Forever Angel

Champagne Books Presents

Forever Angel

The Forever Series

By

January Bain

This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Champagne Books

www.champagnebooks.com

Copyright 2013 by January Bain

ISBN: 978-1-77155-020-8

October 2013

Cover Art by Petra K.

Produced in Canada

Champagne Book Group

19 Third Avenue SE

High River, AB T1V 1G3

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Champagnebooks.com (or a retailer of your choice) and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Smashwords Edition

Other Books By January Bain

Forever Man

Forever Woman

Forever Clan

Dedication

For my wonderful husband Don, my very own forever man, and an angel in his own right.

And to Monica Britt, thanks for all your wonderful help in editing Forever Angel.

J. Ellen Smith and Champagne Books: A big thank you for making my dreams a reality.

Prologue

And so it shall pass that the white angel comes to drive out the dark angel and ease the suffering of the Clans.

~Lord Ra

One

You’ll like Julie. She’s a very nice small-town girl from halfway around the world who needs a change of scenery. Promise me you’ll show her a good time while she’s here, Jax. She knows nothing about our being vampire and, since you’re a Daywalker, you’re our only hope in keeping her suspicions at bay. Though with her sister-in-law Ellie being a true healer, she might have a more open mind than most.

That was his ma’s words just one week ago and here he was heading for the airport to pick up that bit of baggage, dutiful son that he was. He snorted in derision, remembering how absolutely unimpressed he was to be the official escort of some—he almost used the word hick but thought better of it—from Nome, Alaska. And to think he had important plans this week. Lord knew time was the one thing he did not have enough of and what little he had certainly didn’t include chaperoning a Miss Julie Stone through the tourist spots of Luxor. He ran his hands through his hair and gritted his teeth.

He pulled up at the gates to the visiting parking area of the airport, yanked a ticket from the automatic dispenser, and drove the black SUV with dark-tinted glass into the designated area. His heels echoed on the pavement as he headed for gate three. The chit could wait for him. He would not be rushed on her account. He was aware he didn’t have much capacity for commotion at this juncture of his life. And like one of his favorite quotations by Oscar Wilde, he didn’t suffer fools gladly. The jury was still out on just how much escorting this particular guest would upset his well-ordered life for the next few weeks, but the tautness in his gut suggested it would bring more disruption than he was prepared to deal with.

~ * ~

With excitement running in her veins, Julie Stone fidgeted as the Boeing 747 landed precisely in the middle of the paved runway of Luxor, Egypt. The sound of the engines deafened then eased as the pilot applied the brakes, bringing the huge plane to a full stop on the tarmac. The buzzing sound of the electric jetway, the bridge between the plane and terra firma, as it reached out and locked into position at the cabin door made her shiver.

Finally, after months of begging her mother, she was in exotic Egypt. She could hardly believe her luck. She had wanted to visit her sister-in-law’s brother Aiden and his wife Winter for years, since their hand-fasting back in Scotland, but it took ’til now to line up the stars and get things to happen. She grinned, enjoying a sense of power as she yanked her carry-on down from the overhead bin.

The heavy bag finally jerked free of its confinement and almost landed on top of her seatmate with whom she had conversed since he boarded the plane at a brief stopover in New York. He wanted to see more of her in Luxor and even went so far as to trade business cards and make tentative plans for drinks and a meal in the weeks ahead.

He smiled at her whoops look as he handed her the offending piece of luggage. I’ll see you to your relatives, Miss Julie.

She nodded and they headed off to join the conga line in the center aisle of the aircraft. The tired passengers snaked their way to the open cabin door. The overcrowded plane was stifling and had the usual distractions of crying babies and whiny, tired children, but none of it fazed Julie. She was on a much-anticipated adventure and was in her glory, her intrepid spirit sucking up all the nuances of the journey.

She refused to let anything that happened in Nome this past year affect her time in Egypt. She pushed away anything but good thoughts to the furthest recesses of her mind. She’d jettisoned her normal way of being somewhere over the frigid Atlantic, perceiving herself as hardworking, calm, and thoughtful, though others might not use the adjective calm. She had even spent time visualizing throwing all the bad memories of the past months off the plane in the short time between conversations with her seatmate who appeared to have sympathy for her plight when she filled him in on her troubles. Ex-fiancé Derrick be damned, she he was going to Egypt to have a good time.

At the baggage carousel, she almost missed seeing her two bright red suitcases bumping cheerily along the moving track, but managed to jump in and grab them just in time. She and her new friend, moving at the same time for the same reason, bumped heads with a resounding thud in the ensuing commotion and literally bounced off each other. Neither was hurt and they broke out laughing. Their merriment carried with them into the waiting area. Julie was enjoying the attentions of the handsome, richly dressed Egyptian with the wicked sense of humor. When she spun around demonstrating a recent dance move from Dancing with the Stars, she collided with a solid object that sent her reeling off balance.

The solid object turned out to be a man who looked none too pleased at her antics and grabbed her to keep her from landing on her keister. Feeling decidedly ungraceful, she straightened with his help and looked up into the bluest eyes she had ever seen. A jolt of psychic energy shot through her at the brief touch. Images she had no time to analyze raced in an instant through her brain.

I’m sorry, I didn’t see you... Her words trailed off as her eyes widened. You’re Jax!

He scowled at her. He’d be very handsome if not for the frown, she thought, still captivated by his blue eyes. She gave a quick decisive flick of her ponytail and stood up to her full five foot three inches, feeling downright puny compared to his well over six foot frame. She slanted her gaze up at him and introduced her seatmate.

"Jax, I’d like you to meet Mr. Anton Mubaruk. Means blessed one in Egyptian. Pretty cool, huh?"

I know what Mubaruk means. His curt reply was at odds with the nod of politeness given to the man. Is this all your luggage? he asked abruptly, an effective dismissal of the man.

Yes, of course. Give me a call, Anton. She spoke pointedly to her new acquaintance. I’d like that. You know where I’ll be. She spoke with more confidence, a deliberate tone that said, don’t you dare say anything, Jax Cameron.

He ignored her, picked up her two larger bags, and carried them with incredible ease through the automatic doors into the late afternoon furnace that was Luxor’s lot in midsummer. Waves of heat like ghost spirits radiated off the cement and spiraled up into the atmosphere. He obviously expected her to trail along after him like a docile sheep, and she bit her tongue to keep her temper in check. Quelling her emotion wasn’t her usual way.

With a huff, she followed the insufferable Jax, as she now thought of him, down the path to the waiting vehicle. The hot sun beat on her uncovered head like a heavy pulsating presence and was a bit of a shock, but she ignored the discomfort, focusing instead on his broad strides, having to half-run to keep up with him.

He unlocked the rear cargo compartment and dumped her bags into it.

Careful, I have gifts for everyone!

He looked at her with a raised sardonic eyebrow, opened her door then rounded the car and got in. Well, at least he was a gentleman. She climbed into the vast driving compartment of the luxurious vehicle.

Nice wheels, she said as she buckled her seatbelt.

Not too shabby. Her compliment acknowledged, Jax took masterful control of the wheel and soon had them on the highway leading to the compound.

Two

In the years since Jax and his clan had lived in Luxor, the small villa their elder statesman, Tibet, owned had grown to a full estate that housed all the vampires of the Forever Clan. Each couple, Winter and Aiden Hightower, and Jax’s parents, Sunday Rose and Sean Cameron, had their own residence within the estate, along with Tibet. Tibet loved his garden and spent most of his days immersed in turning it into an awe-inspiring showcase. Jax’s family enjoyed spending time in the garden surrounded by nature. Unfortunately, it had been quite a while since they had been able to come together due to obligations to humans and vampires alike.

Jax had seen a vast number of vampires come and go over his life, and it was second nature to him to see a new visitor staying at one of the two guest residences in the compound. He liked the respect and high regard his clan earned because of their service to others. They knew their purpose, unlike other clans that ended up lost and lonely, only half-undead, not knowing they needed a reason for being other than egocentric, hedonistic pleasure. Not to mention the service his Aunt Winter had provided to humans with her astonishing medical knowledge that had led to a cure for a number of ills plaguing humans. Her altruistic work made him particularly proud to be her nephew.

He gave no more thought to the fact both his parents were vampires than if they were religious. True, his ma also had faerie blood that had given her some wonderful gifts he could only hope to come into one day. It’s just what they were and had been all his life since his childhood. But that hadn’t lasted long as he grew at three times the speed of a normal child and was full-grown in just under seven years when he hit his current height of six foot three. He was eight years and seven months in human years, which made him about twenty-eight in dhampyre years. Julie was at least twenty-five, old enough to know better, he thought, as he considered his next words.

Your performance in the airport was beneath you, especially considering what happened that time when you fell practicing a dance move—

She didn’t let him finish. "That was a long time ago! I’m not going to curtail my life just because one time I got hurt and fell into a coma. Could have happened to anybody." Her righteous words spilled out with an intensity that surprised him. He was far more used to calm and collected dialogue and this spitfire was beyond his experience, like she was encased in tidal waves of excessive passion he could only guess at.

"A coma is nothing to take lightly. You were very lucky your sister-in-law Ellie was, is, a healer. You probably wouldn’t have survived without her intervention. You can’t expect Ellie to help you every time you make a bad decision." He thought he was the voice of reason as he gave her the benefit of his vast reservoir of common sense.

Obviously, Julie hadn’t been subject to enough of it, running wild in Nome, Alaska and in New York City where her fashions sold well. He had followed her career with some interest after learning who she was. He knew her cutting-edge, award-winning fashions were displayed prominently in glamour magazines all over the globe.

She was so mad she sputtered, barely able to get the words out. I don’t make bad decisions. I happen to have my own company, and I am very responsible. You’re certainly full of yourself, Mister Jax Cameron, if you think you can give advice to me.

He chuckled at her sputtering. She was pretty cute when mad. He pretended to give his full attention to driving to avoid catching her eye as he half-smiled at the extent of her ire. Obviously, not enough people called her on things. His mood lightened. It would be easy to poke fun at Julie, but only when circumstances warranted it, of course.

They drove the rest of the way in silence. Probably the longest she was silent in her life, he thought smugly, driving the sleek vehicle into the garage attached to his house and making sure the automatic doors lowered behind them.

The expanded compound included the construction of his house, a similar design as the others, a tiered and imposing white brick structure. Loaded with a full range of security features to keep the peskiest thief at bay, each window of the heavily fortified fortress could lower at a moment’s notice. It took years of hard labor, but the estate was complete, with room for growth if need be, though the clan was happy with its size and had no thoughts of expanding. Before he was born, they’d discussed where to make their permanent home, deciding to remain in Egypt where their clan status was first established and they felt a connection to Lord Ra, their sun god and protector.

Jax led the way inside his home, telling Julie to leave her bags until later. He’d been told to give his guest dinner, feeding and watering, as he thought of it, then take her to the guesthouse where she would stay for the duration of her holiday.

~ * ~

Julie sniffed the air appreciatively following Jax up the back stairs to the kitchen conveniently located off the garage.

Smells heavenly, she observed, eyeing the vast, well-equipped kitchen outfitted with shiny chrome appliances and an edgy silver and white geometric motif. Do you have a chef? She knew the family was well-off and having a chef wouldn’t surprise her.

No, most of us are not that spoiled.

His words suggested she was too indulged and she snapped back to full alert. Most people aren’t as well-off as your family. I, for one, do everything myself. The gall of the man.

In the next instant she was thinking about how charming he was as he spoke with a slow, sexy smile that made him look devilish and boyish at the same time. Just the way she liked her men. Not that she had many, and not that it was anyone’s business. Admittedly her moods had been mercurial these past weeks. She often found herself oscillating between okay and pissed off at the world. She reminded herself to stay calm, using the mantra, serenity now. Of late she said the expression with too much force, much like George’s character on a rerun of a Seinfeld episode that had stuck in her mind. She so needed this time off from the real world.

I never thought you’d be the kind to have a chef, he continued. I know you built your company from the ground up by yourself and it’s been a success because of all your hard work. Congratulations on all that you have achieved since launching your business.

His words were immensely gratifying, and if he wasn’t such an annoying, so-sure-he-was-right-kind-of-man, she could see how a woman could fall for such a charmer.

Dinner is ready anytime you want. Because of the heat, I made two chef salads, and the aroma you noticed is the cheese bread I put in to bake before I left for the airport. If you care to wash up, the bathroom is right through that door. He nodded his head toward it while he pulled the cork out of a bottle of fine, white Riesling wine.

In the bathroom, Julie straightened her ponytail and applied fresh lip gloss. Ellie, her favorite sister-in-law, well, only sister-in-law and good friend, was a stickler for keeping up appearances and the memory made Julie smile at her reflection. Her ‘big sister’ was so beautiful with her golden curls. Julie wanted to emulate her so much. She had a momentary pang for missing Ellie and Mike, her wonderful big brother, and her niece Emma who had just turned eight. They were back tending to the family restaurant, Fast Eddie’s, and being the happiest family she knew. She envied them their lives and hoped for the same one day.

She quietly entered the area that served as kitchen and dining room and found the table set for dinner.

Wine? Jax asked, his gaze inscrutable.

Her heart gave a weird flip. How handsome he was. Damn those blue eyes. A woman could get lost in them if she wasn’t careful. She nodded her acceptance of the wine. And the last thing she needed right now was to get involved with a man. Or maybe, that was exactly what she needed to take her mind off—

She pulled up straight. Don’t go there, Julie.

He poured them each a glass then held the chair out for her. Again, that unaccustomed chivalry. She slipped into the chair and enjoyed a sip