“You’re still trying to be human,” Terrin’s young voice answers. “The sooner you realize you’re not, the easier it becomes.” He bows to each of us. “Please excuse me. I need to check on Doris.”
“Stella and I are going upstairs,” Simon says, wrapping his sister’s arm through his. “I think you two need to talk.”
“Let’s go for a walk,” Cyrus says, moving closer to my side.
I close my eyes and breathe. “Okay.”
EIGHTEEN
no, thank you
Beinga vampire means I don’t notice temperature changes. Tonight, I feel it all. The cool breeze lifts my hair from my shoulders, sending chill bumps down my arms. Cyrus and I walk arm in arm around the back of Lucien’s property. The bushes are each trimmed into different shapes. Some resemble animals, while others look very humanistic.
“I’m sorry,” I say simply.
“There’s nothing to be sorry for.”
I scoff. “I made a fool out of myself. Lucien’s right. I still think like a human.”
Cyrus stops walking. “If you remember correctly, you were human not long ago. You never chose this life, Violet.”
“Harrison chose it for me.”
“He has a way of doing that.” He lifts my chin. “You are stronger than you realize.”
“That’s not going to keep Aurora or Callum from taking me.” I scoff. “Is there anyone else I should be aware of?”
Cyrus ignores my sarcasm. “If Lucien reverses the spell, I can prevent it,” he answers.
I stare at my buyer. “You purchased me to sell. I’m nothing more than an investment.”
Bright blue eyes stare back into mine. “You are much more than an investment, Violet.”
With his words, butterflies take flight in my stomach. How the hell does a vampire get butterflies? “What am I?” I ask, boldly.
“You are someone I’ve grown quite fond of.” Large hands wrap around my elbows.
“What are you saying?”
“I don’t know.” He turns, walking a few steps away. “From the first night you ran from me, ending up by the river, I sensed something different in you. You possess a strength that not many people have. It’s that strength that kept you alive when Chamberlin left you by the riverside and the same strength that kept you from eating half of New Orleans afterward.” He turns back toward me. “It’s the reason I’m willing to kill Callum.”
I don’t know what’s happening, but I think I like it. Is Cyrus confessing that he has feelings for me or simply protecting an investment?
“You’re willing to kill an ancient vampire to protect me?” I repeat his words from earlier.
“Does that bother you?” he asks.
“Did you know it’s rude to answer a question with a question?”
Cyrus smiles. “Touché.”
I look into his eyes, trying to figure out if I’m imagining this entire scene. “No and yes,” I answer.
“That answered so much.”
I smile before continuing. “No, it doesn’t bother me that you want to fight for me. Yes, it bothers me that something might happen to you.”
“I’m strong, Violet,” he counters. “Stronger than I should be.”
