Holden smiled. “I know one or two who don’t care about sex.”
I made a pfft noise and rolled my eyes. Before I’d left Callum’s office he’d explained that La Sorcière made her home in the Maurepas swamplands, the big-ass national park we’d driven through before we hit Baton Rouge. The problem with Maurepas, he’d told me, was it was not only massive, but the witch had a nasty habit of shifting her location. It made her…tricky to find.
“I’ve always wanted to tour a swamp,” I said sarcastically. “Number twenty-seven on my bucket list is Go on a Witch Hunt in a Swamp.”
“Have fun with that.” Holden made a disgusted face every time I said swamp. For a man who had spent his human life shoveling shit for a living, he sure had become a snob in his post-death years. Frankly I was shocked he was willing to sit on the grass in his Hugo Boss pants.
“I have to get the girl.” I gave him a loaded smile and leaned in close. At first his eyes narrowed and his lips curved upwards in anticipation—until he saw the look in my eyes and then he scuttled backwards out of my reach.
“You have to get the girl. There was nothing in your promise about bringing a vampire along to help you.”
I fished my cell phone out of my pocket and held it to my ear. “Hi, Sig. Yeah, Louisiana is swell. I’ll give your love to Lestat and Louis. Now, about how Holden was supposed to not let me out of his sight.”
My phone chirped, telling me there was no signal.
“I hate you,” Holden growled.
Point made, I slipped the useless phone back into my jeans. “If you can use it as an excuse to show up here, I’m going to use it as an excuse to make you come with me into the godforsaken swamp.”
“I suppose I should be thankful you didn’t flash your Tribunal ace for once.”
“That was my next stop on the guilt-trip train.”
“So you and me…alone in the swamp.” He waggled his brows suggestively, and I sneered.
“Yes. Nothing says romance like slogging through the murky water while the alligators look on. Be still my heart. Take me now.”
He darted in to hold me to the suggestion, but I put my hand up and pushed his face away. “You’re worse than a horny teenager.”
“I always thought you Americans used vacations as an excuse to sleep with handsome new men.”
“You’re an old man,” I reminded him. “And I thought you Brits were all uptight about sex. I guess we were both mistaken. Now stop trying to kiss me.”
“Then stop kissing me back.”
“That was one time.”
He gave me a look that plainly said, Let’s not bullshit ourselves, here.
“Well, however many times it was, it won’t happen again.”
“We’ll see.”
I got to my feet and wiped off the butt of my jeans. “I need to go tell Lucas what Callum asked me to do.” An involuntary sigh escaped my lips. “Can’t wait for that discussion.”
Holden didn’t say anything, but I knew all too well he’d be listening in on the whole damned thing.
“Absolutely not.” Lucas had been sitting on the couch when I started my story. When I got to the part about my siblings, he’d shifted to the edge. By the time I’d told him about Callum’s request, he was on his feet and pacing in front of the fireplace like a wild animal trapped in a cage.
“I’m not asking permission. I’m telling you what I’m doing.”
He stopped prowling. “Don’t you see how dangerous this is? Not three days ago you were certain Callum was in league with your mother and working on a plan to have you killed. Now he wants you to go into the swamp alone, and you’re going?”
“I don’t think he has anything to do with the attempts on my life. Not anymore.”
“And why is that? He puts an arm around you, calls you family and suddenly he’s innocent? When did you get so naive?”
“Hey, let’s not go there.” My hands were balled in fists by my sides. I would love to have one conversation with him that didn’t end in a fight, but it didn’t look as if this would be the one.