Page 68 of Bound By Blood

Stopping just inside the kitchen, Carly spotted Lily right away. She was standing at her usual spot, hip against the counter, as she read the paper and sipped from a steaming red mug. The butterflies only intensified, and Carly fought the urge to run the hell out of there.

Lily looked up at her and smiled, freezing Carly to her spot. She couldn’t run now. Lily had spotted her, and if the smile that merged into a frown was anything to go by, she knew she was in for it. “What’s wrong?”

Carly tensed. “What do you mean?”

She raised an eyebrow at her. “You look like shit. Have you seen yourself? Have you been sleeping?”

Carly patted down her hair. It didn’t feel messy, but Lily definitely could see something that Carly hadn’t paid attention to when she got ready this morning. “Do I really look so terrible?” Maybe she did. With everything going on, she had been having to sneak in little naps instead of a full night’s sleep. It was probably not good for the baby or for her, but she was hoping these sleepless nights would come to an end once everything settled.

“Yeah.” Lily set down the paper on the counter and pushed off the counter to fully face Carly. “Normally when people come back from a trip, they look more well-rested.”

“Yeah, well . . .” Carly ran a hand through her hair. “It wasn’t a normal trip.”

Her frown deepened. “What do you mean?”

“I mean we went to discover things,” Carly said more quietly than she usually talked. “Things between me and Landon.”

“Like figuring out where you stand? I thought-“

Carly cut her off with a small wave of her hand. “Yes, sort of. We, uh-“ How did she tell her about vampires and immortality? Should she just blurt it? Ease into it? She groaned, slumped her shoulders, and looked down at her feet. “We went to find a vampire.”

Lily’s silence spoke volumes, and then her abrupt laugh made Carly flinch. “Come on, Carly. Seriously, what’s going on?”

“I’m being serious.”

“Well, you’re not going to find a vampire,” Lily eventually said, humor in her tone. “They don’t exist.”

Carly finally glanced up at her, and something in her expression caused Lily’s smile to slip. “We did. Find one, that is. Actually, you’ve seen them yourself, you just didn’t know it.”

Lily looked her up and down as if she were trying to work out if Carly needed to be committed to the loony house or if Lily could handle the crazy on her own. In all fairness, if roles were reversed, she’d probably feel the same. “What are you talking about?” Lily eventually hissed out.

Carly stepped more into the kitchen, her hands up and palms out. “Landon is a vampire, Lily.”

Lily took a step back and narrowed her eyes. “Carly, I think you need help.”

Sighing, Carly crossed her arms and asked, “Do you trust me?”

“Well, yes. But-“

“No,” Carly interjected. She shook her head. “There are no ‘buts.’ What I’m telling you is the truth. Landon is a vampire, and we went to Scotland to look for another vampire who could help us with our problem. It’s all true, Lily. Vampires, creatures of the night, exist. Here.” She opened her arms wide. “In the city, even.”

Lily’s face paled, and Carly could see her throat bob as Lily swallowed hard. “Oh, my god,” she murmured so quietly as if she were having a revelation.

“What?” She dropped her arms back to her sides.

“The bite marks on your neck when you went home from the bar . . . that was Landon?” She touched her own neck in emphasis. “That was a vampire bite?”

Carly nodded, relieved that she seemed to be believing her. “He tried to kill me, but he couldn’t. That’s the other thing I need to tell you.”

“What more could you have to tell me besides that he’s a homicidal bloodsucker who tried to murder my best friend?” Lily’s skin was starting to turn a brilliant shade of red with her anger. Carly knew she had to defuse the situation before Lily hunted down Landon with a wooden stake.

Carly waved a hand in the air. “No, no. There’s something about it that you should know. He couldn’t kill me because we have a bond.”

“A bond . . .”

“Yes, it’s rare. It’s like . . .” Carly considered her words, tipping her head to the side in the process. “Have you ever heard of the term fated mates?”

Lily frowned again, but at least her skin’s color was returning to normal. “No.”