Reborn (Shadow Falls: After Dark #1)(51)

“I … I think I might have an uncle who is a vampire. And maybe even an aunt.”

“What? How … what makes you think that?”

She told him about what her sister had said and then taking the picture. And about Derek finding the obituary. And reading about an aunt she didn’t know she had.

“Damn,” Steve said. “So now what? Are you going to ask Burnett to help you?”

“No, I don’t want to get them in trouble if they aren’t registered.”

“But if they aren’t registered, then they could be rogue.”

“Or they could just be part of the group of vampires who don’t trust the FRU. Just because someone isn’t registered doesn’t mean they’re bad. My cousin Chan isn’t bad. He’s just a nonconformist.”

“I know, it’s just … I worry.”

Me, too. About you and Jessie. “You shouldn’t worry. I can take care of myself.” The residuals of anger left over from Burnett popped up. “Is it because I’m a girl and you think I can’t take care of myself?”

“No. It’s … because when a guy likes a girl as much as I do, he sort of wants to protect her.”

“Then stop liking me so much!” she said, and rubbed her aching temple.

“It’s a little late for that.” Silence filled the line. “Do you need me to do anything?” he asked.

“No, I think I’ve got it under control.” She’d already accepted Miranda’s and Kylie’s help. That was already two people she could get into trouble if things didn’t go smoothly. She didn’t want to add a third person to the equation.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Sure,” she said, hoping by Saturday she’d at least have some answers.

A knock sounded on Steve’s side of the line.

“Hang on a second,” Steve said. “Jessie’s at the door.”

Jessie was at his bedroom door? For what?

Della could guess what she wanted. Clenching her hands, she listened.

“I’ll put her in room two,” the feminine voice said. Della could almost hear the adoration in the girl’s soft flirty voice.

“I’ll be right there,” Steve answered.

“You might want to put a shirt on first,” Jessie said with a tease in her voice. “You might give her a heart attack looking like that.”

Della growled, remembering distinctly how good Steve looked without a shirt. Right then her dislike for the doctor’s daughter inched up a few degrees. Okay, more than a few.

“Then again, she’d probably die happy,” Jessie added.

Steve laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll get dressed.”

So Jessie did make him laugh. And she knew how to flirt. Jessie was flirting with her boyfri—with Steve, who didn’t even see it. Or did he?

“Hey, Della, I gotta run. We’ve got a patient. But I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. We need to talk.”

“Talk about what?” she asked.

“About us,” he said.

“What about us?” she asked.

“I’m sorry, but I have to go,” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Maybe you’ll tell me about the phone-sex movie.”

Della growled again.

Steve laughed.

She frowned. And it wasn’t until he hung up that she realized she hadn’t told him she was leaving this weekend. Chances were he wasn’t going to be happy. But he could join her in the unhappy wagon. The thought of him off playing doctor with Jessie didn’t exactly fill her with joy.

Was it better to ask for permission, or to ask for forgiveness? The question hung in Della’s thoughts, bumping against her conscience.

She sat at her computer Thursday morning, dressed in black, missing her first class and staring at the face on the screen. Lorraine Baker’s brown hair hung in loose curls around her shoulders. Her smile was … magnetic. Her green eyes bright with … life. That light wasn’t there anymore.

Dead.

Della hadn’t been able to sleep last night after Steve’s call, so she’d gotten up and started surfing the Internet for something boring enough to put her to sleep. Instead, she’d found a story about Lorraine in the local online paper. A nineteen-year-old college student with a promising future who’d died tragically in an automobile accident with her fiancé.

Lies, Della thought. Lorraine and her fiancé had died horrifically at the hands of a vampire.

And today was her funeral. Della didn’t have a clue why she felt compelled to go. But the compulsion was there and it was strong.

In the back of her mind she could already hear Burnett listing reasons why she shouldn’t go. Reasons that didn’t mean diddly-squat to Della.

Permission or forgiveness?

She looked at her phone to check the time. She had to make up her mind.

Chapter Fifteen

“Is Burnett here?” Della stuck her head into Holiday’s office.

“No, he was called away for the day.”

“The FRU?” Della took another step inside the doorway when Holiday nodded. “Is it about the recent murder case?” Della asked, ready to get mad that he hadn’t taken her with him.

“No, it’s a case in Dallas.” Holiday rose belly-first from the chair. Her belly bump was getting bigger by the day. Della couldn’t help but wonder how that would feel. To have a life growing inside you.