After a few moments, I blew out the candle and returned to the entrance room, where I stood in front of a window that overlooked the estate. The only thing I could see was darkness and my own reflection.
A grating sound caught my attention, and I turned to see Gem speedily approaching from the long hall on my left. She had on a pair of roller skates—the old ones with a wheel on each corner. Her arms swung back and forth as she breezed by me and giggled. “You’d better hurry up before they drink all the wine!”
A few strands of my hair floated in front of my face from the gust of wind left behind, and I thought how amusing it was that a Mage—who could flash at incredible speeds—would put on a pair of skates to get around a big mansion. Gem had a youthful heart, and it made me curious how she ended up in a place like this.
“Did he offer you the position?” Christian asked.
I watched his reflection in the window approach me from behind, but I didn’t turn around. “Yes.”
“And?”
“I’m thinking about it.”
He tilted his head to the side. “You’re an odd woman. One minute you’re ready to cut a man’s throat for the job, and the next you’re having second thoughts.”
“Can I have a moment to think?”
Frustrated, I stepped around him and hurried up the stairs. The last thing I wanted was a Vampire needling me when I had an important decision to make, and I didn’t want him to say anything that would influence me either way. Viktor might want me, but would the rest give me a second chance if I were responsible for someone quitting? How would Christian leaving change the dynamic of the house?
I opened a set of french doors and stepped onto a small balcony that overlooked the estate. The railing was circular, large enough to accommodate a party of three. When I glanced up, the moon was shining bright, missing only a sliver from her edge. It was enough light to frost the tips of the trees. Most of the land in front of the house was a meadow, with only a few clusters of trees at a safe distance. It made sense not to have anything that would allow intruders to climb into the building. I had a breathtaking view of the road that led to the main gates, and the dense forest that surrounded Keystone from a distance.
“Looks like the rain finally cleared up,” Christian said, leaning on the balcony to my left. “That’s how I know Mother Nature is a woman. She changes her mind that fast.” He snapped his fingers.
“Did you come here to impart your words of wisdom?”
He snorted. “Do I look like a fortune cookie? I just came up here to make sure you didn’t jump. That would be another mess of yours I’d have to clean up.”
I snickered. “If I wanted to kill myself, I would have gone to the roof and aimed for the courtyard pool when it was empty.”
“I would have left you there for a week until your corpse festered.”
“It’s hard to believe you’re single.” I turned around, my elbows on the railing.
Christian stepped over my legs in a straddle and placed his hands on the rail behind me so we were inches apart. “Made up your mind?”
“Back at the cemetery, I realized how much they care about you. If you leave, they’ll despise me. It might not be worth it.”
He tilted his head to the side, lowering his eyes. It was a submissive gesture I’d seen Vampires do when they wanted your trust. “If you stay, I’ll stay.”
“And if I go?”
His eyes lifted to mine. “Let’s stay, precious.”
A gentle breeze cooled my hair, ruffling it over my shoulders. “We might end up killing each other.”
Christian’s smile widened, and it was a handsome grin. “Aye, but I’m rather fond of working with someone who can’t stand me. Never a dull moment.”
I lingered on his wolfish brows that sloped down and how beautiful his skin was up close—not alabaster and dull, but a natural beige with warm undertones that glowed with health and vitality. “I don’t hate you, Christian. I think that’s what scares me the most. That’s why we need a clean slate.”
He pursed his lips in thought. “And what do you propose?”
“If I stay, you still owe me a favor.”
He leaned in close. “I’m not washing your knickers, if that’s what you have in mind.”
“I want you to scrub my memory of our kiss.”
Christian blinked rapidly and jerked back. “Pardon?”
“I won’t be able to work with you as long as I can remember us locking lips. It doesn’t seem to bother you, but it changed things. I don’t want to partner with someone that—”
“That you feel something for?”
When I stood up straight, he stepped back. “That’s not what it’s about. I have my reasons, and it shouldn’t make a difference to you either way. If you erase it and this conversation, we’ll be good. I don’t work well with distractions.”
“Maybe you just don’t want to admit you feel something for a Vampire.”