ELLE POV "I had a great time with you," Damon says, lifting my hand to kiss the fingertips. "It was nice getting to know you without pack members watching our every move." We are standing outside the elevator door, bags in hand, waiting to be taken down to the lobby, where the rest of the group is supposed to meet. It was nice getting to know each other better over breakfast. While Damon and I have always been sexually attracted to each other, it's nice to know we have more in common than that. "I had fun, too," I sigh, my mouth continuing to run even though my mind hasn't caught up to it yet, "almost like a date." "That was not a date," Damon chuckles as he steps onto the elevator, pulling me along with him. "Oh?" I reply, trying my hardest to hide the disappointment filling my gut. What's wrong with me that he wants me but doesn't want me simultaneously? "Not a date," Damon says, wrapping his arm over my shoulder and pulling me closer as we descend to the lower levels. My hear

ELLE POV Once the Bronco crosses into New Moon's territory, my anxiety suddenly skyrockets. Damon grabs my hand, sensing my nerves; tingles unfurl, calming me at once. Reconfirming something neither of us is ready to say out loud; instead, it lingers underneath every interaction. 'Elle, there is something that we need to discuss,' Scarlett says quickly, 'it cannot be avoided. The first chance that we are alone.' 'Okay,' I reply, as Damon mutters, "shit," his body tensing, staring at Olivia pruning the petunias in the front yard, but he doesn't release my hand. Instead interlocking his fingers with mine like he is terrified of letting me go. Damon murmurs, "Stay here." Stopping in front of the house, parking in the turnaround drive before hopping out to scurry around, hoping to get past his mother. Nothing gets past Olivia. I swear she was a witch in a past life, but I stay put to have a secretive talk with Scarlett. 'What is so important that we can't wait?' I ask, wanting to

ELLE POV Damon leaves me sitting on the edge of the window sill, panting and breathless, my panties soaking wet from his kisses and teasing touches. 'I swear to the Goddess if you do not go after him,' Scarlett scolds, breaking through the fog and my feet finally working to chase after him. Walking down the hallway to my room, I find his scent right outside my room; entering, I expect to find him on the bed or one of the armchairs, but he isn't. Seeing the door slightly ajar, I hear the bathtub filling with water; pushing the door wider, I see Damon leaning against the counter. His smug attitude is prancing around the room while the tub fills with bubbles and water. "Strip," Damon demands, his eyes consuming every part of me as if trying to imprint my features into his memory. The energy rolling off of him is suffocating and more robust than it has ever been in the past. I don't move a muscle, standing there staring defiantly. "Babygirl, I am not in the mood to punish you, but I

ELLE POV Rolling over, half asleep, I reach for the hard chest of a man I know is supposed to be there, only to come up empty. Trying not to let my imagination run amuck, I sit up in bed, rubbing the sleep from my eyes before looking around the room, only to find it dark and empty. Glancing at the side table, the clock says 11:10; only fifty more minutes to go until midnight. Before the nerves can burrow, making themselves home in my stomach, the door opens. Damon storms into the room, a dark cloud hanging over his head until he realizes I have woken up, and a calm smile spreads across his face as his gaze wanders over my body. As if he can see through the duvet covering my naked body. "What's wrong?" I ask as I try to decipher the sudden change in his attitude from entering to seeing me awake. "Nothing, Biscuit," he replies, "did you enjoy your nap?" He asks while walking over to plant a kiss on my forehead, sparks sprinkling over my flesh at the quick contact. "You need to get

JONAH POV The pain starts subtly once again, starting on my wrists before the burning in my chest; it started on the drive back to Diamond claw without Elle. That bastard is having me punished and is using Tiffany to do it. I know what it means; he is allowing his men to put their filthy paws on something that doesn't belong to me. "Accchh!" I scream, my claws digging into my chest because tearing out my heart would be better than feeling this every day. Thor is howling in agony, the burn quickly consuming my soul before stopping suddenly, a less-than-subtle reminder of the predicament I find myself in. Why Goddess? What could Tiffany or I have done to deserve this? 'When we finally get our hands on that fucking bastard,' Thor roars in my head, my fist numb while it repeatedly smashes into the wall, not caring about the blood or broken hand, knowing it'll be healed by tomorrow. The hairs on my neck stand on end while two people stand in the doorway, watching silently as I take