Page 53 of Taming His Vampire Mate

“It’s not. Or, itwasn’t. She tried for months to make it work.”

“Why?”

“Maybe I was lonely.”

“Were you?”

“No.”

The mate-bond told me he was lying.

“We’ve got time,” I said. “If we’re going to be ripped to shreds, I’d like to know why you summoned a mate you didn’t want.”

He nodded. “Fair. There might be a way to bring someone back once they’ve lost their humanity.” His eyes were locked on the gas station attendant as he slammed himself into the barrier, to no avail. The name tag on his shirt readQuinn. Thierry added, “A vampire, I mean.”

Surprise jolted through me. “What? Before, you said—”

“It’s only been done once,” Thierry said softly, smiling faintly. “By a reckless idiot. And because the universe does so love a fool, it might have been a one-off occurrence. I could be harboring false hopes.”

“Another friend of yours?”

“My progeny,” Thierry corrected.

Ice slid through me.

“Have you turned very many people over the years?”

“Just him,” Thierry replied quietly. “And only because he insisted. It’s not a relationship to be taken lightly. I only did it to help him save someone he loved very much. His mate lost his humanity. Michael became a vampire in an effort to save him. To prove to Danny he was willing to do anything—even become something he hated.”

I wasn’t surprised. Even lonely, Thierry wouldn’t turn someone out of selfishness. He might want me to think that about him, but it was obvious every single choice he’d made in my presence was ultimately altruistic.

“And after your… progeny…” I paused around the word, testing it out. “After he turned, he brought his mate back? Humanity and all?”

“Yes. Michael’s a sappy idiot. He risked everything. But he couldn’t give up on Danny.”

“You’re proud of him.”

Thierry scoffed. “Of course not. Don’t be absurd.”

We both knew he was lying.

“After Michael turned, he convinced Danny to come back?”

Thierry nodded. “My working theory is that one’s fated mate is the only person who can help restore a vampire’s humanity once they’ve gone… feral.”

“Feral, huh?”

“Michael’s word, not mine.” Thierry’s gaze lingered on Quinn again. “Though, I suppose it’s… apt.”

“And now you want to repeat the process. Which is why your witch friend created the mate-summoning spell. And here we both are.”

He gave me a startled look. “I shouldn’t have disparaged your intellect.”

“You need to stop saying that. I’ll get a complex. But apology accepted.”

“When I’m apologizing, you’ll know. But yes—meeting one’s fated mate is rare. If it’s the key to helping people beyond help, we need a way to make it happen on command.”

I followed his gaze to Quinn, the gas station attendant he was still studying. And then understanding hit me. “You want to save them. You want to save them all.”