Blood and Blade (Goddess with a Blade #6) - Lauren Dane Page 0,66

of them the exact same as Clive had asked.

It was strangely comforting and it meant Genevieve and Clive took their allegiance to their respective organizations seriously. It also meant she was taking Rowan’s idea seriously or she wouldn’t have bothered.

“I have to go back to Los Angeles next week. I’ll bring it up to the Senate then. I think it’s a good idea. It’ll be a great idea with some tweaks and protections built in,” Genevieve said.

“Okay then. Come back to me with your tweaks and protections and we’ll talk. This process will be transparent. There’s no other way to gain the trust of everyone involved.” And Vampires and witches had a mutual distrust along with a god complex so if anything was done privately, the other party would automatically assume the worst.

Rowan didn’t want to be their mother. She wanted more effective teams of co-workers.

Genevieve hung out some more before she left with a promise to reconnect that afternoon to go over anything their respective searches might have found.

David left to go to his house, which was their pool house. The pool was still in progress but since they were Vampire work crews, they worked at night and slept during the day. It helped that David now often worked at night and slept at least during the first part of the day so they didn’t disturb him.

Rowan looked down to Star, who’d conked out in her doggie bed, her favorite stuffy under her left paw.

So. Fucking. Cute.

She let Star sleep, making sure the door to her bedroom was open so if the dog wanted to head in there she could.

In the meantime, Rowan took her laptop into her sitting area and set up there, intending to work but really, making it easier to nap until Clive returned.

Ugh. She was a sap for her dog and a sap for her husband and she just couldn’t seem to get too worked up over it.

Chapter Eighteen

Clive arrived home to find a quiet house. He’d already told Elisabeth to go to bed after Rowan had no need for her in the evenings. Having human daytime help and protection meant they had to be up and about in the daylight and he couldn’t very well expect them to survive on a few hours’ sleep every day.

He saw a light burning in the sitting room between his and Rowan’s bedchambers and there she was, curled up on the sofa, her hands under her cheek, looking so beautiful and relaxed he just stood and took her in for long moments.

Her laptop sat, closed, on the nearby table so she’d waited right here so he’d see her when he came home.

Pride warmed him as he pushed away from the doorjamb and toward her. He’d been with her long enough to know to wake her from a distance and to do it carefully if he didn’t want to end up with a punch to his balls.

He put his keys and briefcase down on the desk on the side of the room nearest his bedchamber door loud enough to have her snuffle and then slowly open her eyes.

“Hi there,” she said, her voice sleep rough.

He bent to kiss her slow and sweet. “Hello.”

She hummed and sat up, patting the couch next to her side. Instead he took her hand and tugged her to stand and then drew her into his bedchamber, closing the door to seal them both inside.

“Oh, I see.” Her smile was quick and easy.

“I’ve missed you.” He unbuttoned his shirt and she watched, a smirk on her mouth.

“I’m sure,” she said, snickering.

Once he’d gotten naked he set about taking her clothes off, kissing the bare skin he exposed.

“I miss this. I miss the way you smell. The way you taste. I even miss your voice. I miss the way no one fits into all my empty spaces but you,” he murmured in French.

“Damn. I’m totally going to fuck you and still you give me all that sexy love talk? Lucky me.”

“You’re certainly about to be,” he said, nipping her shoulder.

“Someone’s feeling sassy tonight.” She grabbed his cock and gave a few pumps of her fist around him.

He wasn’t sure sassy was a word applicable to him, but he was past caring. Especially once her hand wrapped around his dick.

She let go long enough to push him to the bed and scramble atop him. Not that he had any complaints about that turn of events.

“That’s better,” she murmured before bending to kiss him and leave a