Jace POV The night was starting very well, and I was happy with the number of customers who came to the opening. This would be an official vampire nightclub, where vampires would go with their pets and have fun or do business in an environment different from the office. Most of the vamps in this city worked for my father, and this club would also serve as a dispenser for the synthetic blood the Harrington and Leigh Corporation were creating—V Blood. Tonight would be the launch of the new product, and the Harrington and Leigh Corporation hoped that by doing this, vampires would stop robbing hospitals or killing humans in attempts to find blood. We needed this to work to keep our anonymity in this city and live peacefully with the humans. “Jace!” I turned at the sound of my name and waved when I saw a few of my father’s right-hand men hailing me from the seats near the dance floor. I made my way to them, hoping they would find satisfactory the hard work I had put into designing this
My head was pounding when I woke. I half-opened one eye and spotted a glass of water beside two pills and a note. I groaned and turned away from the light, hiding my face with a pillow. A flood of memories from the night before washed over me. I remembered seeing Lukas, then me chugging a bunch of whisky glasses to drown the hurtful feeling that still slumbered within me since the last time I had seen him. I had wanted to make him jealous if ever he was watching. I thought I remembered kissing Jace, asking him for more, and then… nothing. I must have passed out. Served me right for acting like a spoiled brat having a tantrum. When I worked up enough courage, I threw my pillow away, and my fingers fumbled on the pills. I downed them with the water, then looked at the note. I hoped I hadn’t embarrassed myself too much. Max, I brought you home when you fell asleep. Don’t worry. Nothing terrible happened, and you certainly did not disappoint me. I had a great time wi
Lukas POV After the incident between Max and me in the country cabin, I followed her from afar and kept a close watch. I hated myself for letting things escalate too quickly between us. I was a fool for thinking she’d understand and accept who I was. When things got so heated between us, and I felt on the verge of showing my true self, I backed away. If I had listened to myself, I would have marked Max, and she would have become mine forever, but Max deserved the choice, and I had no plans to force that on her without her consent. She was as drawn to me as I was to her, so that had to mean something, but ultimately, the choice would be hers. I’d need to tell her soon before Jace got the upper hand—if he didn’t already. Jace had issues with not getting what he wanted. I didn’t trust him alone with her, which is why I barged in when he brought her inside that meeting room—alone and away from prying eyes. When I saw Max unmoving on the table and the smell of blood, I became half afr
As the word slipped from my mouth, I slapped my hand over my lips and backed away from Lukas. Why the fuck had I said Jace’s name? Why was I even thinking about him? I pulled the covers over me and thanked God I hadn’t opened the lights. At least in darkness, I couldn’t see the complete destruction I had just done to Lukas’s ego. Shit. Fuck. Fuck. “I….” I didn’t know what to say, and it mortified me. I had deep feelings for Lukas, and I hated myself for possibly obliterating what we had built together. There was no way to salvage this. Lukas repositioned himself on the side of the bed. I heard him exhale and pass a hand over his face. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. You must have a lot on your mind right now.” I couldn’t understand how calm he was about the whole thing. For reasons beyond my comprehension, I had just said another man's name while having foreplay with someone else. What the hell was wrong with him? He should be mad at me! “If you leave, I’ll completely unde
There were apartments above the Chinese restaurant, which I thought were probably similar to my bachelor pad—one room and a bathroom. They couldn’t be much bigger since the building was small. I stopped before a door with 5B on it and knocked. Someone from within yelled to come in, so I opened the door. The entire room was dark except for what was illuminated by at least five monitors. The equipment Vic had seemed expensive, as did her setup. This looked like a hacker’s lair. The windows were painted black to prevent the sun from streaming inside. Vic had also soundproofed the walls with black panels. I thought it was more for her than the other building occupants because the person who greeted us was a tiny woman wearing a chunky and elaborate headset. “Ravenwood?” Vic looked over my shoulder and pointed her chin at Lukas. “Who’s the guy? I was told you’d come alone.” I squirmed a bit in place, and my back eventually sagged. I didn’t know why I had let Lukas tag along. Moral su
I casually walked over to Bea’s desk and sat down, waiting for her to return from the back office. Lukas was looking at the portraits in the waiting area and grumbled when I tried to shoo him outside. “Are you shy about being seen with me?” “No… well, yes. But no. It’s just… they’re like family. They’ll start asking questions about you. Please leave.” I asked as I got up and tried to push him out. Lukas chuckled, making his chest rumble, and he quickly sidestepped, engulfing me in his massive arms. “If that’s the case, they’ll love me. I mean… look at me,” Lukas said as he flashed me a perfect smile, then kissed my head. “What’s not to love?” I groaned but did nothing to stop him. I felt helpless in his strong arms, which, incidentally, I didn’t want to leave. After we attempted to get information from the bar, Lukas slept in his JEEP to watch if someone from the bar came looking for us. He hadn’t wanted to sleep in my apartment, and I felt it was because of what had happened th
Lukas stood his ground and made a low growl deep within his chest. It sounded animalistic. I didn’t think any human could do that. I placed a worried hand on his back, and it was as though I was touching a brick wall. His muscles were stiff and taut, twitching under my fingertips. When the men stepped forward, Lukas bent his knees like he was about to pounce on prey. “What business do you have with her?” He called out to the group blocking our exit. “It’s no concern of yours, dog.” One man spat. They looked angry or perhaps irritated. They certainly did not look friendly. “Actually, her business is mine as well.” This was ridiculous. We didn’t even know why they were there. The men could have information about the Umbridge case. I tried to push Lukas out of the way to face them, but Lukas didn’t give me that opportunity. He just shoved me back and growled some more. Why was he acting like a fucking caveman? “Why, exactly, do I need to go with you?” I shouted from behind Lukas.
I removed my sweater and looked at the injury on my right arm. It wasn’t just a graze—it passed through my skin and came out the other way, barely missing my bone. Jace had left to get a bowl of water and some clean bandages. I sat on a stool in Jace’s office on the second floor. My leg wouldn’t stop shaking from nervousness, so I examined the room, hoping it would change my mind. It had a bay window and allowed him to view what was happening below and on the same level. I had to admit I was a little embarrassed from the last time I had seen Jace and took the minutes he was away to calm my fluttering heart. We had kissed, and I didn’t even remember it… also, so much has happened since. I passed my sweater over the bullet holes to remove some of the crusted blood and saw it had scabbed. I frowned when I discovered that. It should have still been oozing. The wound was barely an hour old, and I had repeatedly moved my arms. The door to the office creaked, and Jace came inside with a