-Ronan-"Yes, I'll be in Milan next week for the fitting," Stella says into her phone. I messed up the photos we should have taken at dawn because I didn't bring the right clothes, and now I'm stuck with her all day as we look for the exact clothes she wants for the shoot that should be during the sunset. We're at a café, because apparently Stella has gotten hooked on coffee and can't function without having several throughout the day, and she's been on her phone most of the day anyway, planning the wedding.She pretended to care about showing me a few things: the venue (Paris), the decorations (the theme is some flower I don't know the name of), and the food for the guests' attendants, though she wasn't too interested in that either. I excuse myself and go outside, tired of hearing her voice, and call Gabriel. He hasn't said anything since this morning when he texted they were on the way to the clinic with Ara."Ronan, how are you doing?" he answers, a littl
-Arabella-Ronan is gone for three seemingly endless days before he calls Gabriel to tell him that he wants us at the manor in the afternoon. It's lunchtime, and the three of us are out on the patio. I've been an anxious mess these past few days, and they keep trying to cheer me up by telling me stories about the early days of their romance. "I think I realized I was in love with him when I started to like cleaning his house," Jay says, sipping on some juice. "Like, it was my task as an attendant, but I enjoyed seeing his face light up when he came home and found everything clean and orderly.""And all these years you had me thinking that it was my butt you liked," Gabriel says, pretending to look offended. "It's a decent butt." Jay shrugs, and Gabriel throws a balled-up napkin at him. "But what I liked was seeing you happy." Even though I enjoy hearing their stories, the affection they have for each other tugs at my heart. I miss Ronan, and the more I think
-Ronan-I've spent the past two days in Rome, making calls and talking to old acquaintances. Italian vampires are part of the underworld of the underworld, and they know pretty much everyone's business.My Italian contacts don't seem to know much about Desmond's latest antics, though they make it clear that his existence is only tolerated because he's Carlota's husband. And regardless of what the rest of the vampire world thinks, Carlota is still like royalty to them. She reigns supreme in Italy, so I know she'll be able to get more information than I could possibly hope to obtain. There's also a small chance that I'm wrong about Desmond and Stella plotting together. However, I don't have any enemies except possibly my brother and my future wife. Carlota lives two hours away from Rome in a small castle that's surrounded by armed guards around the clock. I've only been here once, ages ago, before her wedding to Desmond. She's made this place her fortress, where sh
-Arabella-"I'm not a child," Grace says to Gabriel, crossing her arms. "I turn eighteen in two months.""I meant no disrespect." Gabriel bows his head and smiles at her.?Grace flinches slightly at the sight of his fangs, but keeps her composure and turns back to me.?"Did you really not know I was coming? I thought you asked your vampire to set this up. A travel agency called me, and they had first class tickets and everything set up," she says.?"No, I didn't. It must have been Ronan." Unexpectedly, her words make my heart ache.?Ronan isn't MY vampire. He can't be.?Moreover, those guys who have been threatening me wouldn't organize a trip for Grace, would they??The only thing that makes sense is that Ronan wanted to get her somewhere safe, and that meant bringing her to me.This is also an outright violation of the attendant agency rules, and it warms my heart to think that Ronan would go to such lengths to help my little sister.?"How is M
-Ronan-"What do you mean?" I ask Carlota.She gestures for me to follow her to another courtyard, one that is slightly elevated and has an amazing view of the enormous forest surrounding her compound.I was planning on leaving, but it seems she's not done with the conversation yet. "I spend most of my time around humans lately, for obvious reasons," she continues, leaning on the balcony and looking out at the horizon. "As vampires, we've never taken love or feelings too seriously because we take life for granted. We know we have years, decades, ages. Humans don't have that luxury, so each moment shared with their loved ones is immensely more important and valuable."I'm not too sure where she's going with this, but it's making me feel…uncomfortable."If you love someone else, don't marry Stella," she says after a pause, point-blank. "I can't drop all the responsibilities I have toward my family," I counter. I came to ask her for help figuring out Ste
-Arabella-"Mr. Stewart has given me clear instructions not to let anyone besides his attendant in his room. If you'd like, I can set you up in another bedroom," Julia says in a stoic voice. "He doesn't want to be disturbed." I can tell she's trying very hard not to snap, with her shoulders all tensed up. I've never seen Stella act so viciously toward another vampire, but I guess she's used to having servants and others scramble to please her all the time, and she's not happy with Julia's reticence to do as she wants. Stella's head snaps in Julia's direction, and she takes a few quick steps toward her.Without stopping, she slaps the woman's cheek so hard that Julia stumbles and almost falls over. If it weren't for the mahogany table in the center of the foyer, she would have landed on the floor.She stares at Stella with her mouth hanging open. "I am going to be your mistress, and the first thing I'm going to do once I run this manor is to fire you if you ca
-Ronan-I was elated all throughout the flight, only to return to chaos unfolding at the manor. What the hell is Stella doing here, anyway? And why is she holding Ara like this? "Let her go," I say in a low voice, trying to contain the anger surging through me.Stella's hand is still pulling at Ara's hair, though the two are no longer struggling, as if my presence has frozen them in place."And please explain what the hell you're doing here, attacking my attendant." "Desmond texted to tell you we were coming," Stella says, slowly removing her hand from Ara's hair.Ara pulls away immediately and runs off in the direction of my room. I want to run after her so badly, but I have to deal with Stella first. I take it she hasn't seen Ara's sister yet, because that would have been the first thing she said once I barged in on them. "She was being insolent again," Stella says. She's still heaving, as if whatever had gone on between her and Ara before I arrive
-Arabella-We lay in the dark, my head on the pillows, Grace's on my shoulder. I stare out the window looking at the twinkling stars of London as we reminisce about our hometown of Savannah, Georgia. Our conversation always centers around Dad and all the wonderful things he did for us even though he was a busy man, working hard to support the family and our mother's spending habits. From the corner of my eye, I can see Grace's face light up.Suddenly, something occurs to her. "You know, I always wondered how Daddy and Mother ever fell in love with each other."I laugh softly in the dark. "They must have been different people back then. People have a tendency to change over time."My thoughts ebb away, and I am taken back to a time when Dad was still with us. I remember the summers we spent in the garden, with him teaching us how to grow vegetables and herbs. I remember the days spent running around the woods, climbing trees, and building forts. I remember the