by Anna Santos
“Really? So tell me, in all of this, where does Kevin fit? Because, last time I checked, he was still in a coma, waiting for the blood cure. So are you just forgetting him, too?”
“Don’t be stupid, Jason. I would never abandon my brother. Being in love doesn’t interfere in my quest. I’ve even found an interesting opportunity to finally cure Kevin. But we are not talking about that here, in the middle of a diner, where everyone is starting to stare at us,” I whispered, staring at his stubborn blue eyes. He was such a baby sometimes! He was also being cruelly manipulative, using my brother to make me feel guilty. I was already feeling enough guilt. Jason was just being hardheaded. “Jason, why can’t you just understand me? I have found my soul-mate. I’m in love.”
“Hearing you say that…” He paused, intentionally, disapproving.
It had been hard for me to believe that, someday, I would say that to him. I had never thought I would have a soul-mate, and that I would be in love like that. But I was in love, so Jason just had to suck it up and stop being an idiot. It wasn’t like I was asking for the impossible. I just wanted to stay longer with my soul-mate. I just wanted to find a pureblood to cure my brother and tell Shane all about me and my origins. There was a pureblood right there in town, wanting to talk to me! I had my opportunity to be face to face with a pureblood, someone who Shane knew. I just had to tell Shane and hope for the pureblood kindness and good heart.
“I know, but I am in love. And you, above all people, should be happy for me. Jessica is.”
“Jessica knows?” Now he seemed pissed that I’d told while hiding it from him. “Of course, she does!” He rolled his eyes dramatically, offended. “I want to meet the guy,” he said with a serious voice, as if he was my dad and needed to approve Shane. Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. At least he wanted to meet Shane. That was good. “I have to see with my own eyes if he’s the real thing and that he’s not playing you.”
“Jesus, Jason! I’m not a teen. I don’t need your approval to hang out with a guy. Besides, Shane is much more than my boyfriend.” I blushed because his eyes were glued on my neck as if he had x-rays and could see the mark. He narrowed his eyes, pondering, and then he seemed to chase away his thoughts and focus on what he was going to tell me.
“I’m a man. I understand men better than you. I can understand if he’s the real thing or not. Last thing I want is for some douche bag to break my beautiful cousin’s heart.”
I smiled, pleased by his concern. He had the right to be like that. He didn’t know Shane, but I was sure that Shane would win him over. On the other hand, they could kill each other. I was hoping that Shane was more mature than Jason. I was hoping that Jason wouldn’t act like a jerk to Shane. I grew pale with the idea of having the two meet. “Okay, Jason. You can come with me to meet him right now.”
“I have stuff to do. I can meet you and your mate later.”
“Oh,” I said, intrigued about what he could possibly have to do. “Then you can meet us at Sam’s Bar. It’s the only bar around there, you can’t miss it. We normally hang out there at night, after nine. I’ll warn Shane that you are here visiting us, and you can stay with us. We have an extra room.”
Jason raised his eyebrows as though troubled, blinking several times to focus. His mouth almost dropped open, surprised about something I said. “An extra room… Are you staying with him?”
“Yes…” I blushed at that answer, because I felt embarrassed by the look on his face, like he didn’t know me anymore. Maybe he didn’t. I had changed, I admit.
“You have really lost your mind!”
“He’s my soul-mate.” I tried to reason with him but was hurt by his words; my answered sounded more like an excuse than an explanation. “Stop judging me without meeting him. I’m getting really upset with you!”
“Well, let’s just hope that my worst fear won’t become true. I have to leave now. I’ll meet you and your boyfriend mutt after nine.”
Jason got up, leaving a bill to pay for his food. I stared at him, intrigued but worried about his stubbornness. I just hoped Jason would be nicer after meeting Shane. I wanted them to be friends, but I had to prepare myself for the worst-case scenario, and I would smack his face if he was rude to Shane.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Anna
When I arrived home, Shane wasn’t there yet. I felt worried for some unknown reason. My meeting with Jason had left me like that, with the odd feeling that he was up to no good.
I was in the shower when I heard the front door open with a loud noise, which startled me and brought me out of my thoughts. Shane’s voice, calling for me, made my heart calm down. I was used to feeling safe inside that house, but noises like those threw me into defensive alert mode.
Shane found me in no time, still calling for me as if he was worried. I just had time to turn off the water when he entered. He looked like he had been run over by a truck. He was dirty with mud and blood, still in his pair of jeans and barefoot. My heart started to beat fast with concern. What had happened to him? Again, he was faster than me, approaching and hugging my wet, clean body against his sweaty, dirty one. I shivered.
“Don’t ever do that to me again,” he said, out of breath.
“What?” I asked, not knowing what he was talking about. I had my arms in front of my chest, imprisoned against his chest. He looked like he had been running around in his wolf shape like a mad man. And he was hurt. I could see the bruises, and I could smell the recent blood that had been spilled.
“Blocking me out,” he enlightened me.
I had totally forgotten I was still blocking him out. However, it was a good thing actually, because my mind had been caught up in all my thoughts of Jason and his reasons for being there. “You also blocked me out,” I reminded him. He was now looking at me with regretful eyes. “And what happened to you? You are all dirty and bruised. Who did this to you?”
“This is nothing. I’m fine. I’ve just gone for a run in the woods. I kind of forgot about time, and then I couldn’t reach you and I got worried.”
I stared at him, my face upset, so he knew I was not buying his story. Shane sighed and then released me, to my total regret, because I felt my body go cold. He smelled like forest and sweat, like earth after the rain, and it wasn’t bad, especially mixed with his blood—his blood was a turn-on for me.
Shane caressed my wet hair with devoted, concerned eyes, like he always did when he was thinking about how to explain something to me. I was more concerned to know who had given him all those bruises and almost-healed scars. “Well, Eric and I had a little disagreement.”
I raised an eyebrow and folded my arms, sighing. Was I supposed to know who Eric was? Then his eyes got distracted, because I was still naked. He smirked mischievously, eyes turning amber. I rolled my eyes.
“You need another shower, now,” he said, grabbing me closer to him. This time, I was able to unfold my arms in time and grab his arms while my body jerked back a bit. He wasn’t going to distract me so easily, even if my whole body quivered next to his and I got aroused.
“Who is Eric?” I asked, turning my mouth from his.
“Are you still mad at me?” he asked, noticing my evasive maneuver. All he was able to do was kiss my cheeks and then my neck. I almost surrendered right there, as his mouth trailed my neck with kisses and his tongue licked my earlobe. “I didn’t want to talk to you like that. I wasn’t mad at you, and I wasn’t trying to boss you around.”
“Why did you block your thoughts from me?” I asked, bothered by it. I used my childish voice to complain, and he smirked, leaning his forehead against mine, our eyes locked.
“Because it’s protocol. Before you speak to a royal family member, you need to block your thoughts from others, from the whole pack, so no one knows where they are. There are spies, probably even among our allies and community. The lives of the royal family are in constant peril.”
“So Eric is the prince?” I asked, putting two and two together. Shan
e nodded and then kissed my shoulder and held me tighter. I moaned, because he was all aroused against my stomach.
I burst out laughing as he teased, “Make up sex?” in my ear, then bit my earlobe slowly.
Suddenly I opened my eyes, checking my urges as I realized something. “Are you stupid? You picked a fight with a pureblood vampire!” I broke the hug to stare at him. I was mad now.
“I had a good reason to pick a fight,” he mumbled, surprised by my reaction. Then his face opened in a smile, and his playful attitude surfaced again. “Eric is one of my best friends. He would never seriously hurt me. Besides, we are all good now. You don’t need to worry.”
“But you’re all bruised, and you smell like blood, your blood. You bled! And you are probably all sore and hurt,” I said, making my point by poking my finger in his bruises. He moaned with pain, and I frowned in apprehension.
“He’s also in bad shape,” he said, defending himself but seeming to try and make me feel better. I was worried about him, not some vampire prince I had never met.
“Vampires heal faster,” I reminded him, annoyed and I held up my arm and bit my own wrist. As if it was the most natural thing to do, I put my wrist to his mouth for him to drink my blood. He was surprised by my action, but then he narrowed his eyes, surrendering to my blood. Moments later, he had healed completely. The side effects of my blood inside him soon came to the surface… if we could call increasing lust a side effect.
I just had time to step back before his eyes shifted to amber and he smirked at me, showing his canines. “Cute little vampire mate,” he whispered with a husky voice, coming closer to me and sweeping me off my feet in a tight hug as he gave me a hungry kiss.
I just had time to growl, annoyed, against his lips. The nerve of his wolf calling me little! I knew I was cute, but little? I could so kick his ass! Who was he calling little?
I could feel the smile on his lips as he tried to open my mouth with his tongue. He knew he had offended me. “Come on, honey. Calling you little is not an insult. We both like you just like that, so we can wrap our arms around you and carry you everywhere,” he whispered against my lips, wrapping my legs around his waist and tightening his fingers on my hips. I kissed him back because he had said the most adorable thing.
My back was against the shower wall, and I could feel his stiff body against mine. I was trapped there, but I was not looking for a way out. I was happily trapped. I gave in to his mouth, letting him do whatever he wanted. He was hungry and savage. I was still smiling about his excuse for calling me little. It was sort of cute.
Jason was an idiot if he thought that Shane wasn’t in love with me. If what we felt for one another was not love, then what the hell was it? Shane couldn’t be more perfect for me than he already was.
I still needed to know what Shane and the prince had fought about. I had the weird feeling that it was because of me. However, I could obsess about that later and ask Shane what was going on. I had other stuff to be obsessive about at that moment.
My hand reached for the shower tap and water poured down on us. He still needed a shower, and I was offering myself as his human sponge. He didn’t complain. He kept kissing me, using one of his hands to open his pants and strip away any clothes still stopping our bodies from melting together.
***
Finally I had a chance to talk to Shane about my cousin’s sudden arrival in town. We went to Sam’s Bar, even though Shane was reluctant to leaving the house that night. He seemed anxious, more distracted and pensive than usual. Or maybe I was projecting on him. I definitely felt nervous and anxious about the conversation I needed to have with him. It was ten o’clock and Jason hadn’t yet showed his face. I was beyond impatient by then. I had called him several times, but his phone was off. I was disappointed with him. However, his reluctance to show up didn’t change the fact that I was going to tell Shane that night all about me.
“I don’t think your cousin is coming,” Shane said after getting up to grab a beer.
“I think you are right.”
“We should go back home.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to play pool with the guys?” I asked, surprised—that was third time he had suggested that we go home.
“You are nervous and worried that Jason may do something stupid. I’m… nervous, too. I want to talk to you about Eric and about a lot of other things that concern us. This isn’t the best place to talk. Besides, if Jason does come here, he can always call you, and we will tell him how to meet us at home.”
“His phone may have run out of battery.”
“He’s a big boy. He can take care of himself. Let’s just go home.”
“Yes, I guess we should be in a place more private to talk,” I agreed, getting up and holding his hand. He grinned and kissed my hand. “What?”
“You are the most amazing thing in the world,” he said, caressing my hand against his cheek. Then, suddenly, he pulled me near his chest, placing his arms around my waist. I leaned back in his arms, watching his face with pondering eyes. “Relax, baby. I can open us a bottle of wine when we get home, and we can sit on the balcony, watching the stars, and cuddle.”
“I would love that,” I whispered, finding his idea extremely agreeable.
“We could listen to that new CD you bought.”
“Or we could talk.”
“Yes, we can talk. Anna… if he’s mad, let him just cool down. He will eventually accept that you’ve moved on with your life.”
“He doesn’t believe that I’m your soul-mate.”
“It doesn’t matter what he believes.”
I was going to agree with him but then there was a commotion in the bar. Brad, one of Shane’s officers, came in.
“Sheriff Shane, we really need you at the police station,” he said, adrenaline making his vampire form surface. He immediately put his hand over his mouth, looking around in search of humans who might have witnessed his transformation. Luckily for him, there were no outsiders around; his rushed entrance, however, had drawn attention to him.
“What’s happening?” Shane asked, tensing at the urgency in Brad’s voice.
“The police station was robbed,” he explained.
“What?”
People started whispering because it was a really strange event.
“No one noticed until now, when they went into your office to use your computer. You know how the one in the lobby is always breaking down?”
“Yes, just tell me what they robbed,” Shane demanded, impatient.
“We are not sure,” Brad said, scratching his head. “You need to get back there and see for yourself.”
“Have you seen the surveillance tapes?”
“Sergeant Martinez told me to call you as soon as we found out. You weren’t answering your phone, Sheriff.”
Shane looked for his phone in his pockets. “I left it in the car. Okay, Officer Brad. I’ll be right there. Let me just tell my mate to go home.”
“I’m not going home. I’m going with you,” I said, sensing his panic when Brad talked about his office being robbed. There was something important to Shane inside that office. I’m going with you, I clarified inside his mind, so he wouldn’t find an excuse to leave me behind.
“Let’s just go then,” Shane said, taking my hand tightly, like the end of the world was coming.
During the entire ride to town, Shane’s heart was beating fast; he was breathing heavily and not answering any of my questions. He just wanted to get to the police station and understand what had been taken then try to find clues about who could be the perpetrator. But one thing was for sure: whatever he had in his office that could have been stolen was really important.
Minutes later, we rushed inside his office, and Shane saw his vault opened and the files, like Brad had said, missing. I actually thought his heart stopped when he realized what had been taken. There was a lot of money there and plenty of other files and random papers, but it seemed that whoever went there was inter
ested just in those particular files. Shane had actually become pale when he realized that they were gone. He didn’t tell me what was in the files. It seemed to be something confidential, maybe about the royal family. I didn’t have a clue. It was definitely important to Shane, though, because I had never seen him so anxious.
He paced around his office for a while, thinking about what he was going to do. He had previously spent his time yelling at his deputies for letting something like that happen and then only realizing it much later. I stood quietly, not interfering in the way he treated his men. He knew what he was doing, and they should be more attentive. I would have done the same to my men, if they had let something be stolen under their noses.
Then I began to look around his office, trying to figure out how the perpetrator had entered the office, stolen what he’d wanted, and then gotten away. Let’s face it, the place was crawling with werewolves and vampires with super hearing and super strength. None of the men had noticed anyone or anything.
No one had a clue as to what time the files had been taken. Shane had left the police station when the prince arrived at school and then left to go to the woods. Therefore, the time between the robbery and the discovery of the event was long. To make things worse, the cameras had not picked up anything, at least the ones that were working. Someone had put them on some kind of loop, making it look like no one had been there by repeating the same image. Whoever did this break-in was a professional.
Not finding any clues, Shane grew impatient. He was also staring at me more, touching and holding me against him as if I might vanish at any second. Then, after holding my face, kissing my forehead, and telling me for the hundredth time that everything was going to be okay, a light seemed to pop on inside his head. It seemed like he had a possible suspect, so he dragged me out of the police station, put me inside his car, and drove to some unknown location. We took a road I had never taken before. We went deep inside the woods, passing a few houses until we were surrounded by nothing but trees.
