by A. C. James
“Fine. Can I get dressed now?”
Toren grinned but he didn’t move. “If you must, but it would be a shame to cover up such a beautiful body. Although it would give me something to tear off.”
I was going to ignore that, except it made me think of the first note he’d written and left with the waitress at the club when he thought I was Katarina. You look good wearing nothing. That night at HFC when Arie had cuffed me to the pole, Toren had been there, seen everything. And Arie had fucked me right in front of him and I’d been wearing the same thing. Nothing. I felt exposed. Vulnerable. My head spun as I considered the letters he’d written when he thought that I was her.
I gulped. “Why did you ask Katarina to forgive you?”
“Because I thought I was wrong.”
“About what?”
His eyes hardened. “It doesn’t matter.”
“You were lovers.”
Toren sighed. “We were lovers, but that was a long time ago.”
I shook my head. “Is that really how you feel? I don’t think so. You wouldn’t be looking for forgiveness or writing all that stuff if that’s how you really felt.”
He walked to the window that overlooked the Chicago River. White flakes drifted past, and I wondered when spring would ever get here. What I said must be getting to him. I’d hit a nerve.
“Where is she? I heard that she was dead.”
My worst nightmare had come true. I closed my eyes. How could I tell him that I killed her? I wished that Arie was here now. I took a deep breath, glad that when I opened my eyes that I was looking at his back.
“Let me just get dressed. We could go downstairs and wait for Arie. I could get you a drink. Some Puncture?”
He turned and looked at me. I don’t know why, but I knew that I couldn’t lie to him or hold back. Toren should know the truth. Even if once he found out that I’d been responsible for her death, it meant that he’d rip my throat out.
“Is it true? Is she dead?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“How?”
Now was the moment. He would kill me just as soon as I told him that it was my fault.
“I killed her.”
He strode across the room and stopped right in front of me, but he didn’t touch me. I flinched anyway. I couldn’t help it.
“I just need to know one thing. Why?” Toren asked.
I looked down.
“Look at me. And tell me why.”
I met his eyes and told him without breaking eye contact, and surprisingly, without flinching. “She lost her mind and was making headlines in the tabloids that could expose us. She tried to kill me. I had no other choice. It was me or her.”
Everything seemed to slow down as I waited for his response. This was it. I fully expected that he’d find the nearest piece of furniture that was made out of wood and fashion a stake out of it just so he could drive it straight through my heart.
He sneered, his expression turning cynical. “It really doesn’t matter anymore. I guess I wasn’t wrong.”
I gasped.
What am I supposed to say? And what wasn’t he wrong about?
“I’m sorry for your loss,” I said.
Now I flinched, hoping it didn’t sound nearly as hollow and ridiculous to him as it did to me once the words were out of my mouth.
Toren smirked. “You know, you look like her, but you’re really nothing like her. Not one bit.”
I looked away. For some reason that sounded good to me. He’d figured out in the first five minutes that he’d met me that I wasn’t her, but it had taken Arie a lot longer to get a clue. My gut twisted.
“You should get dressed. Come downstairs when you’re done. I think I could use that drink now.” He stepped away from me, turned, and walked down the steps.
It took me a second to get my body to cooperate with my brain. As soon I was in the bathroom I closed and locked the door behind me. Although I doubted it would make much of a difference, it made me feel better to put a locked door between me and Toren. I could feel the blood rushing through my veins. I grabbed my cell phone off the vanity sink and dialed Arie.
He picked up after two rings.
“Hey, where are you?” I asked.
“I just wanted to stop by Victoria’s on the off chance she decided to go back there. Even though I figured that was a long shot. I’m right around the corner. I should be home in five minutes.”
Relief washed over me.
“Holly, are you okay?”
“Yes,” I whispered.
“You’re not. What is it?”
“Toren is here.”
Dead silence on the other end.
“Arie?”
“I’ll be right there.”
There was a click. Arie didn’t even wait for me to respond, he’d hung up, but he was coming. I didn’t want to be alone with Toren for one more minute. He made me uncomfortable, and I didn’t even want to analyze what had just happened between us. I wasn’t ready to think about kissing Toren back or grinding on him. I was such an idiot for not knowing that it wasn’t Arie. Shock jolted through me. My body had been so responsive. No one turned me on the way that Arie did. Except that Toren had turned me on.
God, I didn’t even know whether to tell Arie the truth. I could just imagine the two of them brawling in our living room. Not that I gave a damn about what would happen to Toren, but I didn’t know how strong Toren was and didn’t want him to rip Arie apart. The two vampires obviously had some sort of history that revolved around Katarina. It pissed me off that even now that she was dead, she was still a problem.
I splashed some water on my face. It was still flushed and I felt a little like throwing up. I shrugged into my clothes, took a deep breath, and made my way downstairs. Toren sat at the breakfast bar. He turned in my direction as I came down the stairs. I couldn’t stand those penetrating emerald eyes. And then he grinned at me. It was like he was mocking me, but I didn’t have time to think about it.
The door to the loft swung open and then slammed shut. I bit my lower lip. Toren followed my gaze and turned toward the door. Shit. Somehow I knew this wouldn’t be good. Arie was home.
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About the Author
A.C. James is a writer, living in Northeastern Pennsylvania with her loving husband and her children. Nothing makes her day more than a hot bath, a glass of wine, and a good book—preferably at the same time.
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Other Books by A.C. James
Ruler: A Paranormal Erotica Short Story
Cursed Ever After
Winter Promises
Eternal Ever After
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