Gates of Paradise (a Blue Bloods Novel)

Lawson’s mouth had fallen open a bit, though Bliss wasn’t sure if it was from the horror of the rococo decor of the apartment or her ease at ordering servants around.

“You’re going to catch flies in there,” she teased, and Lawson snapped his mouth shut.

“This was how you lived?” he asked, after the servants had gone.

“Oh, it was much worse than this,” she said. “Much, much worse. We used to have a chauffeur who drove me half a block down the road to school. In a Rolls-Royce.” Lawson was looking at her as if she were a stranger, and she didn’t like it. “Yeah, I know, gross. If BobiAnne were here, she’d probably make the driver take me around in a Prius, now that eco-friendly is the new smug.”

Lawson looked around and grinned, pointing to a life-size sculpture of a golden-haired princess with heaving bosoms.

Bliss laughed. “Hey, I didn’t decorate this place. My stepmother had ambitions for Versailles. The room we’re putting you in isn’t that bad. We should really get some sleep—we have a lot to do tomorrow.”

“I could probably use it,” Lawson admitted, and followed her up the stairs.

The guest room was one of the more tastefully appointed, at least in a relative sense. It had a hunting theme—the walls were dark green, and the curtains, lamp shade, and bedspread were all plaid damask, in shades of navy, maroon, and beige. Bliss thought it wouldn’t have been so bad were it not for the deer heads dotting the walls. Trust BobiAnne to always find the detail that went too far.

“Sorry about the taxidermy,” Bliss said.

“Makes me feel right at home,” Lawson deadpanned.

“Oh, and if you’re hungry, the cook can make you whatever you want.”

“Kind of like that hotel we stayed in.” He smiled. “Remember?”

The hotel where they had totally hooked up? Yeah. She remembered. How could she forget? She nodded, trying not to blush.

“Listen, I know we never talked about what happened that night, and I’m sorry that things got a little out of hand,” he said. “You were right to stop me when you did.”

So that’s how he felt about it. That it was all a big mistake. Bliss took a deep breath and avoided looking him in the eye. How could she ever have thought he’d really been interested in her? “Good thing,” she agreed. “Would have been a huge mistake, you and me.”

Lawson looked a little stung. “I didn’t say that. I never said it was a mistake.”

“But you think it,” she said.

“Is that what you think?” he asked, challenging her.

They stared at each other. Finally Bliss said, “No.”

Lawson’s face broke into a smile. “Neither do I.”

Bliss didn’t know what to say to that.

“Keep me company?” he asked suddenly.

Bliss hesitated for a bit and wondered why she was hesitating. She’d been waiting for this exact moment since the first time.

“Okay,” she said, not sure what it meant. Maybe it didn’t mean anything. Maybe, like her, he just didn’t want to be alone.

The lights were off and the house was quiet. She turned toward him at exactly the same time that he turned toward her, and before either of them could say anything, they were already kissing.

Her attraction to him was unlike anything she had felt before. It was instant, powerful, and when they were together she felt as if he knew every inch of her—not just her body but her soul. She fell asleep in his arms.

“Bliss…Bliss.” He was gently calling her name.

Still half asleep, she reached toward him, thinking it would be fun to do that again…but instead of his warm body, her hands only found an empty space where he should have been.

She blinked her eyes open.

Lawson was sitting at the edge of the bed, shirtless in his boxer shorts. “Mac just called,” he said, putting his phone away.

“Something wrong?” she said, pulling up the covers around her chest.

“Yeah. They went back to the cavern to see if Arthur was there, but he wasn’t. Hadn’t been for a while, apparently. The place was completely trashed, just like the Repository. I don’t know if it was hounds or what, but they said it was a disaster. They think he’s alive, though—there was no blood anywhere. They don’t know what to do next, but we have to find him.”

“We? But what about my friends?”

“I have to go with them,” he said. “They’re my pack. My place is with them. With the vampires missing, Arthur’s our only chance of getting back into the passages and the underworld for the rest of the wolves. I want you to come with me.”

“Lawson…” Bliss put a hand on his cheek. “I have to go to London. I can’t come with you.”

His face turned red. “Why not?”

“My friends…they need me. They’re counting on me. You saw that Silver Blood in the Repository. They’re your former masters; you know how strong they are,” Bliss said. “That’s what we’re fighting. The vampires can’t handle them alone.”

“But I need you too. Your pack needs you.”

“You don’t understand,” she said, sorrow in her voice.