The Seven: Four tales of passion, danger and love (11 page)

"Indeed I do. Rather than allowing this relationship to become a hindrance to our efforts with humans, we will, as the humans say, put a spin on it."

"Spin?"

"Why yes, my son. She is, after all, a romance novelist. Therefore, we will make your relationship the ultimate romance. A Vampire Prince and the romance novelist whose passion for one another is so strong they are willing to defy society, risk ridicule, derision and personal safety to be with one another.

"You will marry your romance novelist in the most elaborate wedding imaginable."

Often Augustus disagreed with his mother and would work tirelessly to insure that the rest of the Council listened to reason. This time he offered no argument, but then this time her suggestion fell in line with what he wanted.

At least part of it. Yes, he wanted to marry Layla, but he also wanted to turn her so that her concerns about growing old and him losing affection for her would be eliminated.

"I believe it is customary to propose and be accepted before planning the event, Mother."

"There is nothing preventing you from doing that."

He shrugged and stood. "I'm not sure this is the appropriate setting. We should return home to Texas."

"You can do that in the morning. Tonight I will entertain your intended and win her trust."

"Don't count on it."

Asha chuckled. "My darling have you forgotten who I am?"

"Never."

"That is wise. Now if you'll excuse me, I have matters that require my attention. We will dine at nine."

"Make it seven."

"Seven? Only peasants dine that early."

"Seven, mother."

"Fine."

Augustus watched her rise and walk away. For a moment, he stood there, thinking about her suggestion. She might be right. It could be used to their advantage. He did want to marry Layla. The question was would professing his love be enough if he revealed why his mother was in favor or would it turn Layla against him.

He rose and headed inside. He'd consider that question carefully before broaching the subject but for now, he had to prepare Layla for dinner with his mother.

*****

Layla sat in the old comfortable chair beside the window, the chair the maid said he'd forbidden anyone to discard. Her fingers were flying across the keyboard. She was so focused on what she was doing that she didn't realize he'd entered the room until he spoke her name.

"Oh! You startled me."

"I apologize for the delay."

She closed her laptop and set it aside. "So, how was the talk with your Mother?"

"Interesting."

"In other words, mind my own business."

"I did not say that."

"You didn't have to,
Octavius
."

Augustus was adept at quickly accessing a situation and in this instance it behooved him to remain silent.

"Well?" Layla stood.

"Well, what?"

She made a sound like a growl. "Damn you, I should have known better."

"What?"

"Than to buy into your act."

"I beg your pardon?"

Augustus knew that his demeanor had changed with the issuance of that question. What surprised him was that she did not back down. Men throughout the ages had cowered when he released the force of his personality upon them and this small woman stood defiant before him, fists clenched and eyes flashing.

"Don't pull that imperial shit with me Gaius Octavius Thurinus. Or should I call you Emperor, or your Highness?"

"You should call me Augustus as that's the name I've chosen."

Layla rolled her eyes. "Whatever. That's not the point."

"Then what is the point?"

"You know damn well what it is. You lied to me."

"I did not."

"Like hell. You most certainly did."

"What lie did I speak?"

"You said your name is Augustus Thurinus."

"It is."

"But that's not the whole story is it? You're … god, I can't believe I'm even speaking these words, but you're Augustus Octavius, Emperor of Rome who succeeded Julius Caesar."

Augustus considered his words carefully. "What exactly is your question? Have I been known by many names? Yes. It is necessary. My kind is, compared to humans, virtually immortal. It is impossible to keep our true identity secret without moving and changing our names often."

Layla blew out her breath and flopped back down in the chair. "Please don't play this game with me. Just be straight. Were you at one time Emperor of Rome?"

There it was. The straight to the point question. He considered it only for a moment.

"Yes."

"Good god. This is … damn, I don't know what this is but it really pisses me off that you lied about it."

"But I didn't." He held up a hand as her mouth opened. "I told you my name, the name I use now and have, in some variation for the last two hundred years. Augustus Thurinus is how I think of myself, Layla. The days of being Emperor are long done – ashes with the rest of the dead from that time."

"Still …"

He crossed the room to her and knelt down in front of the chair. "I do not want to hide things from you, and in time you will know all there is to know about me, Layla. But is that not the nature of relationships? The process of discovery?"

"Have you noticed that ever since we left Texas you don't sound at all like a cowboy?"

It wasn't so much the question that surprised him but that she had noticed it. And more than once. He had lived the life of a rancher for more than a hundred years and had assimilated himself into the culture and environment in which he lived, but there were times when that persona faded to be replaced with what he called his original self.

"I was born into a noble family, adopted by Caesar himself. My education was the finest of the time. I ruled an empire and when the time came, I left. I have studied at the finest universities in the world, traveled the globe, and speak almost every language on this planet.

"I'm accustomed to wealth and power and perhaps that does give me an aristocratic demeanor, but I am, nonetheless, Augustus Thurinus, the rancher and cowboy, the man you fell in love with."

Layla stared at him for a long time, her mind closed so tightly that not even he could breach her thoughts.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I just …"

"What, sweetheart?"

"I – please don't be mad but Augustus, I don't trust your mother. Not as far as I can spit her. There's something – something cold and calculating about her."

Augustus could not stop the laugh that erupted.

"Well gee thanks."

"I'm sorry, I am not laughing
at
you Layla. I'm laughing because of your remarkable perception. She is my mother and I honor her, but you are one hundred percent correct."

"Then why did you come running when she called?"

"Because of who she is and the damage she can do."

"I don't understand."

It was in that next moment that his decision was made. "Layla, there is something I must tell you but before I do, I want you to understand that I love you. I was willing to risk peace with humans to take you and willing to risk your wrath and that of the Council to keep you. I need you and understand that I don't
need
. You know who I am, who I have been. I can stand alone through time.

"Or I could. You changed that. I love you and I want to spend eternity with you. I want to have a family with you. I want to marry you."

"Marry?" Her face paled. "Are you serious?"

"Completely."

"Augustus."

That one word slayed him. There was more emotion in those three syllables than in tomes written by the masters of literature. "Layla, I love you. Will you be my wife?"

"I…I want to say yes. More than anything. But you know it won't work. I'll get old and you'll – well, you'll be like you are."

"It doesn't have to be that way. Your lifespan can be increased dramatically by routinely taking small amounts of my blood. And should you decide one day to make the change—"

"I'm not ready to go there. Please."

"So your answer is no?"

"It's I don't know. I love you. I do. But this is – this is huge."

"Then I fear you are going to be very displeased at what I have to tell you."

"There's always another shoe isn't there?"

"Excuse me?"

"Another shoe to fall."

"I suppose."

"Then let's have it."

He took her hands in his. "Let me preface what I'm about to say by stating that this is a plan hatched by my mother."

"Oh I know I'm going to hate it now."

Augustus hated that at the moment he felt defeated. It was not his first defeat in life, but it still stung. If she'd rejected his proposal when it was offered out of nothing but love, the chances of her saying yes now had decreased exponentially.

"So?" She prompted.

"So." He released her hands and rose to look out of the window. "It's about us getting married …"

Chapter Thirteen

Looks like August's mother won't have to eat at the pedestrian hour of seven after all. And yeah, it's my fault. I don't do a Katy Kaboom often, but when August told me his mother's plan my first reaction was anger. No, make that foot stomping, find me something to break, mad.

What kind of person wants to make their son's wedding a political maneuver? I wasn't going to have any part of that shit and told him so. He listened to me rant, watched me stomp around and wave my arms and get in his face and even punch him in the chest.

And then he calmly told me that he hadn't agreed to it and the last thing he wanted was for our wedding to be about anything other than our love. But, he added, he did understand. He'd made a bit of a mess of things when he saw me. He kidnapped me and that set about a chain of events that culminated in the fiasco on the talk show.

He needed to make things right. Not for him but for his people. We sat and watched clips online for hours of the interview. Some focused on the attack against him and sympathy was for him. Others supported the attackers and condemned Augustus and everyone like him, calling them demons from hell, abominations, and scourges of the earth that needed to be wiped out.

It was ugly and it made me realize that I'd played a part in it as well. I could have said no to the talk show, just had my publicist issue a press release that I was fine and writing away. But I'd wanted the attention, the notoriety.

So I was as much to blame as he.

And that meant I had to admit that his mother's plan made sense. In fact, (gag me) it was actually brilliant. Millions of women would be oohing and aahing over it – the love story of the century, played out between the Vampire prince and the romance writer.

The problem was, I didn't want to be part of the circus anymore. That was a lesson I'd learned the hard way. What happened at that talk show opened my eyes. I couldn't continue to be part of that kind of thing.

August believed that the new peace between his kind and mine was doomed. At first I didn't understand his reasoning but now I do. They are stronger and more powerful than we humans. They possess abilities that frankly make them superior to us.

How long would they be content to be seen as the interlopers, the "things" that were being accepted but still viewed as outsiders who were only tolerated? They could annihilate us if they wanted to and they might one day. Humans can't even get along with one another. We hate each other because of race and religion, political affiliation, sexual orientation and things as small as being too pretty or too talented or too smart.

There's much standing against this peace and I believe that without Augustus, his mother would hold sway over the Council and advocate a different course of action. It's Augustus who sues for peace, not seeking center stage but being thrust into it anyway.

The point is, I have a decision to make and I don't know what to do. My Grannie would ask me what I wanted. Well damn, I know that answer. I want Augustus. More than anything. But I'm scared. Scared of him getting tired of me, of one day not seeing me in the same light and wanting to be away from me.

He says that's a risk in any relationship and I know he's right. Just like I know I want to say yes.

So what's stopping me?

Even though it had because of her that dinner had been delayed, Asha still kept them waiting for nearly an hour before she made her appearance.

Layla tried not to be envious of Asha's graceful movements or her sensual and sultry beauty but it was darn hard. She felt clumsy, unsophisticated, and unattractive in comparison. The only consolation was that the object of her envy was Augustus' mother.

Once they were seated, Asha directed the server to fill the wine glasses. Layla wasn't paying much attention to the server. She was busy watching the looks being exchanged between Augustus and his mother. Even with his ability to shield his thoughts she could feel the tension radiating from him.

How awful it must be to be unable to relax around his own mother. Even as the thought popped into her mind, she tried to squash it. Augustus had warned her that his mother's powers of perception were quite advanced, which meant she could easily tap into Layla's thoughts.

Layla hurried to lift her glass when Asha raised hers in a toast. "To family."

Had it not been for Augustus snatching the glass from her hand she would have drank. Her stomach churned when drops of blood splashed into the pristine white tablecloth before he set it aside.

"Fetch Ms. Summerfield wine, preferably white."

The server hurried away at the order while Augustus glared at his mother. "My apology." Asha waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "I forgot she is not one of us."

Layla could feel the rage come to a boil inside August. It filled her with a mix of emotions – gratitude, love, and anger on the insult that was aimed as much at him as it was at her.

"But soon to be family, nonetheless."

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. Asha's supercilious smile vanished. "Pardon?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, we forgot to tell you. We're getting married."

Two seconds later, she realized the trap she'd fallen into when the smile returned to Asha's face.
She so played you.

Layla felt like hurling something at Asha. How could she have been so stupid? She knew Asha saw their marriage as a promo opportunity for The Seven. Had she known that Layla had resisted the proposal? More than likely.

So she'd played Layla and Layla had fallen right into her trap.

She was mad, at herself as much as Asha. Until she looked at Augustus. The smile on his face was one of love, and yes, gratitude. She could feel it. He knew she'd reacted as much in his defense as her own.

Well you've gone and done it now, haven't you?

Layla sent a quick "screw you" to that inner voice and returned Augustus smile. Let his mother think she'd played them into doing what she wanted. The truth was, Layla loved Augustus, and now that she'd said yes, she was excited about it.

She'd never imagined she'd find
the
man of her dreams but she had. So what if he was a Vampire. People overcome differences in race and religion all the time. This wasn't any different.

Delusional much?

Layla didn't want to listen to that voice or to admit that her situation was unlike the examples she'd quoted to herself. She wasn't just marrying someone of a different ethnicity.

She was marrying a Vampire.

*****

Layla ended the call with her publicist and pushed away from the desk. The plans for her and Augustus' wedding had gotten way out of hand. Asha was inviting nearly every world leader, politician, mogul, media personality, and celebrity in the country. She was treating the event as if it was a wedding for a royal family.

Maybe to her kind it was. In the month since she and Augustus had returned to his ranch in Texas, Layla had spent a lot of time with their kind, talking and learning as much about them as possible.

Much of what she'd learned had changed her perception of The Seven. Aside from their preternatural abilities, they weren't all that different. They fell in love, got married, had families, built careers, and did everything humans do.

They'd hidden who and what they were for so long that few of them displayed their abilities to humans. It was only in places like the sanctuary Augustus had established and others like it that the Shifter children practiced their skills, learning to be part of a pack. It was only in these places of safety that Angels spread their wings, Fae used their magic, and witches practiced their craft.

She'd not seen much of what the Daemons could do and to be honest was still intimidated by their race. Probably because of the name. Daemon just sounded evil and even if she wasn't sure that was applicable, she was a little frightened of them.

Augustus had explained that among the Daemons as was the case for all the races of the Seven, there were rebels so to speak, beings who shunned the dictates and rule of the Council. By and large, their numbers were few and thus far they had been prevented from causing irreparable harm to others.

Still, Layla got a major case of the creeping willies whenever Severin, one of the ruling Daemons made an appearance.

It was hard to believe that her wedding would be populated by such beings. So far, her guest list was small. Her publicist, editor, and publisher would be attending. She'd not gotten an rsvp from her sister or brother and didn't really expect to. A few friends and people she'd worked with had been invited but only about half had responded.

The one person Layla wanted to invite most of all, she'd not been able to contact. Ellie Whitehorse.

When Layla had decided to self-publish her book, she'd asked Ellie to design the book cover for it. Ellie was a woman who'd had her own share of hard times and trouble but was such a good hearted person that she'd offered to do it for nothing.

Layla felt bad accepting but at the time she had little funds at her disposal and promised Ellie that she'd make it up to her. Ellie was the first person to buy a copy of Layla's book and the first reader to post a glowing review of it.

Ellie cheered her on despite going through some terrible times, herself. She lost her house and didn't know what she was going to do.

Layla tried to help and offered to let Ellie stay with her, but Ellie was proud and didn't want to accept charity. The last time they spoke, she mentioned receiving a letter about an inheritance and said she was going to be out of town for a couple of weeks.

Layla wished her luck and expected to hear from her. It was during that time that her book sales exploded and she got a bit wrapped up in her own life. When the book hit the bestseller list, Layla called but Ellie's number had been disconnected. She sent Ellie a check for twenty-five hundred dollars for the cover art but the letter was returned.

Augustus had offered to find Ellie for her and she was hoping his network could come up with an address.

As if in answer to her wish, she heard the sound of Augustus' voice followed by the slam of a door. "Layla?"

"In the study."

She hurried to the front of the house and into his open arms. When his lips met hers, thoughts of the wedding temporarily disappeared.

"Are you writing today?" He give the tip of her nose a kiss before releasing her.

"Wedding stuff."

"Hmmm."

Layla knew that he was about as interested in wedding planning as he was about the latest shoe fashion. Augustus would have been quite happy to elope, or even better to have the wedding right there on the ranch.

"Yeah, it's turning into a real three ring circus."

"I feared as much."

"We can call it all off. I'll tell your mother—"

"No. Not for me. If this is what you want then it's what we'll do. This is your day, Layla. Your one wedding day. I want it to be everything you've ever dreamed of."

"My one, eh? So you don't see divorce in our future."

"Nope."

She chuckled. "Funny how you can sound so aristocratic one moment and so … Texan the next."

He smiled. "The reason I'm here is that we found your friend."

"Ellie? You did? Do you have an address or phone number? I was starting to think we wouldn't find her. It's been nearly a month."

His smile faded. "I know but we did find her — and it created something of a situation."

Those words caused a tiny twist of anxiety in her gut. "What do you mean?"

Augustus took her hand and walked her outside to the back patio. He took a seat on the sofa and pulled her down beside him, keeping a firm grip on her hand.

"It's a bit complicated but here's what I know. Your friend, Ellie, inherited quite a bit of property from her father in Florida and moved there. She met and married a man who owns adjoining property. His name is Cam Marsh.

"She also discovered that she has other family. Fae."

"Fae?"

He nodded. "My people actually found her a week after we returned home. But before I told you I wanted to have a more complete picture of why she was in Florida and who she was involved with."

"Why?"

"Because the news of our existence affects people in a variety of ways. Should she have fallen in with people who were set upon our termination, bringing her to the wedding would have been ill advised."

Layla wasn't sure she liked that he'd had Ellie checked out, but she couldn't argue with his logic. No one wanted any problems at the wedding. The whole point was a demonstration of how humans and Preterhumans could coexist.

"I'd be lying if I said I approved but I do understand. So you found out that she has family who are Fae?"

"Not just Fae." Augustus reached up, removed his hat, and set it aside. "You can get a more detailed explanation from Xavier on the history, but the short version is that the Fae originated in another realm, as did most of our kind. We came to this realm eons ago and traveled back and forth at will.