His hair is a dirty blond mess from running, and his hazel eyes match perfectly into his tanned face. I should seriously stop checking my attacker out. But hey - his muscles are practically jumping out from his tight black t-shirt, pants and boots.

"Enjoying the view?" He says lowly, tilting his head to the side with contemplation and a small smirk. His voice holds a hint of mock but otherwise it's completely flirty. He fails.

-Let me go!" I scream again but he plants his hand over my mouth, whispering things to my ear, but I'm to busy screaming against his hand and kicking in every direction to actually hear what he's saying.

-Emma?" Jay's voice echoes through the room and hope floods through me. The man behind me stiffens and throws me against the cabinet, and I'm grateful that I tied a knot on my towel because otherwise it would have slipped right down. I fall to the floor and groan as pain laces through my body, and try to get up again on trembling legs.

The hunter glares at me and picks up his weapon, the famous black wooden lance thingy. I hadn't seen it before in reality but now that I have, I can see that the silver swirls are actually drawings, getting closer and closer to my shivering body.

"Jay!" I scream out for him again and my attackor groans in annoyance, swinging his arm back and letting the lance fly behind him. The weapon flies right into the wall next to Jay's livid face. He growls and tackles the hunter to the ground and I watch in disbelief as the first flash of red appears in my vision.

"Emma!" I look up as Drake enters the room and picks me up effortlessly, carrying me towards the door in seconds and placing me down gently. "Run. Go get Hunter, if you don't find him get someone else. But don't come back alone okay?" He spins around towards the fighters and I'm about to run when I piercing scream rings through my ears. And it's not just any scream.

"Jay!" I run towards them again as the man stands up, knocking Drake out the same way as he did with Jay. He smiles fiercely and bends out of the window.

"I'll see you soon Emma." He whispers lowly, threat visible in his words. My name lingers in the air and he jumps out, disappearing into the grey sky. I run over to the window and look down, watching with wide eyes as he hits the ground with his feet and crouches into a ball, rolling back up into a standing position. As he feels my gaze on him, he turns around and offers me a taunting wave, before disappearing into the thickly lined trees of the dark forest. 

I turn around again and run over to where Jay's immobile form is resting, falling to my knees beside his body. Beside me, Drake is moaning in pain as consciousness drifts back to him. But Jay remains silent and knocked-out. I bring him onto my lap and cradle his face, brushing away a dark strand of hair from his closed eyes. Even with him being severely injured, I can't bring myself to cry. I try to force out a single tear, a single drop, but nothing comes. 

I hear the door opening and slamming against the wall with a boom. I raise my eyes between chocked hiccups, and look as Hunter's shocked face comes towards me. "Jay, please, please wake up..." I whisper to him, ignoring Hunter's voice above me. Roughly, he pulls me away and I scream again, kicking him once in the shin and hoping to get a groan of pain from him, anything. I get nothing. I close my eyes and let my body be pulled limply away by Hunter's strong arms, tired of fighting, and I'm only semi-conscious of what I'm wearing.

"They'll wake up soon," Hunter says then, "vampires heal quickly." I nod at his words understandingly, and then something comes to my mind. 

"Hunter...?"

He looks down at me, concern filling his eyes as he nods.

"Yeah?

-You're being hunted." I force out my lame joke and chuckle at my own humour, and Hunter just shakes his head in disbelief, dark eyes zoning in on my face to detect any sign of hurt. 

"You're crazy."

-I know..." I whisper back, looking back as I see Jay's body becoming smaller and smaller as I'm pulled away. Hunter smiles to himself at my words but seems to think better of it, letting me go as we get to the middle of the bedroom. I nod gratefully at him but his cold demeanour is already back in place. He barely spares me a glance as he exits the room and slams the door behind him. I sigh and follow, walking down the dark corridor until I see Alice exiting a bedroom. She raises her eyebrows at the sight of me in barely a towel and I grin sheepishly, although still a bit shaken up from the attack. 

"I don't have anything to wear here." I state, and she sighs, opening up the door to what I assume must be her bedroom. 

"You can wear some of my stuff. It's all in the wardrobe." I nod gratefully at her and she offers me a smile, before disappearing down the corridor as well, engulfed in darkness. I walk into her bedroom and head for the wardrobe immediately, pulling its doors open. I rummage through the drawers and find that she's even brought some of my bras and knickers with her, and I smile with amusement. Alice always thinks of everything. I pull out a loose blue tee-shirt and a pair of grey jeans as well, and quickly get dressed. Just as I'm about to close the doors I notice something different in her clothing arrangement. Hanging in a different section of the wardrobe are men's clothes. 

Chase's. 

I frown at the thought of the two of them sharing this bedroom, but decide to let it go. Alice is an adult, she can do what she wants, even though the idea of her living with someone she's practically just met is slightly disconcerting. A banging noise in another room outside and the sound of something crashing violently to the floor gets my attention, and I hurry out of the bedroom, following the sounds. 

I walk into the kitchen/living area, one of my favourite places of the house so far. I'm positive that it's because it's so light and simple and homey. I feel at ease here. But the sounds of the crashing objects has taken away that ease. I look around slowly, wandering where they came from. 

"We let him get away." I snap out of my visual exploration, turning to face Jay who's sitting tensely on a bar stool by the modern kitchen's island counter, regarding me intently. All around him is a complete mess: broken furniture litters the tiled floors and paper has been ripped into shreds from painting and images that had otherwise decorated the room. After he spoke his mouth set into a thin line. He turns back to the thing that he's holding in one hand which appears to be a glass filled to the brim with a red substance, and takes a long swig. I watch as he gulps it down, Adam's apple bobbing up and down. 

"Is that blood?" 

"No, it's lemonade." He replies sarcastically, taking another swig. The drink smears the corners of his lips in a brilliant crimson colour. 

"What the hell is your problem?" I hiss, taking a step towards him. He stops drinking and turns to me. 

"We let him get away." He repeats, low voice sounding menacing and dangerous in the silent room. I cross my arms over my chest and sigh. 

"Yeah, I know we did. But you know what? That doesn't give you an excuse to act like a dick." 

"Well, you know what? I'm sorry for displeasing you so greatly my dear and wonderful Emma, but I'm kind of dealing with some things right now." He snaps back, and then the room settles into another tense silence. It's heavy and seems to be pressing on my lungs. 

"So... that's it?" I choke, approaching him closer. 

"What?" He says lowly, completely absorbed in regarding the glass that he's holding and avoiding my eyes.

"I get attacked, half-naked, and the hunter disappears and you're just sitting here doing nothing?" I exclaim, bewildered. "Pussies..." I mumble, preparing to turn away from him and leaving this suddenly suffocating room. 

But I can feel his dark eyes boring into mine, and in a second I hear the door scrape back and he's standing in front of me, blocking my way. The red smears around his lips are gone, and he tilts his head to the side, regarding me with dark, hooded eyes. The golden flecks gleam by his pupils. "Don't you think that I would have done something if I could? Don't you think that I'm aching to find the hunter who came onto you like that and break his neck in half? Because I am Emma, remember that I would do anything for you..." He whispers, tracing a finger down my cheek. I gulp once again when his face descends towards mine but the heated moment is broken when someone clears his throat behind us.

Jay's face contorts into one of annoyance and he turns around. Chase shifts uncomfortably in the doorway when Jay looks at him furiously. I can't help the blush that finds its way to my cheeks, and I throw Chase an awkward smile.

"Umm...so... where's Hunter?" He asks uncertainly. It looks like he wants to be anywhere than here right now. Even though Jay's younger, breaking a vampire in the middle of a moment doesn't seem like a good idea. It's like depriving a starving lion from its meal. I shiver at the thought.

"Out." Jay replies smoothly, slight anger still lacing his cool tone. 

"So..." I begin. I clear my throat, shifting on my feet, and looking passed Jay to Chase, "Did you find the hunter?" 

"No, it's like he's disappeared into thin air. That's what I wanted to find Hunter and talk to him about. It's unlike them to attack individually, and we have no idea why he'd come to find you." Chase looks at us again, and when he sees Jay staring at him with an expression that I can't see, he clears his throat and takes a step back. "Anyway. I'll leave you to it then. I'll see you two later." He disappears quickly and I grit my teeth, biting my lip as I look up at Jay who's managed to come closer to me again. He stares down at me with glazed and dark eyes. 

"Umm... Jay?" I put a hand on his chest and push him away a little, even though it's killing me from the inside to do it. I blame it all on the so called 'bond'. He looks annoyed and is battling to keep his emotions in check.

"Yes?" He replies calmly, sighing and leaning in closer again. But I can't get distracted. I turn around just when his lips are inches from mine and busy myself with anything that I can find on the counter. It ends up with me searching for a glass of water, ignoring the glass that Jay's placed on the counter top and that's stained with red on the inside. 

"Why does Drake get so angry if you mention mates or hunters?" I ask curiously, trying to change the subject and escape this heated tension. Maybe Drake and I do have something in common after all. Those two topics are my least favourite after all. I can only sense silence behind me and as I turn around I see Jay looking around, suddenly nervous. Any heated gaze that he had before towards me seems to have evaporated, and he avoids my gaze, obviously not wanting to tell me. 

"I don't want to be held away from the truth..." I say cautiously, taking a sip of the glass of water that I've filled. "Since I'll be spending quite some time here, I'd like to know anything you have to tell me about you guys..." I drift off. I take a step closer to him and actually reach out to take his hand in mine. It feels icy-cold, but it seems to send tingles of heat coursing through me. He's still avoiding my gaze, but when I squeeze it reassuringly he finally looks back down at me. Roles have been reversed, and he's in charge again. 

"If I tell you..." He begins slowly, enunciating every word, "Will you accord me a little favour?" I think of it before nodding with curious eyes directed at him, reaching behind me and placing the glass of water on the counter top. "Okay..." He takes my other hand in his and I tilt my head up to look at him better. "If I tell you, you owe me one kiss. Just one." 

My eyes widen and I take a slow step back, even though my body is screaming at me to get closer to him. He follows me until my back hits the counter's edge and tucks a blonde strand of hair behind my ear. "I want you to come to terms with your feelings, because I know that you feel something for me..." He holds the words on his tongue a bit longer and my gaze drops to his full rosy lips instinctively, intensifying the urge to kiss him so bad. I push the thought away and slap myself mentally for my lack of self-control. 

"I could just ask Drake you know?" I say, my voice cracking slightly at the end. 

Gosh woman, have some control!

He nods to himself and smiles softly, the action causing his face to light up beautifully and making him suddenly appear more youthful and innocent, even though I know that he is anything but. "Yes, you could. But he wouldn't tell you anything you want to know. He'd avoid it or just plain shut you out." 

I think back to Drake's dull grey eyes, those eyes that seem to have through so much pain which has caused him to lock up, and I sigh with defeat. Jay's right. 

 "Fine. But just one peck." I declare. He gives me another dimpled-smile, satisfied. God he looks so adorable like that...

"Drake's beloved was killed by a hunter last year." His smile has slid away and his eyes seem distant but it catches my attention instantly, and I lean a bit closer to him from fear to overhear anything.

"They were hunting together in the forest when the first spear bored into the tree beside her face. Then they came; they were a group of two men and one woman, but counting Drake's and Josephine's vampire speed and strenght, they were sure to overpower them quickly. They were wrong. Drake returned all bloody to the house... without Josephine. He shut everyone out and was uncontrollable. He attacked any human on the streets at night, even if they were walking around in large groups. He didn't care, he was more dead than he already was, he couldn't feel anything. It was Caleb who warmed up to him. Not that Drake is gay or anything... but I think that the childish and happy spirit that Caleb had around him seemed to remind him of Josephine, and slowly but surely, he returned to his usual self. That is... still a bit annoying and mean, but other than that he's fine, I think." His body has gone completely still during his speech, but now he shifts as his eyes turn to meet mine. Even though he has been the one telling the story, I'm the one who's out of breath.

"Okay... so umm... I'm sorry that that happened to her, I'm sure that she was nice and everything but... umm-" I scramble for frantic words, looking around, and suddenly extremely nervous. 

-Shh..." He whispers, tilting his face down towards me. I watch him intently, feeling scared but excited at the same time. "You'll have plenty of time to speak to him later. But right now..."

His lips are only a milimeter away from mine and suddenly I just want to pull him in and kiss him. Every fibre of my body is screaming at me to do it but I know that he's teasing me. He's waiting to get me to do it myself. I blame it on the bond again. That's not going to happen. He asked for it, he can take the first move. Even though I want him to do it soon so badly...

"Jay." Jay's head snaps away from me and he stiffens when Hunter appears into the room, trailing the whole gang after him. "We're going out." I back away from him instantly, noticing Hunter's eyes turn darker as he takes in Jay's and I's closeness moments before.

"Why?" Jay hisses lowly, looking completely and utterly pissed. I glance at Alice who looks afraid, pressed closely into Chase's side, but she manages to suppress that fear for once and sends me a mocking grin, pouting her lips and making kissy faces. I blush deeply, hiding my face behind Jay's back. God can sisters be annoying some times...

Hunter steps further into the room and crosses his arms, sending daggers with his glowing eyes Jay's way with a commanding tone of his deep voice. Jay freezes at the next words spoken, his mind getting ready to attack. "Hunters are waiting in the Dark Lane. And there's many of them."

...°...

A/N: well this was a bit longer than my usual uploads, but I felt very inspired to write about Jemma :-)

I don't want to make their relationship go tooooo fast but at the same time I want things to happen so not tooooo slow either. Oh dear... decisions, decisions...

Write what you think should happen with them in the comments please or send me a private message but don't be shy please! I really really wish that you could just speak up and tell me about what you think because I feel like I'm writing to nobody even though I know that of course my lovely readers are supporting this book so thank you!

PLEASE VOTE! IT JUST TAKES A SCROLL (on phone) OR A CLICK (on computer) AND IT TAKES LESS THAN A SECOND! <3

Love you all so so much! And I really hope that you'd take my offer into consideration. It's not much work... just a comment.

-Sophia xoxo