A Shade of Vampire 27: A Web of Lies Read Free Page B

option?”
    Bastien’s expression darkened. “No,” he admitted. “But it doesn’t matter. I don’t care anymore what she or any of the other Northstones think or say about me.” He looked deep into my eyes, his expression infused with passion and indignation. “I know that Rona is not the one for me.”
    When he reached out and held my hand, his touch felt electrifying. We gazed at each other in silence for several moments. Then he looked out of the window. We both drifted off into our own thoughts.
    I found myself continuing to mull over Brucella, wondering if there really was any possibility that she could just decide to give up. To find a man who actually wanted to marry her daughter. Maybe she wasn’t as insane as I feared she might be, and if she got desperate enough, hopefully she would move on.
    Bastien leaned back against my mattress. His expression had become less somber and more curious.
    “What are you thinking?” I asked.
    “I was just wondering… have you ever shared this—or any—bed with a man before?”
    A smile broke out on my face. I shook my head. Lying down beside him, I cupped his face in my hands. “Only you, Bastien,” I whispered. “Only you.”
    Bastien’s gray eyes twinkled at my admission. He seemed thrilled.
    I already knew that Bastien was a virgin, of course—I would have had to be deaf to not pick that fact up after the number of times Brucella had broadcast it to me.
    It appeared to be ingrained in werewolf culture that virginity was important when considering a member of the opposite sex. At least, it was to the wolves I’d had experience with so far in The Woodlands.
    We lay together in my bed a while longer. I was glad that we had the apartment to ourselves. I still wasn’t sure about how I felt about my parents knowing the full extent of my attraction to Bastien. It felt like something I ought to keep to myself until I came to grips with my emotions a bit more.
    Remembering the main reason I’d brought Bastien to my home in the first place, I sat up and swung my legs off the mattress. Bastien rose with me. I took him to my parents’ bedroom and opened their closet. I began sifting through my father’s clothes, wondering if they would fit Bastien. I asked him to choose what he wanted to wear. He ended up picking a loose T-shirt and light cotton pants. Flexible and light—the same type of clothes he’d worn back in The Woodlands.
    He changed in my parents’ bathroom while I returned to my bedroom to pull on a change of clothes. I chose a deep blue dress that stopped just above my knees. When I returned to my parents’ room, Bastien was ready too. He stood in front of the mirror, checking out his outfit. Apparently pleased with it, he turned to face me. His eyes moved to my bare lower legs before raising again.
    Now that he was out of those pajamas and properly dressed, I found myself wondering… What next?
    I hadn’t really been thinking past the next hour or so since he’d arrived on the island. I’d been mostly caught up in his recovery. Now here he was, healed and standing on his feet.
    Bastien’s demeanor was contemplative, and I wondered if the same question might be running through his mind now, too.
    “Will you stay?” I asked, feeling nervous to hear his answer.
    He paused before replying, “I would like to, Victoria…”
    I didn’t like the sound of where this was going.
    “But… I’m thinking about my people. Those who remained loyal to my family and myself… all those I never got a chance to seek out during our brief return to Blackhall Mountain. My cousin and uncle may have been executed by now, but being the only surviving child of my father, I have a responsibility to uphold… The Woodlands is safe now,” he added, apparently sensing the unease his words were causing me. “There will be no danger in my returning.”
    “For how long, do you think?” I asked, trying to hide how tight my throat had become.
    He shrugged. “I am not