(Brielle’s POV)I parted my lips, welcoming his tongue, hoping that when it touched mine, it would bring a surging reaction inside me, but nothing melted… nothing exploded. But I could say that Bryce was not only a skilled hunter but also an expert kisser.As Bryce wrapped his arms around my waist, closing the gap in our bodies, I lifted my arms, clinging like a vine to his neck, closing my eyes, and kissing him back with the hope of pushing away the pain of remembering Cole, not wanting me in his life, andHow should I define our kiss?It was sweet and…Bryce broke the kiss before I could finish describing it and eased back. His lips turned into an amused grin. He lifted his hand and grazed my cheek.“Done analyzing?” He chuckled softly.I bet my cheeks blushed because he laughed again. “I am not analyzing, Bryce,” I denied. “If it wasn’t obvious, let me tell you… I am kissing you, and I can say you’re good.”“Good?” he smirked, his eyes on my lips.I swallowed hard, looking elsewher
(Brielle’s POV)“Gen, what have you done?” I murmured in horror, gasping in disbelief and standing beside Bryce.Bryce stood frozen in the doorway, his eyes widened and his mouth agape. His hands tightly gripped the knife handle, but he seemed unable to move it. He had probably tried to pull it out, but what he had witnessed inside the luxurious log house immobilized him. Like Bryce, I was in a state of shock. We both stood there for what seemed like an eternity, trying to process what had just happened.“Brielle, help me.”Immediately, I wandered my eyes around the room, looking for Kione. She was sitting in the farthest corner of the room, almost like hiding. Her body shook as she sobbed, and when our eyes met, I felt a pang of sadness in my heart. Gen was on the couch, motionless, and her left arm was hanging limply on the floor. The blood on her wrist told us what had happened before we arrived.Gen…I could not believe Gen was dead.“Oh, dear heaven! Kione, what have you done?”
(Brielle’s POV)“I thought they could not read our minds?” Bryce asked, followed by his surprised gasp.Lucilla smirked. “Idiot! I don’t need to read her mind to know what she’s thinking.” She rolled her eyes and continued to climb the stairs.Bryce opened his mouth to retaliate, but Xian grabbed his arm, taking his attention.“I need your blood, hunter,” she smiled and blinked her eyes adorably. When he didn’t move, she sneered. “You need me to check if your blood’s healthy or…”“No need,” he sighed, frowning at the stairs. “If she can fly, why does she have to use the stairs?”I pressed my lips to suppress a smile, but when I looked at Xian and Ichiro, I was glad a laugh did not leave my mouth. They frowned, not finding his joke funny.“Not funny?” Bryce smirked.I glared at him, warning him to stop before Xian decided to get every ounce of blood from his body.““What? I can’t joke, but she’s allowed to hurt my feelings?” Bryce smirked. “Is she always like that?”Xian rolled her ey
(Brielle’s POV)“So?” Xian blinked curiously at Bryce.I was still in shock at what Bryce did to Lucilla. Although I could not say if what I felt was jealousy, there was a prick in my heart, remembering Cole and Levana’s union and now him kissing Lucilla. I clenched my hands, hiding my worries about what she might do to him. I couldn’t shake off the disturbing thoughts that he gave her a reason to kill him.“So… What?” Bryce asked, wiping his lips on the back of his hand as if he had something awful in his mouth.“No magic?” Xian’s eyes were wide as she asked. “Spark? Or…”Bryce scoffed. “If you think I can be her life mate, you’re wasting your time. I told you I want to kill her with irritation, thinking I was -”Ichiro burst into laughter, interrupting Bryce. “Wow! I can’t believe you fell for that,” he exclaimed.“You said…” His face turned crimson as he pursed his lips tightly.“You really believe that? God, how would we know?” Xian rolled her eyes and scoffed. “Our sister’s eight
(Cole’s POV)As soon as the curtain of night fell upon the forest, like a shadow, I ran swiftly but quietly to the dark woods. I muttered a curse because Raven must have realized he was being followed as he suddenly changed his path, dashing like wind and heading to San Rafael. He sauntered along the tall shadowed trees for a while and smirked as he reached the end of the woods, walking carefree and heading to the Wild Side, the only bar in town.My gaze slid away from him and glanced at the old bar, thinking he would not be able to go anywhere here in the open. Raven would not risk traveling in daylight when he knew he was a wanted fugitive, but what worried me was him finding another victim tonight. I could still catch him, but the prick stopped and chatted with the locals at the main entrance, pretending to be a tourist. In a place with less than a thousand people residing, there was no need for a bouncer at the entrance because the owner, old Thomas, knew everyone. He could kick
(Brielle’s POV)I hated it when my group belittled what I could do, and today I was given a small task. Either I was new to the group, or they just could not entrust the job to me because I was a woman.As Giles said when we first met last week, I looked delicate and someone who wouldn’t dare step on a cockroach. Adam and Bryce even encouraged me to change my mind, maybe work as a supermodel or just join beauty competitions. Only Gen, another woman in our group, didn’t comment on me joining the group, but I was not too fond of it when she looked at me as if her eyes bored through my clothes. It was only when Bryce told me his sister is a gay woman that I concluded that Gen was treated as one of them despite being a woman.I was back to being an outcast in the group, the weak one and the member who would only make them move slow because everyone thought I was a princess that needed to be saved in times of danger.We all worked under the Order of the Orion, the hunters of supernatural b
(Brielle’s POV)It was a toe-curling kiss, wanting me to curse myself for forgetting why I was here in the first place. He was so good at devouring my mouth that I wanted him to have the title for being such a good kisser. I moaned, hardly feeling the hard concrete wall of the bar when he pinned my back to it, and perhaps after a little more of this, I would probably pull off my dress to feel the skin of his hand on top of my clothes, cupping my brassiere.I groaned when he stopped kissing me. He smiled, sliding his mouth and grazing my skin with the soft stubble hair on the side of his face as he moved his lips, touching my ear. I chewed on my bottom lip, suppressing a moan.“As much as I want more of you, I hate having an audience, Brielle,” he said, saying my name like a piece of music.He moved away from me, but before he could go, I grabbed his arm and smiled at him, but this time I was nervous, losing my confidence after drowning in his kiss.“What’s your name? Please don’t leav
(Brielle’s POV)My eyes squinted as I stared at the Kirkwood Residence. The baroque architecture mansion stood magnificent but silent under the starry night. Unlike my grandmother’s house, lampposts were everywhere, brightening the lawn. The mansion was seldom opened to the public because most of the time, the family never really stayed here, except for a few days for business, or maybe the owner wanted some peace of mind when escaping the city.Dad has mentioned this place before in passing when rumors spread that there were ghosts seen in this place, while Mom shared about the Kirkwood being vampires. Still, she brushed off the idea when she and Grandma got invited to the party and personally talked to Nicolai and his wife. She saw how the couple ate at the party, appreciating the drinks and food while conversing with the locals.No one could prove whether there were ghosts or the Kirkwood as vampires because even the locals hired to maintain the place did not see anything unusual a