Until the Sun Falls from the Sky (The Three #1)(132)

Until the sun falls from the sky.

“So, uh…” she broke into his thoughts when he didn’t speak, “are we actually going to speak? Or are we going to stand here staring at each other?”

Lucien relaxed then grinned and told her, “I could stand here and stare at you for some time, sweetling, but I suppose we should speak.”

At his grin, she relaxed deeper into him. At his words, even deeper and her face went soft.

He liked that. All of it.

And all of it was his. Only his.

Until the sun falls from the sky.

He drew in breath and addressed the matter at hand.

“At home are my children, Julian and Isobel. My mother, Magdalene. My father, Etienne. And Julian’s mother, Cressida.”

She looked into his eyes with interest until the last. When he mentioned Cressida he saw something cut through her features before she wiped her face blank. And what he saw cutting through features he did not like. He did not like that she felt it and he did not like that her feeling it meant he felt it as well.

“Leah, sweetheart, what we had was a very long time ago,” he assured her and this was true, for mortals. For vampires, seeing as he ended the physical side of his relationship with Cressida only fifty years ago, it was not.

“Okay,” she said quietly.

“There is nothing there,” he told her.

“Then why is she at our house?”

Our house.

Until the sun falls from the sky.

“I mean, um…” Leah went on, “I don’t know how vampires roll but the ex isn’t normally in on surprise family visits unless that family is a little bit weird.”

Lucien again grinned. “Vampires are the same way.”

“Well then?” she prompted.

“Cressida is…” he searched for a word, “unusual.”

Her eyes slid away and she muttered, “Great.”

His arms gave her a squeeze and he regained her gaze.

“It is your home, Leah,” he dipped his face closer to hers and stated, “Our home. She will respect me in it and I will make certain she respects you.”

He watched her brows draw together. “She wouldn’t?”

“Cressida is unpredictable.”

“Great part two,” she again muttered.

“I’ll need you to have patience with her, my pet. And I’ll need you be cautious around her. She will attempt to goad you. Take the high road.”

Leah stared up at him. Then she whispered, “Uh… something to know about me. I’m not very familiar with the high road.”

This time Lucien smiled. “I am aware of that but this time, you’ll need to embark on an adventure and discover it.”

She smiled back, humor lighting her eyes, making them luminescent, as she whispered, “Embark on an adventure.”

Lucien very much wanted to savor the amusement he gave to Leah but he didn’t have the time.

So he continued, “Cressida will be irritating. She will say things, perhaps even do things that might be maddening or even hurtful. Do your best to ignore her. I’ll deal with her and I promise to talk through with you anything you may have questions about after she leaves.” He waited for her nod, received it and went on, “My father is another matter.”

Her head tipped to the side. “Your father?”

“We do not share a close relationship,” he disclosed.

“Oh,” she whispered.

“Not even slightly,” he went on.

“Oh,” she repeated on a whisper.

“I do not like him. I do not respect him. And I do not trust him. He has reached out to Isobel and therefore she brought him to our home. I’ve had words with Bel. But I cannot know his intentions. He may be charming. He may be condescending. Either way, you must treat him with respect no matter what.”

“Okay.” She was still whispering.

Lucien’s arms gave her another squeeze. “No matter what, Leah. I’ll do my best to control him but, like Cressida, he’s uncontrollable and unpredictable. The only thing I can ask is that you control your reactions.”

“I’ll control my reactions, Lucien.”

After her immediate response, he studied her again. The inquisitiveness was gone. The warmth muted. The concern evident.

He did not like this but he nodded.

“I also ask you not to share anything about you and me,” he went on.

Leah blinked. Then she asked, “What?”

“Nothing about us, Leah. They know I live with you. They know you are my concubine. They know I hold deep regard for you. Any personal information is not theirs to have. Not your nightmares. None of your abilities. Not what you are to me.”

He felt her body stiffen and she asked quietly, “What I am to you?”

“That we’re lovers.”

Understandable confusion suffused her face and she started, “But –”

“It is none of their concern.”

“Of course not,” she replied. “But won’t they know that already?”

“They would make that assumption,” he lied. “I simply wish you to avoid any discussion about it. Any at all.”

Her head tipped to the side again and the confusion in her features increased. “Why would they discuss it?”