Demonic Vampires (Supernatural Shifter Academy #3) - G. Bailey Page 0,40
in my power to not be in the same room as him at any given time. Edith, too, although that’s not much of a change from how things were before. My mind keeps replaying what I saw: her lips on his, that coy smile on her face, her beautiful, tinkling voice… A horrible possibility dawns on me -- did she know I was there? Did she kiss him because she knew it would upset me? Or does she truly have feelings for him?
I can’t decide which option is worse.
The tension is palpable when we gather in the common room to debrief. I sit perched on the far end of the couch, Landon’s hand in mine, while Hunter just stands on the other side of the room, smouldering. I can feel his eyes on me, burning holes in my head, as if by willpower alone he can make me look at him. At one point, Edith creeps up to stand beside him, but he shrinks away as if she’s poisonous. Part of me feels bad, part of me feels guilty, but mostly, I’m just confused.
“The good news is, they didn’t attack us,” Xander says. He’s sitting at the foot of the couch with Hazel’s back against his chest. “The bad news is, they want nothing to do with any of this.”
“Shit,” Silas mutters, sweeping a hand through his hair. “That figures.”
Ruby sighs and gets to her feet. Most of us are already changed for another night in, and I can see the exhaustion on my companions’ faces. “They’re scared,” she says flatly. “They don’t want the humans bringing heat down on London, and I can’t say I blame them.”
“We’re just going to have to keep trying then, aren’t we?” says Shade.
“We’ll be trying for the rest of our lives, at this rate,” Landon grumbles. I give his hand a gentle squeeze and see the faintest flicker of a smile on his face.
“That’s another three off the list, anyway,” says Hazel, getting to her feet. She lets out a yawn, her short blonde curls bouncing. “I’m going to turn in, I think. All this rejection is bringing my mood down.”
“You’re not the only one,” mutters Shade.
“We should all just rest up,” suggests Mollie. “We can come back to it fresh tomorrow.”
Xander sighs and follows Hazel’s lead. Silas and Shade, looking a little worse for wear after their duel earlier, exchange a look as the dragon shifter heads into the bathroom. Shade’s grey eyes flicker from me to Landon, and he winks -- how can something so corny be so sexy? -- before turning into his room, shedding his shirt as he goes. I can feel Landon’s grip on me tighten instinctively as the wolf shifter disappears, and just have time to wonder whether there’s some tension there before Mollie bids us goodnight and shuffles away with Edith in tow.
Hunter is the last one left, and for a moment he just stands there with his hands in his pockets, staring at the floor. “Millie…” he says quietly, taking a step toward me. “Can we talk?”
“I…” I can feel the emotions welling up in spite of myself and force my expression to harden. “I don’t think there’s anything to say.”
“Please.” His blue eyes are imploring me to give him a chance, but the wound is still fresh in my heart, and part of me wants to hurt him the way he hurt me. I shake my head silently.
Hunter opens his mouth to say something else, but Landon speaks up first. “Leave it alone, Hunter. She doesn’t want to talk about it.” I see the vampire shifter’s jaw clench, but then he gives us a stiff nod and leaves the room. Landon turns to me. “You okay, Boots?”
“As okay as I can be, I guess,” I say, forcing a smile. “Come on, let’s get ready for bed. You and I are up to bat again tomorrow.”
Tomorrow’s plans, as it turns out, are not meant to be, and that’s putting it lightly.
The first thing I become aware of through the fog of sleep is the sound of a loud banging, like someone on one of the lower floors is moving furniture around. Except it’s two in the morning, and the banging is getting louder…
I sit up on the couch, rubbing my eyes, and adrenaline rushes through me as I realise the sound is coming from just outside the flat door which is shaking on its hinges. “Landon!” I shake him awake. “Someone’s here!”
“Mm… what?” The siren