AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I closed our front door with my free hand, and she turned in my arms, grabbing me by my t-shirt and slamming her lips against mine.
Though the kiss caught me off guard, I didn’t hesitate to return it. My hands found her ass, squeezing while our mouths and tongues moved together.
Miles pulled away after a few minutes, breathing fast and still blushing.
She was so damn beautiful.
“What was that for?” I tucked an escaped curl back into the band holding her bun in place. For a woman who tried like hell to have everything together, it was ironic that her hair refused to stay in place.
“Nothing, really. I just wanted to kiss you.” She bit her lip.
I tugged it free from between her teeth, then kissed her again lightly, before pulling away myself. “Now you understand how I’ve felt about you from the beginning.”
Her lips curved upward slightly. “You didnot. You weren’t interested in me the first time we met.”
“Maybe notinterested, butattracted.” I scooped her up off her feet, making her huff but smile. “But there’s no point in being interested in someone who isn’t your potential mate. It’s a recipe for heartache.”
She leaned her head against my shoulder while I carried her to the couch. “I never thought about that.”
“Even vampires don’t usually date unless they’ve decided to meet and mate with a potential. Relationships get too complex if fate’s not involved.”
“You say that like you know firsthand.”
I considered my words for a moment before finally admitting, “You can’t tell a soul. Not even Tatum and Brynn.”
Her eyes widened. “What did you do?”
“Not me. But I’m not giving you details without a promise, Miles.” I set her down on the couch, and held out my pinky.
She stared at it for a moment before finally hooking her pinky through mine. “Alright, I’ll keep the secret. Unless it hurts one of my friends.”
I narrowed my eyes at her.
“I’ll keep it no matter what,” she reluctantly agreed.
I squeezed her pinky lightly, then released it. Getting comfortable, I leaned back against the couch and draped an arm behind Miley’s shoulders. She set her legs on my lap, and I set my hand on her calves.
“There was a human woman on one of our tech teams a few decades back. Carrie. We were in Rhode Island, where she lived, dealing with a vampire clan that had imploded. They were turning new people left and right, chaotic in a way we’ve only seen a few times in our life. Charlie and a few members of his clan were there with us, dealing with the threat, because it was so damn huge. Carrie worked with me, and we were friendly. She was one of the only human women I’ve ever worked somewhat closely with who didn’t flirt with me, so I liked her well enough.”
He continued, “Bash did too, apparently. I didn’t realize they were together until I caught him bringing her lunch one day, so I have no idea how long it went on. I didn’t ask either of them about it; Bash and I stay out of each other’s shit, as I told you.But one day she quit randomly. When I asked why, she spilled the beans.”
Miles leaned toward me, wide-eyed and waiting.
“He thought the relationship was serious, and had a plan that involved her becoming a vampire, so they could stay together for the rest of their lives. Carrie had assumed they were casual, knowing she wasn’t a potential mate for him, and just enjoyed the ride without feeling much of anything. She turned him down, and quit so they wouldn’t accidentally run into each other again.”
Miley lifted a hand to her mouth. “No.”
“Yup.” I dipped my head.
“Did you ask him about it?”
“No. The bastard would’ve killed me. He takes care of us, but he doesn’t let us take care of him. And he was even moodier after she left him. It was years before I saw him relax again after her.”
“How did Rafael convince Bash to let him go to jail for you guys, if he always takes care of you?”
Rafe had only just gotten out of jail when he mated with Tatum—though she thought he had been joking when he asked her. “There was no convincing involved. Rafael found out we’d been made. He sent a statement to the government that he’d killed the vampire before we realized what he was doing. By the time we found out, all we could do was damage control.”
“Shit.” She leaned against the couch, and I could see in her eyes that her mind was racing. “So no one’s ever talked to him about Carrie? Does he have any friends outside of you guys? And does Rafael know?”
