Read Online Night Thief by Lisa Kessler - Free Book Online

of wealthy Parisians bustled at the entrance. Kane guided her around carriages and toward the doors.
    A man shoved his way in front of them.
    All the color drained from her face. “Antoine.”
    Instantly, Kane stood in front of her, blocking the vampire. “I do not believe we have met.” He offered his hand. “I am Kane Bordeaux.”
    Antoine glared at his hand. “I do not care who you are.”
    Marguerite fought the urge to run. Where could she go? He would always find her.
    “Are you attending the opera tonight?” Kane’s voice remained calm, and he lowered his hand.
    “No. I came to retrieve my property.” Antoine reached to grab her, but Kane caught his wrist and twisted until it snapped.
    Antoine winced and jumped back, clutching his broken arm.
    “ Mademoiselle Rousseau is no one’s property .” Kane took her hand and brought her forward to his side, his eyes narrowed at Antoine. “You will heal this time. If you ever touch her again, you will not be so lucky.”
    He pushed past Antoine, and Marguerite followed without looking back.
    Once they reached their seats in the first balcony, he took her hands, staring into her eyes. “Are you all right?”
    She nodded, although her stomach sickened with dread. “Yes, but I fear what he might do next. Antoine has a vicious temper.”
    “I am sorry I could not end his worthless existence tonight, but I suspect that is why he approached us in such a public place.” His thumbs brushed over her knuckles in a reassuring caress that calmed her frazzled nerves. “He knew there would be witnesses.”
    “I hope your confidence is not ill-placed.”
    Before he could reply, the overture filled the theater. The gas lamps dimmed until the stage became the focal point of light, demanding her attention. Marguerite tightened her grip on Kane’s hand as Giulietta Borghese stepped to center stage and opened her mouth. The coloratura melody mimicked a bugle’s call, but the high notes shimmered like they’d fallen from heaven’s choir.
    She’d never heard anything so joyous and beautiful.
    And when Mécène Marié de l’Isle took to the stage singing “ Ah! mes amis ,” the entire theater burst into applause for the tenor. She never wanted it to end. All of the glorious costumes and music made it easy to forget the man sitting beside her was no man at all, that a monster wanted to claim her as a possession, or that her last living relative relied on her to gain passage to the new world.
    At the final curtain, she shot to her feet, clapping. “Bravo! Bravo!”
    Kane stood beside her, applauding.
    When the curtain fell, she turned toward him with a smile. “This was an amazing night.”
    His eyes sparkled. “The night is not over yet.”

 
    Chapter Seven
     
    He kept his senses alert when they left the opera house, scanning for any sign of Antoine. Satisfied the coward had moved on, he clasped Rita’s hand. “There is an inn not far from here. Would you honor me with a dance?”
    She squeezed his hand and nodded. “I would love to.”
    Kane led her down the narrow alleyways, chastising himself. Each second he spent with Rita made her more precious to him. This path led to madness. Her mortality would drive him crazy with worry. Seeing Antoine threaten her tonight had tested his control, and he had wanted to rip the vampire’s heart from his chest in front of hundreds of people.
    He needed her to be safe.
    Once he finished Antoine, how would he be able to let her go? He knew she longed to sell her treasures and vanish across the sea. His chest tightened at the thought.
    “You seem far away.”
    Her bright blue eyes gazed up at him, and he struggled to reign in the emotions he had no idea how to control.
    “Forgive me. At times it is difficult for me to remember that for tonight, our differences do not exist.”
    A curl teased her throat, making him ache to touch her. “Perhaps dancing will help you forget.”
    “Perhaps.” He lifted her hand to his lips,