Vampire Gemini. Amy Blankenship

down to their soul mate. Had she been looking for him, only to find Hyakuhei instead? She might not remember, but her soul would never forget. His eyes darkened with the thought even while he fought the hope of it.

      The thrall of a vampire would have never affected her if she hadn’t weakened her mind with the strong alcohol he now smelled on her breath. If she’d never drank the spirit water before, then its power may have been enough so that the thrall had never taken affect… he could not be completely sure.

      The sad part is that once she had her powers back… his brother would have no hold over her either.

      Using his powers on the priestess was staggering… making his body tremble with the effort. The most he could do was try to remove his face from her mind’s eye… his brother’s face. As he tried to go deeper, he could feel the screams of the guardians there and he quickly withdrew… refusing to give their memory any power. It was best they remained only phantoms within her mind.

      Knowing he’d only been able to take the edge off her memory, Tadamichi fell to his knees beside her on the floor. So long ago he had fallen in love with her… was this now his punishment? He could not harm her in any way or the spell on the guardians would be broken and they would come for him with a vengeance. It would almost be worth it for a moment with her.

      His gaze rose to his brother, thankful Hyakuhei had never met her in the past or the guardians that had stolen her from him… that was his cross to bear.

      Giving fate the helping hand it needed, Tadamichi felt dawn coming and swept his fingers across the girl’s aura to wake her, knowing Hyakuhei would not have the energy just yet to awaken. He watched as soft light began to filter within the thick curtains and he stood within its beams for a moment longer before he backed into the darkness.

      He only hoped the priestess would be smart enough to leave and never look back. If Hyakuhei had found what he had longed for… it would now be a fight between purity and the evil it attracted.

      His gaze worshiped his brother for several heartbeats knowing this time evil had a heart. But if he couldn’t have her… then neither could his brother.

      *****

      Kyoko awoke in layers and placed a hand over her eyes. She half expected the sun to be shining in her face but after cracking her eyes a bit, she realized it was actually nice and gloomy in the room. She lifted her head, almost whistling in appreciation at her surroundings. Wherever she was… it was a top of the line place.

      She rolled to the side a bit but stopped when she felt the heavy arm lying across her waist. Glancing back, all she saw in the shadows was long black hair and the outline of a gorgeous body… she sighed happily. It had finally happened. Now Grandpa wouldn’t have to send Tasuki to save her from her virginity.

      She cringed silently knowing Tasuki would never forgive her for this if he found out but it wasn’t as if she would ever see him again… this guy or Tasuki. Her bottom lip pouted at the lonely thought.

      Carefully sliding under the heavy arm and out of the bed, Kyoko realized she was as naked as her day of birth. Blushing twelve shades of red, she quickly grabbed her strapless bra from the floor, putting it on in record time.

      â€œPlease, please, let him stay asleep,” She whispered nervously as she kept her back turned to the man.

      Her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment over waking up next to an equally naked man. She’d caught a glimpse of his body when she threw back the covers. To make matters even worse, she’d decided not to wear underwear the night before. The man probably thought she was a total slut. Her movements slowed as she felt the ache within her body. She felt like she had lost a fight. Her arms and legs hurt but what made her eyes widen was the strange thick feeling… between her thighs.

      After searching for a few minutes, she found all of her clothes and realized she didn’t have a jacket to cover up her low cut top. Her gaze fell on his leather jacket and she grabbed it without thinking twice.

      She made it to the front door and stepped out into the hallway while trying to pull her skirt on at the same time. She froze when she heard the sound of a cart being pushed along the carpet. Jerking her head up, she caught the shocked gaze of a young man delivering room service down the hall.

      Kyoko quickly zipped up her skirt and pulled the shirt over her head then slipped into the jacket before running to the elevators. Once inside the relative safety of the elevator car, she slipped her shoes on and tried to fix her hair in the mirrored doors.

      When the doors opened, Kyoko walked as nonchalantly as she could to the entrance and stepped out onto the street burying her hands in the deep pockets of the jacket. Her fingers brushed against something in the pocket. She almost stopped and pulled it out but decided to wait until she got closer to home just in case she had woken him as she left.

      Looking over her shoulder with a mixed feeling of sadness and paranoia she whispered, “Thank you… you’ll never know how much.”

      *****