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I flexed my wrists. “Thanks,” I said before wrapping them around Scar’s waist, planting a delicate kiss on her forehead. My hand moved to tangle in her hair as a comfortable silence settled between us. No words seemed right or enough. She held me tighter, melting into my body completely. I couldn’t comprehend her acting this way after what I’d just done.

“You guys good?” said Colt, sending me a cautious glance.

It was clear he wasn’t sure how he should act, and I was acutely aware of the unease in his eyes. I needed to earn his trust again. I nodded. “Yeah. Thanks. For everything. I couldn’t have done that without you.”

“You scared the hell out of me,” he said as he scuffed the ground with his boot. He swiped a hand over his face before looking at me again. “You would do the same for me.”

I nodded, because I would.

Scar pulled away, and a blush crept up her face when Tyler walked into the cell.

I lifted my head in acknowledgement.

He leaned against the door frame, arms folded. “Give me a warning next time. I don’t need to hear that shit ever again.”

Scar averted her gaze, her hand pressing over her lips.

I gave a quiet chuckle. If I’d had more energy, I would have flicked him my middle finger. “Noted.”

When Scar made to stand, I did the same, but, suddenly, her hands flew out, grabbing me again. She stood unsteadily, a hand landing over her eyes.

“Hey.” I gripped her firmly, concern coursing through me. “Are you okay?” Her unfocused gaze sent alarm bells ringing in my head.

“You have just fed off her,” Callan said. “Probably more than necessary, but that’s a lesson learned. She needs rest.”

Gods, I’d done this to her.

Picking her up, I cradled her to my chest, and her head fell against me. “Let’s get you home.” She sighed in my arms, depleted of energy. I needed to get my shit together if I was going to make this work. I could not let this happen again.

Making our way out of the hallway and back into the main house, I remembered my previous visit to this estate. It had disgusted me, watching Jett feed. If I had imagined I would be doing the same only a week later, and with my very own fated mate, I would not have believed it.

Turning to Callan, yet another knowing look passed between us.

He chuckled, a smile tugging at his lips. “To think you thought you’d rip my heart out…”

I smirked, throwing him a look on my way out the door. “There’s still time.”

A wild grin was the last thing I saw before the door closed behind him. A door I never wished to set foot through again. Last time I left this estate, I was a blood mage. This time, I left with the woman I loved, and I wasn’t entirely human anymore.

I was half-blood mage, half-vampire hybrid.

Scarlet

I roused from sleep slowly, every limb heavy as though the feeding had drained more than my blood. My eyes felt like bricks as I tried to open them, and I blinked against the fading daylight. Pulling myself upright, the blanket slipped from my lap as I made my way over to the living room window. I swiped the condensation from the glass.

Outside, dusk smeared its pink hues over the tips of the forest that was the backdrop to our backyard. Even from inside, the chill coming off the glass pressed against my skin.

Midway through pulling the curtains closed, the warm glow of light coming from a window in the garage drew my attention. My brows drew together as curiosity led me to the back door, where I grabbed Reid’s jacket from a hook attached to it.

Pulling it on, his musky scent enveloped me, my insides diving and swirling with warmth as the smell of him filled my nostrils. I pulled it tighter, breathing him in. My fated mate. If someone had told me a year ago what my life would look like today, I would never have believed them.

Opening the back door, I skipped over the cobblestones leading to the garage, slowing when music hit my ears. My hand hovered above the doorknob as I leaned to peer in the window.

Inside, on a retro-style, wing-back chair, sat Reid with a guitar I’d seen many times balanced on his knee. He strummed it with ease, his eyes closed as he lost himself in the music that leaked through the glass. I loved seeing him like this. I always had. Music was his happy place. I’d known it for as long as I’d known him.

Quietly opening the door, I slipped inside.

He continued to play a song I knew well, the rock ballad crawling the walls of the garage like a shadow would an empty laneway. Quiet, discreet. The acoustic version of the song stripped it bare in a way I’d never heard it before, but when he sang, my mouth fell open. I found myself lost in the moment, in the lyrics, in him.