Seeing Austin meant I should probably pull myself together, which entailed running a brush through my hair and tugging it back into a ponytail like I often did. I also put on some lip balm. That was as fancy as I could manage. I stared in the mirror and quickly realized it wasn’t the look I wanted. So I pulled my hair out of the ponytail and changed my shirt. I had obtained a few more clothes since arriving, so I might as well use them.
One last check and I was ready. I headed to the main hall, and the place was like a ghost town. My stomach rumbled again. I ignored it and hoped it wouldn’t embarrass me in front of Austin. But why did I suddenly care? We were just friends meeting up to hang out. Friends who kissed each other on occasion. Then I remembered he had a surprise for me.
As I scaled the stairs in the main hall, my heart started beating faster, and my breathing became unsteady, so I paused for a moment at the top of the steps. I was anxious, and it was strange; Austin never made me feel like this. Finally, I moved again slowly in an attempt to control my heart rate.
I entered the media room and pulled back the secret bookcase door. Light snuck in from the outside, and the breeze hit my face before I reached the top step. It smelled crisp, with different facets of the city lingering within the scent.
Austin was standing and peering into the distance, a perfect silhouette in front of the moon.
“Hey.”
When he turned toward me, I let out a gasp. The twinkling from the miniature white lights filled his features. He looked more handsome than ever, and I couldn’t ignore the way his gray sweater hugged his body. His mysterious green eyes regarded me as I continued to stare at him like an eager teenager. He was flawless.
“Are you going to be okay?” he asked as his lips tugged upward.
I shook it off. “I’m fine. Still a little tired, though. So what’s up? I heard you wanted to see me.”
He held my hand and drew me closer to him. My heart, which had slowed back down, started beating wildly again.
“I always want to see you. So I figured we should get some alone time to go over our arrangements for the party.”
“So that’s the surprise?” Disappointment dripped from my lips, and I cringed. Not how I wanted that to come out.
He laughed. “No, that’s not the surprise, but we’ll get to that in a minute.” He ushered me over to where the bench was. I spotted a red makeshift tablecloth, two wineglasses, and a bottle of wine. “I thought we could start here.”
“If you expect to get me drunk, you have another think coming.” Here was the moment everyone had told me Austin was notorious for. Girls threw themselves at him so he could entice them to bed. “I’m not easy, Austin.”
“Oh, Tasi, relax. I figured it would be a friendly gesture while we spoke. If you don’t want any, it just means more for me.” That smug expression that regularly crossed his face was back.
That’s when my stomach betrayed me by growling, loud and fierce. The only thing I could do was give in, so I sat down.
“Sorry, I missed most of my meals today.”
He reached under the bench and picked up something—two slices of cheese pizza.
“That’s why I brought these with me.”
The smile on my face returned as he passed me the tinfoil carrying the warm slices of pizza. I stuffed my face, using my manners as best I could, which wasn’t saying much.
“What? I’m starving.”
“Quite all right. Here’s something to wash it down with.” He gave me a glass that he’d filled with wine. I stared at him. “Trust me and try it. If you don’t like it, I’ll drink it.”
“Fine.” I balled up the tinfoil and reached for the wine.
“You realize you could chew your food? Scarfing down two enormous slices of pizza without savoring the flavor seems so disrespectful, and not very ladylike.” He laughed.
“I never claimed I was a lady. If you prefer one of those, look elsewhere.”
“No way. You, miss, are perfect. You’re beautiful, amusing, and, well, a badass. Plus, did I mention how sexy you are, because my, my, you are so incredibly sexy,” he said as he shifted toward me. He was serious.
“Oh.” My cheeks grew warm once again. With my hands wrapped tight around my glass, I took a sip of wine. The liquid warmed my mouth, biting my taste buds with the flavor of copper, a taste I remembered well.
“Ah, I think she likes it.”
“Is it blood?”
“Yes, I laced the wine with blood—a large quantity of blood.”
“It’s delicious,” I said, taking another small sip. “Let’s talk about this dance thing. So, what’re you going as?”
“That, my dear, is a secret.” He strolled over and leaned forward against the brick wall, looking over the edge.
“Now you’re keeping secrets from me? Not certain I can endorse this behavior.” I took another sip.
“You’ll forgive me once I tell you my real surprise. I’ve asked Sonya for approval to go shopping this weekend. The dance is fast approaching, and we need costumes.”
“Seriously? We get another day out?”
As I stood up, I couldn’t tell if my feet were dancing in circles or my head was spinning. After a few seconds, my balance finally came back.
“Yes, I’m serious, and you shouldn’t have anything else to drink.” His hands grabbed on to my waist, steadying me. “Maybe that stuff is stronger for dhampyrs.”
“I don’t know, but I feel terrific.” I didn’t think I was drunk; it was only some momentary wooziness as the floor spun beneath my feet. The light captured in his eyes was now drawing me in. “You have such wonderful eyes.”
“Yeah, no more alcohol for you.” His finger followed my jawline, delighting my skin along the way. “If you were some other girl, I would take advantage of this moment.”
The cloudiness impairing my thoughts cleared up. My jaw clenched, and my palms became sweaty at the idea of not being good enough.
“Why is that? Am I not pretty enough for you? Not pretty enough to sleep with, just fun to piss off Ethan with?”
“Tasi, you must be kidding me right now. You’re gorgeous, and if it were up to me, we would be back in my room doing all sorts of naughty things.” He pulled me in tighter. “You are by far the most alluring girl I have ever met. Any guy would love to be with you. And I don’t mean just to sleep with you.”
“Not every guy—I know of one who despises me.”
His hold loosened around me. “So that’s it. You have a thing for Ethan.”
“No. Wait. Who? What?” I said as I struggled to figure out the correct words to back myself out of the corner my mouth had gotten me into. I had created a mess once again.
He smiled and shook his head. “I suppose it’s a good thing we’re just friends, right?”
Why was I tormenting myself? In front of me stood a fantastic guy who wished nothing more than to make me happy, and I was still thinking about Ethan and that stupid kiss we had, while Ethan had made it evident on several occasions that he didn’t even like to be around me. Plus, with my impending doom in two years’ time, maybe I should spend my efforts on the guy who actually liked me.
He watched my internal battle closely, then finally let go.
“No, Austin, wait.” I stepped in closer to him. “Listen, I don’t know if I’m ready for a relationship. There’s a bunch of stuff going on with me right now, things that I’m not ready to talk about.”
“It’s okay, Tasi. I told you before, if all we can be is friends, then I’ll take it. I like spending time with you.” He brought his finger under my chin and lifted it so my eyes found his. “You don’t owe me any explanations.”
I reached up, sliding both my hands around the back of his neck. “Maybe if we tried, it would work.”
“I don’t know, Tasi. You said it yourself—you aren’t in the proper mindset. It’s almost as if you are forcing yourself to say these things so you don’t hurt me.”
“Honestly, Austin, I’ve never had a boyfriend. So I don’t know if I’ll ever be in the right mindset. And you’re right, I don’t want to hurt you if I’m not ready for all this. You deserve better.”
He studied me further. “I have an idea. How about the night of the dance, we go on our first date?”
“What do you mean, exactly?”
He wrapped his arms around me again. The giddiness that had me whirling had now passed. The only emotion that lingered was the tremble I felt when he touched me.
“I mean let me pick you up at your room, escort you to and from the party, and let me dance with you.” Before I realized what was happening, Austin twirled me around. “You should let me get your drinks and hold your purse.” His breath was luscious as he leaned in close. “And when the night is over, if you let me, I will sweep you up in my arms and—”
Before he could finish that sentence, my mouth moved to his. The kiss was delicious, interwoven with the metallic aroma of the wine. There was an urgency in the way our tongues danced. He pressed his palms against my back. Our bodies melted together the closer we stepped in to each other. My hands reached deep into his hair, driving his lips closer to mine. I didn’t want him to stop, but he did.
Pulling back ever so slightly, he was smirking at me. “You understand I’m going to need a cold shower after this, right?” The brush of his fingers across my lips sent quivers through my body. He leaned in for one more kiss, moving his lips from my mouth to my jawline and down my neck. I stiffened. “Relax, lovely, I wouldn’t bite you. I only wanted to tell you once more how breathtaking and ridiculously sexy you are.” He grazed my ear with his tongue before pulling back.
“Sorry—still getting used to the whole vampire thing,” I said as my face flushed.
“It’s fine, Tasi, I won’t do anything to you without your permission, okay?” he said, his tone gentle. “We better get to bed. Sun’s coming up, and I don’t want to be here when it does. Plus, that cold shower is calling.”
“I should probably get to sleep anyway, before I try to join your cold shower.” His eyes brightened. “Just kidding. I have class tomorrow.”
We cleaned up the mess, stealing kisses from each other along the way.
“So, what’s the deal with that class, anyway?”
“Jelena is teaching us about vampires and dhampyrs. It was her idea, and I guess Sonya thought it would be good for us to learn the truth, so we would stop killing you guys off.” I considered myself close with Austin, but I couldn’t tell him about everything going on. Not yet—there was no way to know if he would run back and tell Sonya everything.
“Interesting.”
As we headed back through the main hall, I saw Sonya coming out of her office. “Hold on a sec.” I broke off our hand-holding and ran over to talk to her.
Startled, she gave me a haughty look. “Shouldn’t you be in bed, Tasia? Alone, I might add.” She pursed her lips, watching Austin, who was waiting for me.
The blood rushed to my cheeks. “I’m going to bed alone, trust me. What we talked about earlier—the answer is yes. I spoke to Jelena, and she said she would help.”
Sonya’s face lightened up. “Excellent. We will make arrangements within the next few days. Once we are ready, Jelena will take you after one of your classes.”
I nodded just as Ethan walked out of Sonya’s office, narrowing his eyes as he looked at me. I wondered what he disapproved of now, the conversation I’d just had with Sonya or the fact that I was with Austin. Maybe it was a little of both.