Hecate had not. Putting him in a house with other vampires and casting a spell to make them all get along? A flashof momentary magical brilliance. Even gods could get lucky sometimes.
He flashed a fang at her in annoyance.
“Khent, don’t try my patience.” Her magic felt oppressive, the witch goddess’s magic tied to necromancy, after all. He supposed he should give her a modicum of respect for that, at least.
“Yes, Hecate, goddess of ghosts and witchcraft.”
“And?” She crossed her arms over her chest, one finger tapping her arm in impatience.
“And death, crossroads, boundaries, etcetera.”
She huffed. “Gods forbid I get an attagirl from a vampire. Just wait here while I grab Varu.” Turning away before he could answer, she yelled for Varu and stalked from the kitchen.
Valentine nervously glanced at him before moving back to her plate of food, fond of the kitchen island that put distance between them.
Naturally, he moved around the island to sit next to her. He decided to use her as a source of study, his scholarly pursuits always at the back of his mind.
She plucked a strawberry from the tray and shoved it in her mouth. He watched her chew. A delicate jaw, small, flat teeth. She had a slightly crooked lower incisor. How cute.
Ignoring him, she took another piece of fruit, then another.
Surprised he had to fight the urge to grin, he said, “You remind me of something.”
She paused mid-chew.
“A squirrel? No. I think, a chipmunk.”
With a glare that would make his patriarch proud, she continued to eat, focusing on the tray once more.
Ignoring him for a full minute, silent, the necromancer started to grow on him. He liked her stubbornness in the faceof overwhelming odds. She had less than a tenth of a percent of doing him any damage, and they both knew it.
Before she could grab the next piece, he plucked a blueberry for her. “Open up, Valentine.”
She opened her mouth to lambaste him, no doubt, and he pushed the berry onto her tongue, taken with the heat and smooth texture of her lips.
She blinked, stunned, and closed her mouth around his finger.
“Go ahead,” he said, his voice low. “Bite me. I dare you.”
“Oh, now that’s how you make a team work.” Rolf walked back into the kitchen with a shit-eating grin on his face. “Khent, my man, you are smooth. I take back what I said to Onvyr earlier.”
Khent didn’t take offense, more than pleased when Valentine yanked her head back and blushed scarlet, the rush of her sweet blood making her that much more attractive. Though he had spent little time among humans, Khent was starting to believe he might have been wrong. Alive, they proved incredibly interesting.
Or perhaps Valentine would prove to be the exception. He hadn’t been this interested in their Bloode Witch. Macy had been living with them for six months now, yet he only cared that wherever she went, her mate would not be far behind. And Khent had use for Duncan. The revenant had mastered the art of gathering information.
Which reminded him…
“Tell us about this necromancer. What’s his name?”
She finally swallowed the mouthful of fruit she’d been shoving into her mouth, and he idly wondered if that would sweeten up her spicy blood. “Shouldn’t we wait for Hecate to return?”
“She’s not important. I’ll tell our patriarch everything you tell me.”
“He means Varu,” Rolf added helpfully. “He’s our leader now. Though Mormo wasn’t ever really in charge. He just thought he was.”
“True.” Khent nodded.
“Varu?” Valentine glanced from Rolf to Khent.
