Tessa’s POV“You didn’t order a callboy?!” I asked, feeling my stomach sinking.“No…” she confirmed. “I mean, I was going to. But by the time I found one and returned to you, you were already gone.” Then, she gasped. “Did you find a man and go home with him?!”“Ruby, I’ll see you at home,” I said quickly before hanging up the phone.My heart was racing against my chest at a rapid speed. That man, Joseph, in the dining room right now, was not a callboy.How could I have made a mistake like that?!I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat and returned to the dining room, trying to hide the pure embarrassment on my face.“I’m so sorry,” I said, meeting his curious eyes. “I thought last night was just a one-night stand. I never—”“A one-night stand?” Joseph asked, raising his right brow. “And what exactly gave you that impression?” His voice lowered slightly, and I could see the annoyance on his face.“My friend last night went to find me a callboy and I thought you were who she order
Tessa’s POVIn an instant, it felt like my entire world had crumbled down around me and I could no longer breathe.It was Joseph.The same Joseph from last night.“I heard he’s super famous and very rich!”“I saw him in the hallway. I couldn’t believe he was so handsome!”“I hear he looks so young for being 40!”I remained frozen in my seat as I stared at Joseph.All the whispers from the students were not exaggerating.Joseph was rich, handsome, and young.That was why I had no idea he was Joseph Evergreen.I was on pins and needles.I slept with my Professor? My favorite writer? And thought he was a callboy?As he scanned the room, his gaze met mine. But as quickly as he looked at me, he looked away.Maybe he didn’t recognize me.I was sitting kind of far away and I was wearing different clothing.“I am Professor Joseph Evergreen, a fantasy novelist. I’m sure you are eager to get started. Firstly, I’d like to start off by explaining that I only accept the best writers and those who
Tessa’s POVHow could he get the bag in such a short time?The parking lots and the professors’ offices were both far away from our classroom.His house? That was even further.But I couldn’t bother to think deeper about these questions right now.“Girl, you look like you’re about to pass out. What’s in the bag?” Ruby asked again, narrowing her eyes at me.A couple of others were looking at me as well with curious and timid frowns.“It’s nothing,” I said quickly. “Can you wait in the hallway? I need to talk to the professor.”She was hesitant for a moment before she started to ask, “Are you sure that’s a good idea? Considering—”“Ruby!” I cut her off, worried that others might hear.“Fine,” she said. “I’ll be in the hallway. Don’t be too long though. This class cut into my dinner time and I’m starving.”On that note, she left and went into the hallway.My heart was thudding violently as I looked back at Joseph Evergreen. He was speaking with each of the students and talking intently w
Tessa’s POV“Get out of here, Brian. Nobody wants you around,” Ruby hissed to him, narrowing her icy eyes in his direction.“He insisted that we came here,” Amanda, who was leaning against the lockers, said while rolling her eyes.“I just want to talk to—” he began to say until his eyes finally found mine. “Tessa!”I glanced back at the closed door to Joseph’s classroom before looking at Brian with wide and alarmed eyes.“Just let me talk to you for a minute,” Brian said, stumbling towards me.I stared up at him with a frown. I could smell the alcohol on his breath.“Brian, what are you doing here?” I asked, folding my arms across my chest.“I want to explain myself,” he said, lowering his tone. “Tessa, you know I love you more than anything. You were the first girl I’ve ever loved. Don’t throw that away because—”“Because you cheated on me?” I asked, filling in the blanks. “I can’t be with a cheat, Brian.”“I didn’t cheat on you, Tessa!” Brian said desperately. “Amanda was drunk, and
Tessa’s POVHad Joseph just done that to Brian?Brian remained on the other side of the hall, trying to recover from that massive throw. Amanda ran to be by his side, causing Ruby to roll her eyes in annoyance.I couldn’t keep my eyes off Joseph though. He stood with his arms across his chest, staring down the hallway with disinterest on his face.It didn’t make sense that Joseph was able to throw him across the hallway so effortlessly like that. Brian was a big, muscled guy and Joseph had a more proportionate body. However, Joseph was taller than Brian.“Holy hell!” Ruby laughed, clapping her hands together. “That was incredible!”How had I not realized Joseph was nearby in the hallway? His classroom door hadn’t budged the entire time we’d been out here.But maybe with all the commotion a few minutes ago, I didn’t notice him leaving the classroom.“You’ll pay for this!” Brian mumbled as he got back to his feet. He began walking back toward us and for a moment, I feared what he might
Tessa’s POVThe Nightwalker police were wildly known for their “secret” organization. Nobody has ever seen them in person, but we have all heard of them.They handle the most dangerous and unheard-of cases that the normal police can’t handle.Nobody knows who the members of this police organization are, and nobody knows where their headquarters are. So, for Joseph to be able to connect with them with a single text message was incredible and unbelievable.Brian slowly hung up the phone while his mother was still talking. We all continued to stare at Joseph in awe.“How did you do that?” Brian asked him.“We all have our secrets,” Joseph said, and for a moment, I wondered if that was a shot at me.“Who are you?” Brian’s voice trembled as he asked.“Let’s just say, I’m not someone you can mess with quite as easily. But please, feel free to try again.”Brian held up his phone to reveal the video that was sent to the Nightwalker police. I was still in shock that Joseph was able to reach th
Tessa’s POVWhen I looked back over my shoulder at the motorcycle, I saw that there were several more following me.My first thought was to run, but I knew they would be able to catch me quickly on their bikes. It would be pointless and would probably make things a lot worse. Not that screaming would be any better, but then maybe I could get someone’s attention.I looked around the dark streets, trying not to be too obvious. This was the section of the city that not only had fewer pedestrians but also no working street cameras. This was the perfect spot for all sorts of crimes, including those animal attacks that have been all over the news recently.I shuddered at the very thought, remembering the images that have been spreading all over the internet.Maybe they weren’t animal attacks at all.Panic began to set in as I realized that I was in some serious trouble. I could tell from the matching jackets that these bikers were part of some gang. They were also people I didn’t want to me
Tessa’s POVWhere did he just go?He was only there moments ago.The only proof left of anything happening was the crumbled motorcycles left in the streets. I stood in place, trying to make sense of everything that had happened, but my mind couldn’t comprehend any of it.Soon, a police car was pulling out in front of me, along with an ambulance. A couple of cops got out of their cars and rushed toward me once they saw the shards spread out across the street.“Are you okay?” One of the officers asked, examining my body with his eyes. “Can you tell us what happened?”I was still staring off in the direction of those goons, tears lingering in my eyes and threatening to escape.“I was attacked,” I managed to say, turning my direction to the officer taking the notes. “These gang members on bikes followed me and tried to get me to go with them.”“We have an officer patrolling the area as we speak,” he explained. “Just try to breathe. You are safe now.”“How did you know I was in danger?”“J
Tessa’s POV10 years later!“You got called here too?” Ruby asked as I walked up the steps of the middle school. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair, letting it fall around my shoulders.“Are you really surprised?” I asked her, rolling my eyes.She wrapped an arm around my shoulders and held me close to her.“Just take a deep breath. Maybe it’s not too bad this time,” she said, trying to appear soothing.I gave her a pointed look.“Please, when is it ever not that bad?”“Well, they aren’t vampires yet. So, it could be worse,” she said, shrugging her shoulders and chuckling.“I can only imagine the trouble they will get into once they are vampires,” I muttered.Ruby only laughed harder as we walked into the school. We went down the hallway and towards the principal's office, but a familiar voi
Tessa’s POV“Breathe, Tessa. Just breathe!” Ruby said as she held onto my hand tightly.I’m glad she’s a vampire and strong because if she was a typical human, I would have broken her hand by now. Pain shot through my lower abdomen and into my spine, crippling me in agony. I screamed out in pain, my entire body quivering.“You are doing great,” the doctor said, looking at my vitals. “That was a big contraction. It won’t be much longer until it’s time for you to push.”“Where the hell is Joseph?” I asked through my teeth.I knew he was working when I went into labor but that was several hours ago. I thought he would be here by now.“He texted Carter a bit ago and said he was almost here,” Ruby assured me. She placed a cool cloth on my forehead, and I sighed in relief. The pain in my body started to simmer down for a moment, but I knew th
Tessa’s POVA month after the big battle 4 years ago, Amelia called me and told me that they had taken Ruby to the most elite healers in California where Amelia is originally from. Carter hadn’t left her side since they took her there. They were able to get her heart beating once again, but she remained in critical condition for a little over a year.Nobody, including me, was allowed to see her. The only ones allowed near her were Carter, her true love, and Amelia, her mother. However, Amelia tried to keep me updated as frequently as possible but for a long while, it didn’t seem like Ruby would ever wake up.But 18 months later, she finally woke. It was a long road to recovery though. Even though she was healing and awake, both Carter and Amelia thought it would be best if she remained in California and stayed isolated until she was 100 percent ready to return. Apparently, she suffered some serious PTSD, along with minor memory
Tessa’s POV4 years later. “This had got to be the longest engagement in the history of engagements,” Hannah said as she continued to fuss over my hair for the last several hours. “I’m so happy it’s finally coming to an end.”I smiled at her through the vanity mirror, feeling a lightness in my chest that I hadn’t felt in a long time. Not since my daughter, Amaya, was born.“I know,” I told her honestly, biting my lower lip, making Amy huff with dismay as she grabbed more lipstick to fix my makeup that I unknowingly ruined. “With everything that went down 4 years ago, marrying Joseph just didn’t seem right. I really wanted to get my life back in order. I wanted to succeed in my career, Joseph needed to adjust to his new role as Overseer, and plus, I didn’t want to get married pregnant.”This made both girls pause what they were doing and lo
Tessa’s POVMost of the coven stayed with me in my father’s home. Esme went out to help the police look for Penny.There was no way I was going to leave my father alone if Penny was still out there and planning on killing him. My father and I talked a lot about everything that had happened, and he apologized countless times even though I told him it wasn’t necessary.None of this was his fault and I hated that he was blaming himself.He set up sleeping bags, and air mattresses and pulled out the couch for everyone to sleep on. He has one guest bedroom that Laura and Austin occupied. Joseph and I were going to sleep in my childhood room, but I really didn’t want to leave my father and plus, I had missed him throughout these years.Even though he was in my life these past few years, with Penny around, we didn’t really have a great relationship. Now I understood why; because Penny had her claws dug deep i
Tessa’s POVThe Moon Goddess had completely taken over my body and spoke to everyone through me. She warned them what would happen if anything were to happen to me or my baby. Now it was up to them to decide if they wanted to continue hunting me to gain the powers of the Heavenly Heart, or if they were going to trust the Moon Goddess with her decision.Seeing the horror on everybody’s faces, I knew the choice they would make. It was the obvious choice; I had seen what they had seen, and they would be stupid to chance it. Their lives and the state of this earth were in their hands.Silence consumed us as everyone processed what they had just seen. Only the yelling of Carter brought me back to the present moment. I turned to look at him and I could see the straight-up horror on his face as he screamed for Ruby.I turned to see Ruby lying on the ground, her body completely still and it was clear she wasn’t breathing. But mo
Tessa’s POVEsme, Patty, Cole, Claira, and Bennet worked on putting a shield around the circle while the rest of us gathered around while Ruby stood in the center. Everybody looked equally nervous except Ruby who looked confident.I could hear the battle ongoing around us and my heart was breaking for the lives that have been lost. I glanced at my father’s house, hoping and praying that he was still inside and that he was safe.I glanced over my shoulder and through the fighting I saw Joseph kneeling on the ground beside Benard who had blood pouring out of his neck. My heart shattered in an instant. My entire concentration and faith had been broken as I felt sick from the sight before me.Bernard… no… He couldn’t be… My thoughts went back to Anna’s vision a while back about Bernard dying during a battle.Was this the battle he was meant to die in?
Tessa’s POV“We’ve enchanted the house!” Esme said as she rushed towards me. “Nobody besides your blood can get in. Including any of us.”“What about Joseph?” I asked, shouting through the chaos. “We weren’t able to exclude him either,” Esme told me. She grabbed onto my arms and gave them a gentle squeeze. “You need to go inside and protect yourself. They are here because they want your heart.”I looked around at the ongoing fight. My stomach twisted. People were dying and I couldn’t help but feel responsible. I needed to fix this, not hide like a coward.“We need to find Ruby,” I told her firmly.“We are on the lookout for her, but so far we haven’t been able to see her or Eevee,” Esme said, looking around with a frown on her face.“Have you checked everywhere?”“We c
Third Person POV (Ruby)At some point, Ruby had fallen asleep. Though, she knew right away that it wasn’t a normal sleep. It was a vision.This one felt a different thought. She was surrounded by my dark smoke, though it didn’t feel like smoke, it only looked like it. She couldn’t exactly see what was happening, but she could hear the sounds of death and destruction around her. Innocent people screaming and crying for mercy. The sounds of supernatural’s fighting and killing one another.There was so much darkness and despair, that Ruby felt a sense of dread weighing on her chest. Her breathing hitched when some of the smoke cleared, and she saw blood soaking the grass around her feet. Puddles of blood were everywhere. The sky was hazy and unrecognizable.Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at all the bodies that occupied the earth. This was too much for her to handle; why did she have to be cursed with seeing