Page 11 of Brushed By Moonlight

Henrik had hammered a series of knee-high posts into the ground and was stretching wire between them, creating one of those low, crawl-through-the-mud obstacles the Marines used. He stuck to shaded areas as much as possible, like all vampires. Thecreatures of the nightmyth only applied to recently turned vampires. The older they were, the better they could tolerate sunlight.

Marius was combining several old horse-jumping standards into one tall structure. Was he planning to shimmy over or leap in a single bound, like Superman?

Then again, he was a dragon shifter. Why even bother, unless to train his human body?

Not that it appeared to need much training. He’d stripped out of his jacket and was down to a snug black T-shirt that showed off line upon line of muscle and a broad chest that tapered down to—

—a place I was not interested in, I reminded myself and whirled away to dress.

A thud sounded, and I peered along the length of the building, where something dangled.

My mouth fell open. Bene stood casually at the very edge of the roof, not at all concerned by the drop-off. Turning his back to the forest, he grabbed a thick rope and rappelled down. No safety equipment, no belay buddy. He touched down smoothly, then stood beside Roux and gestured back at the roof. Had he discovered how saggy it was or was he suggesting anchor points for more ropes?

Backing away from the window, I speed-combed my hair, pulled it into a ponytail, and headed to the kitchen just as Madame Picard chimed to summon everyone.

The men filed into the dining room politely, then devoured the meal like ravenous animals — except Henrik, who took neat bites and dabbed his lips like a seventeenth-century gentleman.

Madame Picard hmpfed, reading my mind.

Sixteenth, at least. That is, before he became what he is now. You watch yourself around him,she warned, shooting her harsh whisper directly into my mind.

Not exactly a news flash.

I will,I assured her.

Then Madame Picard sighed to herself.I’ll add more meat to the menu.

Apparently, the more meat a vampire consumed, the longer he could go without blood. The rarer, the better.

Good idea,I agreed. As in all the carpaccio and steak tartare we could get our hands on. But for now…

The meal started with onion soup topped with hearty Gruyère, followed by a main course of fresh-out-of-the-oven quiche Lorraine — two huge ones the men devoured within minutes.

“Good thing I held back a smaller one for us,” she murmured as we passed, bustling in and out of the kitchen.

Happily, lunch was a hit, right down to the cheese platters served — and decimated — for dessert. But food was going to take a bigger chunk of my budget than I’d anticipated.

“Delicious.” Bene kissed and flicked his fingertips.

“Quite good,” Henrik agreed, folding his napkin.

“Can’t wait for dinner.” Roux leaned back from the table.

Marius jerked his chin in a faint nod. That was it. But, hey. He looked slightly less disgruntled than usual.

They lingered around the table for a long time, sipping drinks and generally settling into a post-meal stupor, like lions in a savanna surrounded by the bloody carcass of their latest meal. Marius’s eyes took on a faraway look, and Henrik stared into his wineglass. Even Roux looked a little sleepy.

Bene, bless him, scored major brownie points by helping carry dishes into the kitchen.

“Wow. Is this place for real?” He looked around the massive space.

I grinned. “Nice, huh? It’s the oldest room in the house.”

“You could film a medieval banquet scene here.”

I laughed. “They did, back in the 1950s.Le Fripon de Rougemont.” Sadly, the grainy, black-and-white epic was now forgotten except by members of my family.

Bene nodded, translating the title. “The Rogue of Rougemont. Love it.”