Authors: Jayde Scott
Amber sat up groggily and scanned the floor. "Where are my clothes? How did I get here, in your room of al places?"
"I had to find the snake bite."
She cocked a brow. "What happened to your clothes? You got bitten too?"
"You're hilarious." I handed her two aspirin and the glass of water.
Her arm moved across my chest, holding me in place. "I'm okay." She sounded breathless. In spite of the seriousness of the situation, I found myself smiling.
"You're the worst liar ever. Just take them," I said, helping her up.
"Yes, Nurse Ratched." She grimaced but swal owed the pil s nonetheless.
"Why don't you get some sleep?"
She batted her eyelashes. "Doctor's orders?"
"Yep. I even wrote you a prescription. Lot's of rest, kisses, hugs, and pampering. I'l make you breakfast in bed, right before daybreak." I placed a soft kiss on her forehead.
She laughed. "I hope your cooking's better than mine."
"You like cereal, right?"
"Thanks. You saved my life," she whispered. Her hand found mine, and our fingers intertwined. A jolt of energy rippled through me. My hunger stirred stronger than before. I bit on my lip until I drew blood, but the pain did nothing to stifle the sudden craving in my veins.
"Get some sleep," I said through gritted teeth.
Amber shook her head and lifted on her elbows, placing a peck on my cheek. My heart skipped a beat. Get a grip. It didn't mean anything because the girl was stil delirious from the venom.
She wrapped her arm around my neck. Our eyes connected. "Layla said you chose me over her. Why?"
Layla and her big mouth. I sighed, fingers twitching to press her lips to mine. Not tonight. Not when I could barely control the hunger inside me. "It wasn't a tough choice."
"But why me when you could have any other?" She moistened her lips, confused. Her question took me by surprise. Did she real y not understand that we were puppets of our fate? The bond, a tiny silver thread that intertwined our lives, had chosen for us. No other than Amber would ever do.
I glanced at the dying fire, panel ed wal s and brocade covers, unable to come up with an answer that wouldn't scare the hel out of her and make her run a mile. Because Fate chose you for me. Because I can't live without you. Because we belong together for al eternity. Kieran would col apse in a fit of laughter. There were hundreds of reasons, but none I could share with her just yet. Girls like bad guys, not over-sensitive pansies who paint their girlfriend's toenails and remember to bring chocolate pralines on Valentine's Day. So, what was the right answer? What did she want to hear?
"Because I mop the floors like no other?" Amber prompted, piqued. Her brows were drawn, her gaze reflecting mistrust and disbelief. Her rapid heartbeat sounded like a drum in my ears. My body stirred, flaring up with a hunger I hadn't felt since the day I was turned.
"I love a girl who makes me laugh," I whispered.
"And did I do that a lot when I worked for you?" Her lips twitched.
I tried to hide a smile. "Only when you cooked me that dreadful vegetable pasta."
"It's cal ed a stir-fry." She slapped her forehead. "Oh, my gosh. You don't eat food. I bet you got the biggest kick out of that one."
"Kieran couldn't stop laughing for a day."
"You haven't answered my question." She regarded me as if she could see right through me. For the first time I feared the bond might empower her to do just that. "There's something you don't want to tel me," Amber continued, pul ing away from me.
"No idea what you're talking about," I muttered.
Amber stared at me, frowning. "I can sense it. Yeah, thanks to you I got this psychic vibe thing going on. So now, not only can I talk to the dead, but I can also pick up on your emotions and see you when you're not around. And I thought I'd only be picking up your house and my salary. Talk about added perks."
I groaned inwardly. She final y felt the bond, but I could see she was a slow one. At this speed we'd stil be sniffing at each other in two years.
Sniffing was good, came with the territory of dating, but not if it destined me to regular blood stained shirts and more jokes from the others.
"I could give you a hint or two." I laughed at how sleazy I sounded. Kieran was obviously rubbing off on me.
"Next time you write a classified ad for a position, you should consult me," Amber said.
I cocked a brow. "Why?"
"Because the last one was completely misleading." She sat up in a lotus position. I tried hard not to peer at her naked legs, toned in al the right places. "It should read like this: single vampire, stronger than any human on Earth, 500+ years old but stil drop dead gorgeous with blue eyes and dark hair, seeks summer temp to clean his house, put up with boss's annoying and beyond cheesy brother, risk life by living in a creepy mansion, and help obtain an ancient book."
I opened my mouth to protest when she lifted a hand to stop me, then continued, "Must be quiet during the day while he sleeps and be wil ing to understand that his best friend is a blonde bombshel . Added perks: the gift of talking to a dead person, mind-blowing kisses, faster-than-a-speeding-bul et rides in the woods, meet nice demon friends from hel , and last but not least, a psychic connection to the boss."
Amber took a deep breath and tapped a finger against her pink lips. "Must be wil ing to communicate with a creepy child queen, not panic easily and keep her cool when a legion of Shadow people are after her. Endure vampire attacks, face Medusa, survive venomous snake bites, be wil ing to give up her espresso when turned into a vampire per boss's request, and—"
"Stop it," I said, laughing.
"Just trying to keep it real." She elbowed me in the ribs. "Forget the ad. I don't know what you're hiding, but I'l figure it out myself. Or I'l just ask Cass. She'l read your mind like nobody's business."
"Don't you dare!" I rol ed her on her back, minding her sore thigh.
"Why not? I want to know everything."
I laughed. "Like hel you do."
"Oh, is that where Cass is? Let's go cal her. Now get off me." Poking a finger in my chest, she pretended to push me away, but her attempt was a feeble one.
What was I doing? I should walk away, let her wiggle a bit, play hard to get like my brother suggested. But I couldn't.
"It's like we're destined to be together," I whispered in her ear, my fingers brushing her cheek. Somewhere inside my brain, I could hear my brother's voice—faint but there, and bloody annoying at that. What the heck?
It was too late. I lowered my mouth on her neck where her pulse felt the strongest, my teeth grazing her skin. Amber held her breath, but didn't push me away.
My hunger grew stronger, clouding my mind, consuming my body. I couldn't think straight, just let myself fal into the dark needs I had ignored for five hundred years. For a moment I hesitated, my lips lingering over her skin, then opened my mouth. My fangs touched her skin. The sudden knock on the door jolted me out of the moment. I sat up, startled.
"Go away, Kieran," I yel ed.
"Don't stop," Amber whispered, sitting up on her elbow, so cute with her dishevel ed hair and innocent gaze.
"You've no idea what you're requesting." I pressed my eyes shut, mad at myself for what I'd just been about to do. How could I let myself lose control like that?
The room seemed to spin as one pang of hunger after another washed over me. Setting my jaw, I pul ed Amber to my chest. Her blood's cal tortured me, but I deserved it. I deserved any torture I'd get for being so careless.
"I know guys do the casual relationship thing al the time, and I want you to know that I'm okay with it if you are," Amber said.
"What do you mean by 'casual'?" I pushed her away as my temper flared.
Amber shrugged and pul ed the covers over her body. Her face was hard, any traces of love gone. Somewhere at the back of my mind I heard Kieran's voice say, I told you so. Damn him. Damn her. Damn that bloody bond. Not only was I stuck with a mortal; I was stuck with a mortal commitment phobe, and I was growing sick of it. Fate was probably watching right now, laughing her head off at my expense.
Without looking at Amber, I jumped out of bed, shrugged into a clean shirt and left the room, slamming the door behind me.
I propped up on my elbow and watched Aidan stomp out of the room like a bomb had just gone off. Okay, I didn't make the most romantic statement in the world, but after the experience with Cameron who could blame me for thinking al guys were morons? There I was, basical y offering him dating with no strings attached and he acted like I just deceived him and robbed him of his most precious possession. Our knee-weakening kiss stil lingered on my mind. Trust me to put my foot in my big mouth and get the nicest guy I'd ever met to make a run for the hil s.
Wrapping the bedspread around me to keep off the Scottish chil , I jumped out of the bed and went in search of my clothes. My pair of jeans was torn to pieces. The shirt I'd worn the night before didn't look much better. I shimmied into what was left of them and headed for the privacy of my room. Closing the door behind me, I switched on the lights. My heart thudded in my chest as I kneeled on the floor to peer under the bed and beneath the sheets. The scary snakes were gone. Taking a deep breath, I relaxed a little.
What happened to Layla? I couldn't remember anything between the sudden, piercing pain in my thigh and then waking up in Aidan's arms.
Aidan's arms—it sounded so right, the place I should be rather than in my pretty yet empty room, al alone with a sore thigh and no one to comfort me.
I rummaged through my bedside table until I found a pack of aspirin and swal owed another pil with the stale glass of water I'd carried upstairs the night before, then peeled off my shredded clothes to take a quick shower. The water cooled my feverish skin. With a shaking finger, I brushed over the bruise on my thigh, just above the knee, where the snake had sunk its teeth. I trembled, a sudden wave of dread washing over me. The memory of Aidan sucking out the venom was faint, but enough to remember I hadn't put up a fight. I'd found it too easy to trust him with my life.
After rubbing my body with a dry towel, I gave my teeth a quick brush and slipped into my flannel PJs, then snuggled under the covers, musing.
Should I go after him and clarify that I wasn't actual y keen on anything casual? I sighed and switched off the lights. Cameron had always been the one to run and I the one to do the chasing, trying to woo him and rectify whatever I'd done wrong. In the end, he'd ended up cheating on me anyway. Whatever I'd seen in him was now gone, but I'd learned my lesson. No guy would ever make me trip over myself to please him. I figured, Aidan was a big boy. His ego could deal with a bit of rejection. And if not—I didn't want to go there. He simply had to be different and like me the way I was now that I'd fal en in love with him.
***
Living with vampires was messing up my routine big time, slowly turning me into a creature of the night, shunning daylight. I slept through most of the day, only waking twice to eat and cal my parents to tel them I was al right. By late afternoon, I found myself refreshed enough to take a hot shower and go around the house, waiting for the big event. Tonight we'd retrieve the book—whatever that might involve—but that wasn't what worried me. How would Aidan react to seeing me after the previous night? Was he stil mad?
The wind howled outside, rattling the shutters. I grabbed a soft drink from the kitchen and made myself comfortable on the sofa in the living room with several cushions propped up behind my back. Soon it'd be time to leave everything behind. After just a few days, I realised I felt at home and couldn't imagine myself living somewhere else. I could almost pretend the mansion was mine, forgetting that a few days ago I was a mere employee. Albeit, not a very good one, but I'd tried my best—sort of. Working for a vampire hadn't been an easy task, what with al the strange things happening and Aidan probably able to smel the dust I'd overlooked on occasion. Even Dal as hadn't failed to get Aidan's hints. But I hoped Aidan would consider al those things in my reference, because with my employment history I'd be lucky to land any crappy position. For a moment, I regretted quitting my job—my heated head was causing more harm than good these days—but asking him to take me back was out of the question. He'd ridiculed my cleaning skil s in front of the others. He was probably searching for a replacement already.
A car stopped in the driveway, gravel crunching under its tires. I pul ed the curtains aside, but the visitors had already moved out of my line of vision. A second later, the entrance door opened and I heard Cass's chatter, assuring someone they were welcome. I sighed and plopped down on the sofa. So much for seeing Aidan before we commenced our mission.
Cass peered in and switched on the lights, looking around the room. "Gee, Amber, we need to evacuate, like, right now. There's a hurricane amidst us." She chuckled. "I thought my place was bad."
I glanced from Clare's stacks of magazines gathering dust in the corners to the half-empty glasses I hadn't bothered to pick up after Dal as's visit. For a moment, I felt guilty. Then again, I realised my bad conscience wasn't warranted. Although I basical y stil lived here, free of charge, I wasn't Aidan's employee anymore.
I peered around me. It didn't even look that bad—just a few things thrown here and there, which helped give the house a homely touch. Real y, where was the charm in stacking away anything that might give away someone actual y lived here? I shrugged and looked back at Cass, only then noticing Devon and Angel standing in the doorway, hesitant whether to enter. With a flick of my hand, I motioned them to come in and grabbed Angel in a tight hug.
"I'm sorry I left you behind," I whispered in her ear so Devon wouldn't hear. Cass raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment.
Angel blushed and sat down on the sofa with a shy smile. "I'm just glad you're okay." Why wouldn't I be? And then it dawned on me. The girl believed what that eerie child queen spoon-fed her and didn't question the Shadows' actions. Angel continued, "They asked me to come along so you wouldn't feel al alone among these people."