“So I’ve made you more human?”
“In a way.” He grunted softly. “But you’ve also made me stronger. Come on, let’s head back. This might be a good time for you to practice willing yourself from one place to another.”
“Seriously? How do I do that?”
“Gather your power around you, then think about where you want to . . .” He laughed as she vanished from his sight. “Be.”
Following their blood bond, he found her waiting for him outside his house.
“That was kinda scary and fun at the same time,” she said, eyes sparkling.
“What are you doing out here?”
“All of a sudden I feel a little nervous about being around Jilly and Luke.” She could hear the two of them whispering, wondering if she would be a “civilized” vampire, like Andrei, or like one of those out-of-control fledglings who attacked without provocation or remorse. She might have been offended, angry, even, if she hadn’t wondered the same thing herself.
“Not Bailey?” he asked.
“No. She’s sort of like one of us. But Luke’s a hunter. And Jilly . . . she’s my best friend. What if I want to drink her blood?”
“I think you’re worrying for nothing, but there’s just one way to find out.” And so saying, he took her hand in his and opened the front door.
The conversation in the living room came to an abrupt stop when Tessa and Andrei entered the room.
Luke looked wary.
Jilly worried.
Bailey merely curious.
“I’m still me,” Tessa said. “I promise not to eat you.”
Luke snorted. “I don’t mean any disrespect, Tess, but you’re a vampire now. In my experience, fledglings are highly unpredictable.”
“Luke!” Jilly admonished.
“It’s true!” Luke exclaimed. “And if the time comes when it’s your life or hers, you’d better know which side I’m on.”
“I think we all knew that,” Andrei said dryly. “But I can assure you that Tessa’s no threat to any of you.”
“Yeah? How can you be so sure? You might have had hundreds of years to learn to control your powers and your appetite, but she hasn’t.”
“She carries the blood of a master vampire and that makes all the difference. She’s stronger and more powerful than ordinary fledglings. She won’t be plagued with an insatiable thirst or an overwhelming desire to kill.”
Luke nodded, but he still looked doubtful.
There was a moment of tense silence in the room. It was Bailey who broke it. Getting off the sofa, she embraced Tessa. “You’re still coming to the life-mating ceremony tomorrow night, aren’t you?”
“Of course,” Tessa said, smiling. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
Chapter Forty-One
Katerina lifted her head, the man in her grasp forgotten.
“What is it?” Noah, who’d been feeding beside her, looked around, searching for some sign of danger.
“He’s turned her!” She cast the half-dead man aside like so much garbage. “He’s made her one of us!”
“Who?”
“Andrei, you fool! He’s brought that woman across, made her one of us.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I wanted her blood. I needed to find out what powers it possessed. Andrei should have died from my bite. Instead, he recovered and grew stronger.”
“You were his sire,” Noah said, brow furrowing. “But your bite would have destroyed him?”
“Yes,” she snapped.
He took a step away from her. And then another. “So, now that she’s a vampire . . . ?”
“Her blood is now his and his is now hers.”
“So, whatever healed him doesn’t exist any longer?”
“No.” She clenched her hands, her fury growing with every passing moment. Tessa’s blood had increased Andrei’s paranormal powers, made him strong enough to survive her bite.
She fixed her gaze on Noah. Andrei might be beyond her grasp, but here was the perfect target for her fury.
Seeing the rage in her eyes, he took an instinctive step away from her.
It was the last thing he ever did.
Chapter Forty-Two
Bailey went home with Tristan late Saturday night, saying there were a few last-minute things they needed to do for the life-mating ceremony tomorrow.
Jilly and Luke had left earlier, with Jilly pleading a headache.
Alone at last, Tessa thought, snuggling on the sofa with Andrei. He had turned off all the lights. The soft glow from the fire in the hearth cast dancing shadows on the walls.
“It’s nice,” she murmured, “just the two of us together.”
Andrei nodded.