Kerry's POVSilas had me hoisted against the tree, my legs wrapped firmly around him as he thrust into me. He hadn’t even fully removed his pants; they dangled around his ankles, and his belt made a faint clicking sound with every movement.He settled into a steady rhythm, his hands gripping my hips as he drove into me. “God, you feel so good around me, baby—fuck—” he groaned, his forehead resting against mine, his sweat-dampened curls brushing my skin.We’d had sex countless times before, but there was something about this setting that made it feel so much better—more passionate. Or maybe it was because we’d spent the last few days ignoring each other, the craving for touch growing unbearable in the silence.“Silas,” I moaned his name as a particular thrust hit a sensitive spot inside me, sending a tremor through my body. His grip on my hips tightened, and his thrusts came faster, harder. “It feels like you’re in my fucking stomach—God!”“Gotta fuck my baby good if I wanna knock her
18 Years Later...The lights in the living room were dim, and if Octavia hadn’t been studying all night—leaving her so tired she felt she might actually pass out—seeing the two figures huddled on the sofa wouldn’t have been an issue. She was almost at the kitchen doorway when the sound of something shattering spooked her. There was a muffled groan and a curse. Octavia blinked into the darkness, willing her vision to pick out the cause of the noise. Nope, she was way too tired for this. If she forced it, she might end up with a migraine.She walked over to where she knew the light switch was and flicked it on. The room brightened, and a yelp echoed as a woman ducked her head to hide.“Mom! What are you even doing?” Octavia asked, mortified as she noticed her mother’s nakedness. Unsurprisingly, a head poked out from beneath the sofa cushions and flashed her an apologetic smile.“Sorry, baby girl. We were hoping you wouldn’t notice.”“You have a bedroom for a reason!” she whined, dreadin
There was something off-putting about the young man. He looked young anyway, but knowing vampires, he might just be decades older than he appeared. Via wasn’t usually attentive toward other people. Unlike Jess, she preferred her own company. But the stranger was leaning against her car, so she couldn’t just ignore him."Hello, Octavia," he greeted her, extending a hand toward her. Via eyed the hand briefly before reaching out to take it. Her palm tingled as it made contact with the vampire’s cold, stiff skin."Um, I don’t think we’ve met.""We haven’t.""Then, you are...""I’m in love with you.""Huh?" The confession had come out of nowhere and startled her. The incredibly handsome vampire had blurted out the words as though he were simply commenting on the weather. There was no anxiousness, no look of expectation in his eyes. He merely watched her with unblinking focus, as if he were trying to engrave her very features into his memory. Octavia pulled her hand back, feeling relief whe
The cheerful chatter of the cafeteria is interrupted by a loud female scream. A girl can be seen running out of the large hall with horror written all over her face. The cause of said horror is Carter Miller, who had accidentally spilled his drink on her.Honestly, I don't blame Emily for panicking. This had to be the third time this month that Carter had spilled his blood bag all over her. I was beginning to think he did it on purpose just so he could see her freak out and have a panic attack. He was probably still bitter about Emily breaking up with him after finding out what he was.You see, Carter Miller was one of the few vampires who attended our school. More than half of the school population was made up of what we called supernaturals. These were beings we all thought were nothing more than stories but turned out to exist—and, scarily enough, they blended well with humans to the point where one couldn't tell them apart from us.Half a decade ago, the existence of supernatural
The long school day finally came to an end, and I could go home. "Home" was the word I called it, but it didn't feel like that to me. It was a terrible experience going to a school full of supernaturals, but it was even worse going back to a house filled with them.I wasn't old enough to get my own car, and I had refused my stepfather's offer to get me a driver, so I usually took a taxi to and from school. It was a twenty-minute drive from school to the mansion where I resided, and soon I was already there.I took off my shoes and headed up the stairs. I knew my mom wouldn't be home at this time of day, and my stepfather would probably be at work, which meant it would just be me and Silas. Silas, whom I hoped I wouldn't run into.I slowed my footsteps, hoping to make little noise so as not to attract his attention. Unfortunately for me, vampires had very good hearing, and before I even got to my door, the one next to mine swung open. I was faced with a shirtless Silas."Hey, kiddo, ho
"Here’s your coffee, please come again," I say to a customer in a stiff voice. God, I hated this job.It wasn’t the fact that I had to spend six hours on my feet with only a fifteen-minute break, serving coffee to overly cheerful customers while having to force out a smile each time I addressed them. All that might sound bad, but it was my boss who really got to me.I didn’t even need this job. Both of my parents were against it. But I needed a sense of independence in my life. Today was even more difficult than usual because I was in a sour mood. I felt terrible about what happened last night. I had tried to apologize, but Bill had beaten me to it. Why was he even apologizing when I was the one with the problem? Even my mom kept giving me those sympathetic looks, almost as if she felt guilty for what happened.Silas. Silas wasn’t home when I woke up. Bill had said he went off to a friend’s house earlier that morning, but I had an eerie feeling he was avoiding me. I was such an asshol
A girl sat on one of our counters, her legs parted, while Silas stood between them, kissing her passionately. My heart clenched painfully in my chest. Was it because they were making out in our kitchen, or was there something else entirely?"Silas?" I called. They both broke from their kiss and glanced at me. The girl, looking momentarily surprised by my sudden appearance, quickly flushed with embarrassment. Silas, on the other hand, didn't seem to react much. For the first time, I noticed his eyes didn’t carry the warmth they always did when they met mine. I figured he was still upset about what had happened last night."You can go upstairs first, Tammy. I'll be right there," Silas said. Tammy, the girl, nodded quickly and climbed off the counter, passing me without a word—just a curious glance. She didn’t even bother saying hello, or maybe Silas had asked her not to."Silas, who was that?" I asked, more out of curiosity than anything."A girl I'm seeing," he replied, his tone noncha
Vampires lived far longer than humans. Most were born, but a few were turned. In the past, they were known to live under a single ruler, a ruler whom they feared and obeyed for the continuity of his rule.Their only weakness is silver—not just any kind of silver, though. It had to be melted at a certain temperature and covered in a substance that had gone extinct. In other words, only the government had access to weapons that could end a vampire's life. I almost felt bad that the knife I kept under my pillow was of little use.Even as I read through the pages, I couldn't find anything about vampires being psychic. Apart from having incredible strength, speed, and immortality, they seemed just like any other person. Well, except that they disliked sunlight—but even that was something they were adapting to.Alex closed the book and put it away. Her stomach grumbled slightly, reminding her that she hadn't eaten, but she didn't want to go downstairs either, in fear that she would run into
There was something off-putting about the young man. He looked young anyway, but knowing vampires, he might just be decades older than he appeared. Via wasn’t usually attentive toward other people. Unlike Jess, she preferred her own company. But the stranger was leaning against her car, so she couldn’t just ignore him."Hello, Octavia," he greeted her, extending a hand toward her. Via eyed the hand briefly before reaching out to take it. Her palm tingled as it made contact with the vampire’s cold, stiff skin."Um, I don’t think we’ve met.""We haven’t.""Then, you are...""I’m in love with you.""Huh?" The confession had come out of nowhere and startled her. The incredibly handsome vampire had blurted out the words as though he were simply commenting on the weather. There was no anxiousness, no look of expectation in his eyes. He merely watched her with unblinking focus, as if he were trying to engrave her very features into his memory. Octavia pulled her hand back, feeling relief whe
18 Years Later...The lights in the living room were dim, and if Octavia hadn’t been studying all night—leaving her so tired she felt she might actually pass out—seeing the two figures huddled on the sofa wouldn’t have been an issue. She was almost at the kitchen doorway when the sound of something shattering spooked her. There was a muffled groan and a curse. Octavia blinked into the darkness, willing her vision to pick out the cause of the noise. Nope, she was way too tired for this. If she forced it, she might end up with a migraine.She walked over to where she knew the light switch was and flicked it on. The room brightened, and a yelp echoed as a woman ducked her head to hide.“Mom! What are you even doing?” Octavia asked, mortified as she noticed her mother’s nakedness. Unsurprisingly, a head poked out from beneath the sofa cushions and flashed her an apologetic smile.“Sorry, baby girl. We were hoping you wouldn’t notice.”“You have a bedroom for a reason!” she whined, dreadin
Kerry's POVSilas had me hoisted against the tree, my legs wrapped firmly around him as he thrust into me. He hadn’t even fully removed his pants; they dangled around his ankles, and his belt made a faint clicking sound with every movement.He settled into a steady rhythm, his hands gripping my hips as he drove into me. “God, you feel so good around me, baby—fuck—” he groaned, his forehead resting against mine, his sweat-dampened curls brushing my skin.We’d had sex countless times before, but there was something about this setting that made it feel so much better—more passionate. Or maybe it was because we’d spent the last few days ignoring each other, the craving for touch growing unbearable in the silence.“Silas,” I moaned his name as a particular thrust hit a sensitive spot inside me, sending a tremor through my body. His grip on my hips tightened, and his thrusts came faster, harder. “It feels like you’re in my fucking stomach—God!”“Gotta fuck my baby good if I wanna knock her
Deric had an arm wrapped around my waist as he guided me toward the bar. With a simple gesture of his hand, the bartender mixed a drink and slid it over to me. I took a sip and frowned. "This is orange juice," I complained.Deric grinned in amusement. "There’s a hint of alcohol in there. I’m not about to let you get wasted in my bar, Kerry.""Why not?" I said with a pout. "I want something stronger.""Is this because of your brother? Are you jealous that he’s down there having fun with his fuck buddy?""Are you trying to make me feel worse?""Obviously not. I’m just saying, Silas is a dumbass. You can’t let him get what he wants by acting like this. If he’s trying to make you jealous, why don’t you do the same to him?"Deric took the glass from my hand and placed it aside. Seated on the barstool with his legs parted, he reached for my hand and pulled me off my seat, guiding me to stand between his legs. I leaned back slightly, aware of how intimate this position might appear to others
Kerry's POVSilas and I didn’t speak for two days. Well, more like he didn’t speak to me. I tried. I really tried. I’d corner him in the kitchen or on the stairs, but every time, he’d breeze past me like I didn’t exist. One second he was there, and the next, I was staring at an empty hallway. He acted so human most days that I forgot he wasn’t—until moments like this, when his supernatural ability to avoid me came into full display.It was infuriating. Especially because I hadn’t done anything wrong. Sure, Carter and I had a history, but that was ancient history. I wasn’t a cheat—I would never stoop that low. Silas knew that. He had to know that. So, what was his problem?To make things worse, we were living with our parents. Bill and Sarah had to have noticed the tension by now. Sarah had given me a look earlier, the kind that promised she’d corner me for a motherly chat about "understanding men." God, the last thing I needed was advice from her about "winning my man back." My man—wh
Third POVSilas was a lot of things, and most of them weren’t positive character traits either. Possessive, a bit obsessive, stalkerish—he could be a bit of a rogue sometimes. His dad had spent a fortune paying therapists he thought might help Silas “get better.” But how could Silas get better when he didn’t think he had a problem to begin with? He knew what he was, and he wasn’t really bothered by it. After all, he only acted this way toward the people that mattered most to him. The moment he’d seen Kerina Jones, he knew she was his. She would be his entire world. And he would be hers.It should have been easy, really. Silas was a catch—not to toot his own horn or anything. Girls went crazy for him, and he’d had his pick of them since high school. He hadn’t even cared when his father had gone ahead and married Serah. Their relationship status didn’t mean a damn thing to him.But Silas had underestimated Kerry. She wasn’t like the other girls he’d been with in the past. She didn’t sw
Kerry's POV"What the fuck?!"At this point, I was certain Molly was trying to provoke me for some reason. I didn't even know her, so I saw no reason for her to act this way toward me. Hinting that Octavia might not be Silas's child? The fucking audacity! She had no idea what we'd been through—what right did she have to speak to me this way?!"What?" The woman had the audacity to look offended by my outburst."I'm not saying you're one of those girls, I just meant—""I know what the fuck you meant! And honestly, it's none of your damn business. You don't know me, and I don't know you. You have no right to poke your nose in other people's business!""Silas is my friend. We've known each other since before your parents got together. I'm only looking out for him." Molly placed a hand over her lips to hide her taunting smile. At the moment, I couldn't even find it in myself to wonder how she knew about Bill and my mom's marriage. What bugged me more was how she kept emphasizing her relati
I hadn't been in school for a total of three weeks, and honestly, it was the last thing on my mind. Silas had a job now; he was planning to build a real estate firm from scratch without his father's support. It would take a while before he saw his dream through, which meant Octavia was mostly my responsibility during the day.When I got the call from my father, I didn’t think it would be about me missing classes. I couldn’t help but think, after all that has happened, is that all my dad cares about? He hadn’t come to see me even once since I was brought home. I had a feeling he was avoiding me, and when he finally called me, it was to scold me about missing classes."Are you kidding me?" I asked, anger and genuine shock evident in my voice."I'm serious, Kerina. I know you're dealing with a lot, but school is important. If you want to study something else, we can figure it out.""Dad, school is the last thing on my mind right now.""I'm sorry, sweetheart, but you need to put your life
Kerry's POVIt’s odd. Being a mother was odd—not in a bad way, though. I suppose I just wish I’d had enough time to prepare myself for it, and I wish there wasn’t always a threat looming over my daughter’s head, one I couldn’t do anything about. I could tell Silas, of course, but I had a feeling Asher wouldn’t like that. The last thing I needed was to anger him; he might actually take Via away from me this time.Anyway, aside from the negatives, it was refreshing to look at the world from a different angle. I’d always thought of myself as just human—nothing special. But now I was learning that my lifespan far surpassed that of a human. I had enhanced strength, better vision, and, with enough training, I could grow a killer pair of wings like my dad. It was strange at first, but once the idea stuck, I found that being supernatural wasn’t as bad as I’d thought. Still, I was thankful I didn’t have to stick to just one diet like Silas.“Trust me, it’s not as bad as you think,” Silas had s