Veso Read online

  “So you just walk everywhere?”

  “You’re so human.” He grinned.

  “I am.” She didn’t feel sorry about that, but she glanced at Veso’s body. No wonder he was so in shape. Just traveling from the lodge to his cabin was giving her a workout. Her calf and ass muscles were feeling the burn.

  “We’re almost there.”

  “Good.” She was a little out of breath and her throat was dry. “Next time I’ll bring some water for the long hike.”

  Veso halted and made her gasp when he just scooped her up in his arms. She hesitated but wrapped her arms around his neck. They passed a stream, then he carried her up a small hill. He stopped and put her on her feet at the top.

  “There it is.”

  She turned her head and stared at the cute A-frame cabin. It looked like something out of a magazine, only without a garage, driveway, or sidewalk. The trees had been cut back around the structure to make a clearing where the cabin sat in the middle. “You built this?”

  “My father helped.”

  “It’s impressive.” She peered at him.

  His features showed his uncertainty and he frowned.

  “I’m serious. It’s beautiful.” She turned her head, staring at his home again. “It looks as if a professional built it.”

  He grumbled low.

  She met his gaze. “What?”

  “We don’t hire construction crews like you do in your world to build homes. We do it ourselves.”

  “To keep humans away?”

  “We just don’t need them.”

  She sealed her lips and nodded. Sometimes when he acted sweet, she forgot about how much he held a grudge against her kind. He began to walk again so she followed him to the front door. He just gripped the handle and pushed it open.

  “You don’t lock your doors?”

  “I wasn’t home. There was no reason to do so. VampLycans don’t steal from each other.” He moved out of the way and jerked his head, his gaze scanning the area. “Go inside.”

  She stepped into his living room and openly admired the log beams overhead. She glanced down. “Hardwood floors. Don’t tell me you made those too?”

  He snorted, closing the doors. “I installed them but no, I didn’t make them. I ordered them online and we picked them up from the lodge. We do buy things from your world. I didn’t make the glass for the windows either.”

  The room was open from the living room to the kitchen. The fireplace was large, all gray stones. “Those look real.” She pointed.

  “They are. I handpicked each rock from the creek. Are we going to discuss every feature of my cabin?”

  She faced him. “I’m nervous.”

  “Why?”

  Yeah, why, Glen? She swallowed hard. They were alone inside his home and it was nicer than she’d imagined. She could even picture herself living there. She could also imagine how much it would break her heart if Veso talked her into staying, then one day regretted it. Love would turn to hate. “Go shower.”

  He titled his head, his eyes narrowing as he studied her. “Are you trying to be rid of me?”

  “No. You’re covered in…whatever that is. You should wash it off and put on clean clothes.” She glanced down at herself. “Luckily it’s dry since it’s not on me too.”

  “Blood and ash doesn’t make you nervous. You’ve seen both on me before.”

  That was true. He’d killed to get them out of that mine. She lifted her gaze to his. “Fine. We’re alone.”

  “So?”

  “We’re not running for our lives anymore. I remember the last time we were in a cabin together and what happened between us. Are you going to try to seduce me again?”

  He nodded, not denying it.

  “That’s why I’m nervous. Go shower. I’d like a little time.”

  “To do what?”

  “I don’t know. I just want some space and time to think.”

  “You’re my mate. This is where you belong. I’ll be in the bedroom. You could join me in the shower.”

  “Time,” she repeated softly, hoping he’d take the hint.

  Irritation flashed over his features but he turned, stomping toward the back of the cabin. “Lock the door and don’t go outside.”

  “Okay.”

  He gazed back at her with a scow, hesitating.

  “I’m not going to run outdoors. I’d never find my way back to the lodge, and besides, I’m human. I understand that’s not exactly a good thing to be here.”

  “No one would dare harm you. I’d kill them.”

  He disappeared and she walked over to his front door. It did have a few locks. She twisted them, tested to make certain they worked, then slowly let herself glance at every inch of the room. It wasn’t a big home but it was comfortable. A stairwell led up to a loft over the kitchen.

  She just stood there instead of exploring what lay out of sight though.

  Veso had made it clear he planned to make her his mate. Just how far will he go? That unanswered question had her biting her lip and hugging her waist, worried.

  He might say he was certain they should mate but what if he was wrong? All the things he’d said about humans replayed through her head. Would he always see her as weak? Less than? Inferior to a VampLycan? She paced, deep in thought. She couldn’t do all the nifty things he could. She’d just be plain old human.

  Trust your instincts.

  She held still, just breathing, and closed her eyes. Her heart wanted to stay with Veso. She was falling in love with him. The idea of sleeping with him every night and being with him every day was something she desperately wanted. Her head warned her that it would be the worst mistake she could ever make. They were so different. The gap might be too wide to bridge.

  “Shit,” she rasped. “I don’t know what to do.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  “I didn’t know you were evil.”

  Veso arched his eyebrows, looking confused.

  Glen cut another bite off the steak and slowly chewed. Veso had taken his shower, thawed out a few steaks from his freezer, and then proceeded to fry them up in cast iron skillets. He’d made side dishes too. They now sat across from each other at his dining room table tucked to the side of the kitchen.

  “You’re an excellent cook. It was a joke,” she explained.

  “I don’t see the humor in that kind of accusation.”

  “You’re not going to play fair to get your way, are you?”

  He said nothing, just cutting a bite off his own steak and shoving it into his mouth.

  “This is the best steak I’ve ever had,” she admitted.

  He swallowed, taking a sip of his soda. “Thank you. I’m better in the bedroom than I am in the kitchen.”

  She gaped at him, surprised that he’d boasted that. He was so cocky.

  “Stop fighting me, Glen. We’re meant to be together.”

  It took her a second to respond. “You didn’t call me Glenda for once.”

  “I’m aware. I still believe it’s a man’s name but you like it. I can compromise. I want you to be happy.”

  “Who are you and have you done with the real Veso?”

  He chuckled. “I have you inside my home and you’re safe. This is me relaxed.”

  “Now you’re purposely trying to freak me out, aren’t you?”

  He put his silverware down. “I’m trying to show you I can be a good mate to you, Glen. I want you to stay with me.”

  “I got that.”

  “I’ll protect you, make certain you’re happy, and we can add more bedrooms onto my cabin. It only has two bedrooms but we can build them as needed.”

  “For what?”

  “Our children.”

  Her mouth hung open.

  “What? Was that the wrong thing to say? You can’t control your ovaries the way a Lycan does. It means I’ll probably get you pregnant. I never wanted to be a father but I’m willing to face that to be with you.”

  She stood, getting out of her c