by Lynsay Sands
“But you’d want me to be your life mate.”
Her words didn’t sound accusing or resentful, and that fact alone almost had him sagging with relief, but he held himself straight and merely nodded.
“What does that mean?” she asked. “What would you expect of me?”
Everything, he thought, but knew that would scare the hell out of her and that he had to go slowly here. “I would expect you to promise to be my life mate. I would turn you. We would marry and I would help you raise Liam.”
“And then?” she prompted when he paused.
Magnus hesitated, and then said, “That depends on whether Lucian and his men catch Abaddon. If they do, and you wish to stay in Canada, I would give up my position with the UK Enforcers and we could purchase a home for us either here in Port Henry or somewhere else, hopefully near immortals who have children so that Liam would have playmates.”
After a hesitation, he continued. “If, however, Abaddon gets away, then I suggest we should probably move to my home in the UK where you and Liam would both be safer. We could, of course, look for a new home there, somewhere near other immortal children of his age. I am sure there must be some.”
“If Abaddon gets away?” Allie asked with a frown. It seemed obvious she hadn’t even considered the possibility that the Enforcers would fail. “Surely they will catch him?”
“Abaddon has escaped before,” he told her. “The first time was over two thousand and seven hundred years ago and the last was just a few years back.”
“He’s been around for that long?” Allie asked with dismay.
Magnus nodded.
Allie looked horrified, but then shook her head. “That wasn’t what I meant by— What would you expect of me after we married and you turned me?” she asked point-blank. “I don’t love you.”
Magnus managed not to react to those words, though he found them surprisingly painful. He knew he shouldn’t. While he might have accepted her as his life mate and had started developing feelings for her that had grown as he’d listened to her tale about her friendship with Stella and how she’d come to be Liam’s mother, she hardly knew anything about him other than how he was turned. And she was mortal. The fact that they were life mates wouldn’t mean as much to her.
Magnus was trying to decide what he could say that wouldn’t scare the hell out of her when she apparently grew impatient and said, “I barely know you. I don’t think I could— I mean, when people marry they’re expected to—”
“I would not expect anything from you that you were not ready to give,” he said when she faltered again, and tried not to feel guilty about the relief that washed over her face. Magnus meant what he said, but he also knew it was meaningless because they were life mates. Life mates were known to have incredible, explosive sex that was so mind-blowing and overwhelming that they passed out at the end of it. They were also said to be insatiable and unable to resist each other once they experienced it. He was counting on that and would have liked to test it now, but Stephanie had warned him not to let Allie experience the passion before he got her promise. So he kept his distance and simply waited.
“I need to think about this,” Allie said finally. “And talk to Liam. It affects him too.”
“Of course,” Magnus agreed solemnly, and turned to open the door. “Let me know what you decide.” He’d barely finished the last word before he had the door closed between them.
Magnus started down the stairs, shaking his head over the fact that he’d agonized over how to bring this all up while he was shopping, and then had returned to find that Stephanie had done all the heavy lifting for him. She’d scared Allie with the knowledge that Liam would control her and she would lose her son. Which was true and what he thought would hold the most sway with her. She loved Liam. Allie would probably marry the devil himself to keep the boy. Magnus was quite sure she’d agree to be his life mate and turn. He just hoped she didn’t take too long to tell him so, because he couldn’t risk touching her in any way and having the life mate passion explode between them until she gave her promise and they were married. Hell, he couldn’t even sleep near her until then for fear of their having shared dreams. That was another symptom of life mates: shared sex dreams that were apparently powerful. He wasn’t doing anything that might scare her off until he had her promise and was sure she wouldn’t run.
Which meant he needed to find somewhere to sleep tonight that was far enough away they couldn’t have the shared dreams, he thought with a frown, and wondered how far away Teddy and Katricia’s house was.
Allie stared at the closed door, her mind in a state of chaos. Part of her wanted to grab Liam and flee. But aside from the fact that she was broke and without a vehicle, she suspected it would be harder to hide from the Enforcers than it had been hiding from Abaddon. And that had been impossible, she thought grimly. She’d spent the last four years running, not hiding. Abaddon and his people had found her every time she’d stopped running and it was just pure good luck that she’d managed to evade them this long.
A life on the run wasn’t good for Liam.
Neither would his being raised by a mother he could read and control. What kind of person would he grow up to be without parental guidance? Because that’s what it amounted to. He would end up circumventing her authority when he chose until she was altogether ineffectual.
Becoming immortal seemed to be the only way she could keep her son and raise him. Something she wanted desperately. And not just because of the promise she’d made to Stella. Allie loved that little boy with every fiber of her being.
The simple answer was to promise to be a life mate to Magnus and allow him to turn her. Liam could never control her then and she would never lose him. But it added a third person to the dynamics. They would be a family. She would lose some of the control she was used to holding and control was important to Allie. She had promised herself at sixteen that she would never be dependent on a man like her mother. She would never give up control of her life and have to bow to a man’s wishes. Now she was faced with a situation that forced her to consider doing just that.
Allie didn’t miss the irony in the situation. Her mother had willingly given up control completely to her father, and that had ended with her losing her daughter, Allie’s sister, Jilly. Now Allie was contemplating giving up at least part of her own control to keep her son.
Sighing, Allie opened the nearest bag and began pulling out items, surprised to find Magnus had thought of everything in his shopping. There were two toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, a hairbrush, shampoo, and conditioner. There was a lovely and expensively packaged perfume that she’d never heard of but quite liked, a wallet and purse, and even clothes for both her and Liam. Each item of clothing came in different sizes, one of which was right, but the best thing about them was that she liked his taste in clothes. The man had similar taste to her, she realized as she pulled out a hip-length black parka with a soft faux-fur lining and trim around the hood.
It was lovely, and looked warm, which was much appreciated. Her own coat was probably still at the blood bank. She’d taken it off while she’d been gathering blood and it hadn’t been around when she’d woken up in the hospital.
The sound of the door opening drew her head around to see Liam rushing in wearing his snowsuit and new boots and carrying another shopping bag.
“Elvi said to bring this up. You forgot it,” he announced, rushing to the bed to add it to the pile. He started to turn away then, no doubt to rush out again, but paused as his gaze landed on a T-shirt with several comic book characters on it. “Wow! Is that for me?”
“Yes. Magnus bought it for you,” Allie said, and smiled faintly when he picked up the T-shirt to get a better look at the characters on it.
“Cool. Can I wear it now?” he asked excitedly.
Allie shook her head. “No. But we’ll give you a bath tonight and you can wear it tomorrow.”
“Ah, but it’s so cool,” he protested, scowling at her with an
noyance at the refusal, and she wondered if he would have controlled her and made her let him wear it now if he could.
Allie pushed the thought aside, and asked, “Why do you have your coat and pants on? It’s too hot to wear it inside.”
“Oh.” He glanced down at himself with surprise, apparently having forgot what he had on. “Magnus is taking us out to finish making our snowman while the moms make lunch.”
“Is he?” she asked with surprise.
“Yeah. We started it yesterday after he put you to bed. Dani wanted us out of the bedroom so he took us outside. But he was worried my coat wasn’t warm enough, so we had to come back in. But that’s okay,” he assured her. “Magnus showed us fun games to play inside.”
Allie blinked at this news, and then asked, “What games?”
“Alligator island and hoot owl. They were fun.”
“What is alligator island?” she asked with curiosity.
“Magnus used Elvi’s colored tape to make these squares on the floor that were supposed to be islands and we had to jump from one to the other without falling in or the alligators would get us.” Liam started to laugh at the memory. “He fell in more than any of us.”
“Did he?” she asked faintly, and then cleared her throat and asked, “And the owl game?”
“It’s a board game Sunny has. We had to get the owls back to their nest before the sun came up. It was fun too, but Magnus could only watch. It’s only for four players,” he explained.
“So you like Magnus?” she asked.
“Oh, yeah, he’s nice. And fun. And he didn’t even yell when Sunny and Gracie started to get all girly and whiny. Girls.” Liam rolled his eyes at the memory. “Can I go outside now? They’ll all be waiting.”
“Yes,” Allie murmured, and then as he reached the door, she said, “Liam?”
“Yeah?” He turned back with his hand on the doorknob.
She hesitated briefly, and then asked, “Do you wish you had a father?”
The question made him pause and remove his hand from the doorknob. He actually seemed to consider it seriously. She could almost see his four-year-old mind working, and then he said, “If he was nice like Magnus, yeah. It would be nice to have a dad like everyone else. And then you wouldn’t have to worry so much about the bad people getting us. I bet Magnus could beat them up.”
They were both silent for a minute and then Teddy burst into the room. “Hurry up, Liam. We’re waiting for you. We won’t get the snowman done before lunch if you don’t come now.”
“I’m coming,” he said at once, and then glanced uncertainly to Allie.
“Go,” she said, waving him off, but then shouted, “No running in the house!” when she heard their little feet hammering down the stairs.
“Sorry!” Liam shouted, and was echoed by Teddy as their footsteps slowed to a jog.
Shaking her head, Allie peered down at the bed, Liam’s words echoing in her head.
It would be nice to have a dad like everyone else. And then you wouldn’t have to worry so much about the bad people getting us. I bet Magnus could beat them up.
She’d done her best to keep her worries and fears from Liam, and still he knew about the bad people. He’d apparently told Tricia about them at the Enforcer house, and had brought them up again just now. But she had never mentioned the reason they kept moving. She had never told him about the bad people. How did he know about them?
The only obvious answer was that he was already picking up on her thoughts. Allie frowned as she wondered how much of her thoughts he was reading. And how long it had been happening? She worried over that as she returned to sorting the clothes, choosing what would fit and refolding the ones that were the wrong size to place them back in the bags for return.
Allie didn’t think Liam could have picked up much or for long. He had only just turned four. He probably didn’t even understand the threat the bad people represented. At least, she hoped not. But even knowing that bad people were after them must have been scary for him. Especially when he’d woken up alone in the apartment the night she’d gone to the blood bank. He must have been terrified to find her missing. He’d probably worried that the bad people had got her.
“God, I’m a horrible parent,” Allie breathed, dropping to sit on the side of the bed. Stella had counted on her to keep him safe and happy. How happy could he have been knowing bad people were chasing them? And the difference in him now . . . He’d always been quiet and well behaved. She’d just thought that was his nature. It wasn’t like she had a lot of experience with children to judge from. But now, seeing how noisy and happy he was here, she wondered if his previous behavior was more a result of worry and fear than personality.
Liam said he wanted a dad like the other children had. Of course he did. She should have expected that. And he liked Magnus. Which was probably good because an arrangement with Magnus was the only way he was likely to get a dad. She worked from home and really didn’t get out much, so it wasn’t likely she’d meet anyone and start a normal relationship. Not that she really wanted a normal relationship anyway. That way lay pain and betrayal. Just look at how things had turned out for her mother and Stella.
Sighing, Allie glanced around for someplace to pack away the clothes they would keep, but the drawers were all full of Sunita’s clothes. It reminded her that this was another temporary stop, not really a home. Standing, she packed the clothes they would keep back in the bags they’d come in and set them on the floor next to the bed, then grabbed up the bags that held the clothes to be returned, and headed for the door. She’d set them aside for Magnus to return and see what she could do to help make lunch. And then, after lunch, she supposed she’d have to talk to Magnus and agree to be his life mate. There was no sense dragging it out.
“Magnus is very good with the children. Patient. He’ll make a good father.”
Allie tore her gaze away from where Magnus was flying down the hill on a toboggan with Liam before him, in a race against a second toboggan holding Teddy Jr. and Alessandro, and glanced to Elvi at that comment. She’d never got her chance to talk to Magnus. Lunch had been ready by the time she got downstairs, and the minute it was over and the mess cleared up, they’d piled the kids in the cars and driven here to what Elvi called Cider Hills. It was an apple farm on a hill where guests were allowed to toboggan before or after visiting the restaurant, which served hot apple cider, sandwiches, and various apple desserts. There were also jugs of cider and various packaged apple desserts that could then be purchased to take home as well. Allie had never seen anything like it, but she thought this place was wonderful. The kids were having a ball, and it was nice to stand here with the women sipping a warm apple cider while watching the children have fun.
“Yes,” she agreed quietly, offering Elvi a crooked smile before turning her gaze back to the boys. The two toboggans had reached the bottom of the hill now and they were all laughing as they climbed off and began to slog back up the hill, the boys leading the way and Magnus and Alessandro following, dragging the sleds behind them. Now, Victor and DJ were at the top of the hill, about to push off their own sleds side by side, each with their daughter before them.
“This is a wonderful place to raise children,” Elvi said suddenly. “I hope you’ll consider moving here once this mess is over. I think Teddy Jr. would like having a little buddy to hang out with other than the girls. They love Teddy,” she added. “But sometimes I think it’s a bit overwhelming for him.”
Allie smiled at the thought, and nodded. “It does seem idyllic, and I’d like to be able to make a home here for Liam. I think he’d love it. He certainly seems to enjoy having friends. But I gather it depends on whether they catch Abaddon.”
“Abaddon,” Elvi sighed the name. “We thought Leonius was bad until we found out Abaddon was his puppet master.” She shook her head. “I guess we’ll have to hope they catch him.”
“Yeah,” Mabel muttered, and then turned to peer at Allie and asked point-blank, “So are you
going to agree to be Magnus’s life mate or not?”
“Mabel,” Elvi said with dismay.
“Oh, don’t try to say you aren’t wondering too,” Mabel said with exasperation. “The suspense is killing me.”
Allie smiled wryly at the women, not terribly surprised they knew about that. Rather than answer, she said, “Well, you can read my mind. What do you think?”
“That’s the problem,” Mabel admitted. “Your mind’s all confused on the subject. One minute you’re thinking yes, the next you’re shying away from it. Tell us what you’re afraid of and maybe we can help.”
Allie’s smile faded at the words. “I— It would be— Really, I don’t think I have a choice. I don’t want to lose Liam.”
“Oh, honey,” Mabel said with gentle sympathy. “You make becoming Magnus’s life mate sound like a trip to the dentist. Believe me, being life mates is wonderful.”
“Is it?” she asked, almost desperate to know what it would entail.
“Yes,” Mabel assured her. “Those nanos know their business. If they’ve hooked you up, then you and Magnus will suit each other like salsa and cheese on tacos.”
Allie smiled faintly at the analogy, reminded that Elvi and Mabel owned and ran a Mexican restaurant. But she asked, “You think the nanos decide on life mates?”
Mabel shrugged. “What else? They’re why we can read minds, so it just stands to reason they’re why we can’t read our life mates. And trust me, they’re never wrong. If Magnus can’t read or control you, you’re the one for him. And he’ll be the one for you.”
“How?” she asked at once.
“Well . . .” Mabel glanced to Elvi.
“You’ll have similar tastes,” the redhead said, “and similar values. None of us seem to argue much. That’s not to say never, but they aren’t serious arguments. Mostly it’s a case of irritation on the part of the women when the men get too protective, or the other way around.”