Embrace the Darkness (The Maura Quinn Series Book 1) - Ashley N. Rostek Page 0,14

I teased.

“Old man? I’m younger than your father, who by the way isn’t that old either,” he stated as he stared down at me, smiling. Stefan was forty-six and Brody was only forty-one. I guessed you could say they were middle aged. I definitely wouldn’t have wanted to be considered old in my forties. Apart from Brody’s salt-and-pepper hair and the few wrinkles around his chocolate eyes, the rest of his face was youthful. The way he carried himself was that of someone who still had a lot of air in their tires, but that wasn’t the point behind all my teasing.

“You didn’t have to stay up. I know taking care of Stefan is exhausting.”

“That is true. Especially after a day like today. He drove my staff crazy trying to make sure everything was perfect for when you arrived.”

That's doubtful. I scoffed. “Are we talking about the same Stefan?”

Both him and Jamie seemed to go a little rigid. They had both witnessed the majority of the shit Stefan had put me through, but because of their loyalties, they’d never talked about it.

Brody’s smile turned stiff. “He’s waiting for you in his study. I’ll take your things up to your room.” He held out his hands to take my purse and bag from Jamie. “Good evening, Jameson,” Brody greeted Jamie.

“Brody,” Jamie greeted back before following me as I made my way toward Stefan’s study.

“Where’s Louie?” I asked over my shoulder. He hadn't followed us into the house and I hadn't seen him or my car anywhere outside. He must have parked it in the garage.

“He went home.”

“What about you?”

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” he asked, tone teasing and his eyes gleaming.

I stopped walking. “No. What’s so funny?” He was acting weird.

He shrugged and walked ahead of me. “I live here.”

What?! “When did that happen?” I was a little shocked. “And why? You loved your bachelor pad.”

“I moved back in five years ago. Louie bought my condo and lives there now. As for why, I had my reasons.”

I sighed dramatically. “Fine, don’t tell me. I swear, getting information from you is like pulling teeth sometimes. You’re lucky I love you, because you’re extremely high maintenance.”

Jamie’s head fell back, his laughter echoing through the hall, startling me. “You’re one to talk.”

CHAPTER 5

Stefan was sitting behind his big oak desk when we entered his study. Due to zero windows, the only light that filled the room came from the iron fixtures on the mahogany wood walls. The far back wall was a floor to ceiling built-in bookcase filled with hardbacks. His desk was slightly off center, facing the entrance, taking up some of the right side of the room, leaving just enough space for a large antique liquor trolley stocked to the nines with crystal tumblers and decanters filled with gold and amber spirits. The entire left side of the room was a fully equipped lounge with a leather couch against the wall and two matching leather armchairs facing each other.

I followed Jamie as he strolled right in. Stefan noticed him first before his intense gaze traveled to me.

I froze, planting my feet on the dark carpet. My expression relaxed, revealing nothing. Locking down everything I was feeling, I flipped that imaginary switch inside me. Six years of conditioning myself to act normal was wiped away in an instant. I was now in the presence of the most dangerous man alive. It didn’t matter that he was my father. If I showed him weakness now, I might find myself going through another one of his torturous lessons later.

Stefan got to his feet, buttoning the front of his black Armani suit jacket before smoothing away the nonexistent wrinkles, and walked around his desk to greet me. As he approached, his gaze wandered over me, reading my lack of reception. For a moment, I thought he was going to hug me by the way his arms started to rise, but he stopped his approach a few feet before me and shoved his hands into his pockets. Disappointment stabbed me in the chest. I refused to let it show.

We stared at each other in silence, awkwardness filling up the space between us. I took in his changes since we'd last seen each other, as I was sure he was doing with me. His light brown hair was brushed with a little gray at the sides of his temples, but his face was still as youthful as ever, maybe more so than I remembered. Even