Loving Angel Teaser

Here is your Tuesday Teaser for the week from Loving Angel. Due to the holiday, there probably won't be a Thursday takeover until the following week =)

Enjoy!

***

Angel was my everything—my reason for existing—my reason for breathing. I loved the ever-loving crap out of Angel Eyes.

I think I might have vomited a little in my mouth.

Mushy thoughts weren't my forte, well, before Angel that was. Not a single romantic thought had swirled in my brain. I wasn’t exactly an easy person, scratch that, half-demon to love, but somehow Angel was able to see past the rough exterior.

God bless her.

***

Starbound teaser (March 14th release date)

Here is a sneak peak into Starbound releasing March 14th. I think one of the things I love about this book is it is written from a duel point of view. I hope you enjoy and fall for Katia and Seth as much as I have while writing their story. This is a standalone novel.

Prologue

Katia

I had a hard time understanding why people didn’t believe in magick. It was everywhere. Who could doubt it when the winds sung, the sky sparkled with stars, when rainbows appeared after a rainfall, and dewdrops glistened in the morning? Everyone in some way has been touched by magick. It was just simply a part of life.

Seth and I were living proof.

Chapter 1

Katia

I caught Seth Nightingale staring at me for like the umpteenth time, which wasn’t that unusual really. We kind of had been playing this cat and mouse game since kindergarten. He would glare—I would grimace and glare back. And so the vicious cycle went.

What had me so worried was this undeniable pull I’d been feeling toward him lately. I thought I had gotten rid of my silly childhood crush years ago—apparently not.

Seth Nightingale?

I do not like Seth, I reminded myself—again—as if that was going to help curb this insatiable need to be near him. Ever since the start of our senior year, I noticed a shift inside me. It wasn’t all centered around Seth, but he was the root of it. There were hundreds of boys to choose from, and I had dated my fair share of them, so why Seth? Why now?

What was it about this guy that made me want to throw all caution to the wind and leap into his arms, right in the middle of English nonetheless? There was something behind those smoldering green eyes that intrigued me. And no matter how many years had gone by, that intrigue only intensified.

Seth and I had a complex relationship, a love-hate relationship. We loved to hate each other, but it hadn’t always been that way.

There had been a time when we had been friends—best friends.

Shocking, I know. I even had a hard time believing it.

Before all the eye glaring, name calling, and general loathing, we had been inseparable. Now, a span of the ocean stretched between us. Even our seating arrangements in class were affected—it was that bad. I sat in the first row; he sat in the last row. One year just for shits and giggles, I sat in the seat beside him. He had literally gotten up and told the teacher he couldn’t be subjected to skank.

That burned my ass.

What he really meant was, he needed to be as far away from me as possible.

Asshole. And I didn’t have a problem saying it to his face. Daily. Or showing him just how deep my burning hatred rooted. The one-finger salute became my signature greeting as we passed in the halls.

I had spent the remainder of my freshman year searing him with hateful scowls.

Yet, somehow we co-existed at Vermillion High without bringing it to the ground, but we’d come pretty close. If I didn’t know better, I’d actually think he liked pissing me off.

Warped.

So I was back to my original predicament.

Why was Seth looking at me with a spark of interest instead of his usually irritation? Okay, I admit over the years I’d done my fair share of gawking. It was not like Seth was a hardship on the eyes. Just the opposite, he was sinful eye-candy. And the asshat knew it.

How could I find him both drool-worthy and stab-worthy? That was just wrong on so many levels. But for some unholy reason he both fascinated me and infuriated me. Embarrassingly, I knew way more about dark and dreamy than I would ever admit.

That’s how screwed up I really was.

Seth was an amazing artist, always doodling in class, sketching instead of taking notes. He had these breath-stopping green eyes and dark, messy hair that most guys couldn’t achieve if they tried. It was adorable. But that was were adorable stopped on Seth. He oozed smexy and had that whole tall, dark, and dangerous persona going on. To say he made my mouth water was an understatement. But the real problem was…Seth was off limits. And we couldn’t have been more of polar opposites if we tried.

As talented as Seth was at art, I was good at…being popular and pretty. If that wasn’t cliché enough for you, I was also a cheerleader dating the basketball star. I made myself want to hurl. There was a time when I had been nothing but the girl in the shadows with Seth. It was amazing what one summer could do to a young girl’s figure… and to her popularity.

My life sometimes felt meaningless, blah, except for one small detail.

There was goddess blood running through my veins that gave me power—I was a nixie. Descendent to Arachne—a greatly skilled warrior princess. Well, before a goddess turned her into a spider.

Pretty F’d up.

The cincher…Seth was a nixie, too.

It was what initially drew us together, the shared secret of magick. Actually our town was sort of a magickal haven for nixies. Vermillion had been were the birthright of nixies was forged. But most importantly, it wasn’t that we currently ran with completely different crowds that kept Seth and me on opposite sides of the classroom. It was because he was a Nightingale, and in my family that was an enormous no-no.

Our families despised each other. That was how it had been since the day I was born, going back more generations than I could count. A Montgomery and a Nightingale had always lived in Vermillion, South Dakota, and there had always been bad blood between our families. We had been forbidden from seeing each other, but that hadn’t stopped either of us from being curious.

Rules were meant to be broken, and Seth loved to go against the rules.

At one time Seth and I had been best friends, in secret of course, just as our little sisters were to this day. There was just something appealing about going against your parents’ direct orders. It was the whole Romeo and Juliet thing. All through elementary school we had found ways to meet in secrecy. It had been daring and fun.

Our parents never knew, and if they did, they never said anything. I was torn in half the day our friendship died. Young, stupid, and naive, I had thought that Seth felt something for me—a connection. I had made it bluntly clear how interested I was in him, not having a shy bone in my body. That lout rejected me our first year in junior high, and the sting of rejection had never left me. It was the start of our hate relationship, and I wasn’t ready for a repeat performance of that kind of embarrassment any time soon.

My heart couldn’t take it.

“Katia,” Claudia, my best friend whispered in the desk next to me.

I tore my gaze from Seth and looked at her perfectly raised black brows and big blue eyes. “What?” I muttered.

The corners of her pink lips turned up. “You’re drooling.”

“I am not,” I snapped, wiping the corner of my mouth with the back of my hand for good measure. After all, I had been doing some heavy eyeballing. What was wrong with me?

Biting the end of my pen, I snuck one last quick peek at Seth. He had stopped scribbling on his English textbook and was looking over at Claudia and me. By the dark expression on his face he looked irked, as if we were bothering him. Breaking his concentration or something, which was a total joke, since it was obvious he wasn’t listening to Ms. Harper lecture about our next written essay.

“Are you and Matt going to the party Friday night?” Claudia asked as soon as Ms. Harper turned to the dry erase board.

I dug out my notebook, pretending to take notes. All concentration was shot for the day, thanks to Seth. “I don’t know, probably.” Out of the corner of my eyesight, I saw Seth’s hands clench the sides of the desk. What’s got his boxers in a bunch?

“You have to,” Claudia whined. “Everyone is going to be there.”

In her book, that meant anyone who was anyone was going to be there. “I am sure Matt will want to go,” I conceded.

“Good, we are going to get totally waxed—”

“Miss Jenssen, do you have something to share with the class?” Ms. Harper interrupted.

I slunk lower in my desk. Claudia, however, faced forward and smiled sweetly. “I was just telling Katia that we are going to get completely blitzed on Friday night.”

I ducked my head, trying to cover my smirk. The entire class erupted in snickers, except of course for Seth, who looked ready to commit murder.

“I have a better idea. How about you spend Friday in detention?” Ms. Harper countered.

Claudia wasn’t fazed. “Can’t. I have plans.”

“Miss Jenssen, you are trying my patience.”

Luckily Claudia was saved by the bell as everyone shot up in his or her seat and started filing into the halls. She waved at an exasperated Ms. Harper on the way out the door. Claudia spent her life skirting the lines of trouble. She shot me a wink, and I shook my head as we parted ways. “See you at lunch, Katia,” she called over her shoulder.

Seth

I watched her saucy little butt saunter out of the classroom and had to bite my lip. I still couldn’t figure out why she hung out with Claudia and her other uppity friends. Kat wasn’t a snob. At least not the Kat I had known.

Really, I shouldn’t give two shits.

What Kat did—who she hung out with, who she kissed—was none of my business.

I scoffed at myself. That was all bullshit, because the truth was I cared.

I cared too damn much.

And that was my problem.

Sitting at my desk another moment, I thought legs like hers should have been outlawed from high school. She had long, sun-kissed legs that were toned in just the right places. All her cheerleading practice had paid off, but I was more of a butt kind of guy anyway, and I could tell you that Kat had a magnificent ass. She wasn’t extraordinarily tall or short. Her hair was a long, angelic white with these soft waves that framed her heart-shaped face. And what a face, but it was her smile that made my heart seize. And the two dimples that appeared with it were the icing on the cake. Exotic was the first word that came to mind.

But where she was concerned, I had a hands-off policy.

That didn’t stop me from being aware of her twenty-four seven, or appreciating what she offered. When Kat walked into a room, everything inside me became charged, electric. She had that kind of power over my treacherous body.

I hated the way she made me feel without even trying…and I loved it at the same time.

I was so screwed in the head.

It was unfair that the one person I wanted was the only person I could never have. Fate was a bitch.

The longest three months of my life felt like yesterday and had changed everything. It was the first time Kat and I had spent a summer apart. She had gone to her Grandma’s beach house in Rhode Island, and I didn’t see her at all. On our first day back at school, I had gotten a shock that rocked my system, especially for a pre-adolescent boy. For the first time, I found myself attracted to her on a whole new level. My body suddenly had a mind of its own. When I saw her that dreaded Monday morning, all I could think was Oh shit. That’s Kat?

She was the first girl to give me a boner in the school halls. Talk about awkward and uncomfortable. I had some pretty wild fantasies about her that year—fantasies were safe. Kat was drop dead hot.

My jaw had hit the ground.

Sweet Jesus. The beach had done her body good.

I’d been standing at the bottom steps of the school entrance as she passed me by. The scent of her shampoo teased the air around her, and she gave me a heart-stopping grin. I watched as she flipped her long curls, giggling with Claudia Adams and Harper Thompson at her side—her two new besties.

Before she entered the double doors, she had glanced over her shoulder at me and ours eyes clashed. She flashed her dimples at me, and her light iridescent blue eyes twinkled. Whether Kat had known it or not, that was the day our friendship had drastically changed.

Good God. I had been pretty sure Kat had just flirted with me. I had swallowed hard and slumped against the stair railings, feeling the ground slip out from under me.

It was no surprise that was the year Kat had shot up in her social status. She joined the cheerleading squad and was always surrounded by a flock of horny boys. What no one knew was I had spent that entire year fighting the urge to plant my fist in their faces. I’d wanted to scream at her groupies that she was mine. In my head, not one of those guys had the right to touch her, talk to her, or look at her like a piece of pecan pie.

Because Katia had been destined to be mine.

I’d wanted nothing more than to march up to them and slam their heads into the concrete block walls. And that was for just looking at her. Imagine how I’d felt when one of them touched her. I literally lost my shit the first time I saw her kiss another guy. Let’s just say that the dent on the locker door was still there, and my poor knuckle had bled like a bitch.

It had done nothing to dull the ache in my chest.

Now, it was our senior year and nothing had really changed, except that I learned some self-control. I didn’t want to smash Matt’s face every time I passed him in the halls. I called that progress.

And I became an asshole. It was the only defense I had against her and the crazy-intense feelings she stirred inside me. It was far better for her to hate me than to have her love me. I didn’t think I could have restrained myself if she loved me. Hell, even if she liked me a little, it would have been too hard.

Getting out of my seat, I trailed behind the group, catching one last glimpse of Kat before she disappeared into the crowd. The rest of the day was a breeze after that. Thankfully we only shared two classes this year, which in my book was two too many. First period and then English, I figured we should be able to survive our last year without killing each other—literally.

When the final bell of freedom rang, I sighed in sweet relief and trucked it home. I walked through the front door, and Dad took one look at me with sympathy filling his hazel eyes. “That bad, huh?” he asked, leaning on the fridge.

I sunk into the couch, mixed with rage, sadness, loneliness, and longing so profound it ate at my flesh like a zombie. “You have no idea.”

He offered me a Coke. “It’s for the best, Seth.”

So I’d heard before. I was getting tired of hearing it, the same song and dance. Popping the top on the can, I took one long swig. My parents meant well and when you came from a family of magick, you learned to respect what knowledge they gave.

Dad sat down next to me and stretched his long legs under the coffee table. We had the same height and build, but I had gotten my coloring from my mom. There was not a touch of grey in his chocolate hair. “You know that this is the only way to keep her safe.”

Yada. Yada. Yada. The warnings were etch-o-sketched into my brain, but that didn’t mean it didn’t suck serious monkey ass. “I know, Dad. You don’t have to worry. Nothing will happen.” But, for the first time, I didn’t believe those words.

There had been something different in her silvery-blue eyes today. The usual scorn had been replaced with interest. I hadn’t seen that glint of intrigue and possibility since sixth grade, right before I had smashed it to smithereens. Let’s just say that back then, delicacy hadn’t been one of my superpowers, and I might have been too harsh, but I hadn’t known how to handle Kat. Or the feelings she enticed.

I wasn’t sure I could handle them now.

“Harsh” really wasn’t a strong enough word. I had broken her heart and stomped on it, crushing it with cruel words. I had been an insensitive jerk, though I think she’d had a few more colorful words for me that day. And who could have blamed her.

If she suddenly decided to flip the tables, how long would I really be able to stay away? How long would I be able to deny what my heart and soul demanded?

One year. One more year.

It wasn’t just resisting Kat. It was giving up the girl who had been destined to be mine. Normally you don’t mess with fate, being a nixie, you know better than to muddle with the greater powers, but she wasn’t just fated as mine. She was my starbound. And that was harder to ignore for nixies than the next hit for a meth addict. It was impossible. Especially when finding your one true mate was so rare among us. The fact that I had known she was mine since birth was a freaking miracle.

But she was one miracle I could never have.

To make matters worse, her parents hadn’t taken the same approach mine had when it came to the curse. For as long as I could remember, I had heard the warnings, was told to stay far away, but Kat’s family kept her in the dark. She knew our families didn’t get along, but she didn’t know the truth.

Why we could never be together.

BREAKING EMMA - is moving up ;)

 

Umm...yes you are.

In honor of Dean's obvious adorable-ness, I have decided to move the release date for BREAKING EMMA up! Yep you got it. It will available on Amazon Friday, October 4th. Yay! I am so excited I just can't wait.

My world lately has been craziness. So many projects, not enough time. I am finishing up a Anthology called BLOOD, LOVE, MAGIC this week and then I am diving back into CHASING ANGEL. The new covers for the Divisa series are coming along magnificently. I LOVE them so much and can't wait to share them.

To hold you until Friday, here is a sneak peak at Chapter 1:

Chapter 1
 

I am a hunter.

It is in my blood, flowing from generation to generation.

So I’m told.

We aren’t the usual mill of hunters. No deer, elk, wild turkeys, or caribou for my family or the others like us. That would be too normal, and my family is as abnormal as the things we hunt.

Demons.

Hellhounds.

Any ugly thing that shows its head from Hell.

And of course its offspring. Divisa—half human, half demon.

You would be surprised at the number of these half-breeds that live among us, or how common it is for demons to leave a human impregnated. Hell will often kill their young, kind of like a wolf spider, but more often a Divisa finds a way to avoid its heritage and survive. Then it falls to us to take care of the problem.

Leave it to the underworld to make us clean up its messes.

Before I realized what a crockpot of shit the world was, and before I was molded into a ruthless hunter, I was a dancer…

A great dancer.

Talk about yin from yang.

But God I loved dancing. It was like breathing. Nothing gave me the rush that dancing did, or the immense satisfaction, an outstanding sense of achievement. I always assumed that was what I would be. A professional dancer—the big leagues, but how quickly those dreams of twirling in the Big Apple or the Windy City disappeared. Poof. Like dust, they were gone.

And so was I.

Except in my case, magic had nothing to do with it. I never got the chance to say good-bye to the friends I’d made in Spring Valley. I never got the chance to decide if this was what I wanted. And most importantly, I never got the chance to see Travis one last time. If only…

Maybe things would have turned out differently. Maybe he would have been able to save me from what I’d become. It didn’t really matter in the end, because what-if’s were not going to change what had already come to pass. Dwelling on what could have been was for the weak, and I was anything but.

My instructor saw to that.

The night I was taken, I’d actually been on my way to see Travis, but someone had gotten to me first. Black mask, bright green eyes, and a familiar face greeted me that night on the abandoned road. I was told that I fainted, but I had a hard time believing that. Fainted? Never had I swooned in my life, but I guess being abducted can have an odd effect on people.

When I awoke, I was in a room that looked like a sad excuse for a college dorm. The walls were sterile white and the carpet was dull grey. Not an ounce of color touched the room, and I so loved color. Bright. Bold. Eye-popping. The brightest thing in the room was my strawberry-blonde hair. It stood out against the bleached walls.

Disorientated, I rubbed my eyes, attempting to push aside the workings of a migraine. At first I thought that this was surely a dream or a very bad joke. How could this possibly be real? Slowly memories began to trickle. What I couldn’t shake or make sense of was my dad.

Why had he been with those men?

Who were those men cloaked in the night?

And what did they want with little me?

You can imagine the vivid and disturbing images that came to mind. I couldn’t help but associate a kidnapping with rape and beatings, yet I just couldn’t see my dad being mixed up with that kind of thing. Sure, I guess he didn’t have a stellar background. He had been weirder than usual. Coming and going at ungodly hours. Running around dressed like some kind of ninja with knives strapped to his pants.

Okay, so my dad wasn’t what he seemed.

That much I got.

But what exactly was he mixed up in? Underground street gangs? Alien experimentation? CIA? And why had he gone to such extremes to bring me here? I still didn’t have the foggiest clue where here was?

As luck would have it, I didn’t have to wait long to find out.

The door to my new accommodations opened and in walked the man who would become my instructor. A man I thought I knew. The one man in my life who I’d always thought would protect me, guide me, and watch out for me.

It sucked ass to be so wrong.

I’d wanted to blame what I thought I had seen that night, however I couldn’t deny what was standing in front of my very own frightened eyes. I’d never really been afraid of him before. It was a feeling I was unaccustomed to. My first instinct when he had stepped through the door had been relief. I had wanted to throw myself into his arms, but something held me back. It was that one memory right before everything went fuzzy and black.

The one that was on repeat in my brain: He could have a part in all this. That thought ran rampant in my pounding head as I stood up and stared teary-eyed into emerald eyes just like mine.

“Dad?” I squeaked.

“Emma.”  I recognized his serious business tone. No BS allowed. No time for cuddling or emotional breakdowns. “We have a lot to discuss. Why don’t you sit down?”

Sit down? I didn’t want to sit. I didn’t want to be here. What I wanted was for him to take me home. I didn’t like the sound of this one itty-bitty bit, but when my dad commanded, you obeyed. At that time, rebellion wasn’t something I’d ever thought about. Maybe I should have…

Folding my hands neatly in my lap, I sat on the edge of the cot-like bed. It was probably better I sat anyway, since my knees were wobbling and my legs were shaky. “What’s going on? Why am I here?”

“This, Emma, is the family business, and it is time you took your place.”

Family business? My place? This was the first I’d heard of it, but I still didn’t understand the need for such extreme theatrics. I rubbed my sweaty palms on the thigh of my jeans. “I don’t understand. Why drag me here?” Not to mention scare the piss out of me.

“It was necessary. Trust me. If I could have done this anymore…delicately, I would have, but precautions were a must. This facility is highly guarded and off the radar.” He paced in the tiny room as he talked. Two steps to one wall, two steps back to the other.

Under my fear and skepticism, my interest was piqued enough for me to ask, “Why? What is so secret about this place?”

His red hair glinted off the overhead lights. “Demons. And, more importantly, their half-breeds, Divisa.”

I gulped. Oh boy. If he only knew how much I did know about half-demons. His dark green eyes narrowed at me. Something inside me told me that I needed to kick up my surprise a notch, like someone who didn’t know that demons walked the earth. “Deviza?” I echoed as if it was a foreign word, tripping over the pronunciation and trying to look confused.

That seemed to do the trick as he relaxed his shoulders—well relaxed for the sergeant, as I have nicknamed him—and continued, “I know that this might be hard to believe, but we live among demons disguised in human forms. They prey on us, manipulate our minds, get us to do things we normally wouldn’t do. Rape. Murder. You name it. They impregnate our women and leave them to raise their half-breed bastards. These abominations are dangerous. Extremely dangerous. They need to be taken care of. To keep families like ours safe, we need to wipe every Divisa from existence.”

I twiddled my fingers in my lap, trying to look anywhere but at my father as I tried to process what he was telling me. He hunted Divisa. He hunted people like Travis. And he expected me to do the same.

I gulped, swallowing back the bile rising in my throat.

I was going to hurl.

“From here on out, I will no longer be your father… I will be your instructor,” he informed in his deep military voice. There was no room for argument. My shoulders were rigid even though I knew I was in a hopeless situation.

My stomach fell through the concrete floor as I realized I wasn’t getting out of here or this situation. Dread overwhelmed me. I knew there was one thing I could never admit, that I had to keep hidden for my sake and for the protection of the guy I loved. My dad—errr instructor—could never find out what Travis was. Never. That was if he hadn’t already figured it out. Everything in my body told me it was vital that I told no one what I already knew.

Those first few days I was naïve and delusional.

I should have listened to that sinking feeling in my gut that told me my dad already knew what Travis was. He might have met him only twice, but maybe that was all it took to decipher Travis as something other than human. But I was no expert yet, that was for sure.

For now, I played dumb.

The first thing my instructor confiscated during my training was my iPod. Before, I’d never left my house without it. I was always moving to the beat of music. In the car, relaxing on my bed, walking the halls between classes, anywhere I could get away with it.

Hall High.

I couldn’t believe how much I’d miss it. Being homeschooled wasn’t what it was cracked up to be. Sure it sounded glamorous when you were sitting in a classroom day in and day out, but I thought it sucked.

It probably had something to do with the fact that I hadn’t been given a choice, like most things in my life lately. My freedom and decision-making had been stripped from me. My worst fears come true.

Six months ago all I had wanted to do was graduate with my class, in the town I loved, and study dance at a great college. It was amazing how fast dreams could be crushed.

In a blink, I saw the life I’d always envisioned disappear. In its place, I saw blood, death, and murder. I saw someone I didn’t recognize as myself. I would never again be that naïve, youthful girl. Dancing was a useless dream, my instructor told me that first day…a little girl’s fantasy.

Cruel words from my own father, who was now my mentor.

I was given a new path in life, one I just accepted because in the beginning I thought I could save Travis. But really, there was no other alternative.

Not if I wanted to survive. I wasn’t given one…

Awesome sauce, a sneak peek at HUNTING ANGEL

I am so excited to share with you the first chapter in HUNTING ANGEL and the return of my favorite bad boy Chase.

Warning. This is not edited. Like at all. There will most definitely be typos and there might be a few changes before the release date.

That being said I can't wait for this book and I just wanted to thank you all <3 <3. This has been the most amazing experience.

 

Enjoy!

 

Chapter 1

 

Chase Winters is the bane of my existence.

Some people have death experiences and realize how precious life and love is.

Not me.

Just the opposite.

Oh, I appreciate life. I love feeling the wind in my hair, the taste of dark chocolate on my tongue, and I even came to love the country scent of Spring Valley, Illinois. What I didn’t have was an epiphany about my love life.

Instead of falling head over heels in love with Chase Winters, my savior, I actually loathed him more if that was even possible. Okay, maybe loathe was a strong word. Truthfully, I didn’t know how I felt about Chase. Sometimes I saw glimpses of kindness. He could be sweet, considerate and incredible protective. Chase wasn’t the kind of guy who was easy to love. Sure, he looked like he was sculpted by the gods, but the second he opened his mouth the illusion evaporated. Mostly all I got was a selfish ass. To make matters worse, we were linked by some grim reaper voodoo.

Thank you Death.

Chase has saved my life not once, not twice… shit at this point I’m about to lose count. Maybe I should have shown a little more gratitude. Maybe I should try and get along with Chase considering neither of us really understands this connection we have. Or maybe I should stay as far away as possible.

I might have if he suddenly hadn’t gone from being a douchebag to someone I didn’t recognize. The arrogant, snarky asshole was still there, but with me he was different. And I found that even more dangerous. It was throwing me through crazy, messed up loops. That’s what he was doing lately – messing me up.

I could handle the sarcasm all day long. It was the charm that played with my head. Since that night everything changed. Or maybe it was just me who changed. My mom got one heck of a surprise when I saw her that night after work. I hugged her like I was afraid to let go. We spent the rest of that night on the couch together watching our favorite movie until I finally fell asleep. She had sensed how much I needed to just spend a night with her, like we used. It was the best medicine in the world – a mother’s love.

And her special chocolate milkshakes.

There really was no point in dwelling on what I couldn’t change. What’s done was done. I should be focusing on what happens now, like finding out if I am still human or some genetically altered badass. Hey it was possible. As much as I despised to admit it, Chase is the badass. So it was deducible that some of his awesome could have rubbed off on me.

Who was I kidding? I didn’t feel like a badass. It was strange. I felt different yet I couldn’t put my finger on what those changes were. When I looked in the mirror, my face looked exactly the same. Not one blasted freckle out of place. My hair was still straight as a board and as black as spades. I hadn’t gained or lost any weight, I was still only five foot three and my tongue was just as sharp as ever – maybe sharper.

What I really needed was a distraction from my own rambling thoughts, something to fully occupy my mind. If I kept going at this rate, I would drive myself straight into the loony bin. I knew just what I needed.

No not Chase.

Tiptoeing down the hall in my striped knee-high socks and white cotton shorts, I skipped down the stairs trying not to disturb my mom. She was fast asleep. It had been a long night. Sprawling out on the zebra print sofa, (mom was totally into animal print) I flipped the TV on, finding my favorite YouTube channel. Yes, this probably raised my geekdom levels, but I couldn’t help. I was addicted to YouTube.

I was completely immersed in the repartee between Sips and Sjin when I felt the familiar heat skirt down back of my neck. The tattoo now gracing my hip tingled. Every time he was near the same symptoms came over me. It was both disarming and irritating.

“What are you doing?” he asked, making himself at home on the couch beside me. His long legs stretched out in front of him. Letting himself into my house whenever he felt like it, had also become a habit.

My eyes were glued to the screen. I fought the urge to look over at him, finding it more difficult than it should have been. Whenever we were in the same room, I instinctual sought him out. Our eyes would connect, the world would standstill, and then we would go on as if nothing happened. So recently I began to challenge myself, to see how long it would take me before I caved. “What does it look like? I’m watching TV genius. Even you should be able to figure that out.” I answered in a droll voice never taking my eyes off the tube. Try as I might to ignore his overbearing presence, I failed. Epicly.

 “This is not TV,” he argued, remaining as difficult as always.

“It’s Sips and Sjin,” I added clenching my fists. My nails dug into my palms. It was all I could do to not look at him.

I felt those silver eyes on me and shifted under his gaze. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?” His voice alone could cut straight to my heart and make it beat a million times faster.

Tossing a handful of green and red skittles into my mouth, I snickered at the banter between my two favorite gamers. “They do a play through of games and post them on YouTube with snarky humor. It’s a-m-a-zing,” I informed, chewing on the wad of rainbow candy.

“Attractive.” His weight sunk his side of the couch.

I grinned, finally giving in and meeting those smoky eyes that haunted my dreams, no matter how much I willed otherwise. “It’s totally turning you on,” I teased over exaggerating my chomping. I hated that just a peek at him in his ripped jeans and black t-shirt could leave me breathless.

Joke was on me. His silver eyes flickered gold, and he shot me a devilish grin. “You’re right.”

Shit.

I swallowed. Well that totally backfired. My pulsed picked up, and I could feel myself pulled toward that god-worthy body. “Whatever,” I shot back weakly and returned my attention to the TV, though at this point he’d ruined it for me.

My feet were pressed against his thigh, seared by his incredible heat. He was like an inferno. “Okay. So let me get this straight. Instead of playing video games, you are now watching someone else play video games?”

I kicked him lightly in the thigh. “You got a problem with it – leave.” I put on a much braver front than I felt. Truthfully, if he did leave, I knew that moment he was gone I would miss him. Pathetic.

“God you are lame.”

That was it. I didn’t even think about what I did, I just tossed whatever was in my hand directly at Chase’s smirking mouth.

It happened to be the remote control.

I watched as his hand snatched it out of the air before it connected with his beautiful bad boy face. Damn his demon reflexes. “Nice try Angel Eyes. I love it when you are feisty.”

I scowled at him. “Mom is upstairs you know.”

He lifted that stupid brow with the hoop in it. Enviously long lashes fanned around his twinkling eyes. “That sounds like a challenge.”

“God you are warped.”

His wrist snaked out before I even saw it coming, gripping my ankle. With a quick tug he pulled me to him, and I shrieked in surprise. “You like it,” he murmured, his breath tickling my skin.

Suddenly I found myself in a very precarious position straddled over his lap. Being this close to Chase meant trouble – of the good kind. I pushed aside the butterflies of excitement and anticipation. My body knew what was about to follow the kind of look he was giving me, and it was on high alert. “If you came over for a quick tumble you’ll be sadly disappointed.” I tried to sound completely bored and uninterested.

Yet the golden gleam in his eyes said no one was fooled, least of all him. His hands spanned on either side of my hips, burning right through the flimsy white cotton of my shorts. I cursed myself for not wearing more clothes like lots of layers. No, instead I strolled around the house in next to naked.

“Nothing I ever do is quick Angel.”

Every time he said my name my pulse decided to race like it was on speed. I bit my lip to keep from sighing. The last thing I needed to do was stroke his already out of control ego.

“Do you need a demonstration?” he whispered, his voice dropping to dangerous octaves.

I swallowed, entranced by his eyes. He tipped his head forward grazing his lips across mine. A blaze of heat tore through my body leaving me achy and wanting more. I knew that I should pull away while I still had opportunity because the small window was closing quickly. As if I had a choice. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I watched as his eyes darkened and flickered. He wasn’t the only one who could use the element of surprise. I laced my fingers into his hair loving the way his eyes changed right before me. Never losing contact I moved in to seal our lips together, needing–

Like I weighed no more than a pound of sugar, he lifted me in the air, dropping me down on the couch. For a split second I was stunned…then I went up in flames. Roughly pushing the hair out of my face, I glared up at him, seething. “I am going to make you regret that Chase Winters.”

He stood hovering over me with a stupid grin. “I’m looking forward to it.”

I jumped off the couch, meeting him head-to-head. Okay well in reality it was like head-to-chest. It wasn’t my fault he was so damn tall or that I was so short. Cursed genes. “I think you better leave before I give in to the urge to stab you.”

He chuckled walking to the door. “There is never a dull moment with you.” Pausing in the doorway he leaned against the frame. “It’s why I like you Angel Eyes.” He brushed a piece of loose hair behind my ear.

Without further ado, I slammed it in his face. As usual, his laughter seeped through from the other side. This seemed to be our signature goodbye more and more lately. I think he liked it in some twisted way. It’s like he lived to get under my skin or under my shirt. Propped against the closed door, I closed my eyes and released a whoosh of breath I’d been holding from his touch.

“Angel,” my mom called from upstairs.

Ugh. I had woken up sleeping beauty with my outburst. “Sorry mom,” I hollered back.

~*~*~*~

Hello Monday morning you suck. That was my first thought of the day – lovely wasn’t it? Lying in my bed, I stared at the ceiling. Today would be many of firsts for me.

First day back to school since my… accident. Is that what I should refer it as? An accident?

First time I would see Brandy since she lured me into trap. On her defense she had been compelled, so I couldn’t really hold it against her. Chase on the other hand, had absolutely no qualm holding her entirely responsible. Nothing in his thought process makes any sense to me. Or maybe that was just guys in general.

First time I would be leaving the confines and security of my house. I would have to be a fool and an idiot after all I went through to not be nervous and caution about the creepy and scary as shit things that are out there. They weren’t just stuff made up in nightmares and horror films.

Rolling out of bed, I stood in front of the mirror, and pulled up my t-shirt. There it was – the black swirly design. A constant reminder of that night, of the night I became something more than just human. It had been a week since that hellish night – a week of me skipping school. My mom thought I had come down with some kind of extreme illness. I told her I caught it from Chase, which in a funny way was the truth.

The intricate swirls were no longer red or caused me pain, but it did however sometimes tingle or get warm. Tracing the tribal lines with my finger, I thought about Chase and what he had done to save me. I still didn’t fully understand what he had sacrificed other than tying ours souls together forever.

Forever.

It sounded so definite. Forever with Chase. I should have been horrified by the idea not…

Thrilled.

Eager.

Elated.

Huffing at my reflection, I pulled down my shirt and went to my closet. School waited whether I was ready or not. I’ll admit there was some apprehension coiling in my belly. Tossing on a pair of jeans and a cardigan, I raced downstairs.

Heading into the kitchen, I went to grab myself a bowl of Lucky Charms. I could use a little luck of the Irish. There was a pink note on the granite counter that captured my attention. A small box sat under the note. Picking up the pink letterhead I read the quick note from my mom.

 

Angel,

I love you dearly but I swear if you drop this phone in the toilet, run it over with your car or any other excuse you can come up with it will be the last time you use a phone. Got it? I’m pretty sure the guy at the phone company thinks I eat cell phones for dinner. Please be more careful.

Love, Mom

P.S. Speaking of dinner, I made extras for dinner tonight for Chase.

 

Good God. Now my mom was cooking him dinner. He even had her wrapped around his finger. I would deal with that later, right now I grinned as I tore open the box to my new IPhone.

Hell yes.

The worse part of getting a new phone was I had to input all my contacts again, which I guess wasn’t as bad as it seemed. I mean I live in Spring Valley. There really weren’t that many people to add. Glancing at the clock, I realized my glee was short lived. If I didn’t hurry my tail, I was going to be late to class. Slipping my new kickass phone into my backpack, I threw down a bowl of leprechaun cereal just in time before a car horn beeped outside my house.