Rogue Darkness by Dianne Duvall

“Nicole!”

Glancing around, she looked for whoever had called her name.

On the opposite side of the room, a hand waved. Then Becca’s face appeared as she jumped up and down a couple times to see over the shoulders of the tall males that surrounded her.

Nicole laughed. Every immortal male present was at least six feet tall. Most of the male Seconds were, too. The women, however, ranged in height from five feet to Nicole and Becca’s heights of five feet six.

Becca made her way through the throng. “Hey. I heard what happened last night.” Upon reaching her side, she drew Nicole into a tight hug. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I didn’t get so much as a scratch.” Backing away, she squinted her eyes at her friend. “You are Becca, right?”

She grimaced. “Yes. I can’t believe Nick did that.”

“You didn’t know?”

“Not until Seth popped in with Nick all bloody and naked, a sight I definitely could’ve done without now that he’s my stepdad.” Wrinkling her nose, she frowned. “If I’d known, I would’ve insisted on doing it myself.”

Sean nudged Nicole with his elbow. “I told you she was as hardheaded as you.”

Laughing, both women swatted him.

Then Becca swept them both with a dubious gaze. “You really thought Nick was me?”

“Yes,” Nicole admitted. “He was very convincing.”

Sean nodded. “He even sounded like you.”

A look of consternation crinkled her features. “That’s kinda creepy.”

Nicole watched her carefully. “Are you mad?”

“At you?” Becca replied. “No, of course not. At Mom and Nick? Absolutely.”

A sharp bark split the air. The immortals near the back hallway parted as a cat shot out of it, raced through the living room to the connecting dining room, and disappeared into the kitchen. A beagle followed, ears flapping and nails clicking on the floor as he took a turn too quickly and skidded sideways.

“Jax!” Susan called from somewhere on the other side of the living room. “Leave Slim alone!”

High-pitched giggles filled the room as a beautiful toddler burst out of the hallway. Her orange curls bounced and jounced as she ran after the dog and cat with that adorable run all toddlers seemed to have. The one that made it look as if they were barely in control. A second toddler followed closely on her heels, his short black hair blowing back as his laughter joined hers.

Every immortal present smiled fondly. All adored Marcus and Ami’s daughter Adira and Roland and Sarah’s adopted son Michael, doting on them endlessly… now that the warriors had grown accustomed to holding the little ones. Most of those present had not been around small children since they were children themselves hundreds or thousands of years ago, so they had been amusingly nervous when they’d held the fragile little ones for the first time.

As Nicole, Becca, and Sean made their way farther into the room, Krysta and Étienne joined them.

Krysta gave her brother a discerning look. “Rumor has it you were a hot blond with tattoos last night.”

Sean glanced at Nicole.

She shrugged. “I didn’t tell her that.”

Étienne stepped up behind his wife and rested his hands on her hips. “I told her.”

How had Étienne known? They hadn’t seen him the previous night and—

Nicole scowled at him. “Wait. Did you read my thoughts?” She seriously doubted Sean would’ve described himself as hot in his head.

“Yes,” the French immortal admitted without remorse. “But only because I heard something foul went down last night and was worried.”

Krysta nodded with exaggerated solemnity. “And because he’s nosy.”

Étienne laughed.

Nicole turned to Sean. “Okay. So I did inadvertently tell them. But I did not mentally use the word hot to describe you.”

“Yes, you did,” Étienne corrected her. “Many times.”

“Damn it,” she grumbled.

Sean grinned.

Tracy, Lisette’s Second, joined them. “Did I hear someone say tattoos?” Her gaze roved over Sean. “Where are they, and how much clothing will you have to remove to show me?”

“Dude!” Her boyfriend, Sheldon, called as he worked his way through the crowd. “I’m right here.” The youngest Second present, Sheldon was often treated like the kid brother of the group.

“What?” Tracy asked innocently. “You might want to get a tattoo in the future, so I thought I should research some designs.”

Laughing, Sean shook his head. “They were temporary tattoos and washed off in the shower.”

“Okay, everyone,” Darnell called as he emerged from the back hallway. “Time to get settled.” Tall, broad-shouldered, and muscular, he crossed to the dining room. Darnell had no problem issuing orders to the immortals present, despite his being a mortal. He’d served as David’s Second—and Seth’s whenever the need arose—for quite a long time, though he looked like he was the same age as Nicole and Sean. His smooth brown head didn’t appear to hide a receding hairline. Nor did his face bear any wrinkles. Nicole had no idea how old he was, if he’d been a young recruit like her and Sheldon, or if he was two or three decades their senior and aging very well, thanks to Seth.