Sean greeted his new arrivals with only requisite politeness, as was expected of him. With obvious distraction, he quickly got them settled into the guest room to the left of the servants’ quarters, as Aidan still resided in the guest room to the right. Despite it still only being barely past midnight, Sean then moved across the central portion of the cellar and back to the much larger master bedroom that he and Claire were sharing once again.

Inside, Claire was awaiting him with a smile. She was atop the bed and had nothing hiding her beautiful body from his eyes other than a thin sheet “done attending to your duties for the night?” she greeted him with feigned shyness as she nibbled at a nail.

“Only the much more boring ones” Sean answered with his own smile before locking the door behind him. He then reached the bed, pulling the sheet free from her body as he moved on his knees to close the distance between them.

Claire couldn’t help a small giggle as she watched him close that gap “shouldn’t we at least try to maintain some sort of awareness of our surroundings, all things considered?”

“Oh, I’m very alert” Sean returned, as he pulled off his shirt, tossing it to the floor, his hands then moving to his pants in the same motion. It was obvious exactly how badly he had allowed himself to start wanting her again during that entire week since their tearful reconciliation.

Only another moment passed before he was as free of clothing as Claire was and was pulling her to him, his mouth covering hers. He continued the kiss as he moved to lie back on the mattress, pulling her tiny body with him as he did, reveling in the feel of her bare breasts and hips pressing against him as he made that readjustment.

Through that kiss and the way he held her so tightly to his own body, Claire felt him bringing his body to life for her. His hardness pressing against her, she couldn’t help the small smile as she finally moved back from his lips long enough to let her eyes travel appreciatively over the body that she had been depriving herself of for so many of the last several years.

“Is that a suggestion of some sort?” Claire teased as she let her eyes move to his hips.

“Oh I’m pretty sure you’re already quite aware of that answer” he teased her back.

“We do have a bit of a full house now” she continued her teasing; though at the same moment, she let her fingers begin slowly caressing him in a way that easily belied her words.

“Too bad. They’ll have to find their own entertainment. I’m not ready to share you quite yet” he returned with a grin. Though his voice had grown more hoarse at the feel of her fingers touching him and bringing back long buried memories of the first time he had ever brought her into that first bedroom they shared, all those years ago.

Her own desire also making it difficult to continue her teasing, Claire allowed only another slight giggle as she finally pushed herself up onto her knees next to him. One more brief caress just to further arouse him before she moved to place a knee on either side of his hips. From that new position on her knees above him, the hand that had been caressing him began to ever so slowly slide him inside her, only a fraction of an inch at a time as she watched as he nearly whimpered at each motion, desperately needing to feel himself completely inside her once more.

When she had finally pushed him all the way inside, she prolonged their lovemaking even more so as she only moved enough to place soft gentle kisses over his chest above where he was nearly aching for her now “how can you still be this patient?” Sean whispered, his back arching in an attempt to coax her into giving them both that pleasure they had missed for so long.

“Oh believe me, I’m nothing resembling patient right now. I just think you need to suffer, just a little bit first” she teased again as she nipped at his nipple, causing Sean to tilt his head back, arching his hips below her again at that tiny contact with her fangs.

“So how long do you plan on torturing me like this?” he had to ask with a hoarse chuckle.

“Admittedly, every time you move your hips, it’s getting more difficult” she concurred as she placed another kiss over the tiny drop of blood that her fangs had produced.

“Oh so that’s all I have to do, huh?” he grinned as he lifted his hips again, lifting her entire body with him, and causing him to penetrate her even more deeply, producing a moan in each of them.

“Now who’s being evil?” Claire returned as she tried to compose herself after that promise of the pleasure he never failed to give her.

“Guess we are still perfect together” Sean returned, gripping her hips tightly then and beginning to move her to meet his own thrusts at last, neither of them any longer able to prolong that pleasure another moment.

Meanwhile, across the hall in their new quarters, Freya sat cross legged atop the bed as she watched Karin questioningly. The 5’10” redhead was now sitting upon the floor, leaning back against the door, glaring daggers at some random place in the room.

“Problem?” Freya managed to ask as Karin was still refusing to say much.

“What? You can’t hear that?” she returned as she tilted her head in a gesture at the door behind her.

“Oh them fucking? No, not at all” Freya returned sarcastically.

Karin simply glared back at that statement “I don’t know how I’m gonna manage staying in this house” she told the blonde with a shake of her head.

“I thought you were an actress. Act” Freya told her bluntly.

“Easier said than done, when I have to listen to that. I thought they still weren’t even speaking” she added more quietly.

“Please. You should be used to that by now, so pull yourself together!” Freya told her roughly. “You are here for Haven. If you forget that and end up getting either of us found out; it will be bad, to put it mildly. So get it together!” Freya added in a harsh tone while still trying to keep her volume too low to be overheard by the thankfully distracted lovers across the hall.

Karin simply sighed, knowing the other girl was right “I’m still not sure how some random girl is going to get anything from Haven.”

“Not some random girl. You’re his cousin, once removed” Freya pointed out flatly “and Haven’s a Toreador. You’re a Toreador. Just make him fall in love with you, Karin” she added pointedly “you all get ridiculously stupid when you fall in love. It should be easy after that” Freya finished bluntly.

That was when Karin glared back at her “you do remember that I’m almost fifty years older than you, right?”

“Wow, my work’s so good you got a redhead’s temper” Freya smirked “and don’t fucking threaten me. Without me, your ass would still be lying in a box. So just fucking get it together. And do the best fucking acting of your life” Freya finished with another glare.

Karin then forced her temper down before speaking again “according to what he told ‘Deborah’ I’m supposed to kill him. Not make him fall in love with me” she reminded the other girl.

“Yes, make him fall in love and therefore give you the throne. Then kill him. Problem solved” Freya told her with the same bluntness.

“Or I could just get the throne off of Sean” Karin suggested.

Freya just let out a loud laugh “and how many times have you tried to get Sean so far? Give it up. Ain’t nothing coming between him and Claire, ever” Freya stated as she glanced in the direction of the muffled moans still coming from the master bedroom “well, nothing that has anything to do with you, anyway” she had to add with another wry laugh. On those cutting statements, Karin just looked down, trying to force back red tears yet again.

The clock was chiming three as Sean finally emerged from their bedroom and headed upstairs to get a drink and possibly even dare to return to the artistic abilities he had abandoned months earlier. At the sound of his footsteps ascending the stairs, Karin poked her head out of her own room and had to brace herself before her feet would carry her to the door of the master bedroom.

Another moment before she made herself knock on the door “one minute” Claire called from inside, which only caused Karin to roll her brown eyes as she waited.

A moment later Claire opened the door, smiling up at the redhead who was nearly as tall as Deborah and Aidan, which made her tower about six inches above Claire’s own diminutive stature “hi…um Karin, was it?”

“Yes, hi” Karin forced the same smile “I’m guessing you must be Claire?”

“We’re both good at guessing tonight” Claire smiled again as she glanced back at the still quite disheveled bed behind her.

“Well, I wanted to introduce myself earlier but you seemed… busy” she decided on, forcing another small smile as Claire just looked down in embarrassment. Karin then forced a polite laugh “oh don’t feel bad. He’s almost as beautiful as Haven” she offered pointedly.

That was when Claire looked back up at her with another smile “Almost, huh?” she then just shook her head with another smile at the girl’s seeming attraction to their Prince who was admittedly quite beautiful “please, come have a seat” she offered as she gestured to the sofa.

Karin smiled again, forcing her eyes not to move back to the bed as she took the offered seat “so, is it wrong for me to be so curious about our new Prince?” she attempted to begin the conversation.

“Well, it’s kind of hard not to feel some kind of attraction to him. I mean, he’s got that whole three hundred year old Kindred majesty going for him” Claire smiled again as she also sat down “and he is quite attractive even without that” she agreed.

Karin then decided to move on through the conversation, playing her part, so to speak “so, Haven is Sean’s sire, but not yours?”

“No, Sean is my sire, but yes, Haven is his sire” she confirmed.

“And how long have you two been Kindred?”

“1598” Claire allowed with another slight smile “you?”

“1700” she smiled, and then continued “so, you two were both embraced in 1598?”

“Yep. A week apart. Which most other Kindred seem to still have a problem with” Claire couldn’t help adding.

“And you’ve both been with Haven since 1598?” Karin moved on.

“No, actually, we only spent a couple years with Haven at first. Then another year or so around 1672” she swallowed slightly at the reminder of that year, “but we have both been with him here now since 1690” she added “so I guess sixty-three years? Give or take” Claire smiled again “and you’re related to us all somehow?” Claire asked.

“Prince Marcus, Haven’s cousin, so to speak; he’s my sire” Karin replied.

“So what brought you all the way to Las Californias?” Claire continued in the same conversational tone.

“I think I just wanted to know what was so fascinating out here. And Marcus has been grooming his other childe to take over his Princedom. Kind of hard not to feel like a third wheel most days back home” she added sadly.

“Well hopefully you can feel more comfortable here. You know, if you don’t mind looming danger and prophecies of doom” Claire added with a bit of her own sadness coloring her tone.

“Prophecies of doom?” Karin raised her brow at that.

“Long story” Claire replied dismissively. Though her attempt at not going over that all now was quite likely from wanting to keep her own fears in check about the entire prophecy dilemma.

Karin narrowed her eyes slightly “at any rate though, Haven and I already seem to be getting along pretty well. So that’s a slight comfort” she offered.

“Well that’s good then” Claire smiled again “Haven’s a bit on the lonely side most days” she returned sympathetically.

“Lonely? But he’s the Prince... And pretty beautiful” Karin added again with another smile.

“Beauty aside, I think it’s being Prince that’s made him so lonely of late” Claire offered quietly.

“And I guess Sean is usually spending most of his time with you instead of his sire?” Karin replied, allowing her own volume to drop slightly,

“Well Haven did have another childe to keep him company” Claire began then redirected her sentence, "that didn’t quite work out though” she decided on, causing Karin to narrow her eyes once more.

“So, sixty years with Haven and you’ve never seen anyone cure that loneliness for him?” Karin asked with an attempt at her own sympathy.

“Like I said, I think being Prince does tend to make him keep everyone at a distance” Claire admitted, almost seeming to just realize that fact herself.

Karin narrowed her brown eyes once more at not only Claire’s words but her seeming sadness “you sound a bit saddened by that.”

“Well, it is rather sad, isn’t it?” Claire asked as she looked up at her again.

“I just wondered if you were sad because you may want to be closer to him.” Karin dared.

Claire looked up in surprise “that’s not it, trust me” she assured the other girl who already had made an attraction to Haven known.

“It isn’t?” Karin asked, pushing hopefulness into her voice.

“It’s just that…” Claire shook her head “if anything happens to Haven, then that would make Sean Prince. And the idea of Sean having to push people away the way Haven has to… that’s quite sad to me” she finished quietly.

“Well, maybe if you asked Haven to, he’d try to find another heir. That’s always possible, right?” Karin stated quietly, watching Claire closely.

“If only that were even remotely likely” Claire stated sadly.

“You never know” was Karin’s only response, thoughtful though it was.