I start to turn back to the house, but stop. “Why were Zac and Noah here?”
Everett rubs the back of his neck, looking at the ground. “You, uh, might want to give your sister a call and let her know you’re okay.”
“Tori?” I ask, frowning.
“She gave me her number on the weekend in case of an emergency, and when Juliet showed up here looking for you and you weren’t answering your phone…” He lifts his gaze. “They both told me what happened with your dad. We were worried, so I called Zac and Noah, but I didn’t tell them about your past. The plan was to come looking for you, but then you walked in.”
I stare at him. “You thought I’d hurt myself?”
He grimaces, then shrugs.
My stomach drops. “I wouldn’t do that to my sister, or to Juliet.”
“I’m not the one you have to convince,” he says quietly, turning to climb into his car. “See you tomorrow.”
I watch him pull away, then slide out my phone and call Tori. It only rings once before she answers.
“Are you okay?” she asks breathlessly. “I was about to jump in my car and drive back?—”
“I’m fine,” I interrupt. “You don’t need to do that.”
“What’s going on? Where wereyou?”
“I went for a hike to clear my head.”
“Things didn’t go well with Juliet?” Disappointment hangs heavy in her tone.
My lips tug into a smile. “The opposite, actually.”
“I don’t understand.”
A chuckle pushes past my lips. “I’ll explain later. Just wanted to let you know I’m okay. Now I want to go spend time with my girl.”
“I’m happy for you, Blake.”
My grin widens. “Thank you.”
When I head back inside, Juliet’s curled up on the couch with her Kindle. She’s so engrossed in her book that she doesn’t even notice I’m standing here. I lean against the opening and watch her eyes dance across the screen as she chews on her nail. She’s so goddamn beautiful. I can’t believe she’s mine.
“Good book?” I tease, loving the way her cheeks flush.
“Who doesn’t love a female vigilante vampire,” she says with a coy smile.
I arch a brow. “Sounds interesting.”
“It is.”
Smirking, I hold out my hand to her. “More interesting than making good use of an empty house?”
She tosses her Kindle into her handbag, biting her lip as she takes my hand and lets me pull her to her feet.
I wrap my arm around her waist and bury my head in her neck, breathing her in as my lips drift over her sweet skin.
“Is this real?”
Her hands reach between us to rest on my chest. “It’s real.”
Chapter 24
