"Long enough." His golden brown eyes twinkled.
She snorted and grabbed a towel to dry off. "I thought you were going to stay in the temple to watch those guards."
"Robby just teleported the last one away, and I was there all alone, getting worried about you. I wanted to make sure you were all right." He smiled slowly. "You are definitely all right. All over."
She grinned as she towel-dried her hair. "You should have joined me in the shower."
"I seriously considered that. I also considered using one of those beds in the dorm room. But they're expecting us to teleport to Wolf Ridge. If we don't show up in a few minutes, they'll come here looking for us."
"Oh, I'd better get dressed." She pulled on some underwear.
Jack watched with a wistful look. "Well, it was nice while it lasted."
She grabbed her bra. "Thank God I can wear this again. I was so tired of flopping around in that gown."
"Yes, it was a very sad thing to watch."
She scoffed. "I was afraid my breasts would start sagging."
"They look perfect to me." His gaze focused on her chest. "They perk right up when I see them."
She laughed and put on her bra, then her jeans.
"Jack, are ye here?" Robby's voice called from the dormitory.
"Merda," Jack grumbled. "Coming!" He strode into the dormitory.
Lara quickly donned her T-shirt, then her socks and shoes. She ran into the dorm room.
Robby nodded at her. "I was just telling Jack that we've altered the memories of the guards and most of the lassies. There was one, though, who wanted to retain her memory Her name is Sarah."
"Oh, right." Miss Forbidden. Somehow, Lara wasn't that surprised. "Sarah was starting to figure things out. She was given to some creep who called himself Zeus, and he abused her."
"Aye." Robby frowned. "She couldna remember Zeus, so I helped her regain those memories. It was verra hard on the puir lass. She knows now that he raped her and bit her."
"Then she knows about vampires," Jack said.
"Aye. We'll have to be verra careful with her. I'm teleporting her straight to Romatech, where we can keep an eye on her until we decide whether or not to let her keep her memory." Robby turned to Lara. "Ye know her better than we do. Do ye think she can be trusted?"
"Yes, I do." Lara had to admire Sarah. She'd made a tough decision to keep those awful memories. It would have been so much easier to have them simply erased.
"Normally, I would just erase her memory anyway," Robby continued. "But she's studying to be a schoolteacher, so I thought I'd let her talk to Shanna first."
Jack nodded. "I heard she needs more teachers."
"Teachers for what?" Lara asked.
"A school for special children," Jack said. "Shape shifters or kids like Constantine who have some Vamp DNA. I'll tell you about it later."
"Please do." Lara was really curious about the possibility of having children with a vampire.
"One more thing," Robby said. "When I brought back her memories of Zeus, she was able to describe him. Tall, dark eyes, Russian accent, and a left arm bent at a strange angle. He wore a glove on his left hand."
Jack stiffened. "Nine circles of hell."
"What?" Lara asked. "Do you know him?"
"We've been hunting him for several years," Robby explained. "The most recent reports had indicated he was in Eastern Europe."
Jack gave Lara a worried look. "He's Casimir, the leader of the Malcontents. And he's here in America."
Lara gulped. This had to mean more battles. More deaths. More mortals in danger.
"I'm going straight to Romatech to alert Roman and Connor," Robby said. "Then I'll call Angus. He'll want to transfer every available man here."
Jack nodded. "Go. I'll take Lara to Wolf Ridge."
Robby vanished.
"Let's go." Jack wrapped his arms around Lara.
"Wait." She pressed her hands against his chest. "Just how bad is this? What does Casimir want to do?"
"He's building an army of vampires who were criminals in their mortal lives. He plans to kill every decent, bottle-drinking Vamp like me. And then they'll terrorize the mortal world, feeding and killing with no one to stop them."
Lara shuddered.
Jack brushed her damp hair away from her face. "I'm sorry, cara mia. I didn't mean to drag you into this."
"It's all right." She touched his face. "After the car accident, I wanted to do something really important, something that made a difference in the world. This is it. I can't think of anything more important than this."
"You are so brave, cara mia." He kissed her brow. "But I have to disagree with you. There is something much more important than Casimir and all his nasty followers."
Lara smiled. "Are you talking about love?"
He nodded. "Amore. With love on our side, we can never be defeated."
EPILOGUE
Three nights later, Lara was standing in the campanile of the Piazza San Marco, gazing over the moonlit rooftops of Venice. She leaned back against Jack's sturdy chest, and he wrapped his arms around her.
"It's so beautiful, so peaceful," she whispered.
He rubbed his chin against her hair. "This is where I first told you that I love you."
"Mmm. It was very romantic." She jumped when music started below. "What's that?" She peered down from the bell tower and laughed when she saw Lorenzo playing his accordion. The strains of "Bella Notte" drifted up to her.
"Oh Jack." She touched his face. "You're so sweet."
"I wanted everything to be perfect."
She gave him a wry look. "Are you trying to recreate that first date?"
He winced. "Not really. You left me at the end of that date."
"Well, yes. But you did make me scream. I'm afraid I permanently traumatized the pigeons."
He held up his hands. "I learned my lesson. Tonight, we will teleport to my bedroom at the palazzo, and there, I will make love to you all night long. I promise to do my best, but the screaming will be left to your discretion."
She laughed. "You rascal. You always make me scream."
He grinned. "And then tomorrow, while I'm totally useless in my death-sleep, you will be taken on a tour of Venezia. Gianetta's niece works at a museum, and shell spend the day as your personal guide."
"Oh, that's wonderful. Thank you, Jack."
His eyes sparkled. "And I have another surprise for you. You won't be sightseeing alone. I gave LaToya a first-class ticket to Venice. She'll be arriving in the morning."
Lara gasped and pressed a hand to her chest. "Jack, that's the most wonderful gift ever."
"She's been a good friend to you. I don't want you to lose her just because you're with me."
Lara's eyes filled with tears. She hadn't told LaToya everything yet, but it shouldn't be difficult to convince her best friend that Jack was the most wonderful man in the world. Because he simply was.
She leaned from the bell tower window. "I love Giacomo di Venezia!"
The pigeons, startled from their roosts, flapped wildly around the tower and piazza.
Jack laughed. "There you go, scaring the poor pigeons again."
She flung her arms around his neck. "I do love you, Jack. I will always love you."
He held her tight. "You are my angel, Lara. I have another surprise for you in my pants."
She snorted.
He placed her hand on the bulge.
She glanced down. "I seem to remember you being a lot bigger than that." She moved her hand to the center. "Oh yeah, now we're talking."
He chuckled and removed the smaller bulge from his pocket. "I think you'll like this, too. At least I hope so." He opened the small black box.
Lara gasped. It was a beautiful sapphire surrounded by glittering diamonds.
"I know it's not exactly traditional, but the sapphire reminded me of your lovely blue eyes."
She stepped back. Her skin prickled with goose flesh. She knew this was a moment she would cherish for as long as she lived. She would remember the cool night air blowing through the campanile and the sound of "Bella Notte" drifting up from the piazza. And she would remember Jack, standing there with a ring and so much love glimmering in his golden brown eyes.
He knelt before her. "Lara Boucher, will you marry me?"
She fell to her knees in front of him. "Yes, yes, I will." She wrapped her arms around his neck.
He held her tight. "Well, that's a relief."
She leaned back. "I do have one condition, though."
He looked worried. "What is it?"
She smiled and caressed his cheek. "You have to stop saying 'nine circles of hell.?
"Oh." He looked surprised. "I can do that." He stood, then pulled her into his arms with a grin. "You are right, cara mia. You have brought love into my life, and we have found our way to Paradiso."
