DEAThe doctor wrapped up my ribs and prescribed me pain medication. He also advised me to use breathing exercises to help with the pain as well as ice the area. The thing was, I could barely feel the pain. It hurt if I moved too quickly or relaxed my body in an awkward position but I otherwise felt fine. Nevertheless, I sent Erica a text telling her I wouldn't be moving in today. I wasn't sure Victor would allow me to move in until I was healed, though. The doctor then left to check out Sinclair with Victor on his heels. I admired that about him. He had this protective nature but when directed at Sinclair, I wasn't sure if he realized it bordered on a fatherly type of love. It made me believe he would make an excellent father one day. Maybe an even better husband to some lucky woman. The thought had jealousy instantly stirring my gut. I couldn't stand the thought of another woman with him. The way their hands would roam his flesh freely, the way they would taste every inch of him,

DEAI gave my brother a few days to settle in before asking him everything I was anxious to know. Going to work as normal and trying to avoid Jason seemed like a much easier feat considering how my life had been turned upside down. I was expected to just continue as if nothing happened and, for the most part, I met that expectation to the tee. But, beyond that, it hurt me more to see how dejected Sam had become. We went to our family home and collected whatever we could. Whoever we had of value and meaning, Victor had stored for us. The more distance I wanted to put between that man and me, the more the universe brought us together like magnets bound to attract to one another. The hardest part of leaving the reservation was visiting our parents' graves for the last time. I hadn't visited my mother since she was buried but it never bothered me. Knowing I could visit her at any given time was a comforting thought on its own. Now, we couldn't even do that. I couldn't go there and speak

DEAI absent-mindedly traced the seam of my lips with the pads of my fingers. It had been more than twenty-four hours since I kissed Victor but the tingling sensation of his lips pressed to mine still ghosted my flesh. I dreamt about it last night. My dreams were so in-depth and elicit, every detail seemed so real as if it were happening in reality and not just in the confinements of my head. I dreamt of what his body felt like pressed against mine, only, my imagination went one step further and conjured up a feeling of his hard muscles and smooth flesh pressed again my body—all clothes disposed of. I dreamt of the way his mouth moved and roamed the surface of my body, the way his tongue would flicker out to get a taste of me ever so often. I dreamt of the way his hands molded me, held me, and caressed me. He was everywhere and nowhere all at once. Victor had infiltrated my life and my thoughts but when I awoke, dripping in sweat and hot, he was nowhere to be seen. Every now and aga

DEA"You're staying at the same hotel?" I questioned when Victor swiped his access card and threw the door open to his room. "Out of the hoard of questions flying around that head of yours, that's what you choose to ask first?" He shot over his shoulder while offering me a humorous wiggle of his eyebrows. I was silent as I followed him back. It wasn't a long walk since Jason and I hadn't gotten very far when we were attacked. Victor knew me well enough to know that there was a myriad of questions sitting at the point of my tongue, waiting to be thrown out in the open with the hopes of finding adequate answers. And yet, I managed to cap those questions, smother them even, so I could quietly process what just happened to me. The fear that licked its way through my body was beginning to melt away and my initial shock was subsiding. Adrenaline pumped through my veins in minuscule amounts and, as it ebbed away, clarity was taking its place. Vampires were real. Vampires hunted humans.

DEA After Victor and I cleaned up, we both agreed it would be best for us to go to sleep before we did something either one of us would regret. I wasn't certain I wanted to go all the way with him. My cravings to feel him next to me grew with each passing moment. I ached for him. With every heartbeat, I yearned for him. The more time we spent together, the more I got to know him as a person and the more I fell. Guilt for moving on so quickly from Jason ebbed and flowed like waves kissing the shore. They were prevalent when Jason was around. Like now for instance. He glared at me from across the lobby, daggers of pure vengeance flying my way. A low growl sounded beside me and the earthy scent that accompanied it instantly had my skin prickling with the memory of last night, "The only reason he's not dead is because of you. I hope you know that."I sighed and shifted my attention to the mammoth of a man who dwarfed me. Using a knuckle to push my glasses up the bridge of my nose, I wh