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They all seemed to move at once, moving quickly to embrace me. Their sudden movements frightened me and instinctively, I crouched defensively and felt my fangs drop for the very first time.
The emergence of my fangs was the tension breaker and distraction I needed. I was suddenly fascinated with the razor sharp teeth, running my tongue over the long, needle like points. Only Nikolaus had the presence of mind to step back, pulling Anna with him as he gave me the space to let me gather myself.
“Ah, your fangs. Let me see you.” Stefan blurred to stand before me, urging my mouth open. His thumb brushed over my lips, softly stroking the plump flesh until they parted. His index finger traced over each fang, causing a hot flood of need to unleash deep in my stomach. “Beautiful.”
“Biased.” I shot back, innocently letting my tongue flicker out to playfully lick his lingering fingertip.
Lukas seized the opportunity and stepped to Stefan’s side. His perceptive eyes appraised me as they always did, his head cocking from side to side. He pursed his lips and nodded happily. “Awake for less than an hour and you’re already like rabbits. Typical. Someone should write a smutty romance book about the two of you. It would all be sex though since you’re obviously unable to control yourselves.” His fisted hands rested on his waist and he tapped his foot impatiently. “Tell me Mr. Romance showed you what you looked like. He gave you a few minutes with a mirror, right?”
“A mirror?” I repeated, looking between Stefan and Lukas curiously. “Why would I need time with a mirror? I know what I look like.”
Lukas sighed heavily. He shook his head and his eyes went skyward in bored exasperation. “Hello…you’re a vampire now. You still look like Josie, but it’s a much-improved version. You need to see this…”
Lukas grabbed at my hand, attempting to tug me along with him. Normally, he was much stronger than me and I had no choice but to follow. But now…now I could hold my own with any of them. A smug grin settled over my face as Lukas lost a winning fight to drag me away.
“I think the days of you dragging me around are over, Lukas,” I advised, arching an eyebrow at him. Mumbling under his breath, he walked across the room and plopped on the couch, his arms stiffly crossed under his chest.
Anna and Nikolaus stood back against the wall, cautiously watching me. Neither had made a move to approach me, giving the opportunity to face them when I was ready.
My gaze landed on my brother’s face first. His emerald eyes were guarded, but his steady heartbeat let me know he wasn’t afraid of me. He was simply waiting for my acceptance, knowing I needed my space and didn’t want to intrude until I was prepared and willing.
Jutting my chin, I opened my arms wide enough for both Anna and Nikolaus. “I know you both want to do it. Let’s get this over with so we’re not hugging all night.”
They both wrapped their arms around me at the same time. My head rested at the base of my brother’s throat, his pulse strumming strongly against me. I could smell his warm blood, coursing through his veins temptingly. I realized sooner than later, I’d need to feed. But it wouldn’t be on my brother.
As if he’d read my mind, his grip on me only increased, leaning to whisper in my ear. “You won’t hurt me, Josie.”
I nodded and hugged him back for a moment. Not wanting to press my luck, I pulled away and let Anna pull me closer. “I was so worried. Don’t do that to me again.”
Laughing softly, I squeezed her and playfully nudged her with my shoulder. “Anna. You’re not going soft on me are you?”
She huffed and tossed her brown curls over her shoulder. “You were out for three days, Josie. Stefan couldn’t feel you in your bond. You were in pain…” Her voice faded out and she shuddered.
“Three days? I was out for three days?” I looked around the room to each of them. My eyes met Stefan’s steady gaze. His blue eyes looked haunted and the still fragile bond between us ached with its need to reconnect. “That explains so much. Now I understand why you were worried.”
“I was never worried, Josie. You always have to be difficult.” Lukas retorted sarcastically. He examined his nails and shook his head dramatically. “Why would your change to a vampire be any different?”
“Enough.” Stefan’s voice thundered through the room. He walked to the door and opened it, his patience and his self-control frayed. “Tomorrow, we have much to discuss. There are decisions to be made that require planning. But for now, I need to be with Josephine. As you can see, she is fine. She needs to feed and there are things we need to discuss.”
For a moment, no one moved. Everyone was surprised by Stefan’s sudden outburst. Once again, it was Nikolaus that had the presence of mind to tug at Anna’s hand and slap Lukas on the back of his head. They each stopped and hugged me goodbye as they filed out of the apartment. Stefan slammed the door shut behind them and pressed his hand against the heavy wood, swallowing and breathing heavily. I stood motionless, watching as his shoulders moved with the effort of his ragged breathing.
When his eyes swung over and connected with mine, I could feel his desire as strongly as if it was my own. His fathomless stare seemed to pin me in place and leave me vulnerable as if his eyes alone could strip me naked.
His voice was raspy and guttural. “I have had enough of making small talk. You need to feed. And then…and then I need to fuck you.”
Chapter 2 - Bloodlust
Stefan strode through the room, disappearing into the kitchen. Unsure of what to do with myself, I wandered to the floor to ceiling windows and pressed myself against the cool glass in the living room, staring into the city that was just out of reach. Life went on around me: cars passing by and people dodging through the traffic on the street below. My new eyes could see the smallest detail; pick out the slightest flaw. I could see the tiny cracks in the sidewalk from this much higher vantage point. More sensitive to the sunlight than before, I found myself squinting at the weak beams of fading light from the evening sun filling the large windows. My open palm slapped against the glass in frustration. I felt out of control, my emotions fluctuating from confusion, to curiosity to extreme arousal. My forehead fell against the glass, overwhelmed at the warring sensations building inside of me.
I jumped when two massive arms wrapped around me, pulling me back against his chest. His head lowered to leave a blazing trail of kisses down my neck. Shivering from his touch, one arm reached up to bury my fingers in his soft blond hair at the nape of his neck. His thoughts were cautious, bordering on worry. He'd felt my rapidly fluctuating moods and simply reacted to pacify me, attempting to temper his mood to accommodate me. My change, while expected, had happened so quickly even he hadn’t had time to prepare. He was out if his element, and Stefan didn’t like to be out of control. He hadn't predicted or seen the change. He was anxious to reconnect, our bond screaming out for one another.
"What is it they say? A penny for your thoughts?" The deep timbre of his voice had surprised me. Nestling deeper in his arms, I closed my eyes against the burning tears that threatened to spill over.
I couldn't slow my mind down enough to focus on one thought. I was worried about bloodlust, Stefan's own brush with death, my father...the worry of our growing bond. I was almost immobilized when our bond was severed. How could we ever be apart?
His hold on me tightened as he read my frazzled thoughts. A rush of strength flooded through me, his own assurance bolstering my flagging spirits.
His lips tickled my ear. "It will work itself out, Josephine. I will not let you fail. You are stronger than you think."
