“We can buy a vineyard. Make wine.”
“Stop. Look at me, love.” Kade pulled away, Sydney’s wide eyes meeting his. His voice softened. “We’re not going anywhere. I swear to you I will straighten this out with Logan. He knows what just happened in the alley. For whatever reason, and we’ll talk more about it, someone…something killed all those wolves.” He glanced down toward the child and then focused back on Sydney. “Zachery could have been killed. Logan knows this. He also knows how much you love him.”
“Promise me.” Her voice cracked, she trembled in his arms. She needed to hear him say the words even if she knew he couldn’t keep the promise.
“It’s going to be all right. I’ll talk to him. You have my word. But you know I can’t go over Logan’s head. This is a pack matter. He must make the decision on his own. It’s not that vampires haven’t raised pups before, but this is a decision that only wolves can make. There is peace between us and forcing Logan’s hand could cause war. You know that not only is that not good for New Orleans, it’s not good for Zach.”
“I know that. I don’t want others brought into this either.” Sydney closed her eyes, her forehead lolling onto his chest. The thought of leaving New Orleans lingered in her mind as a last resort.
“Things will be as the Goddess intends.”
“She intends to gift us a son.”
“We must be patient. We need the blessing of Acadian wolves.”
“I’ll give Logan a chance to do the right thing, but I’m not giving him back. I can’t.” A small smile tugged at Sydney’s lips. “We’re a family. He’s home.”
“A family,” Kade repeated, his lips brushing her forehead.
Family. Having a baby had changed Sydney’s universe. Once always fearless, she spent her life giving one hundred and ten percent to the force. But with Zachery, all she could think about was hearing his laugh, taking him for walks in his stroller, reading him books.
Life had changed, and she’d protect her family at all costs. She’d kill whatever motherfucking demon was killing wolves. No one would ever touch her son again.
Chapter Four
Kade smiled as he trailed his fingers down Sydney’s bare skin, the fragrance of coconut oil in the air. After a hot shower and a glass of wine, she’d finally relaxed under his touch. Goddess, he loved this woman like no other.
He’d always known her wishes. I never want to be a vampire. But when she’d lost her battle with a demon, her lifeforce drained from her body. Kade acted out of pure instinct and desperation, turning her. He’d known it was wrong but the selfish desire to keep her superseded any thoughts of letting her die. The transition nearly killed her, but the Goddess saw fit to bless him with one more chance.
She forgave him. Sydney never lost what made her human…her soul.
When Zach came into their lives, it was fate, a gift. A pup. A lupine. Although Logan had initially given his blessing at their intent to adopt, Zachery’s birth mother’s wishes overrode all plans. When she took the child back, it was as if his heart had been ripped from his chest. But it was Sydney’s grief that brought him to his knees.
Her voice shook his contemplation and he focused his attention back to Sydney.
“I feel so bad about missing the bridal lunch today. We had all these plans. Kalli said it went well but I just should have been there.”
“Was Sam upset?”
“She understands. I mean, our son comes first. I wasn’t leaving him for a mani-pedi.” She sighed. “Besides, the ME is going to have preliminaries in a few hours. I’ve got to stop down at the station just to check on things. I won’t be able to relax for the holiday not knowing. Oh my Goddess…I forgot about Luca.”
“It’s okay. I’m sure he’s having the time of his life.” Kade laughed. “At home.”
“What? He didn’t want to go, did he?” Sydney smiled.
“You know Luca. The boys are out having drinks on Bourbon and going axe throwing. When I heard about the murders…I skipped out.”
“How did you know where I was?” She smiled up at him.
“Samantha texted Luca. You know I can feel your energy. I knew something was wrong, so I put a call into P-CAP. We’d only just started out and weren’t too far from the scene, so I left and came over. Don’t worry about Luca. He’ll be fine.”
“Ah, that feels so good,” she moaned as he applied a strong thumb to the knot in her neck. Her eyes stayed focused on the baby monitor.
“Can you sense him?” Kade asked. “I can feel him now as if he was my own blood. He’s strong…like you.”
“I love watching him sleep. Did you hear him giggling during the bath? He loves that rubber boat Leo sent him.”
“It’s a rubber replica of his yacht.”
Sydney laughed in response.
“Who does that? A yacht? For a baby?” Kade shook his head.
“Leo means well,” she replied. “Besides, Zach loves boats. He loves the baby gym Quintus sent him too.”
“Quintus,” Kade grumbled. “I don’t know about him.”
“I don’t know either. But he does seem to be making an effort to get to know Leo. Samantha knows more than I do about that situation, but it was nice for him to send a baby gift.”
“Can’t say I saw that one coming. Years have gone by without a word of the ancient and now he’s sending baby gifts? It must be his woman. Gabriella.”
“It’s the thought that counts. He’s trying. Sometimes family isn’t easy.”
“No. No it isn’t.” Kade leaned over, lifted her hair and brushed his lips between her shoulder blades.
“Hmm…you tempt me,” she began. “But I really have to get to the station and find out what’s happening.”
“The bodies aren’t going anywhere. This one, however,” Kade peppered kisses along her shoulder. “This one needs my full attention.”
“Hmm… that feels so good. One hour, Mr. Issacson,” she negotiated with a giggle as his lips brushed her ear.
“There’s no such thing as time.” Her fingers curled around his cock, and he smiled. “Hmm…impatient?”
“It’s not fair for you to have all the fun,” she growled, giving him a firm stroke.
Kade tensed as her fingers tightened around him. “Ah love, what you do to me.”
As his temptress rose and rolled him onto his back, desire jolted through him. Her lips found his as she straddled him. He tilted his hips, his dick grazing her inner thighs. She hovered above him, deliberately teasing its tip while she slowly circled her tongue over his flat nipple.
Kade sucked a breath as she bit at his skin, skillfully kissing over the chiseled ridges of his abdomen. Blood rushed to his dick, her taut nipples teasing over his rock-hard erection. Her silky blonde hair spilled over his thighs as she slowly descended between his legs. Sydney smiled up at him as she wrapped her fingers around his thick shaft and softly blew over his broad tip. At the first lap of her tongue, he hissed in pleasure, knowing she’d push him to the edge.