Chapter Fifteen #2
“What happened, Lance?” I asked. I had known him since we were kids, I knew him well enough to tell he was going through something. “I know it’s been awhile, but my eyes still have sight. You don’t look so good.”
He scoffed. “Thanks for the compliment.”
Isadora began sniffing the air. Her fangs descended and I knew what that meant. Blood. There was blood nearby. She gripped my arm, struggling to fight against her own urges at the scent. Lance watched her in curiosity.
“He got hurt,” Isadora managed through her gritted teeth. Her jaw muscles pulsing as they fought to unhinge the jaw that wanted to sink its teeth into something alive.
“That killer came after him. Shot at him through the window with enough aim that we now believe this killer might have been ex-military. If dad hadn’t been a hunter, that bullet would have gone through his head instead of grazing it. I just got back from the hospital out in the city.”
I wanted to abandon my building guilt and hug him, but I didn’t. I wanted him around me like a blanket of familiarity that I had missed since the arrival of Isadora and Ambrose. The familiarity that seemed to vanish more every day.
I had learned vampires existed, that I had a mate, that my town was full of supernaturals and that there was a secret world where they all lived.
I hadn’t had many normal days over the past couple weeks and seeing Lance was almost an awakening.
It felt so wrong to feel that way that I wanted to weep.
“We should go then. If this isn’t your work then it’s not your business. Come on, Mel,” Isadora urged with a slight panic in her voice. When I turned to look at her, I felt my heart plummet.
“I felt something weird down our bond,” Lucien stated. His lips pressed in a thin line as he looked at Lance. “It makes sense that it would be a hunter that would make you uncomfortable.”
Lance chuckled at his insult. “You must be the mate to my Mel.”
“My Mel,” Lucien snarled. Isadora placed a warning hand on his shoulder before whispering something in his ear. Lance brushed his hand against my cheek, causing me to look at him in confusion.
“It looks like our reunion will be cut a little short, but I’ll come by and visit. Does your dad still grill on Tuesdays?”
“Yeah, uh, yeah he does.”
“Good then I’ll be over tomorrow.”
“Mhmm,” I mumbled as he brushed his hand against my cheek once more. Showing the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, Lance pressed a kiss to my forehead to elicit a growl from Lucien. It was intended to create that reaction. “Don’t provoke him, Lance.”
He just smiled and patted my head before heading inside. When he disappeared, Lucien pulled me against him and began kissing my forehead, along with the rest of my face. I giggled against the frenzy, which helped elevate his mood.
“I will replace any touch of another man with my own. I don’t like the thought of another man touching you, let alone seeing it,” he spoke softly before delivering another kiss to my forehead. I chuckled, resting my head against his chest as he rubbed my back. “Do you not burn like I do?”
“You’re mine, but unlike you I have restraint. And because I do burn with this bond for you, my restraint only goes so far.”
Isadora let out a barking laugh at my response. “I fear for those girls you left back home, Luce.”
“They’ll have to deal with their broken hearts,” I shrugged as Lucien kissed my forehead for a third time.
“Yeah, you’ve got my brother on a nice leash,” Isa teased before ducking from Lucien’s swipe at her. “I’ve always been the faster sibling, Luce. Remember who wins these fights in the end.”
“That’s because dad hates me and you’re the spoiled princess.”
I bite my lip at his words. It hurt to know that he lost his mother just for his father to despise him and his step mom to have no pull over how he was treated in that house.
Maybe we could move into another home so he wouldn’t have to deal with that. I didn’t have much money but I found myself not caring as long as Lucien didn’t have to endure that abuse. I suddenly felt Lucien’s grip tighten on me and my head raised to face him. I knew he heard my thoughts.
“You’ve got to stop reading my thoughts,” I remarked before covering my head like it would stop him. He laughed at my reaction. “How do I keep you out?”
“It’s a bit harder between mates, but I’ll teach you in due time,” he replied.
I scrunched my nose in disappointment. His lips moved to mine and I felt the electricity ignite in me once more.
A flurry of fiery butterflies swarmed my stomach as I pulled him closer to me to deepen the kiss.
The memories of our time in the meadow rushed through my mind.
Picking up on my thoughts, Isadora made a gagging sound that broke our kiss.
“I wish I could wipe that from my memory,” she groans as she grasps her head like I had. “Lucien, try and teach her how to not be so loud with her thoughts. It’s easy and I won’t be scarred any more than I already am.”
Who would have thought I would be fighting my own impulses instead?