AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My eyes narrow. “You expect me to take your word for it?”
She arches a sharply lined brow at me. “God forbid.” She lifts her hand, picking thoughtlessly at her black manicure as she says, “Text your boys. Check that I am telling you the truth.”
I pull my phone out of my pocket and type out a quick message to Atlas.
There should be a witch there to remove the magic from Calla. Can you confirm?
The text bubbles appear a few seconds later, and I stare at the screen until his message comes through.
Yes. The magic has been lifted. Calla is safe. Are you?
Some of the tension in my chest eases, and I exhale a heavy breath. Before I can respond, Selene appears in front of me and plucks the phone from my hand. She turns it off and tosses it onto the couch behind her, stepping even closer.
I hold my breath, clenching my jaw as she leans in and presses her hands against my chest. “What are you doing?” I say in a tight voice, my hands itching to shove her away.
Selene licks her lips, making the red painted on them shine. “It’s been a long time, Gabriel.”
Not long enough. I want to tell her to stop saying my name. Each time she does, the sound is like nails on a chalkboard to my ears.
She slides her fingers up to my shoulders and laces them together behind my neck. Her perfectly airbrushed face is so close I can count the lashes fanning her bright silver eyes. I used to be so enraptured by this woman, but now, the sight of her makes me sick. The monster in me may crave our connection created by my death, but I loathe her.
“A long time,” I echo, keeping my arms at my sides. “What’s your angle here, Selene? What are you hoping to accomplish by forcing me to be here?”
She laughs softly, her eyes alight with amusement. “Forcing you? Please. You could just as easily have refused to come.” She lowers her voice. “Your little human consort would have paid the price for that choice, but make no mistake, my love. You had a choice.”
“So did you when you chose to take my life from me.”
She rolls her eyes. “All these years later, and you’re still so dramatic about that. I gave you a gift. You should be thanking me.”
Anger crackles through me, hotter than the burning fire behind me, and I grab her hips and turn us around slamming her into the wall next to the fireplace. Growling in her face, I snap, “You want me to thank you?”
Heat flares in her gaze, and the sound of her racing pulse echoes in my ears.
“Perhaps what I did was selfish,” she finally says, her voice slightly strained. “I couldn’t lose you, so I did what I had to do to ensure I didn’t.”
My jaw clenches and my fingers dig into her hips. “And yet, you still did.”
She nods before cocking her head to the side. “I don’t blame you for running,” she murmurs, her blond hair slipping into her face. “I was born this way, but I understand how overwhelming becoming a vampire can be. Perhaps if you’d stayed—”
“Perhaps if you had listened when I told you I didn’t want this,” I cut in, my voice sharp, “we—”
“What’s done is done, Gabriel. I’d say you’ve done exceptionally well for yourself. If you can’t thank me for turning you, you can at least admit that.”
My eyes narrow, and I pull my hands off her hips. “Why am I here?” I demand.
She purses her lips. “You know, Calla asked me the very same question,” she says, sliding her fingers into the hair at the back of my neck.
I swallow my disgust. “So tell me,” I implore her, “what are you up to?”
“Hmm, I’m keeping very busy with many things.”
My control snaps, and I rip her hands away from me, shoving them down. “Things like Scott Ellis?” I shouldn’t have revealed that Calla overheard her conversation with Brighton’s father, but the words left my lips before I could stop them.
Selene laughs. “Oh, that sneaky little bitch.”
My hand is wrapped around her throat before I know what’s happening. “Watch your mouth,” I growl in her face.
Her lips twist into an arrogant smirk. “You can’t hurt me, and we both know it. So we can continue playing—truly, I’m rather enjoying this hands-on side of you—or we can discuss the hunters.”
