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A goofy chuckle escapes my mouth, but Marina’s attention is on Law as she interrogates him on Julian’s whereabouts.
Thank God for that. The last thing I need is for Marina to double down on her efforts to uncover my feelings.
My head lifts and my eyes meet Law’s. His brows are furrowed and he’s frowning.
Did he see the way I was staring at him?
I’ve embarrassed myself one too many times acting like a lovesick child in front of Lawrence Bellamy. It’s the very reason our last night together took a turn for the worse. I get a do-over. A second chance to show him I’m not the little girl he watched through the years. I’m a woman.
A woman in love with a vampire.
I take a deep breath and focus on my surroundings. Anything but the guy in the doorway.
It’s a large room with one window next to the four-poster bed. The bedding is feminine in whites and pale yellows. I wince slightly at the color but turn to take in the opulence of the space. Deep cherry crown molding lines the top of the wall and the doorframes. There are two doors. One leads to the en suite bathroom, the other to a large closet full of clothes.
That distraction only lasts a second and my eyes are right back to Law as he retreats from the room, leaving me alone with my sister.
I just enjoy the quiet as Marina takes a seat next to me and we both lie back.
We lie around in companionable silence, each lost in our own thoughts for what feels like hours. I’m in no rush to break the quiet.
“No more secrets. From here on out, we tell each other everything,” Marina says, turning toward me and shattering the peace.
I hate that I have to continue to hold information from her, but it’s what’s for the best right now.
“Agree.”
“Starting with what’s going on with you and Law.”
Ugh... anything other than that. I try to change the subject, but Marina’s a dog with a damn bone.
“You need to fill me in on the googly eyes you and Law seem to have for each other.”
I throw my head back in frustration. Not with her, but with the situation. “Ugh. It’s always been a one-way infatuation, Marina. Nothing to tell.”
Which is the God’s honest truth. Outside of that one slip on Law’s part, it’s always been my infatuation.
As much as I want to divert, maybe getting some of it off my chest will help. Isn’t that what sisters are for? Moral support.
“I’ve all but thrown myself at him, and he’s not once taken the bait.” Not entirely true, but baby-stepping my way into this with Marina seems like the best plan. I don’t need her getting any matchmaker ideas. I need to do things my way. “He treats me with kid gloves, and it’s frustrating as hell.”
Law was like a babysitter. Someone who was around to watch over me. He treated me like a kid sister or a ward. Pats on the head and overprotective shadowing were the totality of our relationship. He doted on me once in a while, but in a platonic sort of way. It was strange. As I grew up, we became friends, and I didn’t want it any other way. I’d always found Law intriguing, fun to be around... breathtaking, but I wasn’t into boys, and that included him.
Six months before the night I jumped, my feelings shifted. For the first time, I craved a man’s attention. I cravedhisattention. I wanted to be with him every waking minute of the day. He’d become my person.
Until I had to go and kiss him.
Two weeks before I jumped, his staring became something else. His touches lingered. At least, that’s what my brain told me was going on. Then, when he suggested I share my blood with him, I was convinced things had shifted for him too.
I was so wrong.
“You mean to tell me you two never so much as kissed?” Marina asks, as though reading my mind.
I know I just promised I wouldn’t keep secrets, but this tiny one won’t hurt... right? The last thing I need is for her to share that information with Julian.
“Nope. The most we’ve shared is my blood.”
Crap.
