The Reluctant Vampire Page 0,60

know that?" Drina interrupted her teasing sharply.

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "We've been through this. I can read your mind, remember?"

"Yes, but I wasn't thinking of it," Drina said at once, aware that Harper was glancing from the road, to her, to Stephanie in the rearview mirror with a troubled frown.

Stephanie shrugged. "You must be. Otherwise, how would I know what you two did?"

Drina stared at her silently, more than troubled. She hadn't been thinking of what she and Harper had done. She'd been thinking of the a er, the waking up on the floor. Yet Stephanie apparently knew what had happened between her and Harper and obviously in detail. It should embarrass her, but she was too concerned by what the girl's apparently pulling - not just thoughts, but - actual memories from her mind could mean to worry about embarrassment.

Usually, for an immortal to access someone's memories, they had to get the person they were reading to recall them. Stephanie apparently could access them whether the person was thinking of them or not.

"You think I'm a freak now," Stephanie said unhappily.

"Not a freak," Drina said quietly. "Apparently very gifted."

The girl relaxed and smiled a little at that. "Gifted?"

"Very," Drina murmured, and turned in her seat to face front, doing her best to keep her thoughts as blank as possible. Stephanie's abili es weren't normal, but she didn't even want to get near that thought in the girl's presence. She needed to think, but away from Stephanie.

She also needed to find a chance to talk to Harper, Drina thought on a sigh. While she was glad he wasn't avoiding her this morning, he had last night, and his blowing hot and then cold was leaving her uncertain and worried about the future. She had started out her journey to Port Henry determined to be pa ent, but that was before she'd met and spent me with him. The more Drina got to know Harper, the more emo onally invested she became, and she'd started out pre y invested to begin with for the simple reason that he was her life mate.

The moment Drina had walked into Casey Co age, tried to read him, failed, and acknowledged that Marguerite was right, and he was her life mate, she'd thrown in half her emo onal chips. But with every conversa on they had, and every experience they shared, she was throwing in more chips, and Drina was afraid of getting hurt here if his guilt proved too strong for him to put aside.

"Are you feeling all right, Stephanie? You look pale."

Harper glanced to the girl at Drina's words and frowned as he noted her pallor.

"I'm fine, hungry is all," Stephanie mumbled. "Can we stop and get a sundae or something on the way out? That'll settle my stomach."

"I don't think it's food you're hungry for," Drina said solemnly. "We've been at the mall for hours now, and you're a growing girl. You need to feed."

"I'll get the cooler out of the trunk and put it into the backseat before we leave. She can feed on the way back," Harper murmured, ushering them toward the exit nearest to where he'd parked.

"I don't want to feed," Stephanie complained, sounding as cranky as a five-year-old.

"I said you need to feed. Want doesn't come into it," Drina said firmly.

Harper couldn't help but no ce this made Stephanie's lower lip protrude rebelliously. He suspected they would have a fight on their hands ge ng the girl to feed at this rate, and then noted the way she was rubbing her stomach, and said, "It will make your cramps go away."

"Whatever," Stephanie snapped, leading the way outside in a stomp.

"She just needs to feed," Drina murmured, excusing her behavior as if worried Harper might think badly of the girl.

"I know," he assured her, and then, finding it adorable that she would defend the girl like a mother bear with a cub, Harper slipped his arm around Drina's waist and drew her to his side to kiss her forehead.

"You're going to be a good mother."

She turned a stunned face to him, then quickly looked forward again, and Harper smiled wryly. He supposed she hadn't yet considered the possibility of children. Not that he had, either. He hadn't really considered much at all yet.

Anders's words the night before had shaken Harper sufficiently to send him back to his room and into bed, where he'd lain contempla ng the possibility of losing Drina to death. He'd been so wrapped up in