As Midnight Loves the Moon by Beth D. Carter

everything okay, Daphne?”
    “I…I love you,” she whispered.
    “What?”
    She raised her head and met his
gaze. “I love you. I just wanted you to know that, Wayde, no matter what.”
    He cupped her face. “Be very sure
of those words, Daphne. Once uttered, love is like the moon, forever there. Now
sleep. Tonight, we shall talk.”

Chapter Twelve
     
    Wayde opened the door to his condo
and stood back, letting Alex into his home. The cop had a rolling suitcase with
him. Daphne was behind him, holding a cup of coffee and he saw her glance at
him first, as if seeking permission, before smiling at Alex. Truth be told, he was
a little nervous to see how they would react together. He saw Alex smile back
and little lines around his honey-colored eyes crinkled as he looked down at
her. A soft, loving expression flittered through them and it made Wayde relax. If
Alex loved her, then everything would be fine.
    “I brought my stuff,” Alex
explained. “The Council already closed up the house.”
    “That’s fine,” Wayde said. “I’ve
got plenty of spare rooms.”
    “I made coffee, Alex,” Daphne said.
“Would you like a cup?”
    “I’d love one,” he replied. “Black
is fine.”
    She nodded and turned, heading into
the kitchen. Alex parked his suitcase and then looked at him, one eyebrow
raised, and Wayde simply nodded. Yes, he knew what needed to be said. They
followed her into the kitchen and sat at the bar while she poured the steaming
brew into a cup before handing it to Alex.
    “Thanks,” he murmured.
    “Daphne,” Wayde said. “Why don’t
you sit?”
    She grabbed her own mug before
taking a seat across from both of them. He thought maybe she did that as a
strategic tactic, because as far as she was concerned this about accepting two
men into her life.
    If only it were that easy.
    “Daphne,” Alex said, starting the
conversation. “Do you believe in angels?”
    She raised her eyebrows, the
question clearly surprising her.
    “Yes,” she answered. “I’m dying. Of
course I believe in angels.”
    “You won’t die,” Alex told her fiercely.
“I’ll figure something out.”
    “ We’ll figure something out,” Wayde reminded him.
    Alex looked at him grimly. “Never had a we before. At
least, not like that.”
    Wayde took hold of Alex’s hand and
laced their fingers. “Now you do.”
    “That’s been running through my
mind,” she said, nodding to their hands. “Where could I possibly fit into your
lives when you have each other? I’m just a burden.”
    “Daphne, I can’t imagine you not
being in my life,” Wayde told her as he held out his other hand, the one that
wasn’t holding onto Alex. “That’s why you will get better, because from that
very first night…you were mine.”
    She bit her lip and tears welled up
in her eyes. “I was born with my heart valves messed up,” she said softly. “My
parents were told I wouldn’t live. They gave up on me.”
    “I won’t give up on you,” he vowed.
    “Me, neither,” Alex said. “And I
think you fit perfectly with us.”
    “But Daphne,” Wayde said, taking a
deep breath. “There’s something about me that I need to explain—”
    “That you’re a vampire?” she asked,
interrupting him.
    “Yes, that I’m a vampire,” he
finished and then blinked. “Wait. How did you know that?”
    A faint blush rose in her cheeks as
she bowed her head. “I’m sorry. I went snooping in your bedroom.”
    Wayde felt his mouth fall open in
surprise, but other than mimic a fish, he couldn’t think of something to say.
    Daphne turned to Alex. “But you’re
not one.”
    “Um, no,” he answered. “But I am
Shade.”
    “Shade? I
don’t know what that is,” she said curiously. “I assume , if there are such things as vampires, then there must be other folklore
creatures.”
    “That’s one way of putting it,”
Alex replied. “When I asked if you believed in angels it wasn’t because I
thought you were dying. You see, the Shade is