Free Lailah (The Styclar Saga) by Nikki Kelly Page B

journey went quickly. I sat tentatively letting go of any thoughts for a while, simply observing the scenery as we sped past the traffic, eventually turning off the highway at an exit marked BEACONSFIELD . We moved across the roundabout, passing a sign stamped HEDGERLEY . It was quite a contrast when soon we were accelerating down a twisting country road, passing an old-fashioned white pub and cute terraced cottages with picket fences.
    A lot of the buildings were clustered together; even the bigger detached properties were but a stone’s throw away from the next. We zipped by them, until there was nothing on either side but woodlands. Jonah finally turned left and drove up a ridiculously long gated driveway, taking several minutes to reach the front of the house. It was spectacular.
    The property was incredibly old, with beautiful traditional features. The front door itself was styled like an old church entrance and made from dark, sturdy oak; very grand indeed. There were several garages to the left-hand side and I counted seven windows on the face of the ground floor alone.
    The engine cut and within a moment Jonah had opened my door and was extending his hand to help me out.
    “This place is huge,” I mumbled, overwhelmed, taking his hand and stepping out of the Range Rover. “Is this really yours?” I asked Gabriel in disbelief.
    Gabriel stepped next to me, placing his hand affectionately on my back, and said, “Yes, and now yours.”
    We made our way inside. I followed Jonah’s lead as he opened the door, walking into the huge hallway that extended maybe thirty feet ahead; solid hardwood ran throughout. I pushed my hair behind my ears nervously as I stepped inside, slowly absorbing it all.
    “Oh, good, you’re back, love!” a sweet voice chirped from the room at the far end of the hallway. She flashed toward us and I shifted uncomfortably. A Vampire. Of course. I knew they would be here, but it was still strange to see.
    She swept past me as if I didn’t exist and moved into a lingering hug with Gabriel, kissing him softly on the cheek. I couldn’t help but furrow my brow, a surge of jealousy racing through me.
    I looked to Jonah on my right, who rolled his eyes in reply. “Hanora, this is Cessie.” Jonah forced the introduction.
    She didn’t move right away, but Gabriel took her arms from around his shoulders and turned her to face me. She was immaculate. Standing tall and slender at an easy five feet eight inches, her long dark brown hair cascaded in loose waves past her shoulders. Her eyes were a bright green with flecks of yellow, her skin was white as snow, and her face was perfectly symmetrical. She couldn’t have been more than twenty in human years, but she made me feel like a disheveled child by comparison.
    She eyed me, judging, instantly turning her pretty button nose up. “Nice to meet you, Cessie,” she said with a smooth Irish accent. With a crooked smile, she extended a hand for me to shake.
    I took it politely and returned the smile with a sarcastic one of my own. “It’s Francesca, actually.”
    Our hands parted and Jonah coughed a little awkwardly.
    “Jonah, why don’t you give Cessie a tour of the grounds?” Gabriel asked.
    I felt immediately rejected.
    “Come on, we can start with the gardens out back,” Jonah agreed, eagerly whisking me off down the hallway through an oversized eat-in kitchen and through a back door. It occurred to me that the kitchen was a pretty redundant room in this house.
    “He wanted me out of the way,” I huffed to Jonah as I bumbled over the decking and past the outside seating area covered with a canopy. My mind was in overdrive once again. I was expecting Vampires, but I wasn’t prepared for a beautiful Irish one to drape herself all over Gabriel as soon as we walked in the door.
    My annoyance receded briefly as I saw, outstretched in front of us, a beautiful woodland. Behind it, fields upon fields were tucked up in an icy blanket with a film of