Page 39 of Vampire's Breath

She laid her hands on the railing in front of us. “Well, first, my mother could never get me to come back inside,” Briar began, her tone tinged with nostalgia. “I was always out playing in the dirt. She wanted me to learn history and where we came from, but I’d rather be in the sand by the ocean, playing with seaweed or seeing what I could cultivate in our backyard. The salt air would tangle my hair,” she added with a slight laugh. “My mother would tell me everything she had learned about history as she attempted to brush it out each night.”

A grin tugged at my lips as I tried to picture a younger Briar. I wondered if I had ever met her running wild in a garden or on the beach. “It sounds like you’ve always been a bit of a wildflower—someone who knows exactly where she belongs… and finds a way to thrive there. Beautifully.”

Her gaze fell in front of us, and the tendons of her hands stood taut as she gripped the railing a little harder. “Part of me regrets not spending more time helping my mother with what she wanted. I think that’s why I want to learn so much now—like I’m making up for lost time. Maybe that was why I made the promise.”

She leaned back into me, holding the rail, her face a jumble of emotions I couldn’t pick out. Her shoulders rose and fell with the long breath she pulled in before she turned to face me, myhand still on her waist. A waterfall splashed in the background, but all I could hear was Briar’s ragged breathing as she stared into my eyes, her pupils reflecting a swirl of feelings, murky and unsettled.

“I don’t want to lose time again, Lorcan,” she breathed. “I don’t want to be filled with regret, and I’m afraid…”

I pushed my lips together into a small line but couldn’t bring myself to take my hand from her. It felt so right. I closed my eyes, overwhelmed by the feelings. I couldn’t bring her into this. Cormac was right. Eventually, Aiden would win, and when he did, he would find me. And that put Briar in as much danger as my own feelings did. I struggled to fill my lungs with air, wanting to both pull her to me and to run.

I opened my eyes to find her still watching me, the colors of the plants behind her taking on an even brighter hue. Her hand rose in slow motion toward me before it stopped. She took a breath and laid it on my cheek. “Please,” she whispered. She rose on her tiptoes, her hand slipping to the back of my neck to guide my lips to hers. Her lips were soft and warm, parting beneath mine. The scent of lavender clung to her as her fingers tangled in the hair at the nape of my neck, pulling me into the warmth of her embrace and the faint taste of peppermint tea lingering on her tongue when it found mine.

Briar

The world around me went dark as the black Town Car glided into the garage beneath Dún Na Farraige Estates Incorporated. Lorcan sat beside me, our hands resting on the open seat between us, the centimeters between our fingers pulsing with energy. A driver from Cormac’s fleet, whom I didn’t know, had been assigned to drive the car. The luxury surrounding the O’Cillians was mind-boggling. Or maybe I was letting my mind be obsessed with that over the fact that I had kissed Lorcan.

I glanced down at our hands, my fingers twitching as I stopped myself from taking his hand.

I might have kissed him first, but he took part, his tongue searching for mine in a frenzied dance that still made my lipstingle. My neck burned where his touch had rested, but his other hand… I clenched my thighs as the ghost of his hand came to mind and how it slid from my waist to the small of my back, pulling me into him until I felt the ridge against my stomach.

As soon as I felt it, he pulled away, turning from me, stammering an apology. He said he couldn’t because it was too dangerous, which made no sense at all. I looked over at him as he stared out the window; his hand covered his mouth, just as he had since we got into the car. At his insistence, we left the gardens just after it happened. Did he think his erection was embarrassing? Wasn’t he the one who told me not to be embarrassed, even when I had seen him naked in front of his house? I didn’t know why I kissed him, except I needed to—I just needed to know what his lips felt like on mine.

We climbed the stairs in silence, the decadent aromas of dinner being prepared in the kitchen causing my stomach to tighten as I realized we hadn’t eaten lunch. I gripped the cold wooden railing in my hand. Something about being here, in this place, with Lorcan, just felt right—like this was where I was supposed to be. My heart still longed for the heat and humidity of the greenhouse, but I couldn’t see myself in it alone anymore. Lorcan’s shadow was always beside me. But if the way he acted now were any sign, that would not happen.

Lorcan led me through the halls of the ground floor. As we passed the boardroom, I noticed a heavy oak door pulled shut across the hall. Next to it was a brass plate engraved with the words “The Marquess of Dún Na Farraige.”

I tilted my head as we walked by and cleared my throat, wanting to break the silence between us. “If the marquess title has fallen out of use, why is the sign still here?”

“Historic value,” he said, his words short. I caught a fleeting look on his face—something that told me there was more to the story—but it faded as fast as it arrived.

I smiled at Lorcan. “That’s all?”

His jaw tensed before he glanced away, his words not quite matching the tightness in his expression. “It’s nothing.”

As we climbed the main staircase, its frosted glass dome allowing light to filter onto the treads, I yearned for Lorcan to reach back and take my hand. Never had I regretted kissing someone, but I was starting to believe it was a mistake. We continued to the first floor, where Lorcan waved his white key card in front of the door, giving us access to the private areas of the town house. Just as the door clicked open, a familiar voice called behind us.

“Lorcan. Briar. I thought I heard you.” We turned, abandoning the unlocked door. I marveled at Cormac’s statement as he came up behind us. He must have excellent hearing. He walked toward us from the back of the house, a portfolio matching the leather one Lorcan had at breakfast in his hand, his face beaming. “How were the gardens?”

“Hello, brother,” Lorcan said casually. “They were amazing. So much has changed.”

Cormac nodded. “I hope you both had a fabulous day.” He looked at me as though he had asked a question.

The feel of Lorcan’s lips lingered on mine, and heat rushed to my cheeks. “It was lovely. Thank you.”

Cormac glanced between us, a sly smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. He held up the portfolio. “Rory spent most of the day in the basement. All the information we can share on Lady Isobel Lyon Blackcairn Harrowmont.”

“Harrowmont? But…”

“Harrowmont was her first married name. Likely why your mother couldn’t find her.”

He held the folder out in front of him toward me. A look flashed between the brothers, again as if there was something Ishouldn’t know. I would have to ask Lorcan about it later—not that I expected he would answer me.

My hands trembled as I reached for the portfolio, a fire burning in my chest. I opened it, my eyes skimming the first page. “The Tower of London? The House of Lords?” My voice shook as I spoke.

“I must confess, once I figured out what Rory was up to, I had Gabe, our archivist, look for most of it. He prepared the outline you’re reading. Wonderful fellow.” Cormac looked at Lorcan in the eyes. “He’s been with the family a long time.”

Lorcan cleared his throat. “And what is it Gabe found?”

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