Page 39 of A Vampire Bewitched
Immediately after his revelation on the plane, the pilot had come over the speakers to let them know they were about to land in Seattle, and the shot of reality seemed to wash over Nik like a deluge of ice water. He’d ordered her to sit down and put on her seatbelt, assisting her when she’d just stood there, staring at him dumbfounded. Then he’d taken his own seat and refused to talk to her or even look her way while they touched down.
As soon as the plane had stopped, he’d made a run for it. He had his bag and was at the hatch and off the plane before she’d even gotten a chance to unbuckle herself.
With no explanation for, or reaction to, his friend’s cowardly behavior, Aiden had come and helped her with her stuff again, escorting her off the plane and into the private car waiting to take them to their home.
She’d never been to Seattle, or any big city for that matter, so Emma let Aiden distract her as he played tour guide from where they sat in the backseat. It was a beautiful city, even in the early morning hours and with the drizzling rain, and she was constantly craning her neck around to look out all of the windows.
Nik sat up front with the driver, not offering any input, not even when Aiden obviously made up outlandish tales about some of the history. As a matter of fact, he didn’t seem to be listening to them at all.
As they’d landed way before rush hour, it didn’t take them long at all to arrive downtown. Emma stared, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, at all of the towering high-rises. She was sure she looked liked an ignorant country girl, which, she supposed, she was. But she didn’t care. The glass buildings sparkled in the rain, some so high she couldn’t see the tops from the car. It wasn’t dreary like you would expect, not like back home. It was shiny and glittery.
She wondered if she’d get to see the top of the Space Needle while she was here. After she found her sister, of course. Then she glanced at Nik and sighed heavily. Probably not.
In no time at all, they were driving into an underground parking garage below one of the more modern looking high-rises. Pulling into a designated parking space, their driver shut off the car and got out to open the door for Emma.
“This is where you live?” she asked Aiden, as he was still the only one speaking to her.
“Mm hmm. You look surprised.”
“I was just expecting something more like The Adams Family, or something.”
He laughed. “I am so sorry to disappoint you, love, but you’ll soon see that this building is the perfect vampire lair. We had it constructed to our exact specifications. The area vamps live in the top half of the building. Well, except for Dante. Humans occupy the lower floors. It helps us to keep our anonymity, and the humans are not aware of the special “amenities” the building contains. No coffins, however, or bats, or gargoyles. Those are so 18th century. But,” Grabbing their stuff from the trunk, he followed Nik to the elevator. “Wedohave secret underground tunnels! Come along, Em!”
Thanking the driver, she hurried after them, catching up to the guys right as the doors opened. Following them in, she stood awkwardly between the two vampires as Aiden hit the button that would take them to the 19th floor. As the doors closed, the tension in the cramped space became increasingly uncomfortable, and Emma counted the floors as they rose, wishing the stupid elevator would hurry up.
Nik stood behind her and slightly to her left, so stiff and still he looked like he would shatter into a million pieces if a feather landed on him. The only one who didn’t seem affected was Aiden, who was slouched in the corner, whistling merrily.
The elevator whooshed them up smoothly to their floor, and within seconds she was walking out into a small, yet opulent foyer. Limestone floors complemented the clean lines of the walls, which rose up to high ceilings, dotted with recessed lighting. The white walls were covered in modern paintings, or were they prints?
She walked closer. Nope, those weren’t prints. She was no expert, but by the looks of the rest of the decor, she imagined those paintings cost a pretty penny.
They continued down the short hall until it opened up to the main living area. Emma’s mouth dropped open again. Straight ahead, the entire wall was constructed completely of glass, giving her an unobstructed view of the Puget Sound. She desperately hoped they didn’t cover the windows when the sun came up, although she didn’t see how they couldn’t if they wanted to avoid the sun’s rays. It was too bad. She’d bet she could see Mt. Olympus on a clear day.
To her left, there was a galley style kitchen, open to the main room on one side with bar seating for six. The appliances were all stainless steel. The modern-looking cabinets were walnut. Across from the kitchen, in the corner, was what looked to be an office area, enclosed by more glass, so as not to interrupt the view. A sitting area took up the right side of the apartment, made up of a couch, some end tables, and a couple of comfy looking chairs all facing a marble fireplace. Thick area rugs were scattered about, giving the space a cozy feel. Nearer to her were a couple of doors to her right, one leading to a guest bath and the other was probably the coat closet. Hallways led off to either side of the space, and she guessed that must be where the bedrooms were.
She strolled over to the windows and looked out at the still dark sky while the guys put their stuff down and locked up for the day. She wondered if Keira was out there somewhere, looking at the same sky.
A wave of melancholy washed over her. She missed her sister so much. She didn’t care what she was, or rather, whattheywere. She didn’t care if she’d lied to her. She just wanted her back.
After a short, muffled discussion with Nik she tried hard to ignore, Aiden called out, “Em! Follow me, poppet. I’ll show you to a room where you can sleep.”
Turning away from the view, she said goodnight to Nik, but got nothing but a terse nod from him in response. She barely resisted the childish urge to stick her tongue out at him. Someone had to be the adult in this relationship, after all.
Ambling along behind Aiden down the hall past the kitchen, she asked, “You guys live here together? Just the two of you?”
Aiden must have deemed this was a safe question to answer. “Of course not, love. We have our harem of females that we keep here to feed our lusts.” With a lascivious grin, he quirked an eyebrow. “Both kinds.”
Rolling her eyes and muttering—“I don’t know why I even try speaking to you like a normal person.”—she turned her attention to the bedroom he’d brought her to.
A king-sized bed dominated the space, which, she was thrilled to see, faced the continuous wall of glass. The “headboard” of the bed was actually a half wall, which acted as a divider between the bed and a small sitting area directly behind it. A plush couch with bright pillows faced the wall mounted TV, with a coffee table in between. Bookshelves lined the walls on either side of the screen, and another fireplace was underneath it. The entire room was all walnut and blues, fresh and clean. She loved it.
“I’m jesting Emma,” Aiden told her. “Well, mostly. I have offered the suggestion to Nik many times, but he insists we don’t have the room.”
She wandered around under his watchful eye, touching this and that and peeking into the bath and the walk-in closet.
“Those would be Nikulas’s clothes you see in there,” he answered her questioning look. “This is his room. He insisted you sleep in here and not be banned to the couch like a common house guest.”
“But where is he going to sleep? The sun will be coming up soon.” She tried, and failed, to keep the worry from her voice.
