Page 77

Wolfe

W olfe’s solution showed up right on time. And it actually knocked like a civilized person, unlike the two miscreants playing Go Fish with a freshly bathed Riley on Wolfe’s elegant coffee table not suitable at all for children.

But manners apparently stopped short there, because Wolfe barely had the door open before Daphne—dark eyes shining like he’d never seen—sailed past him into the house without so much as a hello. “Is he here? Did he agree?”

Wolfe nodded to Sybil—still on his doorstep, dressed in a formfitting velvet wrap dress just this side of decent—who shot him a wink in return. “She’s a bit overexcited about the whole situation.”

They followed the clacking of Daphne’s platforms to the sitting room. She’d paused in the doorway, her hand on the doorframe. “Well, hello there, little one.”

Riley only threw her a mistrustful look from his seat on the floor, his muscles tensing as if to flee again , but Johann shot up immediately. “Daphne!” He rushed to embrace her, arms held wide, as if she were a long-lost sister rather than an acquaintance met only a handful of times.

Such a sentimental little thing.

But the warm welcome seemed to appease the skittish child, who unclenched his muscles and took the opportunity to peek at Johann’s cards.

He was decent enough looking now that he’d been bathed, Wolfe supposed.

There was certainly a sort of elfin charm there, when he wasn’t snarling or beheading squirrels.

But enough charm to entice a pair of would-be mothers?

Johann peered around Daphne’s form—for once, he wasn’t the shortest in the room, platform shoes or not—and his eyes lit up in delight. “And Sybil!”

Wolfe was forced to bear witness to more hugging, more enthusiastic reassurances of affection. It was, frankly, over the top.

“Well?” Wolfe asked when all the fawning was over, gesturing to Riley.

Impatience was getting the best of him, and he was struggling to rein it in.

He wanted this situation over with. He wanted all these people out of his house.

And he wanted Eric alone , preferably on all fours, being fucked within an inch of his life.

Sybil cocked a mocking brow, her hand on the nape of Daphne’s neck. “You’re not going to rush us, Wolfgang. Not with this.”

Johann looked at the women with dawning comprehension, his gray eyes going wide. “Oh. You’re the solution.” He turned back to Riley and Danny, who for his part was looking cautious but hopeful. “So, Riley, maybe we should go finish our game upstairs. Let the grown-ups talk.”

Riley scowled at his cards. “About me?”

“Yes, about you.” Ever the honest vampire, Johann. “But nothing bad. Just how to help.”

Riley looked, for whatever reason, to Eric, who’d been standing off to the side, observing the whole spectacle with a sort of patient confusion. “I can’t go back to Mama, can I?”

Before Eric could speak, Daphne stepped forward carefully, squeezing Sybil’s hand as she did so. “Not like this, I’m afraid, little one. We’re so sorry for what happened to you.”

Riley nodded thoughtfully, gathering his cards and looking to his two playmates. Wolfe was hard-pressed to tell whether he was resigned to his fate or biding his time to the next escape attempt.

Danny gestured to the stairs with his chin. “You two go on up. I’ll be there in a minute.” He gave a small wave to the newcomers. “Hello, I’m Danny.”

Wolfe couldn’t help the roll of his eyes. “Yes, yes. This is Danny. And this is Eric. Sybil and Daphne, as I’m sure you both heard Johann yell quite loudly. We’ve all met; let’s get on with it.”

Danny made a skeptical noise. “Isn’t it a little sexist to pawn the kid off on two women?”

Sybil laughed airily, grabbing at Wolfe’s arm. “Yes, Wolfgang, isn’t it?”

Wolfe gritted his teeth. “I distinctly recall Daphne expressing the wish for a child.”

“Of course you do,” Daphne said approvingly, tapping a finger to her head.

“That steel trap of yours.” She turned to Danny, the picture of sincerity.

“He’s not wrong. It’s my one regret of meeting Sybil when I did.

No younglings of our own. Unless you count Wolfe, and he’s really not the most affectionate son. ”

Wolfe tugged his arm out of Sybil’s hold, scowling at Daphne. “I am not your son.”

“See what I mean?” Daphne cocked her head, studying Danny, acting as if she hadn’t realized what he was the moment she’d waltzed into the room. “You never wanted one of your own?”

Danny shrugged. “I have a dog, so…”

“A fur baby!” Daphne clapped her hands. “How delightful.”

Wolfe resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. The two women knew his tells too well, and they’d never stop goading him if they realized it was working. “Do you want the brat or not?”

“Wolfgang,” Daphne chastised. “First of all, he needs to agree to it.”

“I believe he will. You two have a…warmth to you.”

Sybil gave a dramatic gasp. “Compliments! How absolutely maudlin of you.” She fixed her gaze sharply on Eric. “Could it be this young gentleman’s influence?”

Daphne took her cue, and the two began circling Eric—who’d been absolutely closemouthed during this whole ordeal because he was a perfect creature and not nearly as annoying as every single other person currently invading Wolfe’s house—like a pair of sharks.

“Very handsome,” Sybil crooned. “These shoulders. But still, a certain sweetness to the face.”

“He should grow that hair out a bit though,” Daphne mused. “It would suit him better.”

“If the two of you would stop eyeing my mate like a slab of beef, I’d greatly appreciate it.”

“Your mate?” Sybil pressed a hand to her chest, wide-eyed in mock surprise. “Way to bury the lede, Wolfgang.”

“You don’t think the vampire child in need of a home merited the lede?”

Eric was tense, clearly nervous, but he still managed a lovely smile for the women. “It’s nice to meet you both. I didn’t realize Wolfe had any friends. Except Jay sometimes.”

“Sometimes?” Daphne’s brow furrowed, rounding on Wolfe. “Have you been upsetting sweet Johann?”

Wolfe waved a hand. “I may have acted…rashly a few times since my arrival.”

“He sort of kidnapped me,” Eric murmured, his cheeks flushing pink when Wolfe cocked a brow at the admission.

Sybil laughed with delight. “Well, who could blame him?”

“Stop. Flirting.” Now Wolfe did pinch the bridge of his nose. He hadn’t had a migraine in a century, but he thought he could feel one coming on regardless.

Danny cleared his throat from his spot on the floor. “Um, so about Riley?”

“Riley.” Daphne sighed happily. “He looks like a Riley.”

“You think you can take care of him?”

“It will be a challenge, surely,” Sybil said. “As a whole, we know very little about vampire children. Except that they have monstrous appetites. Can he feed on animals, do you know?”

Eric shrugged. “He drained a squirrel, I’m pretty sure.”

“That will help.” The two women looked at each other, starting a rapid-fire back-and-forth. “Somewhere woodsy, then. A large plot of land. Perhaps elk territory?”

“But close enough to civilization to find humans to supplement.”

“And if he stabilizes? What of his mother?”

“Turned so young…he may forget her. With his vampire self clamoring constantly for blood, and the general trauma of what’s happened. But if not, we’ll deal with it when it comes.”

They nodded in unison, clearly having come to some sort of conclusion, and then Daphne turned to Wolfe. “What about the son of a bitch who turned him?”

“We don’t know,” Eric answered for him. “Jamie and Luc plan to try to find him, if they can. They think he may still be down south, in the desert.”

That was news to Wolfe, but perhaps Eric had received a text of some sort.

There was the brief clamor of stomping down the stairs, and then Riley and Johann were once again among them, moving to join Danny.

“It was boring, just the two of us,” Riley said by way of explanation, observing the two women out of the corner of his eye as he dropped his cards on the table.

Wolfe scoffed. “Was it really boring, or were you busy eavesdropping?”

He received a slap on the shoulder from Daphne, who moved to crouch down in front of the child.

“Hello, Riley. I know this is all happening very quickly, but Sybil and I would like to take you with us. Somewhere far away, where the bad vampire who turned you can’t find you.

And we’ll help you with that bottomless pit of a belly you’ve got. ”

“I won’t forget Mama,” Riley said firmly. Eavesdropping indeed.

Daphne only smiled softly. “And one day, when you’re older, and you’re not in danger of hurting her…we’ll help you track her down. Does that sound all right?”

Riley pointed to Johann. “Is he coming with us?”

Johann glanced uncertainly at Daphne, who nodded. “I’ll visit, when your guardians think it’s safe. And we can Facetime! I do that with Jamie’s sister sometimes.”

Riley sighed, a surprisingly heavy sound for one so young, before grabbing the one comic designated as his. He stood from the coffee table, reaching for Daphne’s hand. “Okay.”

Thank the lord, thank the devil, thank whatever other entity may have been involved.

These people were finally leaving his house.

Wolfe moved them along, unsubtle but uncaring.

It wasn’t as if Riley had any belongings to pack.

He and Daphne were already whispering to each other as they walked out the door, bonding in that quick way children and those fond of them were capable of.

Sybil stopped on the porch, having the gall to pat Wolfe on his cheek. “I’m so glad you’ve find your mate, Wolfgang. He softens your edges, I can tell.”

Wolfe’s edges didn’t feel very soft at the moment, but he managed a small nod of acknowledgment, if only to hurry things along. But then his mouth was moving without his permission. “And did you always want a child as well?”