“Is that what you think?” she asked, her voice soft, a little crease appearing between her eyebrows. “That Gabriel sees you as a means to an end?”
Jaci’s eyes blurred with tears, and she turned away, rearranging liquor bottles on the shelves just to avoid Charley’s gaze.
There was a time—just a couple of nights ago, actually—when Jaci would’ve said hell no. When she believed that maybe, just maybe, despite their hostile beginnings, she and Gabriel had a shot at building something real. The holding-each-other-at-night, cooking-breakfast-in-the-morning, just-being-there kind of real Charley was talking about.
But that ship had sailed, crashed, and sunk harder than the Titanic, and no amount of “aiming higher” was going to salvagethatwreckage.
“Deep down, I think you know how Gabrielreallyfeels about you,” Charley finally said, “so I won’t belabor it. But speaking for myself… I’m talking to you because Iwantto talk to you, Jaci. I meant what I said the other night—I know what it’s like when you’re stuck between a rock and those flaming shit sandwiches.”
Jaci laughed, finally turning around to face her again. “I think you’re mixing metaphors.”
“It’s a gift,” she said with a grin. Then, her smile softening, “I don’t care what you’ve done, what you’re ashamed of, or what sins you think you have to atone for. All that is in the past. If you tell me right now, honestly, that you want to be my friend—that you want to be part of this family no matter how messy, complicated,andflaming our piles of shit may be—then I’m willing to give you another chance.”
Emotion welled in her chest.
Was this woman for real?
“But… why?” Jaci asked. “Why would you do that?”
Charley pulled out her phone and swiped to a photo, then handed the phone to Jaci.
“Your sister,” Jaci said, recognizing the perky blonde woman in the shot, her face smushed up against Charley’s like the pair couldn’t bear to be separated. “She’s adorable.”
“She is. And smart, and hilarious, and seriously in love with Aiden, though she still won’t admit it.”
Jaci smiled. “Yeah, I may have heard something about that.”
“Well, thanks to the fact that I’m a vampire—marrying the vampireking, no less—my little sister now has one foot in our world and one foot in her own. I can’t always keep her safe, but I have to believe we can do better than tearing each other’s throats out and lighting each other on fire.Allof us—humans and supernaturals alike. You asked me why I want to give you a chance? That’s the truth of it.”
Jaci handed back the phone. “And here I thought you vamped out on a few innocents and needed a refill on your Karma points.”
“Um… You’re kinda rusty at this whole friend thing, huh?”
“Maybe a little. Let me try again.” Jaci cleared her throat, flashed an exaggerated wink, and said, “Buy you another drink, friend?”
Charley grinned. “Nowyou’re getting the hang of it.”
“I’m a quick study.”
“Perfect. That means we can skip the rest of the lectures and threats and officially move on to the fun stuff.”
Jaci laughed, and this time, it wasn’t hollow. The sound of it surprised her—lighter, somehow. Almost… almost happy. Hopeful.
If you tell me right now, honestly, that you want to be my friend—that you want to be part of this family…
Was it even possible? To be part of a family that chose you because they actually wanted you and cared about you, rather than one that created you with violence and manipulation, twisting you into some kind of monster to further their own power?
Every single one of Jaci’s instincts, honed over years of torture and pain, screamed out the same answer.
No, itisn’tpossible, you stupid girl. It’s a trap. It’s always a trap. What else could it be?
There were a lot of things it could be, Jaci realized. A lot of terrible things, sure—but there was an equally strong chance those things could be amazing too.
Maybe she didn’t have to figure it all out just yet. To run it through the filters of her fucked-up past or try to predict how it would turn out in the future. Right now, maybe it was enough to appreciate what she had inthismoment—the possibility of a new friend. A group of vampires working to help her take down the demon that had cast a shadow over her entire life. And, as painful as it was to admit, a man she’d fallen in love with.
No matter if it ever turned into a real relationship, no matter how long that relationship lasted—five minutes, a year, a lifetime—loving someone was its own reward, even if itwasdestined to crash and burn.
For the first time since she arrived in New York City, a weight fell away from Jaci’s heart, making room for the possibility that she actuallybelongedsomewhere. That she might not have to leave it all behind after all.
