Mitchell’s hands cupped her bottom, and he brushed his tongue against hers, deepening the kiss. Amelia threw her arms around his neck, holding onto him tightly as if her life depended on it. His hands roamed her body, running along her thighs, up her back, down her arms. His lips trailed along her jaw until they found an earlobe, and she moaned and gasped for breath from the sensation.

His hunger skyrocketed, and mixed with hers, it was overwhelming and wonderful all at once. With his lips still nibbling at her ear, he moved Amelia back towards the bed, lying her down and slowly, he lowered himself closer to her.

Amelia fumbled with the buttons of his shirt, desperately longing for him to get closer yet. With his help, she managed to get them undone and the shirt off him and then with her legs still around his waist, she flipped him on his back, straddling him, and let her lips and hands explore the new found skin.

Mitchell moaned as she flicked her tongue at his neck and his hand slipped under her top, pulling her closer. His lips, urgent and moist, found hers and he moved her back underneath him, pulling her top off at the same time.

His lips trailed down her neck, chest, stomach and a flash of all the things he wanted to do with her raced across her mind. She gasped, and horrible warning bells went off in her mind. What was she doing? She was supposed to hate him. They didn’t even know each other. She wasn’t ready for this. But damn, she wanted it. Wanted him. She tried to ignore the bells, pushing them away. The last thing she wanted was to stop but before she could get rid of the thoughts, Mitchell pulled back and faster than she could process the movement, he was off the bed, looking down at her.

“Sorry, you’re right. That was too fast,” he said, shame dripping off him. “I shouldn’t have let it get that intense. I’ll, um…goodnight.” He nervously started inching towards the door, snagging his shirt and jamming his arms into the sleeves.

“Mitch,” Amelia whispered. “Don’t go.” She wasn’t sure why, but the last thing she wanted was to feel the distance between them. She didn’t want to feel the pull and she didn’t want to be alone. He searched her face, and she could feel the hum as he searched her mind. Amelia sat up and grabbed her shirt, pulling it back on and then locked her eyes on him. “I don’t want to be alone.”

He smiled brilliantly at her and if her heart could have wagged its tail, it would have. He closed the distance between them in a few short steps, touched his lips to hers with a light kiss and then whispered. “I need a shower. I’ll come back soon.” And then, with another quick kiss, he left.

Wide-awake now, the idea of a cold shower sounded really, really good and Amelia jumped at the thought. After a quick burst of cold water, she pulled on shorts and a tank, ventured back out into her room and curled up in bed. Not long after, Mitchell came back, freshly showered and in jogging pants and a t-shirt. Without a word, he cuddled in behind her, pulling her close to his chest and before long, Amelia drifted to sleep.

CHAPTER 22

Erin looked herself over in the mirror, fiddling with her pigtails and straightening the straps of her overalls. She sighed. She already looked guilty and she hadn’t done anything yet. If He saw her, he would know something was up, and then she wouldn’t be able to fix what was already in motion. And she had to fix it.

She dabbed on more cover-up, hoping to hide the raccoon eyes, and then took in a deep breath and bolted from her room, praying she could get out before anyone noticed her panic.

“Gotta run,” Erin chirped, glad her voice sounded steady, racing through the house. She had managed to stay away from Him all night but she was really starting to run out of excuses and she really hoped her goodbye would be enough to keep his suspicions at bay.

“Hold on a minute,” he said, appearing from nowhere. “Where are you running off to?”

Erin stretched her cheeks into a sweet smile. “School, I promised to pick up Millie,” she said, not bothering to look at him. She knew all too well that he would see she was hiding something and if he saw it, he’d check and if he checked he wouldn’t let her leave. And if she didn’t leave, then she wouldn’t be able to help Millie.

Erin held her breath when he reached out and tipped up her chin. He searched her face and the soft buzzing started. Shit, she thought, trying to erase the corrupting thoughts from her mind but it just kept popping up. Desperation engulfed her; she couldn’t get rid of it. He would find out and then…

She kissed him. Erin reached up on her tiptoes and took his bottom lip between her teeth with a little nibble. “You are such a hottie,” she whispered against his lips, praying the distraction would work.

He pushed her away, his black eyes boring into her, hard and cold. Erin trembled under his stare, had he already seen her plan? She wasn’t sure, but the look he was giving her was deadly.

Her bottom lip quivered and his eyes flashed to it. He sighed and closed his eyes tightly for a second, then pulled her closely into his arms. “You’re being careful, right?” Erin couldn’t answer, she didn’t want him to hear the tremors in her voice and she nodded against his chest. He kissed the top of her head lightly. “Good,” he said, dropping his arms. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Erin kissed his cheek and then ran out the door before he changed his mind.

“Cover up that mark, Erin,” he called after her.

“Yeah, I will,” she called over her shoulder without slowing down. “I have cover-up in my purse.”

Erin had never been so happy to be in her shiny red VW. She jammed the key in the ignition and the engine roared to life. She let out the pent up breath, tossed the car into reverse and sped off, leaving a spray of loose gravel and dust behind her.

She drove in fear, waiting for the inevitable. He knew something was up. She was sure of it. So why hadn’t he come after her yet? Because he doesn’t know, she tried to reassure herself.

Once out of sight from the house, Erin pulled over. She was shaking so badly she could barely keep the car on the road and she knew she needed to calm down.

After a few deep breaths and a double-check of the bond to be sure he wasn’t listening in, Erin riffled through her bag for her phone. She hated to make the call, hated that she was betraying him and it made her feel sick.

But Amelia is innocent, Erin told herself firmly. She’s nice, caring and a friend. The thoughts reaffirmed what needed to be done. She didn’t have to be like him. She wouldn’t let the hunger for revenge ruin her like it had him. Not this time around.

Erin tapped in the number and hit call. The shrill ring of the phone was torture and she waited for Madame Crystal to answer. “Hello, Erin. I’ve been expecting your call.”

An involuntary shiver passed through Erin. She hated the idea of psychics and witches. Wasn’t a vampire soulmate enough? At least she knew how to deal with vampires. She took a deep breath, remembering Amelia’s friendly smile and said, “I need you to help my friend, Amelia. She's in trouble and she doesn’t know she’s a witch yet. She needs to be able to protect herself. It’s all happening too fast and…”

“I know, dear,” Madame Crystal said, cutting off her panicked rambling. “His plan has changed.”

“Can you help her?” Erin asked, holding her breath. If Madame Crystal couldn’t help, she’d have to figure out how to get Amelia out of town. She’d have to figure out how to hide her.

“Maybe, bring her to me as soon as you can,” the psychic said and then she hung up before Erin could get another word in.

Erin let out her breath in a gush of wind. Maybe. That wasn’t exactly what she had been hoping for, especially after bumping into the psychic last week in the supermarket. She replayed the words Madame Crystal had said, “You will meet a new friend and you can save her by bringing her to me.” And now all she was getting was a “maybe”?

She bit her bottom lip nervously. Had the prophecy changed? She tried to call back. She needed answers but the line just rang and rang and rang. After the eighth try, she tossed her phone back into her bag and swore under her breath.

The sky opened up and rain pelted down, pinging against her car. Erin scrubbed at her face, took a deep breath and then put the car in drive. At least “maybe” is better than “no” she told herself, trying to see the positive in a bleak situation. Now all she had to do was figure out how in the world she would get Millie to Madame Crystal.

CHAPTER 23

Morning dawned, gloomy with rain. Amelia rolled over dreamily and took a deep breath. Mitchell’s sweet, clean scent lingered in the air. Amelia opened her eyes to sneak a peek at him, and she was disappointed to find that he wasn’t there. Work. He must have gone to work she thought with a yawn, and closed her eyes, listening to the tapping rhythm of the rain.

Suddenly, the rumbling thunder shook the windows and, stunned, Amelia bolted out of bed. Wide awake now, she noticed her alarm clock was blinking; the power must have gone out. She snagged her phone off the nightstand: 8:46. Crap. She had slept in and Erin would be there to pick her up in fourteen minutes.

Amelia took the quickest shower on record, cursing under her breath. Mornings sucked, life sucked, and it was pouring rain.

She got dressed in record time, pulling on a pair of low-rise jeans and a gray hoodie. She could almost picture the look on Angelle’s face at her choice in clothes, and it made her grin. No time for make-up or to dry her hair—not that it mattered—it was raining. Amelia piled the curls high on her head and secured them with a jumbo butterfly clip.

Amelia had just stuffed her books and the paper that she had written with Mitchell into her backpack when her bedroom door swung open, cracking against the wall. She spun around, dropping her bag with a clunk, to find Mitchell barging in and he was not happy. If looks could kill, Amelia was certain she would be dead.

“It’s called knocking,” she snapped. “I know it’s probably a foreign concept to you but it’s when you rap your fist on the door and then you wait for someone to answer it.”