Vampires Are Forever by Lynsay Sands Read Free Book Online

interrupted himself to ask.
     
    “Yeah,” Thomas said with amusement. “Why?”
     
    “Isn’t England five hours ahead of Toronto? I’m sure it’s—”
     
    “Yes. England is five hours ahead of you guys back there in Canada,” Thomas said patiently, wondering what time it was exactly. Inez was supposed to wake him after her bath so it couldn’t be much after eight in the morning. Actually, he’d taken so long about his calls earlier that when he’d finally laid down he’d felt sure he’d barely drift off to sleep before she was waking him.
     
    Turning slowly, he peered around the room, searching for a clock. Thomas never wore a watch. It wasn’t usually a problem, but at that moment he wished he did. He’d just spotted the clock on the mantel over the fireplace when Bastien squawked, “Then it’s four-thirty there, Thomas!”
     
    “Yeah, I see that,” Thomas muttered, wondering why Inez hadn’t woken him after her bath. “I’d better get off the phone and get moving. It’s an hour to the airport and I have to be there an hour before the flight leaves.”
     
    “But the blood isn’t there yet,” Bastien protested. “It isn’t to be delivered until sunset.”
     
    Frowning, Thomas walked to the curtained windows lining one wall of the room and tugged the heavy material aside to peer out, wincing as late afternoon sunlight splashed over him. He let the drapes fall quickly back into place. “Well, it won’t be sunset for another couple hours by my guess, so unless you can arrange it to get here in the next twenty minutes, I’ll just have to go without.”
     
    “There’s no way a courier could get across town to the Dorchester within twenty minutes. Not with London traffic the way it is. And you are not going without.”
     
    “Bastien, if you can’t get blood here before I leave, I have little choice. My flight leaves at six-fifty. I have to leave here by four-fifty if I want to get there on time,” he pointed out patiently, but wasn’t terribly happy to say so himself. He normally had three or four bags of blood a day, and there had been a full mini fridge of blood on the company jet that had brought him to England, but—distracted with his worry for Aunt Marguerite—he’d only consumed one bag. Now Thomas was feeling the hunger.
     
    “Well…” Bastien hesitated, and then asked, “Is Inez still there?”
     
    “Inez?” Thomas echoed with confusion, unsure what one thing had to do with the other. Turning, he walked through the suite, checking each room for the woman as he went. “No, I don’t think so. I expected her to wake me up when she got out of her bath, but that would have been hours ago.”
     
    “I presume you didn’t tell her about the search moving to Amsterdam. She probably decided to let you sleep while she arranged for my car with the treated windows.”
     
    Thomas grunted at this news as he crossed the dining room. The car hardly mattered now since he was headed to Amsterdam.
     
    “It’s a shame she isn’t there,” Bastien continued. “I was going to suggest you feed from her before heading to the airport.”
     
    “What?” Thomas gasped, coming to a halt outside the bathroom door.
     
    “Don’t sound so shocked,” Bastien said with irritation. “You have to feed.”
     
    “Yes, but, this is hardly an emergency situation yet,” Thomas pointed out. “The council would have my head if I—”
     
    “You’re in England, Thomas,” Bastien reminded him. “The European council has different rules than us. A lot of the older immortals reside there. They like their traditions and dislike change. Many of them refused to even consider banning feeding off the hoof. It’s still allowed there within reason.”
     
    “Yes, but our council—”
     
    “Can’t penalize you for behavior that’s completely acceptable where you are,” Bastien said firmly. “And you’re going to have to feed.”
     
    Thomas frowned with displeasure at his words.