ChapterFour
Leo sat in his office, sipping some whiskey, and tried to ignore the annoying beat of his heart.
As the alcohol warmed his body, he snorted. About the only good thing to come from being blooded by that fae witch was he could eat food and drink anything he wanted again, not having to rely solely on blood for nourishment.
And yes, he'd missed his whiskey. It'd probably be the only thing to help him sort out this bloody mess with the female upstairs.
Downing the rest of the glass, he stood. After tugging down his waistcoat and righting his tie, he exited and nearly collided with his nephew. Since Ambrose had been born mute, he could hear but not speak. He signed with French Sign Language to Leo, "Mum says the female is awake and will be ready to see you soon. And that you'd better be on your best behavior with the fae witch."
He grunted. "I won't hurt her, but I can't promise anything beyond that."
Ambrose rolled his eyes and replied, "Fate picked her for a reason. Give her a chance."
He waved a hand in dismissal. "I don't believe in that fated bride nonsense. All she did was start my heart and the ticking clock of my lifespan, neither of which I wanted in the first place. But message received. Whilst I visit with the female, go work with John tonight. Come fetch me if anything goes wrong."
Ambrose nodded and walked off to find the hell's man of operations. His nephew was one of a handful of people he trusted with his business, even if Ambrose's passion wasn't to run a gaming hell, he'd fill in when necessary and do his part for the family.
Leo walked slowly up the stairs and a maid came out of the room he'd carried the female to. She bobbed her head and rushed off toward the back stairs, where he'd just come from. Leo lived in the same building as his business—most of his family did—but it was entirely separate from the main rooms. His sister needed the security and certainty of safety, due to her past, and he wouldn't deny it to her.
Leo knocked and Nora's voice told him to enter. He walked in and his younger sister immediately gave him a look, one that said he should tread carefully around the fae witch.
Ignoring her, he fixed his gaze on the female in question. She was in a white shirtwaist and dark blue skirt now, her nearly black hair in a simple braid over one shoulder. He almost wished she still had on the tight, revealing gown from earlier.
His cock stirred at the memory of her breasts all but spilling out of her bodice.
He should've reveled in the ability to get aroused again after fifty years without any cockstands. But all it did was remind him of what he'd lost—a frozen state of near immortality, ended the second his heart began beating again, making him a weakness to his family instead of its protector.
Not wanting to get angry yet again at something he couldn't change, Leo decided it was time to face his so-called fated bride. A straightforward manner would be best. "Who are you then?"
She sat a little taller in her chair. "First tell me whoyouare."
Her accent instantly told him she was American. She also had spirit, he'd give her that. It probably meant she wouldn't sob or blubber when he finally bit her and filled her with his dick. "Leo Yates, the owner of this building." He took a step closer. "What I want to know is how you snuck inside my establishment? No one saw you come in through the main doors or even the back ones."
She shook her head, her braid bouncing upon her breasts.
Her lovely full breasts that he'd much rather see free and bouncing as he fucked her.
He nearly frowned at the vision. He was only going to have her once, and only out of necessity.
Leo forced his eyes back to her face as she replied, "I don't know how I ended up here." He opened his mouth to call out her shite, but she continued before he could. "I really don't have a clue about why or how I'm here." She gestured around the room. "Believe me, I'd rather be worlds away from whatever this is and back home."
He detected a wistful note to her voice. But she was a fae witch, not a vampire, meaning she could lie every other word if she dared. While vampires were good at detecting lies in others, all it took was a good actress to deceive him. "Is that so? Quick to blood me and leave, I take it? Did an enemy use a seer, find you, and set out to drive me mad?"
Her gaze snapped back to his. "What the hell are you talking about? I had zero clue I was your bride until Nora told me." She crossed her arms over her chest, raised her chin, and the fire in her eyes stirred something inside him that Leo didn't want to think about. She added, "But yeah, I want to get home as quickly as possible. I was in the process of marrying another vampire male when I blacked out and woke up here."
He barely stopped a growl. Marrying another? Unlikely, as any male who so easily lost track of his bride with a body made for sin was either mad or unworthy of her.
Leo may not plan to keep her long term, but he'd be a fool not to enjoy it when he finally fucked her. Too bad for the other male; he'd lost his chance when he lost this female.
Not wanting to start thinking of her bouncing tits again, Leo focused on what he needed: information. Time to prod her and find out more about her. After all, strong emotion usually let secrets slip out by mistake. And Leo was rather good at provoking people. He drawled, "Let me hazard a guess—he's the love of your life, some male who worships at your feet, and you can't wait to get back to him?"
She averted her gaze and clenched her hands in her lap. Interesting, that. She was most definitely keeping something from him. Something to do with this male she obviously didn't love. He pushed again. "I want the full truth, Miss…?"
The female looked back at him, and he noticed her dark brown eyes, almost the same color as the chocolate his sister had once enjoyed before her frozen state.
Pushing aside his ridiculous comparison—they were dark brown, just like shit too—he reiterated, "Miss who?"
Whatever unease she'd had before vanished as she took a deep breath and answered, "Just Yesenia will do for now."