Page 123 of Bleed

“So, potentially forever.”

I let out a slow breath.

There’s that word again. And once more, my brain takes the concept, looks at it, and promptly throws it in the trash.

Humans just aren’t built to understand forever. We understand next week, next year, maybe the next few decades if we’re optimistic. But centuries? Watching the world evolve and change around me while I just… don’t?

And Elliott would be there, bonded to me through it all. That thought should probably make the whole thing even more overwhelming, but instead, something warm and terrifying unfurls in my chest.

Shit, am I actually considering this?

The bedroom door creaks open, Taylor and I both turning toward the sound.

James is standing in the doorway, filling the width of it with his broad frame. His icy blue gaze flicks briefly to me before settling on Taylor.

“Coming to bed, darling?” he asks.

It’s ridiculous how Taylor’s whole face changes when she looks at him. She positively beams before turning back to me, her smile faltering with indecision.

“Go,” I say, waving a hand.

Her brows pinch together. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

She hesitates, even as she starts pushing back her chair. “I can stay…”

“You’ve barely left me alone for three days,” I deadpan. “Go snuggle up with Dracula, I’ll be fine.”

She huffs out a breath as she eases to her feet, rounding the table and bending down to wrap her arms around me.

“I love you,” she whispers.

“Love you more, bitch,” I chuckle, hugging her back.

She gives me one last squeeze before straightening and crossing the room to James. He slips an arm around her waist, his gaze meeting mine as they turn to leave the room. I wait for him to say something obnoxious, but instead he just inclines his chin in acknowledgement. I return the gesture.

Weird.

Apparently almost dying has temporarily suspended hostilities.

James guides Taylor into the hall, the door shutting quietly behind them. Silence settles over the room as I stare at the closed door, then turn back toward the window, gazing out into the night.

Since James is headed to bed, dawn can’t be far off. I should probably sleep, too… but unfortunately, my overloaded brain’s wide awake.

I take another sip of tea as I stare through the glass, my gaze drifting across the sprawling lawn, following the pale streaks of moonlight between patches of shadow. Farther out, clusters of trees are draped in darkness, their branches shifting faintly in the breeze. I start mapping them without meaning to, my eyes bouncing from one trunk to another. The sprawling branches of an oak, a gap, then another tree, and…

My gaze stops, pulse skipping.

There’s something there.

My fingers tighten around the handle of my mug as I blink, trying to make sense of what I’m seeing.

A tall silhouette stands between the trees, nearly indistinguishable from the shadows surrounding it.

My breath stalls in my lungs.

No.