“Honestly, I started to have a panic attack. I get them sometimes when I’m really overwhelmed. And, well, I’ve never had Lucas Blackmoore look straight at me like that with that...look.” She shivered but still couldn’t meet Felicity’s gaze. “I started freaking out. I felt like I couldn’t breathe so I left.”

Felicity grimaced. She knew all about the Blackmoore’s “looks”. Felcity decided to play nice and not correct Beth on her interpretation of the night’s event. Felicity would say Beth fled the theater rather than simply left it. But she let Beth have her understatement so she could hear the rest of the story.

“Why did he run after you? It was almost romantic.” Felicity grinned as she moved onto gluing the next vase.

Beth’s cheeks burned dark. “So, he took me to his place saying he needed to talk to me. I’ll tell you it wasn’t romantic. He moves way too fast, but at least he didn’t live far from the theater. The man looked down right pissed off like I’d made him angry.”

“And you just went with him?”

Beth jabbed a thumb in her chest. “Hello, human here with a gimp leg. What was I going to do? Out run a vampire?”

“Point won.”

Beth gave her a haughty look. “As always.”

Felicity pretended to growl. “Just continue your damn story.”

“He took me to his condo. It sits right in the middle of downtown. There’s an elevator that goes up to his floor. It’s like his front door. It was some amazing rich man stuff let me tell you, except the place was an outright disaster. But never mind that. He was so intense. He made me sit down and he just stared at me. It was pretty weird.”

Felicity frowned. “That’s...bizarre. I can talk to Dom if you want and have him talk to Luc about it.”

“No! It’s okay. Now. I’ve had time to think on it and well after we talked it was fine.”

Thank god, Felicity would rather have her fangs pulled out then have to go to Dom for help. He’d find some way to twist her around his long finger and have her swooning in his arms before she knew it.

“So he said he recognized my scent. I admitted to practically stalking his concerts. I played it up to just liking his music though.”

“You didn’t mention your sexy dreams of him?”

Beth choked. “Hell no! I’m not crazy!”

Felicity snickered. “Okay, just saying it would have made things more interesting. That’s all I’m saying.”

“More interesting. I was sitting in Lucas Blackmoore’s condo in the middle of downtown St. Louis after he sprinted me there with vampire speed! I could see the Arch from his window. It was ridiculous already. So, his eyes got all glowy.”

“Glowy?”

“Yeah, and he started acting weird and twitchy like a druggy or something. I started to debate my escape to be honest. Then he told me there was something else that it wasn’t just that I’d been to his concerts. He knew something about me.” At this Beth ducked her head and focused way too hard on the gluing the foil. “He said it had to do with my scent.”

“What was it?”

Beth mumbled under her breath.

“What was that?” Felicity said louder, grinning at Beth’s discomfort.

“He knows I wrote him letters.”

This was getting good. “What kind of letters?”

Beth’s cheeks burned hotter. “Fan letters I guess you can say...”

“Did these fan letters happen to mention how crazy in love you are for him?”

Beth stayed silent. Her eyes diligently watched the pat of glue she squeezed before she pressed a piece of foil to it.

“You did, didn’t you?”

Beth spoke breezily as if she hadn’t a care in the world. “Apparently he liked my letters or something so he kept them. I wrote those years ago. I wrote them while I was in Iraq, you know. He knew I wrote them though. Recognized my scent from where I’d touched the letters.” Beth clamped her mouth shut and Felicity knew there was more she wasn’t telling.

“Yeah...so he took you to his house and talked to you. That’s all?”

Beth pursed her lips. “No.”

Felicity glared at her. “Spill it all.”

“He kissed me.”

“No way! How was it?” Felicity barely managed to pick her jaw up off the floor.

Beth gave her a wicked, slow smile that set Felicity’s own heart racing. “How do you think?”

Felicity remembered Dom’s kisses and nodded gravely. “I think the Blackmoore’s kiss could knock a woman’s socks off her feet.”

“Or her panties off her legs,” muttered Beth.

Felicity and Beth fell into gales of laughter.

The guard, Graham, sitting in her tiny kitchen groaned as he stood. “I’ll be outside. I can’t take any more of this.”

Felicity waved her fingers at him. “Bye, Graham!” The big warrior gave her a dark look as he went out front. The door slammed closed with a bang, and the girls fell into more laughter.

Later that night, Beth yawned off and went home. Being as it was only three in the morning Felicity was still wide-awake. So she turned on the TV and listened to infomercials on kitchenware she didn’t need as she meticulously finished off the vases. When those were done she started on the centerpiece for the two new mates.

The sun had crept up and the guards switched to weres for the dayshift. Her dayshift indoor guard was named Petra. He smiled with only the corner of his mouth and had a slender but very hard and strong looking body. He didn’t say a word to her, just nodded and took a seat at her kitchen table as Graham had done. What a boring job, she thought.

Felicity drank a bottle of AB for breakfast and was headed for bed when her phone made a tinkling sound. It wasn’t the usual tone from receiving phone call. Curious, she dug the very outdated cell from her purse and flipped the top open. She had a text message. Felicity tried to think if she’d ever gotten one before and couldn’t think of one. She didn’t exactly stay with current technology; it moved too fast for her.

We need to talk.

Felicity swallowed, a blush forming on her cheeks. She turned so the were at her table wouldn’t see it. “Goodnight,” she called.

He gave her another nod as she closed herself in her bedroom, heart racing like stampeding horses.

She knew the number it came from and the name next to it: Dom.

No, we don’t, she texted back. A spark of self-satisfaction made her smile at her proud words. It was what he deserved. A minute passed before her phone made that tinkling sound again.

I’ve made a decision about us.

That got a laugh from Felicity. I’m sure you did, babe.

She meant the endearment sarcastically but apparently sarcasm didn’t translate to text.

I like it when you call me sweet names. Shows how much you care for me.

Felicity hastily typed back. Does not. Was sarcrasm.

I’ve made my decision. I choose you.

Felicity panted at the words: I choose you. No, he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. He’d said so himself. Pain throbbed in her chest, but beneath the ache a sprig of hope blossomed.

You go through an awful lot to get laid, Dom.

You know it’s more than that. Don’t lie to me or to yourself.

Even over a text he could be arrogant and high-handed. Yet, he’d figured out her deflection so easily.

Really?You won’t mate with Julianna?

Really, he texted.

Felicity slowly smiled until her eyes crinkled and her cheeks hurt. Good, she texted back. Then she fell back on her bed cradling her phone to her chest like a teddy bear. Pulling the covers over her head, she read all the texts again and again, trying to stamp the words into memory.

I’ll be busy campaigning, but I’ll come see you as soon as I can. Yours always, Dom. He finished texting her as if he’d been writing her fancy letters the whole time.

Laughing softly and still smiling like a fool, Felicity texted back one last time. Can’t wait. -Felicity.