you safe,” he said.
Emily went very still.
He might be willing to keep her safe from others, but who was going to keep her safe from him? Or from herself? She was responding to the pressure of his body against hers and the brush of his lips like a hormonal teenager.
Five minutes ago, she’d been convinced he was about to have her for dinner. Now, she was feeling warm and far too heavy in his arms, very aware of the pressure of his forearm right under her suddenly aching breasts. Every sane thought seemed to be flying out of her head, leaving her a breathless puddle of pathetic.
It was disgusting.
She wasn’t a woman to lose her head over a man or let her loins guide her, and she intended to keep it that way. That was more in Amber’s wheelhouse.
A stab of guilt gripped her chest.
Amber.
She’d fled for her own life without even giving Amber a second thought. Now, one of her would‐be attackers offered to keep her safe, which just served to make her feel worse.
“Why?” she heard her own voice ask in an embarrassingly throaty tone.
It was a fair question. Why would he want to keep her safe? Why had he helped her at the farmhouse, instead of letting the werewolves tear her apart? Why?
William was intoxicated by her soft skin and the overwhelming scent of her essence surrounding him. He was ensnared in a world of his own desires, having some of them reawakened with a vengeance after many years dormant. It didn’t occur to him to be anything but truthful.
“I want you,” he said simply, though there was nothing simple about it.
“Helloooo!” Paoli’s voice broke the spell of the moment just before he appeared beside them, saving Emily from having to try and speak after such an admission.
For one awkward instant, Paoli just stood there and took in the scene, his eyes growing darker and more suspicious the longer he looked at them.
“I was coming to make sure you were both all right,” Paoli said, his voice thick with accusation as he looked at William.
“I’m fine, thanks,” she heard William retort and had to bite back a smile. “We were just discussing your actions in the car, which scared her into thinking she’d been attacked,” William continued in a slightly accusatory tone now himself.
Comprehension widened Paoli’s eyes when he looked at her.
“I’m sorry about that,” he said, and his voice sounded honest and pained. “Humans usually don’t even know when they’ve been hypnotized.”
She gaped at him a moment, unable to believe anyone could see it as acceptable to steal someone’s free will as long as they didn’t know it.
“That doesn’t make it right,” she said with heat.
Despite the fact she was dangling from William’s arm like a rag doll, she still managed to sound authoritative.
“You’re right,” Paoli agreed without a fight. “Please accept my apology, as well as my guarantee I will never hypnotize you again.”
Emily snorted derisively. “How can you expect me to take your word for anything? You’re a vampire.”
She spat out the last like an insult.
Paoli’s casual demeanor disappeared and was replaced with a very formal one. He straightened regally, his eyes flashing but his voice very cold.
“I am,” he admitted slowly. “I have been for a very long time. It wasn’t my choice, and I won’t apologize for it. This night, what I am, what we are,” he amended with a quick nod toward William, “saved not only your life but your sister’s as well.”
Beneath the icy tones, he sounded resigned and somehow sad, like she’d hurt him deeply.
Emily felt small and petty for her harsh words.
He was absolutely right.
She owed them a debt she could never repay. Instead of thanking them for saving her, she’d attacked him both physically and verbally. She looked at him from under her lashes in a suddenly contrite pose.
“Did you take my blood?” she asked.
She hadn’t meant to speak the worry aloud, but the words tumbled out of their own accord. She had to know.
“Absolutely not,” Paoli answered, clearly aghast.
The look of horror on his face was almost insulting, and Emily bristled at his tone.
“You’re under our protection,” he explained, his tone sounding slightly exasperated. “Don’t be offended that we didn’t feed on you. We didn’t bring you as a food source,” he said. “We brought you to help you. And like it or not, you need our help.”
She let out a long, deflated breath of defeat.
“You’re right,” she admitted. “I’m in way over my head here. You guys saved me tonight.”
She offered a weak, apologetic smile, which he returned readily enough, his usual demeaner having been restored. “I’m sorry about the cross.”
Paoli chuckled at that, his eyes twinkling.
“If I hadn’t scared you, it never would have happened. So, I guess I had it coming,” he said, waving her apology away. “Besides, I heal quickly.”
He threw her a small wink.
“Are we all friends again?” William spoke up from behind her.
“You can put her down now,” Paoli confirmed.
Emily breathed a little easier once her feet were back on the ground and William stepped away. With his admission still ringing in her ears, she needed some distance from him.
A lot of distance.
And time to get her body back under control.
While Paoli made her nervous for her life, William affected her in very different ways.
He was clearly the more dangerous of the two, judging by his actions at the farmhouse. But his eyes when he first saw her had a possessive heat that made her uneasy. Eyes that seemed to see into her very soul.
She swallowed hard at the mere memory. He was dangerous to her, indeed.
“Here,” she said as the trio made their way back to the car.
She held out the cross as a peace offering to Paoli and felt a fresh rush of guilt when she noticed him flinch just slightly, though he played it off as surprise.
He stared at the large necklace for a moment, then looked over her head at William on her other side.
“You keep it,” he told her finally. “In fact, go ahead and wear it for now, so you’ll know you’re safe from me.”
Back at the car, she checked on Amber before she got back into the passenger’s seat.
She pulled down the vanity mirror and fumbled to fasten the clasp on the necklace. Both Paoli and William pretended not to notice her check her neck discretely, though she could feel their eyes watching her.
Still looking in the mirror, she glanced in the backseat at Paoli. His reflection smiled and waved at her in the mirror.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, her cheeks blooming with color at having been caught checking his reflection.
“Don’t be,” William told her, definite humor in his voice.
“There’s no reason to be sorry,” Paoli agreed. “In fact, this is a good time to get to know one another a little better, wouldn’t you say?”
As usual, he ignored William’s warning growl.
William could