.
I guess he’s done with the tour.
I focused on the door once more and reached out to curl my hand around the curved metal handle. I wouldn’t have been surprised if it was locked, which many of the rooms I’d come across in my exploration seemed to be.
But the handle turned, and I pushed the door open, stepping inside and immediately getting washed in a hazy, artificial blue glow that came from the numerous video monitors completely taking up one wall in front of me.
There was a long table pushed up against the wall right below the monitors, a few computers sitting on top of it, other bits and pieces of technology scattered across the countertop.
This was obviously some kind of security room, but it wasn’t for this house or this property; that much was evident. What was being monitored and displayed was the inside of Sinner.
And as I continued watching, letting my gaze move along each screen, I started noticing the scenes changing. Only the top row of the monitors showed the interior of Sinner, and my eyes widened as I took in what else was being displayed.
I moved closer until I stood a foot from the table, no doubt taking on a deer-caught-in-headlights look as I stared at the screens. It appeared to be another nightclub, with tables situated around a darkly lit room, plush couches pushed to the shadowy corners, a stage with a silver pole in the center, yet there were no dancers. And then there was a bar off to the side, the lights gently glowing behind the countertop not bright enough to pierce much of the inky darkness.