“Yes,” I admitted, running a hand through my hair. “But it’s complicated.”
“Good complicated or bad complicated?”
I thought about Valen’s confession earlier, about the feeding and the way he’d looked at me when I’d told him I wanted to be his. About the invitation to his house and the promise of spending the night together.
“I don’t know yet,” I said honestly. “But I’m about to find out.”
Amelia studied my face for a long moment, then nodded slowly. “You’re really doing this, aren’t you? You’re actually going to see where this leads.”
“I think I am, yeah.”
She stood up and walked over to me, placing her hands on my shoulders. “Then be careful, okay? I know I pushed you to rebel, but I don’t want you to get hurt. Emotionally or otherwise.”
The concern in her voice made my chest tighten. “I will be. I promise.”
“And Archer?” She squeezed my shoulders gently. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re braver than you give yourself credit for. Following your heart instead of Father’s expectations. That takes courage.”
I felt a sudden urge to hug her, this sister who knew me better than anyone and still supported me even when I was making potentially catastrophic decisions.
“Thank you,” I said, pulling her into a quick embrace. “For everything.”
“Just promise me you’ll tell me how it goes,” she said, pulling back with a grin. “I want all the details. Well, not ALL the details, but you know what I mean.”
I laughed despite my nerves. “I’ll tell you what I can.”
She headed for the door, then paused with her hand on the handle. “You sure you’re not just doing this because I told you to?”
“I’m positive,” I nodded. “But I think you should go out and do something for yourself too, and stop worrying about me.”
“Hmm,” she grinned. “Maybe I will.” She held up a hand, pushing the door open. “See ya.”
After she left, I stood there for a moment, feeling oddly lighter. Having Amelia’s support, knowing that someone was in my corner no matter what happened, made this feel less like I was jumping off a cliff and more like I was finally taking control of my own life.
I grabbed my jacket and took one last look in the mirror. My reflection stared back at me, nervous but determined. Tonight was going to change everything, one way or another.
I whispered the invisibility charm, feeling the familiar tingle of magic as it settled over me like a second skin, and slipped out of my room into the darkened hallway.
Outside, campus was quieter at night, with only the occasional student hurrying between buildings or the distantsound of laughter from someone’s dorm room. I kept to the shadows out of habit more than necessity. The invisibility charm would hide me from casual observation, but it wasn’t foolproof. Enhanced senses like Valen’s could still detect me if he was looking for me specifically.
My heart hammered against my ribs as I made my way across the quad toward the faculty housing complex. I’d looked up Valen’s address in the student directory earlier, though I’d had to be careful about it. I didn’t want anyone to know what I was up to and the card catalogue with all the information in it wasright besidethe librarian’s desk.
The faculty residences were tucked away on the far side of campus, a collection of elegant townhouses and small cottages that housed the professors who chose to live on campus. It made sense that Valen would live here. It gave him convenient access to his classes and the fencing salle, but it was private enough for a centuries-old vampire who probably valued his solitude.
I found his townhouse number easily enough, tucked in the back corner of the complex. His residence was a modest two-story cottage with ivy climbing the brick walls and warm light spilling from the windows. It looked normal, domestic even. Nothing like what I’d expected for a vampire’s lair.
I stood at the end of his walkway for a moment, letting the invisibility charm drop as I tried to work up the courage to actually knock on his door. This was it. The point of no return. Once I walked up those steps and knocked, there would be no pretending this was just academic curiosity or rebellious impulses. This was me making a conscious choice to pursue something dangerous and complicated that could destroy both our lives if things went wrong.
But as I stood there in the darkness, I realized I wasn’t afraid anymore. Nervous, yes. Excited, absolutely. But not afraid. Because whatever happened tonight, it would be my choice.My decision. Not something dictated by family expectations or social pressure.
I walked up the path and knocked softly on his door.
It opened almost immediately, like he’d been waiting just inside. Valen stood there in dark jeans and a simple black sweater that somehow made him look even more devastatingly attractive than his usual professor attire. His amber eyes swept over me, taking in my carefully chosen outfit, and I caught the slight smile that tugged at his lips.
“You came,” he said, and there was something almost surprised in his tone, like part of him hadn’t believed I’d actually show up.
“Did you think I wouldn’t?”
“I thought you might come to your senses,” he admitted, stepping aside to let me in. “That you’d decide this was too risky after all.”
