Almost Midnight (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3.5)(55)

Held so close, she felt his words vibrate in his chest, as she breathed in a scent that was purely male. Yes, she knew him.

Shawn? Shawn Hanson.

But that seemed to be all she knew. Where was she? And how…?

Reality jerked her from her stupor. She recalled the competition and the orb of fire. She’d screwed up.

She sat up. He let her go, but kept one arm around her shoulders.

Embarrassment consumed her.

“Was anyone hurt?” She forced the words from her raw throat.

“No. Thanks to you,” Shawn said. “But you might want to stop it from raining,” he said and winked.

Oh, yeah, she’d called upon the element of water to save her. And that gray snow wasn’t snow, but ash. Had it worked? Had she saved herself or had…?

She shifted a pinky to stop the rain. Still feeling like a fish out of water, even though she was soaked, she looked around. At the foot of the stage gathered the crowd of about three hundred. Closer, standing on the stage, were another thirty or so faces peering at her—probably laughing on the inside at her mistake.

She spotted her mom, looking fretful. In the mix of people, Della and Kylie stood a few feet away. Kylie’s aura was bright, as it got when she went into protective mode. Had Kylie saved her? Her gaze shifted to Della. Perhaps even Della with her vampire strength had helped in the rescue. Then she noted Della’s “told-you-so” smile. Why was…? Oh, heck, Miranda knew why.

Ever since Perry had taken off for Paris, the vamp had been pushing her to go out with Shawn. Now the question waiting to be answered was why Shawn was here.

She started to get up. Shawn bolted to his feet and reached down to help her. The words, I can do it rested on her tongue. But she bit them back.

His warm hand slipped into hers and she felt it. The spark of attraction. She’d carried a torch for him—the older brother of one of her friends—since she was twelve and he was fourteen.

In the corner of her eye, she saw Della grin and wave a hand under her nose as if she was picking up on the pheromones.

And dad-blast it, it was true. She had the hots for Shawn, but he wasn’t … Perry. She couldn’t open herself up to Shawn until … until she knew how things really stood between her and Perry.

On her feet, she saw the council gathering in one corner of the stage. Freaking great. No doubt they were about to chastise her for causing such chaos. Her gaze went back to her mom. The thought of her being humiliated—again—at Miranda’s failure stung like a paper cut right across the heart.

Then another deep cut sliced into her heart. She wasn’t going to Paris. She wouldn’t see Perry.

A knot of emotion rose in her throat.

All of a sudden, a loud bam sounded. Miranda’s gaze, along with everyone else’s, went to the auditorium door that had been slammed open. Three men dressed in dark suits came storming inside. A gasp echoed in the building.

Leading the group into the large room was a tall, dark man who owned any room he walked into—no matter what the size. Burnett James. Burnett, super vampire and part owner of Shadow Falls Camp, was also an agent with the Fallen Research Unit (FRU), which was basically the FBI of supernaturals. He didn’t slow down until he and the other men stopped right in front of her and Shawn.

What was Burnett doing here?

Did her screwup warrant the FRU showing up? Then she noted the vampire’s stern expression. Oh, hell, she was in deep doo-doo now.

*

Burnett wasted no time taking control of the situation, ordering people back, and insisting no one leave until his people had had a chance to interview them.

After swallowing her shock at seeing him, she found her voice. “What are you—?”

He held up one finger and sent her a look that demanded silence. She didn’t argue. Kylie and Della might feel comfortable enough to butt heads with the badass vamp, but Miranda … not so much.

She could still remember the fury in his eyes when she’d accidentally turned him into a kangaroo.

“We’ll speak in private,” he stated.

Private? Oh, shit! Had her spell seriously gone so wonky that it required the FRU’s presence?

She forced herself to speak again. “I have a dressing room.”

Nodding, he gave orders for the other agents to start interviewing the audience. Though why, Miranda didn’t have a clue. He already had the guilty party in custody. Her.

He motioned for Miranda to lead the way and then with a slight wave, he indicated that Shawn, Della, and Kylie were to follow. Not so private after all, huh? Nothing like getting your ass chewed out in front of people.

With five people in the dressing room, it felt small, and she worried there wasn’t enough air in there for everyone. And considering her state of mind, she needed a lot of oxygen. Taking a gulp now, she almost felt light-headed.

“Are you really okay?” Burnett asked as soon as the door to the dressing room clicked shut. While the question insinuated he cared, his tone rang rock hard and had her palms itching again.

“I’m … fine…” Finally she couldn’t stand it anymore. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I mean, I stopped it before it hurt anyone, right?” She glanced at Shawn, praying he hadn’t lied to her earlier. “You said I did. Did you lie to me?”

“No.” Shawn looked at her oddly. “Wait, do you think … You didn’t cause that fireball, Miranda.”