Sylvia may not have been the kind of woman Vail desired as a wife, but she had always been good at lifting his spirits when he was hung up on something. Throughout the afternoon, she kept him distracted with pleasant conversations and enjoyable activities when they left the carriage, so that it was nearly impossible for him to keep brooding about Victoria. Having not seen each other in at least two decades, there was plenty for them to talk about as they visited a garden to have a picnic and then went to the tracks to watch a horse race. He noticed with quiet appreciation that she seemed to purposefully avoid the subject of their engagement. Instead, she filled the silence by reminiscing about the past and asking him questions about his life since they’d last caught up. The casual atmosphere she injected into what was supposed to be a formal jaunt eased his tension. He was glad that she placed their friendship over the marriage that their parents had arranged for them and was considerate enough not to try to persuade him to accept it right away. By the time they returned to his family’s manor at sunset, he was in a far better mood than he had been when they’d left.

“Well, here we are, my lady,” a playful grin lit up Sylvia’s porcelain face as she stepped up to the door with Vail. They had just arrived by her hackney, and naturally, they couldn’t part ways before she teased him about their role reversal.

“No one asked you to pick me up,” he pointed out blandly, stopping at the top step to speak with her for a moment longer before she left. After a long day during which he would usually be fast asleep, he looked forward to taking a nap in his room, but he wouldn’t leave her without having a proper goodbye first.

“Actually, your father did,” the vampire lady revealed. “And now that I’ve seen your aversion to marrying me, I know why.” He winced, and she chuckled melodically. “I’m not upset, Vail, but I do hope you’ll come around. You told me yourself that Lord Peter doesn’t approve of this other woman you’ve grown attached to, so it would do you good to let her go sooner rather than later. I’d hate to see you heartbroken on our wedding day.”

“We’ll see,” he said curtly, insinuating with his lack of agreement that he hadn’t given up on his love yet. There were still options left to try. At this point, he was even willing to compromise with his father and marry Sylvia after Victoria’s mortal life was extinguished by old age. He doubted Peter would take the deal right away, since the clan leader was still hell-bent on keeping him away from Lady Crest, but it was the best idea he could think of in which they would both get what they wanted.

“You’ve always been a stubborn thing,” Sylvia chaffed, idly reaching out to pluck a stray hair from his coat. A coy smile played on her lips. “Are you sure it wouldn’t help if I came inside for a tiff? You might just change your mind…”

“Good Lord, Sylvie, I’m starting to wonder just how long you’ve been thinking about sleeping with me,” Vail’s dour expression was broken with a smirk, and he shook his head. “No, I think it’s best if we call it a night.”

“Pity,” she flashed her fangs in another wide grin as her shoulders shook with a laugh. He knew she enjoyed being able to coax smiles out of him with her humor. However, in the next moment, the lighthearted mood disappeared as the direction of the wind changed, and they both caught the unmistakable, acrid scent of silver.

Reflexively, Vail tensed and peered past Sylvia’s shoulder, catching sight of a figure ducking behind a tree beyond the edge of the property. The female vampire frowned concernedly but didn’t follow his gaze. “That’s far too much silver to be jewelry,” she noted, her tone calm even though he could hear the increase of her heartbeat. “Is there a reason why a Saint would be prowling around your home tonight?”

“Not one that I’m aware of,” he turned back to her and shrugged. “It could just be an inexperienced hunter hoping for an easy target. The Order has its code of ethics. Whoever it is shouldn’t aim at us when we haven’t touched any humans, but if you’re worried, I’ll wait until you’re in your carriage before I go inside.”

“I’d appreciate that,” Sylvia nodded. As sharp as her tongue could be, she wasn’t the most confident fighter. He remembered that she preferred to avoid confrontations alone by hunting with a partner whenever she went out to feed. “I suppose I’ll see you soon,” she went on, suddenly more eager to leave. “Goodnight, Vail.”

“Goodnight, Sylvie,” he said, leaning down to give her a friendly kiss on the cheek. As promised, he waited on the porch for her to climb safely back inside the waiting carriage and take off before he stepped into the manor. As soon as he closed the door behind him, a broad yawn stretched his jaw, and he headed for the stairs, quick to get back to his room before either of his parents stopped him to inquire about how his day with Sylvia had gone. He had barely made it back before he heard a visitor at the front door, but, not recognizing the smell of the person on the other side, he decided it was a situation for the servants to take care of.

Vail shrugged off his coat and vest and was halfway through the process of unbuttoning his shirt when a knock resonated on his own door. He exhaled with mild frustration, beginning to lose his patience with all the people who insisted on preventing him from sleeping, and strode over to the door without bothering to redo the fastenings he had already opened on his white, collared top. “Yes?” he prompted with a frown as he held the door aside, looking down at the short maid standing outside his bedroom.

The girl flushed scarlet at the sight of the vampire in a beginning state of undress and bowed her head to keep from staring at the bare skin that could be seen through his open shirt. “I-I have a delivery for you, Lord Hygrace,” she stammered, holding out what he would have thought was a bottle of wine if not for the aroma of blood that emanated from within the glass—familiar blood.

He furrowed his brows confusedly and murmured a brief ‘thank you’ to the maid, taking the package into his room. The handwriting on the tag confirmed that it was from Victoria, but he couldn’t think of a reason why she would give him a bottle of her own blood in between meetings in which he would feed on her anyway. Swallowing the saliva that had coated his tongue at the tantalizing scent, he sat down on the edge of his bed and untied the ribbon. The white rose that came with the delivery was a thoughtful touch, and he placed it gently on his nightstand before he unraveled the parchment to read by candlelight.