Blood and Kisses - By Karin Shah Page 0,88

light. For someone who’d struggled to belong her entire life, such unconditional approval was like a homecoming. The shapes drew nearer. Each wore a corona of light, and Thalia recognized them, her mother, her father, Lily, her grandparents. They were all there.

They smiled at her and held out their hands.

Thalia reached down to touch Gideon’s raven dark head, longing to feel the silky texture of his hair, but her hand passed through it.

His face was stark and determined. She wanted to comfort him, to tell him that she would meet him when his turn came. But he didn’t seem to see her.

Lily stepped forward. She walked up to Thalia and took her hands. “It’s time to go.”

Thalia was surprised by how warm and solid her cousin’s hands felt. Tears stung her eyes. God, she’d missed her. But she pulled back. “I want to wait for Gideon.”

Lily shook her head, her features gentle. “He’s not coming. It’s not his time.”

Thalia could tell her cousin was holding something back. “What is it?”

Lily hesitated, her eyes troubled. Finally she spoke. “If he chooses to cross himself over, you may never see him again. Those who end their own lives go to a different place. It’s not punishment. It’s not Hell. It’s just different.”

Thalia studied her cousin’s beloved face and then her parents’ loving eyes. The incredible warmth of the light and their love seemed to tug at her just as the moon pulled the tide. Here was her family. She could have them back. This time, she could have them forever.

But she glanced down again at Gideon. If she surrendered to the power of the light, she might never see him again. She pulled her hands from Lily’s grasp. “I’m sorry. I can’t leave him.”

Lily smiled. “I never expected anything different.” She turned and walked back to join Thalia’s parents. “Be happy,” she called over her shoulder.

Suddenly Thalia was back in her body, the light had vanished, and she was aware of the rich coppery blood filling her mouth. She choked, sputtered, and finally swallowed the tangy liquid.

Gideon’s expression as he leaned above her was filled with relief. After the first mouthful, she couldn’t get enough. The more she drank, the more she wanted. Her heart regained its even rhythm. She could feel her body repairing itself.

Flesh knitted back together. Adrenaline rushed through her system. His ancient, powerful blood spread through her veins, transforming her cells into something new, something infinitely stronger. A violent shudder ripped down her body. Ice burned her from within. Fire chilled her. The change rippled through her like a shock wave, refashioning her from a creature of the sun into a being of the shadows.

She was reborn.

Minutes later, Thalia sat up, striving to take it all in. So much had changed in just the blink of an eye. She was a vampire now. Food would make her ill, she would be forced to drink blood to survive, the touch of the sun’s rays would burn her to ashes, but she was alive.

Gideon stared at her, his obsidian eyes unguarded, the hope in them plain to see.

Love, so fierce it hurt, swelled in her chest. She would miss food, and the sun, and the idea of drinking blood wasn’t exactly appetizing, but immortality with the man she loved? Priceless.

He touched her cheek. “Are you all right?”

She ran a hand through her tangled hair, and scanned her body all over. Although her clothes were blood stained and torn, there wasn’t a scratch on her. She stretched, enjoying the pull of her “new and improved” muscles and joints, the incredible sense of power seething beneath her skin. She could get used to this. “Never better.”

Her eyes traced his perfect features and a niggle of doubt wormed into her heart. Suddenly unsure, she peered at him from under her lashes. “I did hear you say you love me?”

He smiled, dark eyes glinting. “Yes.”

The warmth in his eyes dared her to believe, but she’d been hurt before. “And that you couldn’t live without me?”

“Yes.”

Something frozen deep inside her began to thaw. Still, years of caution had left their mark, she needed to be sure. She pinned him with a hard look. “And it wasn’t just ‘give the dying girl a thrill?’”

He pulled her to him so they were kneeling, thigh to thigh, her hands in his. “You’re not dying now. I love you.” He kissed her forehead. “I love you.” He kissed her mark. “I love you.” He found her lips in a