Page 80 of Vampires of Eden

“Dios mío.” Leoni sits back and uses a palm to brush her bangs from her forehead. They flop back down. “You would do that for him?”

I shrug, trying to be casual but failing. “I might.”

She blows out a breath. “I don’t think that would fly, cariño. First, he’d have to accept your offer, which I highly doubt he would. Second, his parents and the board would want to know where the money came from. I’m sorry to say this, but?—”

“Money gifted from a ‘lowly first-gen’ would be invalid?”

She clenches her teeth. “I wasn’t gonna say it like that but, it’s how the oldies operate. You know it better than anyone.”

Unfortunately, I do. The way Josefina treated me towardthe end of our relationship was only half of my trauma. The rest was the constant derision and hostility from all the other vampires in the estate. Purebreds who looked down on me for reaching above my station. Other ranked vampires mocking me in shame. Saying that I deserved what I got.

It was a multifaceted hell.

“Loaning him the money is no bueno,” she goes on. “But I was thinking… wine sales increase considerably when he comes to the market with us. My pride is a little bruised, but I’m running the numbers and they don’t lie. He’s got that sparkly and charming energy that other vamps are drawn to.”

“He’s the Golden Prince,” I say flatly. The memory of his alighted and fiery eyes manifests in my mind. Something like a streak of lightning shoots down my belly and makes my groin hot. I shift in my seat to fold one knee over the other and clear my throat. “Or whatever.”

“What if we ask Puercoespín to go into business with us?” Leoni ponders. “He could come to the cottage more consistently and help work the land first to see if he likes it—get his hands dirty and learn about the winery. Then, if we all agree, we could sign him on? It could benefit us and him, potentially. We need the help.”

With my belly and groin nearing normalcy, I take a breath. “I like this idea. He seems to enjoy the work we do at the safe house. I think he’d be into this as well. The drive is long, though, to do multiple times a week.”

“Should he stay here? Maybe for a week or two? A trial-run.”

My brain short-circuits. Alexander living with us would be… ridiculous. Bewildering.

At the same time, though, definitely preferred if the other option is his being married off to some predator vampire almost ten-times his age.

“Would you be comfortable with that?” Leoni asks, prompting me out of my silent contemplation.

“Comfortable isn’t really the word, but I… Yes. I’m okay with having him here for a trial-run.”

“Good,” Leoni says. “Plus, it’ll be easier for you to seduce him if he’s in the house with us.”

“Whoa—What the hell? Where didthatcome from?”

She laughs. “I don’t know cariño, it’s just a feeling I get. I was trying to be careful and push the ‘just friends’ agenda, but you weren’t having it. Maybe you really want something more?”

“Your sensors are malfunctioning. In what world would I have the gall to seduce the most sought-after prince in Eden? I’d have to be out of my fucking mind.”

Leoni meets my eyes, dead serious. “In the new world that we’re helping to create, Danny. Can’t you feel it?” A poignant silence follows as I blink, letting her words sink in.

She’s right.

Something is changing in Eden. Not just within the scope of my little universe, but across society at large. No one talks about it openly, but I can feel it.

For as long as any of us can remember, purebreds have held the wealth and power. First- and second-generation vampires typically exist in servitude to purebreds, while third-generation vampires live in the villages outside of the major cities.

“Lower” vampires are assigned to the intensive manual labor, like farming and industry. Waste management and the production of goods and services that purebreds benefit from and enjoy.

Everyone has their role and their place.

Alexander being at the safe house and working with us? Casually spending time with me and watching old TV shows on my couch? It shatters the mold. A deviation from our society’s rigid and long-standing expectations.

Oliver, Santiago and other young purebreds fleeing Eden in search of a more liberated life? Unheard of. Until now.

Sighing, I push myself upright. “You should call him and tell him this. Invite him to stay with us. He may not accept the offer, but it’s better if it comesfrom you.”

“Oh, he’ll definitely accept, because you’re here.”