Let's just get to it, I know you're anxious to see what happens next.
Beta'd by the beta-wife-for-life, Mynxi
Characters borrowed from SM for our amusement and abuse.
Bella
"GAH!" I yelled in my frustration, bringing a concerned Maggie to my door. Peter was next door to me, but as I'm sure he heard my conversation with Jasper and knew what was going on, he didn't bother to come check on me.
"Everything alright, Madame Whitlock?"
I sighed. "Not really. I've received some disturbing news and now need to make a phone call that isn't going to be very well received."
"Anything I can do?" she offered, her short red curls bobbing as she cocked her head to the side.
"I'm afraid not, but thank you, Maggie."
"I'll leave you to your call then," she replied in her soft Irish lilt. She ducked back out of the room. I closed the door behind her and then picked up my cell phone to dial Jake and Lexi's number.
"Well hello!" Lexi answered the phone cheerily. "To what do we owe this honor of an actual phone call?"
I laughed softly. "Ah, shit, I wish it were for a better reason, Lexi, but I'm afraid this isn't a social call. Is Jake around?"
"Ooh, sounds serious. He's still at work, Bells. I can give you that number though, if you need to reach him right away."
"That would be great, Lexi, thanks."
She rattled off the number, followed by, "Do I need to be concerned, Bella?" Her tone was cautious and wary.
"Where is Tyler right now, Lexi?"
I heard her breath catch. "He's right here with me, playing Legos. Why?"
"Do me a favor and keep him inside today, just as a precaution until I can talk to Jake, okay?"
"What the fuck is going on, Bella?" Lexi whispered frantically.
"Auntie Bella?" I heard Tyler exclaim. "I want to talk to auntie Bella!"
"In a minute, Sweetie, ok? Auntie Bella and Mommy need to talk grownup stuff for a minute, ok?" She waited a moment, and then spoke again to me. "Tell me, Bella."
"There are a couple of vampires in California who are causing some trouble. They've got a smear campaign going and Tyler's birth and subsequent 'abandonment' are a couple of major topics of said campaign."
"What?" she hissed. "Do they know where we are?"
"That's why I need to talk to Jake. I think you guys need to up your security and we want to send help as well. So in the meantime, keep an eye on Tyler and keep him close ok?"
"I will," she agreed. She sounded tense, and rightfully so.
"I'm so sorry, Lexi," I said quietly. "I'd never intentionally bring harm to Tyler, or to any of you."
"I know that Bella, I..." and then Tyler's little voice cut in again.
"MO-OOM, I want to talk to auntie Bella!"
She sighed exasperatedly as I chuckled. "Let me say hi to him real quick."
I heard the phone change hands. "Hi, auntie Bella!"
"Hey there, Ty! How ya been?"
He excitedly told me about learning to ride his bike and the cool castle he built with his Legos. "Well it sounds like you're having a great time, Ty. Have your mom take a picture next time you're riding your bike. I'd love to see it, kiddo."
"Okay! Bye, auntie Bella! Love you!"
My throat tightened. "Love you too, buddy. Hand the phone back to your mom now, ok?" I waited for the clatter of the phone being dropped on the floor, but it didn't come.
"Hello?"
"Wow, he didn't drop the phone."
She snorted. "Yeah, we've been working on that."'
"Well, I'm gonna call Jake now. Take care of yourself Lexi, and Baby Bean too. I loved the ultrasound pic, by the way."
"It does look like a bean, doesn't it?"
"Not for long, it won't. Keep the pics coming, ok?"
I will. Talk to you soon, Bella."
We said our goodbyes, then I took a deep breath to calm myself and dialed Jake's work number. A pleasant voice thanked me for calling my friendly Port Angeles Ford dealer, who then patched me through to Jake, who happened to be on lunch break.
"Jacob Black," he answered.
"Jake, it's me."
"Bells? Are you back in town? How are you?"
"No, I'm in Ireland, Jake. Look, I need to talk to you. Are you somewhere you can speak privately?"
"Uh no, but give me a sec." He put me on hold and then picked up again thirty seconds later. "Ok, I can talk. What's going on, are you ok?"
"I'm fine Jake, but there's something you need to know." I explained the situation, and how Tyler could be a target; I heard Jake sucking breath back and forth very quickly through what I was positive were his tightly pursed lips. I was also fairly certain his free hand was clenching and unclenching. I'd seen this more than once during the days he and I were together. He was trying to keep from phasing. I stopped talking until I heard his breathing slow a little. "Jake?" I asked, testing to see if he was in control enough for me to continue.
"Son of a bitch! So we've got bloodsuckers coming after Ty, is that what you're telling me? Jesus, Bella!"
"I know, Jake. Had I known…" I don't know what would've been different had I known. Apparently there was no fighting destiny, but at what cost?
"I get it, Bella," Jake sighed. "I don't like it, but I get it. I'm supposed to be Alpha, remember? If I had stepped up to the plate, I'd be in charge of twenty-five wolves. You've got God knows how many Draculas to keep tabs of; I can't fault you for having the nads to do the job. But so help me, if I catch a bloodsucker anywhere near LaPush, I'm torching first and asking questions later."
"Well that's the thing. Jasper and I wanted to offer help."
"What kind of help?" he asked dubiously.
"Jasper wants to call you or you to call him and discuss that. Maybe station a few guards in Forks to keep an eye on things, you know?"
Jake was quiet for a minute. "Yeah, maybe. Sam'll need to be in on that conversation. Tell Jasper I'll call, ok? What's his number?" I gave it to him, glad he was open to accepting help from us. It was the least I could do for the moment to help protect my son.
"I better go, Bells. I need to call Sam and then see if I can duck out of here for the day, since I'm sure we'll call an emergency meeting. Shit, I need to call Lexi!"
"She knows, Jake. I called your house first. I asked her to keep Tyler close today."
"Right. Thanks, Bella. Tell Jasper we'll talk soon, ok?"
"Ok. Take care of our boy, Jake. Talk to you soon."
We hung up and I stood staring out the window, feeling more helpless than I'd ever felt in my life. I could cheerfully tear Rafael and Sofia limb from fucking limb right now. How dare they? I began to pace, seriously contemplating saying 'fuck it' and hopping the next plane out to the US, when there was a gentle tap at my door. I opened it to find Maggie and Peter standing there; Pete was wearing a grin I recognized all too well, and didn't trust one bit. "What are you up to Petey?" I asked suspiciously.
"Here's the thing, Stella. You can't fly back to the states tonight because you've got work to do here and you know it. Jake and Jasper are gonna handle matters as much as can be handled tonight. You are wound tighter than a drum, so I'm going to suggest you and I get out of here for a bit and let you have a good run and hunt, and then sweet Maggie here has offered to show us what Kilarney has to offer for nightlife."
I shook my head. "No I don't think so, Petey. I don't feel so much like going out tonight."
Peter walked over and took my hand. "Which is exactly why you're going to go. Fretting ain't gonna change anything. Come on, let's get you fed."
Knowing he was at least right about my needing to hunt, I allowed him to pull me out of the room. Maggie stepped aside to let us by, eyes twinkling. "I hope you change your mind, Madame. There's always fun to be had at the Bottomless Pint."
I spoke quickly over my shoulder as Peter dragged me down the hall. "Thanks Maggie, and call me Bella."
Once outside the door of Siobhan's modest home, Peter released my hand and we ran to the nearby Kilarney National Park. Peter had a point, it felt liberating to run and have the wind whipping through my hair. He didn't feed on animals of course, but he stood by at a respectful distance, standing guard, I'm sure, when I came across a herd of red deer and gave into my instincts.
Once I'd taken down two males and had my fill, Peter approached me again. "So how's Irish deer?"
"Eh, a little gamey. Thanks for getting me out of the house, Petey, I needed that. I'm still not so sure I should be out partying while my son's life is potentially in danger."
"Now Stella, you know as well as I do Jake has no less than half a dozen wolves guarding Tyler this very second. What you need is to get out and relax a little. You're too stressed, which makes you too distracted, which will make you a mess when you need to come across as calm and collected no matter what is thrown at you. So let's get back to the house, get you pretty, and go have a little fun at the pub. Nothing crazy, all right?"
Forty-five minutes later found us pulling up in front of the Bottomless Pint, a typical Irish pub with raucous music and singing. Edward, Peter, Maggie, and I all filed in through the front door and were immediately greeted by a large vampire tending the bar, tinted glasses covering his red eyes. "Maggie, m' dear, so good to see you!" Then he got a good look at me and lowered his eyes and his voice. "Madame President, it is an honor to have you with us this evenin'." He gave me a slight bow. None of the other patrons paid any mind; his voice had been far too quiet for them to hear over the din. "My name's Michael, folks call me Big Mick."
"Nice to meet you, Big Mick," I said with a smile which I hoped would put him at ease. "Please make no fuss over my presence here. I'm just here to unwind a little ya know?"
"Of course, ma'am. If there's anythin' you need though, I'm at your service." He gave a slight nod again, and then turned his attention back to Maggie. "The usual, Miss Maggie?"
"Of course. I think my friend Peter here would also enjoy a glass."
Big Mick nodded. "Find your table, I'll bring it out to you shortly. None for these two, I take it?" He was looking at my and Edward's golden eyes.
"Just bring a couple glasses of your finest whiskey, Big Mick. I may not be able to drink it, but I can sure enjoy its aroma," I replied.
We found a table cordoned off with a blood red velvet rope. "This is the VIV section," Maggie explained with a grin. "Mick does a fine job catering to our kind. He provides us a discreet area to socialize and has a connection with a vampire who works in triage at the local hospital. Patients who die on his watch provide the kind of refreshment most of us vampires tend to prefer."
As if on cue, Big Mick appeared with two steaming silver mugs of what could only be human blood. I was glad I'd hunted first, or I would've been tempted to try it. It smelled heavenly. He set the glasses of whiskey in front of Edward and me. As good as they would've smelled otherwise, they were like placing water next to the most fragrant of perfumes. There was no comparison. "Are you sure I can't get you anythin' else?" He glanced from us, to Maggie and Peter's mugs, then back to us.
I looked at Edward, who'd obviously stopped breathing. "No thank you, Mick." He nodded and turned back to his bar.
I raised my glass in toast. "To good friends and forgetting about the bullshit for just a little while." We clinked glasses and, as Maggie and Peter drank, Edward and I only pantomimed it. Ok, I did dip my tongue in the amber liquid, but unfortunately it now tasted horrid to my heightened vampire taste buds.
The evening passed pleasantly; with Maggie sharing tidbits of her years as a vampire, as well as her talent of knowing when someone is lying, I grew to really like her. She and Edward sang along with some of the folk songs that played in the bar, and at one point, I spotted a woman who was obviously intoxicated and having a great time. I decided then to try something. I opened myself to what she was feeling and instantly felt the familiar fuzzy, dizzy, wondrous feeling of a good buzz. Oh, how I'd fucking missed that feeling.
After a few moments of sitting there with what I was sure was a silly grin, Peter looked at me knowingly and chuckled. "Leave it to Stella to find a way."
"Wha-a-a-t?" I flashed him one of his own shit-eating grins. "I'm quite sure I have no idea what the fuck you are talking about."
Maggie gasped eagerly. "Oh my! What's going on?"
"She's drunk," Edward said dryly.
I gave him the finger. "And the horse you rode in on, Edward, dahhhling." Just then a barmaid happened by. I touched her as she passed. "Excuse me, Miss, do you sell cigarettes here?"
She smiled. "Of course. What would you like?"
"I'm not from around here, just get me whatever brand is the most preferred."
"I'll be right back," she said with a nod, and then returned a moment later with the cigarettes and a match book. I promptly pulled one out and lit it. Whiskey had tasted terrible, but this was suiting me just fine, though I didn't get quite the nicotine kick I'd remembered from before.
I scanned the room for my happy drunk girl, but she was well on her way to bombed. I found another who had a good giggle going and tapped into her instead. Ahhh, much better. I took another drag from my cigarette and leaned back in my chair with a satisfied smile. Peter met my eyes and I nodded. "Thanks Petey, I needed this."
"Anytime, Stella, anytime. Say Maggie, how about a dance?"
The music had changed from folk to that of Eighties pop music, and as I listened I recognized the opening strains of "Come on Eileen". Maggie accepted with a smile and they went off to the dance floor.
Enjoying my borrowed buzz and my cigarette, I sang along softly, bobbing my head to the music as I watched the dancing crowd, until I became aware I was being watched. I exhaled a plume of smoke over my head and slid my eyes to meet Edward's stare. "What's up, Edward?"
He raised his lips into a shadow of his crooked grin that used to make my heart go all fucking pitty-pat. I still felt a tug, due to nostalgia, I'd assume. "Nothing, just watching you, marveling over the outstanding creature you've become."
"Whew, I'm glad it's only that. I was afraid I was about to get another lecture about how bad smoking is for me," I teased.
He sighed in mock exasperation. "You grudge-bearing little bitch, you won't ever let me forget that, will you?"
I smirked at his very un-Edward-like language. Good, it's about time he loosened that pole up his ass. "As if you could forget it. You got your ass beat for that and you had it coming, too. You were such a fucking prick that night."
He lowered his eyes, serious now. "I am sorry about that. I was the foolish one for leaving you, encouraging you to forget me and move on, and it's a mistake I'll spend the rest of my existence paying for dearly."
"You have Tanya now, Edward," I reminded him, though being an empath, I was well aware his feelings for her didn't run nearly as deep.
"I do. And she's a wonderful partner with whom to share my life." He smiled sadly. It didn't escape my notice that he did not say 'mate'.
"Let's go dance, Edward." I wasn't going to let him get all emo and ruin what had turned out to be a pleasant night.
"Really?" he cocked an eyebrow at me, unsure whether or not I was fucking with him. He and I hadn't danced together since Prom.
I crushed out my cigarette, stood and held my hand out to him. "Let's go."
He stood and took my hand and we headed for the dance floor. "Come on Eileen" became "Burning Down the House" and I had a good giggle at Edward, Peter, and Maggie's very authentic Eighties-style dancing, considering I hadn't even been born yet when these songs had first come out. I did the best I could with my own style of dancing, which apparently was fine, if one went by the appreciative stares and feelings of lust coming my way. I imagine there were a few particularly nasty thoughts too, judging by the glares Edward was throwing at some of the men.
Then a slow song came on. "I think I'm up for another hot mug, how about you Peter?" Maggie asked.
"Sure," Peter said. I started to follow but Edward held fast to my hand. I turned to look back at him. "Please? I can't be around that anyway, it was hard enough the first time."
I sighed and came back to him. "One slow dance. And if you pull a Carlisle, I will rip your nuts off and feed them to you, do you understand?"
"Uh, yes. Crystal clear," he nodded solemnly with a wince. I allowed him to pull me close to him. Eh, awkward. And then I heard the song.
"Is this burning an eternal flame? Say my name, sun shine's through the ra-a-ain…"
Ok, now it was funny, and I was good again. "Debbie Gibson? Really?" I laughed.
He looked down at me with a bemused expression. "It's Deborah Gibson now, didn't you hear? And no, this was by The Bangles. Besides, I rather liked this song back then."
"Somehow, I don't doubt that," I snorted. We danced in silence for a bit, with me giggling every now and then, which as a good thing because the last thing this moment needed was any sort of romantic overtones.
"Is this really that funny?" Edward smiled down at me.
"Actually, it's kind of a miracle, considering six months ago I gladly would have punched you in the face any day, before ever volunteering to dance with you. The fact it's to this fucking cheese-tastic song is just a bonus."
He laughed lightly. "Well, put that way, I guess I can see the humor in the situation." His face grew serious again. "I like this, Bella. Can this be 'us' now?"
My face fell and he hurried to clarify. "No, not like that. Believe me, I understand that ship has sailed. What I meant is instead of trading barbs and insults all the time, can we at least be friends? You have such a great platonic relationship with Peter; I'd love if you and I could have that too."
"You do realize that if I ever gave Petey the go-ahead, he would be all up on this before I could blink, don't you?"
Edward grinned at me saucily. "As would I." Oh really now?
"And when Petey's acting like a total fucking cockbite, I don't hesitate to tell him so."
"I'm pretty sure I've heard him call you 'Your Royal Bitchiness' a time or two. But I can also tell you two love each other dearly, in a very non-romantic kind of way. You know I love you, and that will never change. But I'd like to be able to prove to you I can be a good friend as well. Can we try?"
I smiled up at him. "The rules seem to be pretty clear. I don't see why not."
"So a truce, then?" He flashed me another crooked grin.
"Sure, a truce."
"Kiss on it?"
"Nice try, Edward." But I rose up on my toes and pecked him on the cheek anyway.
Jasper
I received a text from Bella that she'd spoken to Jacob about the situation concerning Tyler, and that he was open to speaking to me about some preventative measures. I gave it a few more hours, allowing time for him to get home from work and meet with the pack, before I finally grew impatient enough to call him. He'd just gotten home from the pack meeting, and it was agreed that it would be acceptable to send some of our Guards to stay in Forks for awhile. They were to serve as protectors for Tyler on the Forks side of the Treaty line. Carlisle granted permission for us to use the Cullen house as a place for the Guards to stay, as well as for use as a neutral meeting ground if needed for meeting with the wolves.
I instructed Santiago to line up three Guards that had exceptional control around humans, and were ready and willing to be dispatched to Forks right away. It was decided that Emmett would accompany them to get them settled and situated in Forks, and conduct a proper introduction of them to the wolves. We decided it would perhaps be best to establish them as friends or relatives of the Cullens since it was such a small town and folks talked about things like that. Then, once we were done with what we needed to do in California, which I wasn't quite clear on yet, we would go up and meet with them ourselves.
By the following morning, three guards and Emmett were packed up and headed off to the airport. Rose, Alice, and I weren't much further behind. Alice's visions hadn't wavered from telling us our destination was to be San Francisco.
I spoke again to Bella not long before we got on the plane, and she told me about her night out with Peter, Edward, and Maggie, who was a member of Siobhan's coven. I wasn't sure how I felt about her rekindled friendship with Edward; it was something that niggled at me nearly the entire flight to America. Alice tried to talk to me about it when the plane stopped for fuel in Chicago, but I really didn't feel like discussing it with her, regardless of how tame her vision of their evening was. No matter my beloved mate's stature in the vampire world, she was mine and I was still a jealous son of a bitch. She knew as well as I did how deep Edward's feelings ran for her; why she'd open herself up to a friendship with him like that was beyond me.
"Why are you so worried about this, Jasper? The fact she told you everything should mean something to y-"
"Alice, I swear to God if you don't shut the fuck up about it and mind your own fucking business, I will stow your head in the cargo hold."
"But Jazz, I-"
"Ali, leave him alone," Rose chimed in from the seat behind me. I knew she would've much rather traveled with Emmett, but I'd be goddamned if I was gonna travel alone with Alice. She may have made nice with Bella, and Bella may have made nice with her and Edward, but I wasn't gonna be so quick to forgive her the shit she put me through when she left. It made no fucking difference to me whether or not she knew the outcome in advance, her method of leaving me was cold as hell. She opened her mouth to speak to me again and I snapped my head to face her, narrowing my eyes at her in challenge to say just one more fucking word. One look and she closed her mouth again. It's a fucking miracle.
Twenty minutes later, Alice still had not spoken a word and we were now on the ground in San Francisco. As we left the terminal and were waiting for our baggage to be unloaded, because we were traveling with Alice and she had to bring half her fucking closet with her, I noticed a male vampire seated in the waiting area. He perked up as we entered, and I felt a momentary wave of lust from him. This was not an unusual phenomenon when traveling with my sister, or my ex-wife for that matter, being that they were both beautiful creatures. No the unusual phenomenon was that it was directed at me. Huh.
He stood slowly, keeping to a slightly submissive, respectful stance. "Major Jasper Whitlock?" he quietly inquired. He wore blue tinted aviator sunglasses to conceal his red eyes from the humans, and he had long wavy dark blond hair tied back in a low ponytail.
I looked at Alice questioningly before responding to him, but she just turned up her nose at me and looked away. Sure, now she's not talking, fucking pain in the ass. "And who might you be?" I replied, ignoring the hand he'd extended toward me for the time being.
"My name is Garrett. It seems we have a mutual friend. Peter contacted me and asked me to welcome you to San Francisco. I'm here to offer whatever kind of assistance I can during your stay here." He paused to look me up and down again before continuing. "I know many of the others of our kind in this vicinity, and Peter thought that knowledge would be beneficial during your stay here." He gave off nothing but sincerity as he said this, so I softened my stance.
"Well that's mighty nice of you Garrett." I shook his hand firmly, ignoring the giddiness he felt from it. "This is my sister, Rosalie," I gestured to Rose, who politely shook his hand.
"Ma'am," he nodded at her.
"And this is Alice," I gestured half-heartedly as she skipped forward.
"Very nice to meet you Garrett," she said, smiling sweetly. Just then a male attendant came through the terminal door with a cart holding Alice's luggage. "Thank you," she said, and then turned back to Garrett. "Shall we?"
"Shall we what?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at Alice. "Keep in mind I'm leading this expedition, not you."
Garrett looked back and forth between Alice and me. "I'm sorry. Peter had said you'd be up to speed on the situation by the time you arrived, that Alice knew what was going on…?"
I glared at Alice.
"Don't you glare at me, Jasper Whitlock! I believe your words were 'shut the fuck up' or my head would be placed in cargo hold?"
I snarled, despite our very public location. "You know why I said that! Don't you ever withhold need-to-know intel from me. Ever!"
Alice tipped her chin up at me. "I am neither one of your soldiers nor a member of the Guard. I will not be spoken to that way!" she hissed. That fucking did it. I took a step toward her.
Rose and Garrett reacted simultaneously. "What's goin' on?" Garrett exclaimed as Rose stepped between Alice and I. "Need I remind you we're in a very public American airport?" she hissed. "You can kill each other later!" She turned to Garrett. "Will you please elaborate on what the fuck the plan is?"
"Uh, sure," Garrett looked at Alice and me again uncertainly. "You're all coming to my place. Um, well, I mean the place I share with my partner, Randall. We can decompress there and compare notes on what's going on. If that's ok with you Major?" He deferred to me with wide-eyed submission.
"Yeah, fine, let's just get the fuck out of here."
About an hour later we pulled up to a two-story condo in a fairly crowded neighborhood; a neighborhood which reeked of several different vampire scents. "Holy shit! How many live in this area?"
"There's about a dozen on this street," Garrett answered as he pulled his Infinity into the garage.
"On this street? All in one coven?" I'd always been under the impression the Cullens were the largest coven on the west coast.
"No, about half are nomads, like Randall and I. The owners of this development are vampires too, so I guess you could say it's an exclusive neighborhood."
Before I could ask who the owners were, the door that led into the house opened and standing there was who I could only assume was Randall. "Our guests have arrived!" he trilled, second only to Alice in enthusiasm. Fuck my life forevermore.
He sped over to Garrett's side first, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek. "Missed you today," he said to Garrett with a smile, before addressing the rest of us. "Hi, I'm Randall, welcome to our home."
"Nice to meet you, Randall," I replied. "I'm Jasper Whitlock, and this is Rosalie and Alice."
He nodded first to Alice and Rose. "Ladies, very nice to meet you. And you," he flashed his eyes back to me and walked over with his hand outstretched. "It is an honor to have you in our home, Major Whitlock. I've heard so many amazing things about you. Oh! And your mate, the main diva herself! I've heard she's quite the firecracker!"
"I'd be interested in hearing more about what's being said about the new, er, diva in charge," I said probably less subtly than I should have.
"Well do come in then, have a chat." Randall swung open the door with a bow, gesturing for us to come inside. They led us into their house. I heard Alice in the rear, grumbling that no one was helping her with her luggage. Tough shit.
The interior of the condo was sophisticated, yet comfortable. Alice and Rose ooh'd and ahh'd over a few of their decorative pieces, as they led us to the guest rooms where we could place our things. Alice and Rose were sharing, not a big deal since no one would be sleeping anyway. We freshened up and then went back downstairs where someone had turned on some jazz music and lit a few candles. Fabulous.
"Please, Major Whitlock, have a seat," Garrett offered. He gestured to a black leather chair which matched the couch he and Randall were seated on. Rose and Alice claimed the antique fainting couch in the corner.
"Uh, thanks, Garrett. And 'Jasper' is fine, really. My military days are long behind me."
"Oh, but the legend remains," Randall said in something that sounded almost like purr. "Garrett's former military too, you know.'
"Um, no. No I didn't…?"
Garrett was a little embarrassed by his partner's gushing. "Uh, yeah, I was turned toward the end of the Revolutionary War."
"Oh, ok, fought the Red's huh?" So he was a military man, and that could prove useful. Up until then, I'd wondered if this was Peter's idea of a practical joke. I then remembered our initial conversation regarding the residents of their development and the owners from whom they lease. Once again before I could ask who they were, I was interrupted, this time by Alice, who gasped aloud as the vision hit her.
"What is it?" Randall asked as Garrett growled in reaction to her alarm.
She looked at me wide-eyed. "Go ahead, ask."
I knew immediately what she meant. "She gets these premonitions sometimes," I said casually in preface, pushing a little calm their way. They'd be more likely to speak freely if they didn't have their guard up, as it suddenly was. "It's nothing. So, who owns this development anyway? It's nice."
Garrett looked at Randall. "Rand has a connection of sorts to the owner; they have the same sire."
Randall chuckled. "Ah yes, we get the family discount, one could say. My 'big brother' has been rather generous."
Garrett rolled his eyes. "Please, don't ever let Rafe hear you say that, his head is swelled enough as it is."
I went still, making an extreme effort to not bug the fuck out at the name Garrett so casually uttered. "Rafe?" I asked politely. Alice and Rose were holding their breath .
"Yes, Rafe, short for Rafael. He and his mate Sofia own this development. Are you interested?"
I slid my eyes to Garrett, who was watching my reaction intently. He gave me the vaguest of nods, something his partner missed.
It was now clear why Peter had sent us here. It was also clear that Garrett wasn't nearly as close to Randall as Randall thought they were.
