Vintage Pride by Eilzabeth Lapthorne Read Free Book Online Page B

that measured five point four on the Richter scale. The condo shook so hard all the paintings fell off the wall, the china in the cabinet broke. I slept through the whole thing. So a little snoring ain’t gonna bother me none.”
    “Looks like it’s you and me, Ethan,” Leon said, picking up his carry-on bag.
    “Fine by me,” he replied. By now, Ethan was so tired he could have happily slept on a pallet of straw on the floor.
    Pete and Dex took the room alongside the bathroom. Agathe led Ethan and Leon up a more steeply winding staircase. The windows here were narrow slits, and Ethan realized they must be in one of the château’s turrets.
    “Here we are,” Agathe said. She opened a door and led them into a small room, simply furnished in contrast to the opulence downstairs. A comfortable-looking double bed was piled high with pillows, and a chest of drawers offered the two men space to store their clothes.
    “This looks nice,” Leon said, nodding in obvious approval of his surroundings.
    “The bathroom is just across the way,” Agathe told them. “There are plenty of towels but if you need anything else, just ask.”
    “Is this the top level, or is there anything above us?” Ethan didn’t know what prompted him to ask.
    “There is another bedroom, oui , but that won’t be of any interest to you. Now, I shall leave you to rest.”
    Agathe withdrew from the room, leaving Ethan wondering why she’d dealt with his question so abruptly.
    Leon threw himself on the bed. “Nice, firm mattress.” He pressed it with his palms as if to emphasize the point. Then he sat up to unlace his boots.
    Ethan busied himself stowing his possessions in one of the drawers. When he looked over to the bed again, Leon was pulling off his T-shirt, revealing a wiry torso with a liberal covering of chest hair. Even though the lanky, highly strung sound man wasn’t his type, he caught himself staring for a moment longer than he ought to have as Leon started to undo his jeans.
    He snapped back to attention, aware of a growing fullness in his bladder. “I’m gonna use the bathroom, if that’s okay by you.”
    “Sure, man,” Leon replied.
    Ethan grabbed his wash bag. He crossed the hall, finding himself in a compact bathroom that had a shower stall but no tub. Having relieved himself, he ran water into the basin and washed his face and hands. Glancing at his reflection in the mirror, he pushed his fingers through his hair. He couldn’t help thinking he should have gotten a trim before they’d left LA.
    Though you should try growing it a little. Go for a new look. Maybe see if you can rock some facial hair…
    Laughing at his sudden attack of vanity, he let himself out of the bathroom.
     

Chapter Six
     
     
     
    Jean-Luc hurried down the stairs. His bare feet slapped on the stone steps but he didn’t feel the cold. All he intended to do was grab some bread and cheese from the pantry, then return to his room and his reading.
    The latest issue of the mediaeval history newsletter to which he subscribed had arrived in his inbox an hour ago, and he’d been engrossed in an article about a number of skeletons which had been discovered in an unmarked grave in Bulgaria. The bodies were believed to date back to the thirteenth century and each had been discovered with an iron ploughshare thrust through its chest, supposedly in an attempt to prevent it rising from the dead. This anti-vampire ritual made him think of the many ways his own kind had been persecuted over the centuries and the fear and suspicion with which they had been viewed. No wonder his ancestors had built a stronghold for themselves here at the château, protected by stone walls and iron gates. Even as the LeBlancs had become respected members of society, they had never lost sight of the fact that humans instinctively treated shifters as their enemies.
    He stopped for a moment to sniff the air. Was his body playing tricks on him? For the briefest moment, he’d caught an