Chapter 3
Chapter Three
ION
Only in Harmony Glen will you find three vampires covered from head to toe to avoid the glaring sun walking around a pumpkin patch at a farmer’s market owned by a troll named Ogram.
Going out as a family to the farmer’s market has become a bit of a family tradition. Max and Sam enjoy the process of finding the seasonal fruits and vegetables for their meals.
I rather like berries, but those will have to wait for summer. Right now, it’s apples and squash along with all the pumpkins. For a food source, none of that appeals to me, but the gathering of neighbors to find the perfect ornament for their front porches is a lovely sight.
The scent of spring grass and flowers travels on the breeze. These are not autumn scents, so I follow my nose and find Lori standing with her back to me in the middle of the pumpkin patch while Olivia and Dotty check each bright orange vegetable, though for what, I’m unsure.
Unable to take my gaze away as my heart pounds twice, I shake my head. “Don’t be an idiot, Ion.”
“Did you say something?” Mari asks from under the building’s overhang. With her parasol held in one hand, she looks like someone out of the past.
I’ve opted for a gray hoodie with long sleeves that cover my hands and a baseball cap.
Dressed similarly to me, Tilda is in all white and crouches down in the field to speak to the twins.
“Ion, are you alright?” Mari draws my attention back.
I join her under the shadow of the building. “Fine.” My gaze drifts back to the redhead laughing with Tilda and Max.
“You know, liking Lori is not a crime. Humans and creatures cohabitate in Harmony Glen all the time. Look at Ogram and Hope. They seem an unlikely pair, but it seems to work.” Leaning back against the building, she sighs and gestures to the human woman who fell in love with a solitary troll while on vacation.
Lori’s hair blows in the wind, and she tucks the sun-streaked strands behind her ear. Her scent carries all the way to me. It’s been hundreds of years since I was in a relationship, and that was with a vampire. “Maybe not illegal, but unwise.”
Before Mari can say more, the twins dash toward us, screaming her name. They come to a stop in front of us.
Dorothy grins and tugs on the bottom of her pink sweater with a purple dinosaur on the front. “Miss Mari, when can you teach us to play and sing again?”
Serious as ever, Mari raises an eyebrow. “Are you ready to resume your lessons and does your mother approve?”
“Yes. Oh yes.” Dorothy bounces with excitement.
Shifting her gaze to Olivia, Mari crouches to eye level. “Olivia, are you ready to resume lessons?”
Olivia’s sweater is lavender with an orange butterfly on the front. She looks at her blue sneakers before lifting her chin and meeting Mari’s gaze. “I miss the music, Miss Mari. I would like to come back if you have time.”
“Very well. I will speak to your mother and arrange a time.” Mari opens her parasol and walks in Lori’s direction with Dorothy skipping behind her.
Staying behind, Olivia looks at me. “Are you going to tell us a story tonight, Mr. Radu?”
“If you wish.” I’m powerless to refuse any of the Mannings.
She brightens and nods. “The nightmares stay away when you tell your stories.”
“Then I will come. You know, those dreams will go away eventually. Human brains are amazing, and dreams are where you store many thoughts and fears. After a while, happier thoughts will dominate your mind, and those will push aside the nightmares.” I’m surprised this little girl has so much trust in me and stands close despite what I am.
Harmony Glen is the only place I’ve ever lived where children did not fear me.
“Do you think so?” She seems older than when I first met her and older than her twin.
The sun shifts, and I’m forced to dip my head lower so the bill of my cap shields my face. “I know it to be true.”
The hint of a smile pulls at her lips, and she brushes her hair off her forehead. “I believe you.”
Watching as she runs toward her mother, I’m once again struck by how beautiful Lori is.
Lori leans down and says something to Olivia. The child walks through the pumpkin patch, once again in search of the perfect one, while Lori heads in my direction.
What is it about this human woman that makes me doubt long-held beliefs about getting involved with short-lived species?
I’ve managed over eight hundred years without an affair with anyone warm-blooded.
Looking at her in her snug jeans and burnt-orange sweater, all I see is beauty and goodness.
Even her asking me to help and losing her temper didn’t dissuade me from being attracted to her.
Her cheeks are pink as she stands in front of me. There’s a weariness in her eyes and a hint of dark rings on the skin beneath, which she’s attempted to cover with makeup. “Hello, Ion.”
“Lori.” I love the way her name feels on my tongue. “Olivia has asked me to tell her and her sister a story tonight. Is that acceptable?”
“Yes.” Her blush deepens. “They slept through the night without any nightmares. That’s more than the psychologist can do.”
“The therapist’s skills are of equal value.” It is important for the twins to have an adult to talk to other than their mother, who is also dealing with the aftereffects of the kidnapping.
“I know.” She rubs the bridge of her nose.
“Have you had much sleep?” I shouldn’t make personal inquiries, but my mouth and my brain don’t seem to be on the same page when Lori is nearby.
“When the girls go to sleep, I check on them. Then I worry and check every few minutes again.” She shakes her head.
“I have the alarm, and their window has bars, which isn’t the best optic for anyone.
They’re as safe as they can be. Still, I can’t help the panic that sets in whenever I close my eyes. ”
“I could spend the night.” Inside my head, there is a voice screaming to shut up.
Wide-eyed, she stares for a long moment. “You want to…um…to sleep at my house?” Her blood rushes faster, and her pulse speeds up. On the side of her curved throat, it throbs like a beacon.
As her reaction makes my blood rush downward, and I push aside my growing desire. “You would sleep. I would watch over the house and check in on the children. You would be in no danger from me, and it might offer you some peace of mind. However, if I am overstepping, you may disregard the offer.”
“No.” Her voice is loud enough that Mari and Sam turn from where they’re watching the twins. Just above a whisper, she clarifies, “What I mean is, I would be grateful for a good night’s sleep if you don’t mind watching over my girls.”
“It would be my honor.” The fact that she trusts me so completely is almost as arousing as the hints of desire in her breathing and the dilation of her pupils.
“I’m not entirely sure you being in the house is conducive to my sleeping well.” The warm scent of her arousal fills the air around me.
A knot forms in my throat. It’s been many centuries since I was nervous. For that matter, it’s been that long since the sight of a woman excited me so thoroughly. “I suppose we’ll find out tonight.”
The thrill of knowing that Lori Manning is attracted feels youthful. The memory of my youth is so far behind me, it’s a wonder anything remains. I should stay away. A smart man might even leave Harmony Glen and get as far away from such temptation as soon as possible.
Yet, at eight o’clock, I ring her doorbell.
A moment later, she’s standing in the open threshold. In gray sweatpants and a black long-sleeved T-shirt, and carrying a kitchen towel, she has her hair pulled up in a ponytail. With her face free of makeup, those dark rings are fully visible. “Thank you for coming, Ion.”
“I said I would.” That was the final argument that kept me from staying away.
Stepping back, she invites me inside. “Yes, well, people don’t always do what they say they will.”
Olivia keeps me from responding by tugging on my hand. “Mr. Radu, you came.”
“Of course.” It pains me that this house full of females all expect the worst of those around them. “Many people, myself included, are true to their word.” I shift my gaze from daughter to mother.
“That’s true.” Olivia grasps my hand. “We’re having milk and cookies. Do you like cookies?”
I follow along to the dining area. “I do not. Though when I was human, I was very fond of sweets.”
“Mommy is drinking wine.” Dorothy has a smudge of chocolate on her cheek and an empty plate in front of her. There’s half a glass of milk left, and she sips it.
“I’ll get you a glass.” Lori goes to the cupboard without waiting to hear if I want wine.
“Thank you.” Since vampires don’t feel the effects of alcohol, I’m happy to accept the glass.
When the girls have finished, Lori tells them to wash up and get into bed so that I can begin tonight’s story.
They rush from the table as if they’re heading to an amusement park.
“Who would have believed that my tales would inspire such enthusiasm?” I’m filled with joy at the sight.
“They appreciate the life you’ve lived. They’re young, but they understand the passage of time more and more.” Lori finishes her wine and pours another. Leaving it on the table, she washes the plates and milk glasses, then stacks them on a drying rack next to the sink.
Unable to look away, I watch every move she makes.
“I’ll just go check on their progress.”
Once she’s out of sight, I sip my wine, then dry the dishes. I don’t know where they go, so I stack them on the counter.
When she pops her head out of the hallway, she smiles and blushes. “They’re ready.”
It’s probably just her red hair that causes the flush in her cheeks with every emotion she experiences. I shouldn’t read too much into it each time.
Taking a chair with me, I sit between the beds. “What would you like to hear about?”
“Where did you live before you came here?” Olivia asks.
“In Nepal, high in the mountains. I would ring a bell each day, and the goats would run to me for their breakfast.”
The twins giggle as I describe a day in my life atop the mountain.
Once they’re asleep, I again press a small amount of elixir on each forehead and follow Lori into the kitchen. “They will sleep through the night. I shall keep watch so you can rest as well.”
Stopping suddenly, she turns, and I’m so close her breath tickles my chin. Her full breasts press against my chest, and she clutches my arms to regain her balance. “Thank you.” Her voice is breathy.
As if under her spell, I cup her cheek and run my thumb over the dark smudge under her eye. “You are very beautiful, Lori.”
Warmed by my touch, she blushes. “I’m just a single mom. I’m not special, Ion.”
How is it possible she could believe such a lie? As if drawn to the forbidden fruit, I lean in, thread my fingers through her soft hair, and press my lips to hers. Warm and soft, kissing Lori is pure heaven.
She gasps and grips me tighter, opening for me like the sweetest flower. Her tongue slips along my lips.
Powerless to resist, I make love to her mouth. A growl escapes as the beast that lives within my calm facade yearns to get free.