The Vampire's Fake Fiancée (Nocturne Falls Book 5) (21 page)

She stepped into the room. Evangeline’s things were everywhere. Neatness wasn’t high on her priority list apparently. Tessa had no idea what she was looking for, but there had to be some clue in here as to Evangeline’s true motives.

She found Evangeline’s purse. If the woman was hiding something, it might be in there. But a quick riffle through determined the handbag held nothing but the usual stuff. Tessa glanced toward the door every minute or so, hoping Evangeline really was ensconced in a good movie.

Tessa stood and looked around the room, trying to think like a vampire. A traveling vampire.

Her gaze shifted to the suitcases. There were three of them in descending sizes, matching hard shells on rolling wheels. Sleek black carbon. Very modern. The largest one looked big enough to hold a person.

Tessa went closer. Did Evangeline ever use it to take shelter from the sun? In a pinch, it might do. She stared at the thing, wondering what else the suitcases might be used to hide.

She stuck her head out of the room to look for Evangeline. No sign of her.

Tessa grabbed the big suitcase, unzipped it and had a look. The bag was lined with charcoal nylon printed with the company’s logo. And it was empty.

She moved on to the medium one with the same result. Nothing inside. With another check for Evangeline, Tessa unzipped the smallest one, probably a carry on. It was empty too.

She sighed in frustration and was about to zip it back up, when something white caught her eye.

The edge of a piece of paper.

It stuck out from a hidden zipper in the lining. Tessa ran her fingers over that part of the nylon. There was definitely something under it.

She released that zipper and freed the paper caught in it. Then she reached in and pulled out a thin sheaf of papers. They all had dates scrawled on them. A span of the last ten years or so. And each paper held a copy of a newspaper article that had been clipped from the Nocturne Falls Tombstone.

Every article was about something happening in town. Many of them were about the charity events that Sebastian had told her about. One showed the dedication of the new blood bank. Another the opening of a business. But all of them had two things in common. They were all accompanied by pictures.

And all the pictures had Sebastian in them.

Sebastian’s meeting with Julian went well. His brother was in an odd mood. Almost contemplative, which wasn’t a state Sebastian was used to seeing Julian in. Whatever the reason, it had made Julian easier than usual to talk to and they’d agreed upon a budget in less an hour, which was probably a family record.

Nocturne Falls was about to get its first wedding chapel. Technically, it was already operational, but once the grand opening took place, it would be in full swing. New businesses were always good for the town, and while Sebastian had his doubts about the necessity of this one, Julian felt strongly that it would succeed.

Sebastian hoped that was true, but with the budget done, his part was over. It was Julian’s to deal with now.

Sebastian pulled into his driveway, past the main entrance and into the first garage. He locked the Aston Martin, a habit even though the car was inside, and went into the house.

He heard Tessa and Greaves in the kitchen. He passed through the mudroom and joined them. Both had slices of custard pie in front of them and a Mummy’s Diner shopping bag sat on the other counter. “Don’t tell me you’re having pie for lunch?”

“No,” Tessa said. “We had actual food first.”

Greaves tipped his head toward the refrigerator. “There’s a steak sandwich in the icebox if you’re hungry.”

Sebastian glanced at their empty take-away containers. “What did you two have?”

“Open-faced roast beef sandwiches,” Tessa answered. “They were so good. That diner is a winner.”

“It’s very popular with tourists and locals. We order from there often enough.” Sebastian checked the floor. “Where is that small furry thing you like to call baby?”

She grinned. “He’s upstairs. Possibly sleeping. Possibly shredding your ties.” She shrugged. “Hard to say.”

He frowned at her. “I believe Duncan and I have come to an understanding. If he shreds those ties, it’s at his own peril.” He gave her his sternest expression. “If I have to banish him to the guest house, I will.”

She laughed, then rolled her eyes. “I wish you could banish someone else out there.”

A sense of concern filled him. “Did something happen while I was gone?”

“Nothing major. I’m just making conversation.” She shot a quick look at Greaves, then went back to her pie.

Sebastian got the sense that she wanted to talk but not in front of the rook. “I have a few things to finish up in my office. Tessa, when you’re done with your pie, come see me.”

“I’m done now. I’m stuffed.” She closed the clamshell container it was in. “I’ll save the rest for later.”

“I’ll clean up and put things away,” Greaves offered. “You two go talk.”

“Thanks.” She smiled up at Sebastian, but something darker lingered in her eyes. “To the office, then?”

He grunted a response, his mind already calculating what Evangeline might have done.

She walked with him. “Everything go all right with Julian?”

“Very well. We came to an agreement on the budget. There’s a lot of heavy lifting yet to do, but that’s on him.”

“Are you worried he won’t get it done?”

Sebastian unlocked the door. “No. When it comes to his pet projects he makes them happen. Despite my distaste for my brother’s Casanova ways, I must admit that when he sets his mind to something, he accomplishes it. Unfortunately, I believe that’s his approach to women as well.”

“He probably hasn’t met the right one yet.”

Sebastian pushed the office door open for her. “How would he know? He doesn’t keep any of them long enough to find out.”

“That could be a problem.”

He went in behind her, then shut the door and locked it so they wouldn’t be interrupted. “What didn’t you tell me in the kitchen?”

She turned, and took one of the chairs across from his desk. “I’m not sure where to start.”

“The beginning is always the best place.”

She laughed softly. “I suppose it is.” Then she sighed and her smile disappeared.

Instead of going behind his desk, he sat next to her. “Did Evangeline do something to you? Threaten you? Because I will not stand for that.”

Tessa waved her hand. “No, nothing like that. But she did get me thinking about something. It might not be a bit of a personal matter.”

“What? You can ask me anything.”

She folded one hand over the other, her fingers tracing the scar on her knuckles with the sort of absentmindedness that told him that scar had been there a long time. “How is it that you can go out into the sun and not be harmed?”

The question took him back. That wasn’t what he’d thought she was going to ask at all. Something about his past with Evangeline, yes, but not this. “I…just can.”

Her mouth bunched up on one side. “That’s not the truth.”

He sighed. He’d thought about telling her if she asked, but meeting with Julian had reminded him that the secret wasn’t his alone. “It’s not something I’m supposed to share with you. Or anyone.”

She nodded slowly. “I see. And that’s fine. You don’t owe me.”

He made a noise deep in his throat. “Except that I do. Can I ask why you’re so curious?”

“Well…” She glanced at the windows. It was one of those bright winter days with not a cloud in the sky. “I realized today how dangerous it can be for your kind. Evangeline accidentally put her hand into the sun today and it was awful. Smoke and blisters on her skin. I swear she would have burst into flames if it had touched her a second longer.”

“She would have.”

Tessa shook her head and grimaced. “She was worried about you being out there, but seeing that made
me
worry for you. And I’ll probably keep worrying every time you go out during daylight.”

“The only thing Evangeline worries about is me not being around to pay her bills.”

“That’s what I assumed as well. I can tell you she read true during our conversation.”

He studied her. Concern bracketed her eyes. It was very sweet and a little touching. “You don’t need to worry about me. I promise. That’s all I can say.”

She nodded and looked away, her expression less than convinced. “I understand you not telling me. I know I’m not anything to you, except a soon-to-be-employee, but I like to think we’ve at least become friends. I don’t have a lot of those and I can’t help but care about you.”

“I care about you too.” More and more every day. “I’d like to think we’re more than just employee and employer. After this, how can we not be?” Indecision warred within him. He wanted to tell her, to stop her from worrying, but his family’s secret was a secret for a reason. The amulets that protected them could very easily be used against them. Not that Tessa would ever use them against him. She just wasn’t the type. “All I can tell you is that I’m not in any danger.”

Her mouth pulled taut into an unhappy line. “You say that, and you read true, but I hope whatever reassurance you have that you’re safe wasn’t given to you by someone who wasn’t as truthful.”

“It wasn’t.” He hesitated. “I will give you this much. I have the help of some magic. Old and very trustworthy magic. Does that make you feel better?”

She shrugged with no real commitment. “I guess.”

“You don’t put much stock in magic?”

“I’m a valkyrie. I have magic of my own so that’s not the issue. I just know that magic can be counterfeited. It can also seem powerful for a short time then fade away. Have you been using this magic awhile?”

“Yes. We all have.” Well, that was more than he’d meant to say. “Bugger.”

She stared at him, slightly amused. “I wasn’t trying to get your secret out of you, I’m sorry. Just a reassurance that you’re not taking unnecessary risks.”

“Don’t worry about it. I trust you. And you don’t know the half of it, so—”

She squinted at him. “It’s that amulet you wear around your neck, isn’t it?”

“Bloody hell.” He shoved a hand through his hair. “Yes, but you can’t tell a soul.”

She grinned. “Or what?”

He couldn’t imagine her telling anyone, but if she did, it could be ruinous. “You’ll end up on my grandmother’s black list and you do not want that. She’ll force me to fire you. At the very least.”

Tessa’s smile disappeared. “You shouldn’t have told me that was it.”

“If I’d said it wasn’t the amulet, you would have seen I was lying.”

“I won’t tell anyone. I swear on my sword.”

“You have a sword?”

She scrunched up her nose like she’d just revealed something she hadn’t meant to. He knew the feeling. She sighed. “All valkyries do.”

“So you must know how to use it.”

She nodded reluctantly. “I do.”

The thought of her wielding a sword seemed very out of character, even if she was a valkyrie. Sebastian pictured her with a medieval blade, a fierce look on her face and a suit of whatever kind of armor a valkyrie might wear.

It was rather erotic.

He cleared his throat. “Do you still train, then?”

Her gaze took on a distant, haunted look. “No. Typically valkyries do—my sister does all the time—but I’ve sort of put that life behind me.”

This side of her intrigued him. Especially since she seemed to want nothing to do with it. “Why? It’s who you are.”

“Being born valkyrie doesn’t define me. I’ve chosen a different path, that’s all.”

Now it felt like she was the one holding something back, but he let it slide. If she wasn’t ready to tell him the truth, so be it. They didn’t owe each other their deep, dark secrets. Although he had told her about the promise to Evangeline’s father. “Did you bring it with you?”

“My sword?”

“Yes.”

She crossed her arms. “It seems we both have a secret.”

“I’d say fair enough, but you know mine.” And she seemed to be keeping two: one about the sword and one about her past.

“Only because I guessed it.”