wrong to think that there could ever be another mate for you. He thinks that because he is the closest thing to a male Madea, you have no choice but to accept him as your true mate. But…” she sighed dramatically. “He knows how you feel about my brother, Grace. He knows that there could be true love there.” She smiled, and before I could speak, she turned and walked from the room to join Seth in the kitchen.
I sat. My head felt like it weighed a hundred pounds. I was hurting from head to toe and to top it all that off, I was exhausted. With Lucian in my bed, and Jamie in my best guest room, I stood to go make a home in the smaller guest room.
I opened the door and froze. What the hell? The room had been altered so that no light could enter. I examined the windows. Crap, I thought. Wincing as I realized they had been painted from the inside. I turned and my eyes fell upon the bed. It was piled with black and purple sheets. Huge, fluffy pillows were scattered all over. As usual, Seth’s bed looked like he slept snuggled next to a tornado.
“I don’t suppose you are contemplating which side you would like?” he leaned against the door jam, his arms folded.
I turned and frowned at him, questions sat on the tip of my tongue.
“I am not worried about your love for the warlock.” He straightened and moved further into the room.
“Stop reading my mind,” I sighed.
He shrugged and toed off his shoes. It was an oddly human thing for him to do and I frowned. “I had no need to read your thoughts, Sweet. It is written all over your face.” He chuckled, “And Jamie has a rather loud voice.” He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off his shirt.
My mouth went dry and I stepped back. He looked so good sitting there, his short black hair, his shining silver eyes. He was another man with his hair chopped short, even more seductively dangerous.
He smiled and stood. “Ah, now that is much better. The Grace with lust in her eyes is back.” He stepped close and wrapped his arms around me. He was a large man, his chest was muscular and wide, and his shoulders were broad. His waist was narrow and just the right height. I wound my arms around him and rested my cheek on his chest. “You scared me for a time, Sweet.” His chest rumbled as he spoke and I closed my eyes. “I thought that my allure was gone. You still want me, do you not, my darling?”
My darling?
I dropped my arms and took a small step back. My heart began to race and I slowly opened my eyes to focus on the man before me. His body was tattooed perfection; his neck was long and thick. Blonde hair crowned the face of the most beautiful man I had ever seen. “Well, my darling? You do still want me?”
I felt my face go numb as stars sparkled across my vision.
“Grace? Can you hear me?”
TWENTY THREE
My face was soaking wet and my cheeks stung like some one had just beat the holy shit out of me. I sputtered and choked as stars continued to sparkle across my vision. Panic raced through my veins and I sat up fast, I gained my feet and tore off down the hall as fast as I could. I saw the door and opened it with a thought; I picked up more speed and raced for freedom.
The door slammed shut a second before I reached it and I turned, screaming, I struck out with a bolt of energy. It shattered the lamp next to my grandma’s sofa. The sound shocked me and I stopped, my chest heaving, I searched the room frantically for the devil.
Jamie crawled out of the corner on all fours and I jumped, throwing my hand to my chest. She stood, her eyes wild.
“What the fuck, Grace?” She shook out her shirt. Bits of broken lamp fell from her clothing and I pushed away from the door.
Seth remained in the hall; his eyes were huge as he looked at me with confusion. “What was that, Grace? Why would you attack us?” He came into the room and gently took Jamie’s chin in his hands. Seth turned her face slowly back and forth, searching for injuries. He ran his thumb across her jaw and