• 𝓜𝓪𝓮 •

Luca's words replayed in my head long after he and Noah left.

"I know you're still wary of us, and that's fine. But I see the way you look at us. I can see your reactions to us."

His thigh pressed up between my legs and I shivered at the contact, proving his assumption correct. I hated vampires. Hated what they made humans become.

But I'd always loved Noah, and holding onto that anger since finding out that he was a vampire was proving harder and harder the more time I spent with him. And Luca...

God, I'd always had a thing for Luca.

"Take as long as you need," he whispered. "It will be all the more sweeter when you give in."

He turned his face and I could feel his breath against my ear. "Look at Noah, Mae."

I turned my attention to him and my breath caught in my throat. His eyes were dark as he watched Luca, then those eyes slid to meet with mine. The need was so plain on his face that his stare was near electrifying.

"He's wanted you for years," Luca continued. "Ask him about his fantasies sometime, Princess. About why he's looking at you like that. You could say no over and over and over again and that man would continue to wait for you to finally say yes."

I wanted to ask what about him. Would he wait for a yes, or would he force it?

"I'm waiting for him," he said, like he could read my thoughts. "And until you say yes to him, it's a no to me. But you have to understand, sweetheart...I am going to continue to pursue you until you tell me no. I love the hunt."

I opened my mouth to respond, but he pulled away and ran his tongue over his bottom lip before turning away from me.

When they were gone, I slinked to the floor for the second time that day, breathing hard. I physically ached for some form of contact. Luca's words gripped me like a vice, swirling around in my brain as I tried to think of some way - any way - to tell myself it was a bad idea.

They were vampires. They brought me back to South District. Noah had held back on telling me what he was, and he probably would have never told me if Kite hadn't outed him in the forest.

But they were who I remembered. Noah hadn't changed, besides seeming to become more bold. Luca was...well, he was Luca. Older than what I remembered, more tattooed, and more flirty than I'd ever expected, but he didn't seem to harbor any ill will towards me. Quite frankly, neither did Kite after he explained how he found me and why he brought me back.

I still needed to speak with Noah, regardless of knowing he helped Kite because I would have been in more danger in West District than in South.

My arguments against them were becoming few and far between, and the only thing I could truly hold on to was the fact that they were vampires. Beings I hated more than anything else in the world.

I closed my eyes.

But I hadn't been thinking either of them were vampires when they were in my room. I'd been trying to hold myself back from asking them to replicate that fucking passage in the damn book they gave me to read.

I stood and went to my en-suite bathroom, taking off my clothes and turning the water on before stepping into the shower without waiting for it to warm up. The cold water hit the bare skin of my back and I hissed out a breath, all of my senses focusing on that one bite of contact. Everything from minutes before with Noah and Luca disappeared completely and I was left shivering, waiting for the water to heat up.

I stood under the now near-scalding water, my eyes closed, trying to rid myself of the memories. The feel of Luca's leg between mine. The look in Noah's eyes.

Fuck.

I slammed my fist against the shower tiles and cringed at the sting of pain. But it made me forget momentarily. So I did it again. And again. And again.

I cradled my red and bleeding hand, knowing it would bruise but not caring. The thrumming pain was enough to keep my mind off of not only the impending conversation I would have to have with Noah, but what the conversation would ultimately become.

I stepped out of the shower, dried myself off, and dressed quickly before stepping out into my room.

The moment I did, I took a step back, any and all defenses I knew coming to the forefront when I saw Seraph sitting on my bed.

He looked up, then his eyes fell on my hand. "I think locking your door would be beneficial, Maeve."

I gritted my teeth. "Don't call me that."

"Hm?" He tilted his head. "Maeve?"

I narrowed my eyes. I hated when people called me Maeve. Fucking despised it.

He stood. "But as I said, you need to lock your door."

"You'd think people would have the common decency to not just walk into someone's room," I shot back.

His lips quirked. "Say that to Zero, who almost came in here when the smell of your blood started permeating the air. If you're going to throw your little temper tantrums to the point that you bleed, you need to lock your door."

"Why are you protecting me," I asked.

It didn't make any sense. He was friends with Zero. Why would he keep Zero from coming into my room? Why would he waste the energy?

Seraph tilted his head, his reddish-purple eyes moving to the door. "This is inconvenient."

My eyebrows drew together before the door slammed open and Kite stood there, his eyes trained on Seraph. "Get out."

Seraph raised an eyebrow. "Watch your toy or she'll be used by someone else."

"Is that a threat," Kite asked, almost vibrating with his anger.

Seraph shook his head and started towards the door. "Not by me, Kite."

When he was gone, Kite turned to me, his eyes searching me until they finally landed on my hand. He stood there for a minute, just staring at it, before he let out a harsh breath and shut my door.

He held a hand out. "Hand."

I nodded. "Yes. Very good."

He blinked, his eyes falling to his open palm. Once again, he was silent, just staring.

But then he started laughing, all earlier pretenses of anger gone in a second. His laughter caught me off guard almost as much as the way it transformed his face. I couldn't explain it in words. I guess in a way it made him look more...

Human.

He came over and grabbed my hand, then placed his other hand on top of mine. Within seconds, a cooling sensation covered the red and heated skin.

When he pulled his hands away, my skin was back to normal.

"What happened," he asked.

"You should see the other guy," I said instead of answering.

"Did someone hurt you?" His eyes narrowed. "Who? Seraph?"

Oh, are we feeling protective, big man?

I pointed to my bathroom. "The shower wall."

"I have no clue how to deal with you," he said honestly, shaking his head.

"Not being a dick is a good start." I crossed my arms.

He sighed. "Tell you what...I'll start acting like myself towards you in private, as long as you can deal with me being a 'dick' in public."

I raised my eyebrows. I hadn't been expecting that whatsoever. I knew he had an image to uphold. But I didn't expect him to agree so quickly without so much as a condition.

I nodded slowly. "Deal."

He eyed me. "Deal."