It had been agreed that the best thing to do was to put all four heads together and come clean with any secrets yet to be revealed. Only then could they decide on a plan. Additionally, the brothers had their talk and both seemed thoroughly amused by the whole thing. To Devon’s amazement, Blake had already told the family secret to Rowan. Darby was the only one in the dark and that needed to be remedied as soon as possible. This kind of news needed to come from Devon—not through Blake or Rowan.
Devon and Darby took his car, a silver Mercedes E-Class coupe. Not as flashy as the Audi, but very nice. Blake and Rowan took the Audi, of course. As they drove along the coast, Darby caught a glimpse of Devon, smiling as if something was very funny.
“What are you smirking about?” she asked.
“I’m not smirking.”
“Yes, you are.”
“Okay, maybe you’re right. I’m smirking. I just would have loved to have been a fly on the wall last night during your conversation with my brother.”
“Oh, you would have, huh?”
“Yes, very much so. You have a very vivid imagination, and yet your logic is impeccable. But tell me, how did your logic lead you to ‘Software Engineer Slayers’? I would have liked to have seen how that evolved.”
“Well, I needed vital information about these guys and Blake was being so vague in trying not to betray your confidence; so, well, I came up with that, and it got me past the stickiness to what was needed to be dealt with.”
“No, I understand. I just like how you think, and your humor is, well, it’s adorable. Beauty, brains, humor, and sweetness rolled into a perfect Darby package. I knew you were something amazing and wonderful when I saw you dancing on the front lawn—my little water nymph.”
He tenderly brushed a wisp of hair away from her face and behind her ear. It was amazingly intimate. Warm tingles ran through her body at his touch and she blushed from head to toe. In order to hide her embarrassment, she ordered him to watch the road or he’d crash his sweet ride.
He laughed heartily at her comment and her attempt to distract him from her embarrassment. He was relaxed and happy, like the evening they had talked until the closing of the bar. It made her happy to know she could make him laugh, smile, and hopefully be himself. That’s all you could ever ask for, she thought.
Both cars pulled into the visitors beach parking area at Halfmoon Bay. The fog was starting to burn off. It looked as if it was going to be a glorious day.
All four walked on the beach until they were fairly clear of any other people. Not much was said between the couples as they scouted out a place far from the beaten path. Darby handed a towel to Rowan and Blake, and Devon helped her lay their towel flat in the unpredictable salty gusting breezes. Once they were settled, Devon reached for Darby’s hand and placed it safely in both of his.
“Darby, it seems you are the last to learn of our secret. I don’t know any easy way to say it, so I’m going to throw it out there and deal with it.”
Devon looked to Rowan, who nodded in agreement, and then at Blake who nodded too. His face was serious, his eyes piercing as he took a deep breath and said, “My brother and I are vampires.” He waited for her reaction. At first she felt confused and then she smiled and looked at Rowan.
“Okay, very funny, guys. What is this? Make fun of Darby day?” Her eyes met her sister’s; Rowan smiled but shook her head telling Darby she’d got it wrong. Darby turned back to Devon, who looked disappointed by her reaction. She saw it then, the shame, the embarrassment, and the hurt.
