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As I get to the ground floor of the mansion, I notice that the front door is slightly ajar. I freeze, wondering if one of my brothers came back without my knowledge. I’ve been watching them all day!
I approach the door and stretch a hand to grab the knob. A loud crashing noise comes from the kitchen and I spin around in time to see Damian glaring at me from the doorway.
"Dammit, Damian!" I yell, placing a hand on my chest.
He’s tearing into a piece of raw meat while he looks at me. Beef! The smell of the dead animal wafts into my nostrils, awakening my subdued hunger. I’d deliberately gone hungry because I didn't want to fill my stomach and not eat strawberries at the Festival.
"Where are you going?" Damian asks, chewing the meat sloppily.
"Uh, out? Where else will I be going?" I tell him, trying to hide my nervous tone.
"Where are you going?" Damian repeats. This time, his voice is deep and I know he's on the verge of ranting at me.
"The library," I quickly respond.
Damian eyes me. He throws the last of the meat into his mouth and walks towards me. I lock my gaze on him, pretending to not be scared. But Damian is the craziest of my brothers. He blindly follows Lawrence's orders and hell hath no madness like a follower with no mind of his own.
"What?" I say, desperately working on evening out my breathing.
His next action surprises me. Damian inches his face closer to mine and begins to sniff me. His grating voice send chills down my spine as he says, "I can smell that stranger on you. It's faint because you did a lot of scrubbing but you know I pick up even the faintest scents. What's his name again?"
I swallow hard. "Are you talking about Luke?"
“Yes, Luke.”
“We talked at the bar. That's why you can smell him on me."
Damian chuckles. "Oh, please, I wasn't born yesterday." He moves his face away from me and adds, "Whatever you did with him last night had better stay in whatever room you did it. We don't welcome strangers here."
I nod. "I know. It's a one time thing," I lie without blinking.
"Good. Or else." Damian bares his fangs at me. "I rip his lungs out."
I grab the doorknob and begin to slide out of the house. "Noted, Damian."
I hurry away from the mansion, not looking behind me as I try to shake off the ice forming in my veins. Damian is on to me but I'm not going to let him get into my head.
Today will be about Luke and no one else.
* * *
The annual Strawberry Festival is known for two things—the crowd of feastful people and the unending display of strawberries.
As I walk through the throngs of lively people clad in decorative clothes capturing every shade of strawberry and embrace the energetic atmosphere, I break into a delighted smile. I’m going to enjoy being here today.
To top it all, Luke's text came in as soon as I stepped into the Festival. He’s somewhere here, waiting for me to find him. I glance around the place, looking out for a man who takes my breath away with little more than a glance, even as I try to slow my steps. I don't want Luke to know he's been on my mind since the very second we met yesterday. He's better off not being aware of my obsession.
“How is a beautiful lady like you lost in a place like this?" a familiar voice says behind me.
I wheel around to stare into Luke’s intense green eyes. Just like last night, the world melts away. It’s just me and him. And the electricity that crackles between us. He smiles at me, flashing me those pearly white teeth of his and I have to stop myself from touching him.
"I was hoping some gorgeous man would find me and help me around this unfamiliar place," I say to him, my hand fluttering to my hair.
Luke chuckles this time. He takes my hand and presses his lips into the back of it. "You look amazing."
A shiver races up my body. I close my eyes and welcome the pleasant sensation his touch builds inside me. It chases away the lingering cold in my veins. He's my invigorating summer in the heart of a sinister fog. My pack is the sinister fog.
“Or else, I'll rip his lungs out.” Damian's hostile words slip into my mind against my will. I hate that my brother threatened to kill the man I can't stop thinking about. If only Damian took a moment to learn how amazing Luke is.
