Read Online Vampire Coven Book 3: A Vampire's Embrace by C.L. Scholey - Free Book Online

to offer you and Ann his protection. If you need something or if you fear something, all you need to do is call to him and he will hear you,” Tavish said.
    When Hope turned to look at Rhett she couldn’t read his features. Why hadn’t he offered this to her, or told her? Rhett didn’t want her, Hope knew it.
    “As for after,” Tavish continued, “you will remain here. You will still be cared for, I will still expect your obedience. You will continue to aid with my vampires’ survival.”
    There it was. Hope was bartering the rest of her life with her blood. Hope moved away from Caine. She was useless to these vampires except for her blood. A thought occurred to her. She gazed at Tavish.
    “What’s to stop your vampires from bleeding me dry the second they find out I’m barren?”
    “You are wise to be afraid,” Tavish said. “A coven rule dictates you are never to harm a breeder female. There is no such law for barren women. Normally, by the time a woman is past childbearing years, she has developed a good relationship with her protector, as well as earned her rest by giving us many children. Normally, older ice dwelling women are not brought back to my coven. You are still quite young. Rhett will keep you safe. But it will be no secret when you are not expected to seek out any breeder males. I suggest you keep Rhett happy.”
    Both Caine and Tavish flew off as though her fate was sealed. Standing there, she realized they had left her alone with Rhett to make her decision.
    “You don’t want me here.” Hope saw his jaw twitch when she said this.
    “Tavish has given you to me. It was preliminary, I found you after all, but he is leader. The only thing stopping me from taking a barren woman back to her freezing cave and bleeding her dry is her baby seal.”
    “Ann? You better not hurt her in any way,” Hope said, a snarl to her voice as she made fists.
    Rhett grabbed her shoulders and squeezed, he was hurting her, but Hope refused to cry out. “I am not a pedophile, you little bitch. I will make certain Ann is happy and content and when she is gone—you’ll be gone.”
    “Fine,” Hope said. “I will feed Tavish’s damned vampires. When Ann is gone I don’t want to be here anyway.”
    “When Ann is gone you won’t be anywhere .”
    Rhett released her and took off. Hope didn’t care about his threats. There was no life for her if there was no Ann. For now, she would make every second of their lives together count. Hope went in search of Caine.
    * * * *
    Rhett watched from a tree as Ann raced to her mother. Neither could see him, but he heard them perfectly.
    “Are you all right?” Hope asked.
    “Dooder, Do—oo—der.” The child squealed and Rhett was a bit surprised when Ann didn’t grab the doll she saw, but launched herself into her mother’s arms. It was odd Ann called the doll’s name.
    Hope hugged her daughter and ran a hand down her hair; she smiled with tears in her eyes. “Yes, Dooder.”
    The child was clean and clothed in light coven attire, Mercy, Tavish’s wife would have seen to that personally before she was allowed to play with Galf. Mercy was a vampire; she had to be turned before Galf was born. She almost died before Tavish turned her. Not a day passed that Rhett didn’t think about it. Mercy’s broken body was so pitiful. Rhett had never seen Tavish cry before. All thought the baby would die or never grow. A tiny heartbeat to go on forever to torment its mother for an eternity—or until she begged to have her life ended. Which would have killed Tavish. Thankfully Galf was born healthy and part vampire.
    Laken, another coven leader and his wife, Honor could have more children. Mercy never could. Every time Mercy held one of Laken’s triplet daughters, all part vampire because of their sire, Rhett felt a boulder in his chest at her whimsical gaze of desire. But thanks to him and his last female, Mercy would only have Galf to call her own. Rhett never should have let