Author's note: this is from Seraphina's point of view

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~ London ~

I was giddy while going to meet with Duke in person after more than two weeks of video chats.

He is waiting for me at the sweetshop we frequented during our high school days, and I'm less than five minutes away.

I wonder how Duke will react when he sees Aldus with me. I hope he doesn't freak out because I'm freaking out.

But let me start from the beginning…

It's more than two weeks since Luca's birthday party, and many things have happened since then.

Only one day after we spoke with Sergio in Nice, Sergio secured apartment 5B in the building where Sergio and Duke live. The tenants moved the next day, and immediately the renovation started.

The apartment 5B was in good shape, so nothing excessive was done; a deep clean, a fresh coat of paint, a new bathtub and sink, replacing existing shelving in the closet, and I got busy picking furniture online.

About one week ago, Ash moved into apartment 5B as Sergio's first-door neighbor, and he started his internship at Eclipse.

Ash is ecstatic and says that Sergio is helpful inside and outside the office.

Zoe was sad that Ash was leaving so abruptly, but Ash promised to visit as much as he can which is on the weekends if he can get the trip covered. Aldus told Ash that he can use his jet once a month if he behaves and does well in school and at work.

Before accepting Ash, Sergio had an additional condition. He requested that Ash doesn't disclose to Fynn and his group any information about Sergio or Duke that is not publicly available. That was easy to agree on and Ash understood that a lone werewolf would like to keep his whereabouts hidden.

Of course, I knew that Sergio asked for secrecy in order to protect Duke. Fynn might not have any bad intentions, but the fewer people know about Duke and Sergio, the better it will be. Sergio always put Duke's safety first and I respect that.

Ash told me that Sergio often asks about what he did before coming to London, and I realized that Sergio is longing for the life he had a decade ago. I felt bad for the guy.

In less than a week, Sergio reached a deal with other apartment owners, and now Duke owns all eight apartments on the fifth floor. I am amazed to see the power of money.

Sergio is currently negotiating with the building owner to customize the elevator so that the fifth floor becomes private. If all goes well, they will have a special mechanism in the elevator and on the stairs, so that only people with a passcode can access the fifth floor.

Once that's in place, I will start arranging protective arrays, but first, complex calculations are needed and that's why Aldus is in London with me. Aldus will need to see the building and take some measurements before we can start with the preparations. Aldus agreed to guide me, but it will be my first time setting up the arrays myself.

Since Sergio has an Aldus-phobia and I had no idea how it would turn out if the two of them bump into each other, I asked Duke to meet me at this sweetshop with Sergio as security.

Without asking why, Duke agreed that Sergio will follow us stealthily while we are out in the town.

With Duke and Sergio out of the way, Aldus can go and check out the place without being disturbed because Ash went to Fynn's place for the weekend, so the whole floor should be empty.

But before going to check out the place, Aldus wants to meet Duke. And that brings me back to the freaking out part.

I'm nervous. I hope they get along well.

What if Aldus scares Duke away?

"Relax, Serina. I'm only going to meet the boy, not eat him.", Aldus said, and I could hear the amusement in his voice. "I will leave the eating part to you."

Shameless father. How is this a conversation between a father and a daughter!?

Is he teasing me because I got ahold of my vitality-draining ability? Probably.

"You didn't tell me why you want to meet him now.", I grumbled.

"Don't you think that your father should meet the boy you are dating for months? Or are you not serious about him, and I shouldn't bother because you are going to forget about him soon?"

"Of course, I'm serious." I didn't want to argue with Aldus.

He was using this nonsense chat in order to hide his true purpose.

Duke would be more than willing to visit him, only if Aldus asked, yet here he is, the Lord of vampires, popping up unannounced to inspect his daughter's boyfriend.

I had a feeling that maybe Aldus wants to test Duke. If Duke was aware that Aldus is coming, Duke would dress up better or prepare a present or something. This will be more natural.

Mitch stopped the car in front of the sweetshop and through the tinted glass, I could see Duke sitting at the table next to the window.

My gaze moved to Aldus who was glaring at Duke and something ominous swelled inside me.

I didn't know what to expect and I hoped that Aldus will not intimidate Duke.

Will he hurt Duke or chase him away? No, he wouldn't do that.

I prayed silently that Aldus doesn't embarrass me.

Duke's face lit up as soon as I stepped into the sweetshop and his eyes flashed in confusion when he saw Aldus holding the door for me. Even without knowing who Aldus is, it was obvious that we came together and are close.

A second later, Duke's expression told me that he realized who the man with me is and he bolted to his feet.

He was adorably dorky.

Just be yourself, dummy. You are perfect as you are.

Duke flashed me a nervous glance and a nod before looking at Aldus.

"Mr. Mezzanotte…", Duke called and extended his hand toward Aldus stiffly. "I am Drago Orsini. It's an honor to meet you."

Aldus observed Duke with an unreadable expression and after a few painfully long seconds, Aldus accepted a handshake.

"Drago Orsini…", Aldus said coolly. "I heard a lot about you."

"Good things, I hope."

Aldus's responded with a rigid smirk.

God, help me!

Why did that handshake take so long?

My nerves were tight as a string on a bow.

What was Aldus doing? I didn't expect them to hug and pat each other's back, but isn't this too stifling?

OK. At least the introduction part is over, and we can sit and order drinks, and hopefully, things don't get worse.

I barely finished that thought, when I saw both Aldus and Duke pulling a chair for me to sit.

Aldus and Duke were holding onto the same backrest, and their eyes locked for a moment before Aldus let go of the chair and gestured for me to sit on the chair Duke was holding for me.

Well, I was glad that Aldus didn't make a big deal out of it, and I hoped that he saw this as a positive.

Aldus always helped me with a chair, like a true gentleman, and Duke is doing the same as well.

I have two amazing men doting on me, one as a father, and the other one as a lover. Aren't I a lucky girl?

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