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6. Splintering
-Aline-
I wince and continue making my way to Talu's room. As I stride past the human girl, Mei frowns when I don’t ask for help to find Talu’s room. It's amusing but irritating since I pretty much grew up in the Wu house.
Why is she in Talu’s house, anyway? Shouldn’t she be playing house with her vampire? My lips curl in disdain.
She steps into Talu’s room behind me, wearing a medical-grade mask she hadn’t worn when she let me into the house. Talu gives her an approving smile while sending a superior look my way. I'm annoyed and wish the girl gone. I am angrier at Talu and his supreme smugness. He looks too much like Lance and not the happy-go-lucky guy who played Hide-and-Go-Seek with me when we were kids.
"Knock it off, Talu," I grumble, fishing out my KN-95 from my purse. I put it on, grateful for something to hide behind. “I came to apologize, with a peace offering.”
From my fingertip, tied together at the laces, dangle his new d
Laela MorenoI hope you are enjoying this story! Your reading experience is important to me. For some, certain topics can ruin that experience. Please visit https://laelamoreno.tumblr.com for a list of trigger warnings.
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Aline's Choice 8. Jump Off a Cliff
-Jian- I avoid Aline for about a week, keeping to myself while shoving away nagging thoughts about how I left things with her. Breaking news interrupts my efforts to forget about her. Lance tells us the vampires left the city. Talu, still on forced bedrest, doggedly researches why and bends my ear with his theories during my visits to bring him his favorite boba drink. According to Talu, Chase, Mei's vampire ex-boyfriend, sent her a goodbye text saying his coven was moving across the bay to Oakland, but there was no explanation. Without alpha commands to gather against bloodsuckers, I have too much idle time. I try to interest myself in Talu’s mission, but fail. Watching Tony dote on his middle schooler has me worried that he’ll get arrested if someone doesn’t check him on his stalkerish behavior. I convince Will to act as Tony's caretaker. I even stay at home to help my mom around the house. After just a day, she sat me down and told me my h
Aline's Choice 9. What in The Hell Are We Doing?
-Aline- His T-shirt is soft against my thighs. Fascinated, I study the dark, rugged vision of him, still blocking the sun's fading rays. If his fidgety stance and inability to rest his eyes on my face is any sign, Jian is as shocked by my flirtation as I am. His eyes slide away, refusing to meet mine. Instead, his gaze skims the length of my legs. My heart thunders at his unadulterated perusal. The crashing waves mask the sound of the rapid heartbeat pounding in my ears. While his shout off the cliff was not as masculine as he would have liked, Jian seems to think manly thoughts now. His stance, hands shoved deep into his pockets, hides the evidence of his desire within his dripping shorts. My lips twitch, wanting to curl into a smile. I am pleased by his reaction to the sight of me. For just a moment, I shut my eyes, seeking some privacy to consider what exactly the hell it is I am doing. "Is that an invitation for me to manhandle you?"
Aline's Choice 10. A Peek Into His Past
-Talu- I lounge on the sofa, healed enough to haul myself out of bed. Today, Jian keeps me company. He's twitchy, not at all his usual calm self. After asking after Mei and Aline, and pacing the length of the small living room at least six times, Jian finally settles in the armchair kitty-corner to the sofa. We both pretend to watch the Giants vs. Mariners baseball game. The distracting thrum of his fingers on the chair's upholstered arm forces me to break the heavy silence. "So, bro," I say, attempting a casual but cautious air. "Want to tell me about her?" "A girl?" He feigns rapt interest in a Geico commercial. Stupid talking lizard. "Just a wild guess. Seeing as you can’t look at me, you’re thinking about a girl, right?" It’s impossible to keep from grinning. I know poking at Jian might make him angry, but teasing him is irresistible. He shoots me a dark, annoyed look after I suggestively move my eyebrows up and down and g
Aline's Choice 11. The Thing About Imprinting
-Talu- Feminine voices tickle our werewolf auditory senses long before the owners' light footfalls hit the porch. Aline and Mei are back. Jian and I seem to realize this at the same time. Jian casts me a wary look as he scans the room for a quick exit. I hide my amusement with a cough, knowing he's good and stuck since the backdoor is through my dad’s bedroom. Mei enters the unlocked front door and rushes to sit beside me, smiling to find me out of bed and in the company of a friend. I'm unused to seeing her so delighted while holding a shopping bag, but she has one dangling from her wrist. Aline slides inside behind her, propping herself against the entryway to the dining room. Her focus is on the smartphone in her hand. She appears unaware of Jian’s presence, or if she knows he's here, she's hiding it well. I'm still getting used to Aline’s super-short, softly tousled hairdo. Solely under threat of death, will I ever admit her fresh cut is
Aline's Choice 12. A Race And Some Respite
-Jian- I burst into a thicket at the western end of the park near the windmills and Park Chalet. With my nose in the air, I sniff, trying to catch Aline’s unique scent. A few weeks ago, I discovered something about her fragrance during my last botanical garden meeting with the nature conservancy. The workshop was about preserving the state's native plants and the presenters had aromatic samples of California wildflowers. I stayed after to satisfy a curiosity about the composition of Aline’s fragrance. It hadn't come as a surprise to find her identifying perfume was a mix of Nightshade, and Wild Ginger. Both reminded me of her, a bit dangerous, hot, untamed, and spicy. The final blossom in Aline’s bouquet proved the most difficult to uncover. Standing in the deserted meeting room, the discovery of the mystery fragrance brought an immediate smile to my face. I identified Aline’s last delightful scent in a tiny vial labeled, Wild Sweet Pea. Of all thing
Aline's Choice 13. What's Love Got to Do With It?
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Aline's Choice 14. Payback is A...
-Aline- Incensed, I stomp into my bedroom and slam the door behind me. In silent protest of Jian besting me, I shove myself into his, yet again, just washed goGreen t-shirt. It’s worn cotton falls soft against my bare skin, reminding me of the first time I slipped it on when it carried only his scent. The caress of the fabric against my skin brings a smile to my face, one I don’t realize is there until I catch sight of it in my mirror. Ugh! I roll my eyes, frustrated with myself. Yesterday was ready for a crap day. I planned for it to be a bad one because yesterday was my breakup anniversary. Expecting it to be crap, I spent most of it packing Lance’s stuff into a box and throwing in everything else that even slightly reminded me of him. But today? I expected today to be a great day. And it almost was. The "That Was Lance" box was supposed to be incinerated today. I went shopping with Mei to replace the stu
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