6. Roses Are Red—Blood Is Too
Chapter six
Roses Are Red—Blood Is Too
Nicolette
“ ’ Ello, Mrs. Rossi,” Amos greeted me in his Cockney accent while opening the back driver’s side door of a black Land Rover with darkened windows. It felt surreal and over the top. Like I was a famous pop star being ushered away. Why was Julian so paranoid? The biggest threat to me was him.
Amos was shorter than most of Julian’s family, rougher around the edges, with a mop of dark hair that never seemed tamed.
Unlike the polished vampires I’d met, he carried himself with a streetwise ease.
His brown contact lenses masked his pale-blue eyes, which would have looked out of place against his brown skin.
Since Amos was just a “cousin,” it made sense that he didn’t look as similar to the rest of the “family.”
The Mrs. Rossi part didn’t sit well with me. “Please, call me Nicolette. We are family , after all.” I did my best not to choke on those words while trying to play my part in this horror show.
“Nicolette.” He smiled, revealing his gleaming white teeth, including the retracted canines that seemed to beg to come out and play.
I’d seen Julian’s, and the image still sent a shiver down my spine.
Whatever genetic mutation or natural selection process occurred to create vampires, I had to stand in awe of it, even if it terrified me.
I swallowed hard , wanting to say , nice vampire; keep your teeth to yourself. Maybe I should start keeping vampire treats in my crossbody bag. Like bits of rare meat, which seemed to be a favorite of the Rossi clan.
Noting my uncomfortable stance, Amos softened his gaze.
“Won’t ever ’urt ya, Nicolette. Swear on me life.”
He sounded sincere, but I was finding it hard to trust anyone except Daphne and Delia. Even my father, I had questions about. Why hadn’t Mom wanted me to tell him about her laptop? If only I could figure out her password. Every day, I had been trying.
I bestowed an uneasy smile on Amos. “I appreciate that.”
He offered me his hand to help me into the car.
I took it, ready for the cool sensation. I still found it so odd that only Julian elicited the take-me-now-Barbie response. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure, ma’am. By the way, ya look right lovely today.”
I settled my laptop case on the seat beside me before sinking into the leather interior. My fitted wrap dress in midnight blue dipped lower than I was used to, the V neckline revealing more skin than I preferred. I’d even taken extra time with my hair, letting it fall in long, soft curls.
“Oh . . . thank you.” The words felt foreign. I wasn’t used to people noticing me, let alone complimenting my appearance.
Amos grinned, teeth flashing, before shutting the door and sliding into the driver’s seat.
“You know, I could sit in the front seat. I don’t need to be chauffeured around.”
“You’re safer in the back.” He started the car, and it hummed gently.
“Safe from what?”
Amos caught my eye in the rearview mirror. “Vampires, o’ course.”
His ominous warning sucked the air right out of me.
“Which vampires?” I dared to ask, though my chest tightened, making it difficult to breathe.
“That’s the million-dollar question, innit?”
I supposed it was. I wrapped my arms around myself, wondering what kind of trouble I had stumbled into. You know, besides being married to a vampire who was probably plotting my demise. Did Amos mean Julian?
“Don’t you worry, miss. Julian, ’e’ll take good care of ya. ’E’s a right fine gent, that one.”
Yeah, he was a real gentleman—threatening my life and stealing my company. But I didn’t mention it.
“I’ve known ’im for almost two ’undred years now,” Amos added casually, like he was talking about a buddy from high school.
“How old are you, Amos?” The question slipped out before I could stop myself. Julian had been so guarded about his age. Maybe all vampires were. At least now I knew he was probably over two hundred years old, which I’d already suspected.
Amos glanced back and wagged his brows. “Just celebrated me two ’undred years of rebirth.”
“Rebirth?” I asked, wary.
“Yes, ma’am. The day I got a second chance at life. I was dyin’ of cholera, and Cyrus saved me. ’E’s another good fella.”
Agree to disagree. “You don’t mind living for so long?”
“Nah. It’s got its advantages.”
He pressed harder on the accelerator, weaving through crowded streets with reckless ease. Each hard stop jolted me forward, forcing me to brace against the door. My pulse raced faster than the speeding vehicle.
“What kind of advantages?” I eked out, my voice thin. I wasn’t sure I was going to survive this car ride.
“You name it. I’ve seen the world over, made me fortune, been with plenty o’ women,” Amos said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes, and he laughed.
“None as fine as you.” He winked with a mischievous flair.
I almost found myself liking him. Almost.
“So you don’t regret any of it?”
He paused, thoughtful. “Missed the sunlight for years, I did. But thanks to yer mum, don’t have to fret ’bout that no more. Clever woman, she was. I ’ear you’re just as smart—maybe smarter. God rest ’er soul.” He crossed himself, the gesture oddly reverent.
“Oh no,” I disagreed quickly. “My mother was one of the top pathologists in the world. I’m barely getting started.”
“That’s not what Julian says. ’E brags about you all the time.”
I tilted my head. “He does?”
“Course he does. Shows off them fancy medical journals you’ve been published in.”
“Shows off” being the key words. It was all for show. “I’ve been lucky,” I said, brushing it off.
“Beautiful and modest. No wonder Julian finally took the plunge. Never thought I’d see the day.”
I wished I had never seen it either. But I tittered lightly, playing the part of a blushing bride.
“You’ll be good for ’im, I’m sure.”
“Yeah,” I whispered. You know, until one of us offed the other.
In no time, we arrived at Hart Labs’ expansive campus just outside Savannah.
It reminded me of a small university, with clusters of red brick buildings framed by wrought-iron railings and wide verandas.
Spanish moss draped from the live oaks, their branches arching overhead like cathedral ceilings.
In the center of it all was a large courtyard, complete with a fountain.
“If you turn right here, it will lead straight to the lab.” I wasn’t sure he knew which building I worked in.
The lab was where we analyzed blood tests and screenings for nearby hospitals and tested donor blood.
We also did an extensive amount of research there.
Which is what I spent most of my time doing.
Amos pulled up in front of the most modern building on the Hart Labs campus.
Sleek glass walls rose above the red brick structures surrounding it, reflecting the autumn sky and the moss-draped oaks.
It stood out like a beacon of innovation and progress, a place where science promised answers—even if my life felt like nothing but questions.
“Amos, in the last two hundred years, what would you say is the greatest invention?” I asked before we got out of the car. As a scientist, it felt unthinkable to waste the opportunity to ask someone with such a unique perspective. Unless, of course, it meant asking my husband.
Amos chuckled, low and rough. “’As to be football, girly.”
“I’m assuming you mean soccer?” I smiled, thinking of all the truly groundbreaking inventions he could have chosen—computers, penicillin, electricity, vaccines, airplanes. For him to choose soccer said something about him.
“Yes, ma’am.” He hopped out of the car with effortless grace and opened my door.
“Thank you, Amos.”
“My pleasure.” He held out a business card. “Take this. It ’as me number on it. You call me if you need anything.”
Hesitantly, I took the card, knowing I would never use it. If I needed a ride, I would call Daphne or drive my own car. “I appreciate it,” I said all the same.
“’Ave a good day, girly. I imagine yer ’usband will bring ya ’ome.”
I reminded myself not to grimace. “Yes, I’m sure he will.”
Sliding the card into my bag, I grabbed my laptop case and stepped out of the vehicle. I waved goodbye before strolling toward the entrance, each step deliberate, as if I could walk away from the weight pressing down on me.
Admittedly, I was nervous about returning to work after my weekend wedding. If my marriage were real, no way would I return to work so quickly. Basically, my presence was shouting to the world that it was all a sham.
Maybe I should have let Julian fly me to Paris.
It didn’t mean I had to talk to him. Knowing my luck, though, I would have ended up throwing myself at him and embarrassing myself.
I needed to get a sample of his blood and see if I could inoculate myself against him.
A vampire seduction vaccine. I wondered whether there was a market for that.
I almost laughed at the thought. If there were a market for it, I’d be the first in line.
Before I swiped my key card to open the door, the hairs on my neck rose as if a phantom breeze had whispered across my skin. I turned, scanning the lot, but the only movement was Amos waving from the car, urging me forward.
I forced a shaky wave in return and hurried inside, unsettled. Amos’s warning about vampires had left me feeling vulnerable, so maybe I was imagining things.
As soon as I walked in, I realized the guard sitting behind the security desk was new. And . . . a vampire. His dark-brown skin glistened unnaturally, and his chiseled features were too fine for him to be human. His dark eyes didn’t fool me.
“Good morning, Dr. Rossi,” he said as if he had been waiting for me.
“Good morning,” I gritted out. “Where’s Charles?” He was usually there in the mornings. We took security seriously at Hart Labs, as we dealt with sensitive patient information and we had patented technology we didn’t want falling into the wrong hands. Like vampire hands.