“I’ll have to explain everything later. Right now I don’t have time.” She paused, thinking. “How did you feel about Julian when we were together? You never said anything at the time. I know you’ve been really angry with him.”
“He hurt you badly, and I never forgot or forgave that. But when you originally got together, I was guarded yet willing to be open-minded about the prospect. As long as he treated you well, and you were happy, I could be happy for you.” Her mother’s voice turned dry. “And, of course, there were potential advantages.”
Biting back a smile, she said, “Of course.”
“Are you and he involved again? Because if you are, I have to tell you, he has got to work damn hard to make up for everything that happened.”
“I’ll make sure he knows that,” she told her mother. “And yes, we are romantically involved again. Please try to keep an open mind. We were manipulated into breaking up. What happened before wasn’t all his fault.”
Tatiana’s voice turned cold and crisp. “Not true. You are my daughter. I raised you, and I know better than anyone what a good and generous heart you have. He should have had faith in you, no matter what.”
“Thank you,” she murmured. It was clearly going to take some time to build some bridges.
“I will say this much.” The reluctance in Tatiana’s voice was clear. “When we discovered you were missing, and I called to ask him to come, he did so without hesitation. And as you said, he tried to exchange himself for you, so I’ll grant him a small amount of leeway. Very small, Melly. Very, very small.”
“Understood.” She smiled. “Listen, I’d better go. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”
“All right, darling. Be safe.”
“I will.”
Disconnecting, she blew out a breath. At least her immediate family hadn’t conspired together to take a wrecking ball to her love life, so there was that.
No, she was beginning to think that Bailey might have acted on her own. Hotheaded, impulsive Bailey who lived hard, broke the rules, and who had once called Julian a bloodsucking boneheaded bastard.
Had Ferion been a willing participant, or had he thought he was just playing a little sex game when Bailey whipped out a wig?
Oh, that was downright skeevy. Melly made a face. She was going to have to break her fist on his face too, the next time she saw him.
Slipping on the slender, new house shoes that Gregoire had purchased for her, she took one more bite of cheese and headed out of the suite.
Following the sound of voices, she made her way through the downstairs level to Julian’s study. The room was darker than the rest of house, heavy on traditional décor, with wood paneling, oak floors, an imported Persian rug and a massive mahogany desk. A small sitting area with plain, cream furniture took up one end of the room.
As she entered, she found Julian and Xavier leaning over a street map that had been spread out on the surface of his desk. A young, dark-haired human woman with striking, angular features sat in the sitting area, listening to the men’s conversation with an intent expression.
After giving the unknown woman a curious glance, Melly focused on Xavier and Julian.
Xavier was the perfect example of how looks could be deceiving. While he appeared to be a pleasant, somewhat nondescript young man in his early twenties, in reality he was a Powerful Vampyre at least four hundred years old, a gentleman to his core, and a deadly fighter.
Beside Julian’s larger, more muscular build, Xavier appeared almost delicate to Melly’s eyes. It was another deception. His slim build contained a steely strength.
The occupants in the room looked up as she entered.
She went straight to Xavier, who stepped forward to give her a hug. He told her, “Melly, I am so glad you’re all right.”
She took note of how stiffly he moved. Normally he did everything with a liquid, panther-like grace. She tightened her arms around him with care. “I feel the same way about you. Thank God you’re all right.”
He gave her a small, grave smile. “I’d like you to meet Tess. She is my…” His voice trailed off, and he looked at the woman in some consternation.
Tess raised an eyebrow at him. Her intelligent expression turned humorous. “Your girlfriend?”
He laughed. “Yes, she is my girlfriend.”
Melly’s gaze lingered on his expression. Despite the evident pain of his condition, and the serious reasons why he had come to Julian’s house, he was lit with happiness.
She told Tess, “I’m delighted to meet you. Anyone who is important to Xavier is important to me.”
The other woman gave her a shy smile. “Thank you. I’m delighted to meet you too.”
“Tess saved my life,” Xavier said. “If she hadn’t known what to do and acted so quickly, the poison would have killed me.”