Destiny shivered, buried her face against Nicolae’s neck. “I never once thought it was a man. A doctor. Someone who is supposed to be a healer. Why would anyone choose to be so evil?”
Nicolae brushed a kiss onto her hair, wanting to take away the pain of her memories of other monsters. “I cannot give you an answer, little one, but do not be sad. Blythe will learn to be happy with Harry again, and eventually all of these people will be able to live their lives in peace, thanks to your caring enough to listen to them and piece it all together.”
“Thank you for thinking of sending him to her. I knew we couldn’t remove her from the hospital, but I couldn’t bear the thought of her being alone.” She tangled her fingers in his hair and nuzzled his neck, aching to hold him to her and make love to him. He always contrived to make sense out of a world that was never quite sane. How did I ever manage without you?
He kissed her. Hard. Possessively. Come with me. We have done what we could for our friends. I wish to do something for you. Let me take you to that movie.
It was the last thing she expected, and it made her laugh. “You’re crazy, you know that?”
She couldn’t stop smiling. Joy seemed to start in her soul and spread through her body until her lips curved in complete happiness. She and Nicolae shifted shape once again, materializing in their true forms on the sidewalk together in front of the movie theater. Nicolae immediately drew her into his arms, pulling her tightly against the hard strength of his body. His long, lean fingers tunneled deep into the thick mass of her hair. “I have waited for hours to get you alone.”
“Really?” Pleasure blossomed through her body. “I wanted to be alone with you too,” she confided. No matter what he said about the darkness inside male Carpathians, Nicolae would always be her light.
A cool breeze slid over her body, bringing the inevitable mist with it. Laughing, happy, they slipped into the dark of the theater. Only a few couples were scattered around the large room. Nicolae found the darkest corner, up in the balcony where they were all alone. It wasn’t a vampire movie but an action movie. Destiny had seen it advertised, a popular video game made into a movie, and she particularly loved the actress. The balcony seats were wide and comfortable, and she settled into one with a little sigh.
“Did you really summon the healer? Gregori?”
“Do not sound so worried,” he answered, sliding his arm along the back of her seat to rest on her shoulders. “He has a lifemate, and it would be impossible for him to be other than good.”
Destiny shifted, leaning close to him. “What’s he like?”
He waited to answer, framing her face between his hands, finding her mouth with his. Fire poured into her. Into him. His tongue danced and dueled with hers. He had already waited too long to have her. His body was hard and aching. His mouth said it all to her, taking command, a hard possession, a declaration of his intentions.
He lifted his head and stared down into her enormous eyes and smiled. His voice was very calm when he answered her. “Gregori comes from a revered lineage. His ancestors have always guarded the Prince of our people, and most of them had a tremendous ability to heal. All of us can do so when called upon, of course, but the talent runs strongest in his line. I do not know him, but I knew his father, a man of loyalty and integrity who always stood by our people.”
She was beginning to know Nicolae well. “A warrior. A hunter,” she interpreted.
“Exactly.”
A man much like Nicolae, one he would respect.
Destiny nodded. “All right, then. I’ll stick around and see what he’s like.”
The action on the screen was fast-paced and intense as sinister men stalked toward the heroine’s mansion. Nicolae glanced at the screen, then looked around the theater. “So this is what it is like to watch a movie from the balcony. I must confess I was never much of a movie patron.” His thumb slid along the neckline of her blouse, slipped inside to caress bare skin.