Untouchable Darkness (The Dark Ones Saga, #2)(7)

“You even sound different,” Stephanie muttered under her breath. “Your voice is gruffer.”

“Yes.” The word caught at the back of my throat making me sound like an idiot.

“Do you bruise?” She pulled to a stop at the next light and stared at me.

I licked my lips and ran my fingers through my dark hair. “I guess so—”

The punch was so hard I was pretty confident one of my ribs simply broke in half.

“What the HELL?” I roared rubbing my left side while trying to suck in enough air so I didn’t pass out. It hurt to breathe.

“How dare you leave me!” She hit the accelerator causing me to slam back against the seat.

“Stephanie.” I held out my shaking hands. “Damn it, calm down.”

The car picked up speed. Shit.

Fear wasn’t something I was accustomed to but there it was slamming against my chest as she weaved in and out of traffic gaining speed.

I gripped my seatbelt. “Steph, just calm down for a minute. If you listen I think you’ll understand and—”

“Understand?” She laughed. “You left me! Alone! I don’t even know what I am! And you left me!”

“I had no choice!” I roared as the car damn near collided with a semi.

The atmosphere in the car turned to ice. I knew the look in her eyes well. It was the same as I’d seen reflected on my face a few thousand times.

Her eyes turned a stormy white.

Icicles formed around the steering wheel.

If she didn’t calm down the entire car was going to freeze and explode into pieces of icy dust.

“Stephanie, listen to me.” I touched her icy arm. “Can you at least do that? I’m here now, does that tell you nothing?”

Her breath froze in front of her face.

My teeth clattered together. This wasn’t going to end well for me if she didn’t relax. She’d be just fine.

I’d be worse off than the car.

“Pull over,” I barked.

She shook her head.

“Pull the car over. NOW!” I jerked the steering wheel.

She didn’t fight me.

Instead the car rocked to the side and screeched to a halt right at our exit.

Out of control. She was out of control. She needed to get warm before the cold took over, before the darkness consumed her. She had no idea what powers she was playing with, how losing control of your emotions could destroy you, put you in a catatonic state for weeks.

She still wasn’t responding to my voice.

So I did what any human would do.

I kissed her.





Stephanie



HIS LIPS FELT HOT—not cold like before. They were warm, inviting, but the touch of his mouth just reminded me—he didn’t want me.

Reluctantly, I pushed against his chest.

He slammed back against the seat—hard, like I’d just punched him with every ounce of strength I had.

With a gasp I covered my mouth with my hands and whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

Cassius winced, bringing his hand to rub the back of his head. “I may not be able to taste your lies anymore—but I’m not stupid, the last thing you are is sorry.”

“But I am!”

“Lie.” Cassius’s face broke out into a mocking grin. “Though I’ll go as far as to believe you didn’t mean to kill me.” He alternated between rubbing his stomach and checking the back of his head for blood.

“Of course not!” The thought made me sick to my stomach. “Are you hurt?”

He didn’t answer, but his face was paler than before, and I noticed his breathing was a bit uneven. Was it from the violence or the kiss?

“If you don’t learn to control your emotions we’ll both be dead by the time we reach Ethan’s. If we make it that far.” Another wince. “Now, I know everything is very new to you, but if you could try not to kill one or both of us within the next ten minutes, I’d be eternally grateful. I’m still not used to being fully human.”

I swallowed and looked away in shame. “I don’t really know how to control certain things—where you’re concerned.”

“Wouldn’t have guessed that,” he said dryly, his eyes narrowing in on me with the precision of a sharp knife.

“What?” I licked my lips nervously and stared ahead out the window.

“Nothing, it’s just I’m trying to decide if that’s a compliment or not.”

I stole another glance at him. How was he so calm? And why didn’t he lose all of his good looks the minute he turned human? How was that fair? His blue eyes were electric in the night sky. His skin still so smooth and flawless that I wanted to reach out and touch it.

Thank God he couldn’t still read my thoughts.

“Don’t look at me like that if you don’t plan on following through,” he snapped, his white teeth flashing against the blanket of darkness in the car.

“Fine.” I put the car back in drive. “So, I just have to keep myself from losing control emotionally—for the next what? Ten miles?”

He sighed. “Yes.”

“And then once we’re safely within the walls of Ethan’s little compound?”

Cassius shook his head, an amused grin spread across his face. “Well then, I’ll allow you to try to kill me if that’s what you really wish.”