Adopt a Vampire
: Chapter 13

I felt beyond happy right now. Like, over the moon. It was such a relief to finally have Huxley in my life again. I had to wonder if vampire instincts were at play here, or if I felt this way because I’d lost all connection with my birth parents. My father had never been hands on with me or even really affectionate, which only got worse after my parents’ divorce, so I didn’t know how a father should act. But Huxley was so excited about me, I had a feeling he’d be the father figure I’d wanted for most of my life.

“Excuse us a few minutes.” Barrett pulled me up from the table and guided me out to the back patio.

I had no idea why he was doing this and leaving our guests alone, so I gave him a look askance.

He put both hands on my shoulders, eyes concerned. “Checking in. How are you feeling?”

I didn’t know what kind of karma I had to get a boyfriend with a high EQ, but damn, I must have saved a country in a previous life. I gave him a hug for his thoughtfulness alone.

“I’m overwhelmed in the best of ways.”

“Yeah?”

His tone encouraged me to talk about it, so I did. “My mother died years before I was even turned, and we weren’t close when she passed. My father hasn’t ever been one, if that makes sense. He wasn’t really fond of kids, and I haven’t spoken to him in over a decade. I don’t even know where he is. The second I was done with high school, it was like he felt he’d done his parental duty, and then he took a job overseas and I lost all communication with him. Even before I met Huxley, we were basically low contact. So having this option of having a father again, it’s like being offered treasure. I’m really, super happy about this.”

“Then I’m happy for you.”

“Is it really all right for him to be here?”

“Sure. I personally don’t have anything against vampires—”

I snorted at that because, obviously.

“—it’s just that most vampires I’ve met have been absolute pricks. So long as he’s not a douchecanoe, he’s more than welcome here.”

“Cool. I just don’t want you to suffer in silence if something goes wrong, okay? I want this connection, but not if Huxley is an asshole to you.”

“All right, fair enough. You don’t know the man super well at this point, so we’ll see how this plays out. But so long as he’s good to you, he’s good to me.”

“Got it.” I snuggled in a little more for a second. “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me for this. Honestly, having him here for a while will relieve me because at least he’ll help you recover once Glenn and Ross leave. And he can teach you how to properly vamp.”

“Yeah, truly, I’m happy for that alone.”

We just stood there for a moment, arms wrapped around each other, and I felt it again—a sense of being in absolutely the right place. It wasn’t just that I felt welcomed and accepted here in the Walker Pack. It was the fact I felt absolutely loved when I was in Barrett’s arms. Safe, too. Not just in a physical sense, but an emotional one. I could say anything to this man and not be judged for it—something priceless.

Barrett gave me one last squeeze before kissing my forehead and stepping back. “Let’s go back in.”

“Sure.”

I followed him in, replaceing Ross and Glenn still at the table. At some point while we were gone, Marissa had taken a seat at the head of the table. She was earnestly talking to them when we walked back in.

“—trying but he’s only able to do so much. How do you guys handle this?”

“Widow or K,” Ross answered.

“What are we talking about?” I resumed my seat, all ears.

“Licenses,” Marissa answered with a hopeful expression. “Because our doctor needs an updated license—and so will you, eventually—so I figured I could ask how they handle it.”

“Oh yes, please. That’s a particular brick wall I’m tired of banging my head against. Dunham mentioned something about a hacker friend.”

“We don’t have anyone with specialties in the clan who requires a license, aside from my own mother, but she’s very recently turned so we haven’t had issue with that one yet,” Ross explained, head panning back and forth as he tried to explain to all three of us at once. “But we made friends with a thief family who’s been both very generous and helpful with this issue. Used to be, I did all the paperwork for people to ‘die’ and then be ‘reborn’ so they could have updated driver’s licenses and such. Then I acquired K’s and Widow’s skills, and now they do a lot of the legwork for me.”

Glenn picked up the explanation. “I’m actually friends with Eidolon. He’s an amazing thief. There’s no place he can’t get into. When we initially met up with him, he told me they’d adopted a few kids into the family. Widow is the eldest and she’s a trained hacker. K is her mentor, and he’s the best hacker I’ve ever heard tale of. The two of them are a force to reckon with once they get going.”

I was fascinated by this glimpse into the underworld and had to ask, “Are they supernatural as well?”

“As human as they come, but very accepting of us. We’ve done a few jobs together, in fact, the most memorable being a high wizard’s mansion this past year.” Glenn’s expression was both rueful and nostalgic. “Ah, good times, that. Anyway, if you’d like, I can put a call in and see if I can introduce them to you. They’d likely be willing to help, for a fee.”

I gave my boyfriend praying hands. “Please.”

Barrett smacked a kiss against my forehead. “No problem, they’re worth the price. I’ve seen you and my sister struggling with this for the past week. Let’s solve the problem if we know people who can do it.”

“I love you and will have your babies.”

Barrett laughed, the sound like a rumble coming out of his chest. “You really don’t want to sit for the bar again, do you?”

“I really, really do not.”

“I’m calling Widow, then.” So saying, Ross picked his phone up off the table and popped open a contact.

It rang a few times before there was an answer, which sounded like a very smooth, young soprano. “Hi, Ross. What’s on fire?”

Seriously, I suspected his clan was even worse than mine about replaceing trouble.

“Hi, Widow. Fortunately, nothing on fire yet,” he answered with a roll of his eyes. “That I know of. So, how do you feel about helping another supernatural group with licenses and paperwork?”

“I’m always up for breaking more laws. Who am I helping?”

“Werewolf pack this time, out here in Arizona. We’re friends, and they’re in a tough spot. They have both a doctor and a lawyer in house who need licenses renewed at some point, and they’re not sure how to go about it. The doctor’s license I understand is more a priority than the lawyer’s.”

Truly, mine could go another decade without an issue.

“Hmm, haven’t hacked a medical board thingy before. This should be fun. All right, I can do it, but I’d really like to be on site for the initial phase. Just so I can get a feel for what all they need, maybe teach them some tricks so you guys aren’t dependent on me. After all, you’ll all outlive me.”

“That’s a very sad reality. How do you feel about being turned?” Ross’s tone was all sass.

Widow snickered. “You’re a bad man. It’s why I like you. We’ll talk making me a sexy vampire queen later, let’s focus on the boring shit first. I’m, hmm, somewhat in the middle of a job right now. I think it’ll wrap up in a few hours, though. Let’s say I’ll come your direction by tomorrow morning. That work?”

“Absolutely. Thanks for this, Widow.”

“Sure, you betcha. Shoot me an address and I’ll let you know when I’m on my way. Kisses~”

Ross ended the call and looked very satisfied. “She’s seriously the best. I want to adopt that girl.”

Glenn gave a full-body shudder. “I’m not risking it. I’m not pissing off a thief, a hacker, and an assassin. You’ll never replace my body. We’ll have to seduce her into the idea first.”

“Eh, it might not be too hard. Anyway.” Ross gave us the smile of a very satisfied man. “Your expert help is en route. Any other problems I can solve for you?”

“Can I just keep you?” I was half joking saying this, but seriously, Ross was one of those magical beings who seemed to know all the right people and how to solve every problem. He’d solved all of my problems in an hour flat. I wanted to be like Ross. Barring that, couldn’t I just keep Ross?

Glenn grinned at me like I’d said something hilarious. “You know, that’s exactly why I brought him into my clan to begin with. He’s able to just solve problems as they come at him. Of course, it took a gas station blowing up to convince him to enter my clan, but that’s a different story.”

“We’ve got time,” Barrett pointed out. “Why don’t we crack open a few beers and you can tell us about it? This sounds like a fun story to hear.”

“Well, I certainly don’t mind.”

I absolutely didn’t mind. This was a story I wanted to hear, and I had time until Huxley arrived, so why not relax and enjoy these fabulous new friends?

Huxley somehow managed to get on a red-eye flight that night. Being a natural night owl now, I was fully awake by the time his plane landed and went to pick him up at the airport. I was admittedly nervous about seeing him. What if this didn’t work out smoothly like it had in my head? What if we couldn’t get along on a daily basis?

What if, what if, what if.

Barrett sensed my nerves, I think, because he reached over the divide to take my hand. His grip felt comforting and settled the frogs leaping about in my stomach.

“It’ll be fine. Just take it as it comes, don’t try to force anything.”

“Good advice.” I’d do my best to take it.

The airport line wasn’t long at this time of night, as few people chose to fly in for a midnight arrival, so it didn’t take us long at all to pull up to the right spot. The pickup area was brightly lit, of course, it being the dead of night, but also rather deserted. I spotted Huxley without trouble, and the second Barrett had the truck stopped, I popped out to welcome him.

Huxley had a single suitcase he rolled along the sidewalk, but he abandoned it the second I was in view, swooped in, and bear-hugged me right off my feet. I startled, not expecting this, but the second I was in his embrace, I felt a huge surge of relief. Which surprised me again, as I hadn’t expected that, either.

Not being able to replace this man, to be with him, had eaten a hole me in I hadn’t been fully aware of until Huxley was suddenly here to fill it. I felt tears burn my eyes as I hugged him back. With him here, it felt like I was suddenly complete. I had no explanation for the feeling of why, it just was.

For once, I chose not to question and simply basked.

“Son,” Huxley choked out, arms steel bands around me. “God above, it’s good to finally be able to hug you. But you’re so thin, are you really all right?”

I pulled back a smidge to see him up close and reassure him. He did look heartier than I remembered. He wasn’t a tall man at a few inches shorter than me, but his shoulders were wide and muscular, accented by the red and black plaid shirt he wore. “I really am. I’m healing now and much stronger than I was before.”

“Your boyfriend said something about you subsisting on coconut water, but he was kidding…?”

I shook my head.

“Fuck. He wasn’t kidding?” Huxley’s head dropped for a second in despair. “But I told you how to feed!”

“You didn’t teach me how to be all seductive and charming. I can’t even pick up guys in a bar, okay? There’s no way in hell I can convince a complete stranger to let me nom on them and keep my secret.”

“Ugh. There’s much I’ll need to teach you. I’m glad I’m here. All right, let’s go back to your house. I’m very interested in meeting your pack.”

“Sure, let’s go. I’ll introduce you to everyone tomorrow. Most are asleep right now. Ross and Glenn are still up, though.”

“I truly, truly owe them for making the connection and calling me. I’d never have found you, otherwise.”

I owed them too. How I’d ever pay this back, I had no clue, but hopefully I’d be able to in the future. Right now, though, I was going to focus on Huxley and rebuilding the relationship we’d lost.

Fortunately, as a vampire, I had all the time in the world.