Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 97229 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97229 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
I was seeing the place through totally different eyes as we passed Ross on Wye and began the final stretch. I’d been avoiding the ocean of where, what, why, how questions throughout the journey, because right now I didn’t want to talk in words, I wanted to talk in feelings. Hans’ feelings were strong enough that they touched my spirit. He was giving me love, and support and commitment without speaking out loud.
The silence was becoming a lovely thing. Self-assured and unassuming. Natural.
“Nearly there,” the driver told us as we hit the turning for Garway.
I looked up at the beautiful, huge stone manor at the top of Garway hill, and I should’ve known it. I’d looked at it plenty of times as a girl when I was in the church grounds, but I’d never stepped a foot on the private gravel lane that led up to it.
“Edwin lives there, doesn’t he?” I asked Hans, but it was rhetorical. Now I was getting used to my new heightened instincts, things were becoming clear.
I could feel the essence of life at the top of the hill, and I recognised the same presence as I felt in the blood house. Yes, it was Edwin’s house. Hans’ silent nod just confirmed I was right.
Edwin opened the door to the manor himself, swinging it open wide. He was genuinely pleased to see us, I could tell that from the huge smile on his face. His long, dark hair was tied back this time, and he was in a plain back suit, but he still had a ruffled white shirt underneath. I guessed they were a staple of his. He looked fantastic for it.
He pulled Hans into his arms, and I got a taste of the familiarity between them.
“Good to see you!” he said, and then he turned his attention to me. “Hello, Katherine.”
He kissed my hand, and invited us in with a sweep of an arm. I stepped inside and the décor was similar to the blood house. Almost identical. The huge, sparkling chandeliers and the plush, deep-red rug over mosaic floor tiles.
“Yes,” he said. “I was the designer. The London blood house was a creation of mine.”
“A great achievement,” Hans said, casting his friend a smile.
“Why, thank you. I’d hope you would think so, given that you’ve enjoyed it plenty.” Another familiar look passed between them, but I didn’t feel threatened by their closeness. Not in the slightest.
“Come,” Edwin said and led the way through to a dining room.
The table was huge but there was only one person sitting at it. He must have been two years older than me, max. And he was human. I could feel it. He was a lovely looking guy with a ruffle of dark brown hair, dressed casually in a long-sleeved t-shirt, quite at odds with the suits that Edwin and Hans were wearing.
“Hi,” he said, and gave me a wave. His t-shirt slipped far enough up his arm that I could see the bite marks. “I’m Daniel.”
“Hi, I’m Katherine,” I said back.
“Edwin told me you were coming. Nice to see you. I’ve heard a lot.”
I hadn’t heard a thing about him, but didn’t speak that aloud. I was still the newbie in a very tight knit crowd.
One I’d spend a long time getting to know. That was for sure.
Edwin put his hand on Daniel’s shoulder, and holy fuck, I felt the connection between them sizzling across the table. Daniel was Edwin’s lover. A serious one. The lust between them glowed like a furnace.
“I’m sure you two will have plenty of time to get to know each other,” Edwin said.
Hans pulled out a seat for me on the opposite side of the table from them, taking his place beside me.
His friend didn’t waste any time before getting down to business, addressing Hans the moment they were both seated.
“I wasn’t expecting Katherine’s transition so soon. I thought you’d hold back at least twelve months.”
“You knew I intended to visit on Halloween, Edwin.”
“Yes,” Edwin replied. “But there’s a big difference between showing your love the place you were transitioned, and taking their life on the same spot.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t say a thing. I was definitely becoming more self-assured in my silence.
Hans wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Katherine is very insistent, and very sure.”
“I’d hope so,” Edwin said, and wrapped his arm around Daniel’s shoulder to mirror us. “Daniel has been very sure for nearly two years now, but I’m still not certain it’s time.”
“It’s Katherine’s time,” Hans insisted, and they stared at each other for a few long seconds.
It was Edwin who broke the stare.
“Excellent. Then I guess this calls for a preliminary celebration.” He paused. “ROBERT!”
With that another man came in from a door off to the side. A butler, clearly – but a much older one than the one at the blood house.