“How do you expect to be able to play the part if you cannot stand for us to be this close to you?” I continued, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her against my front.
Rayne grunted in protest but I ignored him.
“You will have to play the part of our beau and that will require you to be quite close with us.” I dipped my face down to her neck, teasing but not taking a taste. I would never do that to Piper.
“I...I...I don’t know.” Angelica stuttered out.
“Enough, Wynn,” Antoine commanded, his powers pushing on me slightly.
I dropped my arms and stepped back from her.
Angelica blinked rapidly letting out a shaky breath.
Turning to Darren, I inclined my head. “She will be adequate but if anyone gets too close too long, they will know that this is not Piper. She isn’t comfortable enough with vampires to pull off Piper’s relationship with us.”
“Correct you are,” Antoine turned his gaze onto the fake Piper making her flinch back. “However...” he gazed around the room, touching each of my brothers in turn. “I believe we may be able to pull this off.” He paused for a moment and then his gaze became laser sharp. “No, we will pull this off. For Piper’s sake.” Antoine brushed his thumb across his lower lip and then uncrossed his legs and stood from his chair. “Darren.”
The butler snapped to attention. “Yes, master.”
Antoine gestured toward Angelica. “You will take Piper — everyone should refer to her as such now — and show her around the house. Tell her what you can about the situation and what Piper would normally be doing.”
Darren nodded and took Angelica — I mean, Piper — by the elbow and led her out of the room.
Allister spoke from his seat on the couch, his hands clasped before him. “And what should we do?”
“What would you normally do,” Antoine answered, his eyes trailing after Darren’s back.
Drake chuckled. “Well, I would normally be trying to distract Piper by shoving her up against the wall and ramming her —”
“Then find something else to do.” Antoine shot a glare at Drake. “Rayne.”
The redhead eyed Antoine with a scowl. His arms crossed over his chest as he propped himself up on the arm of the couch. “Yeah.”
I wondered if Antoine would call Rayne out on his tone of voice like he usually would. Antoine was too distracted by other things it seemed to care.
“I need you to use your computer skills to figure out where Tuma is holding Piper. He couldn’t have gone too far. He would want to keep an eye on us as well.”
Rayne arched a brow and then nodded. “Sure. I can do that.”
Antione didn’t say anything for a moment and started toward the door Darren left through before pausing. “We don’t want to put undue worry on Piper’s shoulders. She has come through for us many times, now it is our turn to save her...and our child.”
“What about Vincent?” I reminded Antoine, leaning an arm on the fireplace. “He will want to speak to Piper eventually. Do you think this...” I languidly rotated my wrist in the direction of the door. “...will be able to fool him? She couldn’t even fool us.”
“Vincent does not have as close of a relationship with Piper as we have.” Antoine pursed his lips together, tucking his hands into his pocket. “We should facilitate a meeting with Vincent sooner rather than later. He has already no doubt begun to suspect something is amiss. I will leave that task to you.”
Grimacing, I nodded. “Very well. However, I would also like to try something else that will give us all an opportunity to speak with Piper. We cannot let her think you are the only one distraught by her imprisonment.”
Antoine flicked his hair over his shoulder and bobbed his head. “Do as you wish.”
I frowned.
It was unlike Antoine to simply accept my plan without asking for more details. Still, I would not look a gift horse in the mouth.