Page 71 of Bound By Blood

Loxton sighed heavily. “Landon, your father’s been dead for a little less than a week. Usually, it takes months to get all this done. You are already way ahead of the game. The other vampires will be fine without a leader for a little while.”

Getting ahead had been Landon’s intention. He wanted to get as much done as he could before the baby was born because he knew that, once the little one made its appearance, he would be preoccupied with it and Carly. He didn’t want to leave the vampires hanging. And even though Carly said she understood, he hated that he didn’t have as much time for her as he wanted, but that would change once he got all of this handled. Which was why he had been pushing himself so hard the last few days.

When Landon didn’t respond, Loxton continued and thankfully changed the subject. “I went to the storage unit like you asked.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a black velvet box, setting it on the corner of his desk. “I have to say, it felt like taking a trip back in time.”

Landon nodded at him as he reached for the box. He had asked Loxton to make a trip to the storage unit he had on the other side of the country, away from his father. The unit contained everything that had ever held some kind of importance to him in his long life, including a few trinkets he had managed to keep hidden that had belonged to his mother.

“I appreciate it, Loxton. More than you know,” Landon replied as he flipped open the box. He turned it toward his new friend so that he could see what was inside. Placed within the pink satin lining was a beautiful, antique engagement ring. “Think Carly will like it?”

Loxton examined the ring and nodded enthusiastically. “I think she will love it. And the fact that it belonged to your mother will make it even more special.”

Landon closed the box and set it back on the corner of the desk as Loxton reached down and pulled out a small stack of papers from his briefcase. He handed them to Landon from across the desk.

“Speaking of,” Loxton continued. “I had Carly added to your bank account and created a savings account for the little one like you asked. Here’s all the paperwork for that.”

“Thank you, Loxton. I really don’t know what I’d do without you.” He took the manilla folder and set it in the top drawer of his desk before glancing at his watch.

Carly should be showing up soon. She had sent him a text after she left Lily’s and had told him that the conversation went better than expected and that she was on her way back. Though he didn’t know all the details, she promised to give him more information later.

Obviously sensing his impatience, Loxton rose to his feet. “It really is my pleasure, Landon. I feel much better knowing that we now have a leader who actually gives a shit about us.” He turned to leave but paused long enough to look back over his shoulder. “Think about what I said though. You need to take a break every now and then too.”

Landon just waved him off and went back to the paperwork he had been working on, leaving Loxton to shake his head and take his leave.

As much as he wished he could take a break, he couldn’t as he was currently in the process of putting Carly on everything. He was making her co-owner of the business and adding her to the deed to his condo. He was in the process of taking out a life insurance policy on himself too, labeling Carly and the baby as the beneficiaries. There were still a lot of vampires who had grudges against his family, and he didn’t want to risk anything happening to him without making sure that Carly and his child were being taken care of.

In truth, he probably should have spoken to Carly about all of this and told her of his plans, but she had insisted that she wanted to be a part of his life completely. This was just a part of all that. He was going to show her that she deserved to be taken care of even when she didn’t want to be. He knew she wasn’t helpless and could take care of herself, but she deserved to be loved too. He was going to make sure she knew that.

As if thinking about her made her appear, Carly strode into the office a few moments later as if she owned the place. Landon looked up at her and smiled, the stress and strain of everything he had to do vanishing the moment he laid eyes on her. “Hey, baby. How did it go?” he asked.

“A lot better than I expected.” Carly plopped down in the same chair Loxton had occupied just minutes before. “She believed me, and things remain the same between us. Oh, and she’s coming for dinner, by the way. Tomorrow night.”

Landon nodded, grateful that all of this hadn’t caused Carly to lose her best friend. He knew how important Lily was to her, and he was glad that nothing had changed. “Alright. We will stop by the store on the way home and grab something special.” He cocked his head to the side and studied her. “How are you feeling otherwise though? Any morning sickness at all?”

“No, not for a few days. Thank God. But I suspect that’ll change again as this progresses,” she explained. “I can’t really tell what symptoms I have because I’m still getting used to all my heightened senses. I don’t know what’s pregnancy and what’s immortality.”

“Things will calm down and will become more discernible,” he told her gently. “We haven’t really had a chance to relax since we’ve been back. Oh, by the way, I made you an appointment with an OBGYN next week.”

Carly grinned at him, but that smile quickly fell. “What are we going to tell the doctor about… you know… a possible vampire child?”

Landon cocked an eyebrow. He absolutely adored this woman. She was just starting to get a taste of his world, but already she was concerned about exposure. He didn’t think she could be any more perfect than she already was. “Visibly, there’s no difference between us. So, she will never know that you are carrying a miracle baby unless you tell her in a fit of hormones.”

“And if the baby comes out with fangs?” she countered.

Landon laughed at the mental image that brought him. “Stranger things have been born, my love. You should see some of the stories. Babies with two heads, some with tails. They will write it off as a genetic anomaly and nothing more.”

Carly nodded her head and blew out a breath. He then watched as she glanced down at the desk, right where he had left his mother’s ring box. She frowned. “What’s that?” she asked, suddenly pointing at it.

In a flash, Landon snatched the box off the desk, his eyes wide. He had been so distracted with his conversation with Loxton that he had forgotten to stash the box before Carly showed up. “It’s, uh, nothing.”

He quickly yanked open the top drawer and set it inside before slamming the drawer shut, rattling his entire desk. It wasn’t like him to get so flustered, but she had caught him off guard.

Carly cocked her head to the side with a scowl. “What was it, Landon? Why are you hiding it from me?”

“You will find out when the time is right, okay? Drop it, Carly.”

It wasn’t his intention to be short with her, but he wasn’t ready to ask her yet. He had a plan, a carefully thought out, meticulously planned scenario. This most definitely wasn’t it, and if she kept pushing, it would ruin everything.

It became clear to him that Carly was not going to leave it alone when she smirked and pushed herself out of the chair. She rounded the desk and then straddled his lap, her hands splayed across his chest. She pressed a kiss to his neck and whispered against his skin. “Is the time right now?”