Page 64 of A Wild Darkness

“Of course. I’m always here.”

As soon as I end the call, my stomach growls. I need to head into the kitchen to grab something to eat. But first, I walk into the bathroom to check out the dark circles under my eyes. I’m not used to the lack of sleep, and I can’t live with these bags. I pull open the makeup drawer, sifting through the contents until I find the concealer. After two small drops on my skin, I’m looking marginally better.

“This is gonna have to do,” I mumble to myself while flipping my tousled curls to the side. Then I slip on some shoes and exit the bedroom, bound for the kitchen.

The chill from the empty walls and high ceilings dust across my cheeks as I make my way from the East Wing to the main part of the house. The anticipation of seeing Sebastian again creates a flurry of butterflies in my stomach.

We have to work together, and I need to keep things professional.

Since he texted me before I fell asleep, I knew his goal was to make sure things remain good between us, possibly desiring the closure I needed, too.

“Good evening,” Sebastian greets me as I round the corner into the kitchen. He’s standing at the large range oven with a black apron tied around his body and a wooden spoon in his hand. My heart flutters.

“You cook?”

“No. That’s what our personal chef is for.” He shoots me a slight smirk. “I’m heating the prepared pasta from Ben.”

“Ah,” I say, climbing onto the high softback chair at the large island. “I was impressed for a split second.”

“Don’t get too excited,” he quips. “But I am good at other things.” He walks over with a plate of spaghetti and places it in front of me. “I’m sure you know which things by now.”

I laugh. The food smells delicious, and my stomach growls, so I don’t even respond to his comment. I simply grab my fork and take a bite. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” He smiles, coming around the counter to sit next to me with a plate of his own.

We eat in silence for a beat before he speaks. “Silas contacted me earlier this morning.”

My ears perk up, but so do my nerves. “Already?”

Sebastian nods. “The next event of the killing season will be in wine country.”

“Wine country?”

“Yeah, so, tomorrow afternoon we’ll be headed out to the country to stay at some old family estate for the weekend,” he tells me, as if this is a simple conversation about a work trip.

“We’re leaving Seattle?” I ask. “Is that safe?”

Sebastian’s dark eyes capture mine with a heavy seriousness I feel inside my bones. “We will be safe. You will be safe, Stevie.”

His words force a hard swallow. “Okay.”

“Since River and Lux have our plane, we’ll have to charter one,” he says, returning to his food. “I have Aunt Mae working on that as we speak.”

“Do you know what this event will be about or what we’ll have to do?”

“I’m not sure.”

“The unknown of it all is unsettling,” I state.

“I think we should be prepared for everything,” he says. “You remember Christian, my FBI contact?”

“Yeah, of course. He’s like your and River’s right-hand man,” I confirm, showing I’ve been paying attention to the workings of their operations.

“That’s right. He’ll be moving into one of our guesthouses to help us since River is busy boning your sister,” Sebastian jokes, but there’s annoyance in his voice.

I chuckle. “Yeah, they’re pretty obsessed with each other.” Sebastian flashes me a soft grin at our mutual ick. “I didn’t know there were more spots on the property.”

He takes a bite of pasta, then leans back in his chair. “Yeah, we have three. Nightrose Hall, which is where Christian usually stays, Hayden, the lead of the night crew, lives in Hollow House, and Thornfell Lodge usually remains empty unless we need it for emergencies.”