A Blaze of Sun (A Shade of Vampire #5)(16)

I gritted my teeth, annoyed by her amusement, and yet keenly aware of the attraction I felt for her. “Don’t play games with me, Emilia…” I shook my head.

She rose from her cot as the smile on her face widened. “You remember my name.”

“I also remember who you are and why you shouldn’t be trusted, so whatever you’re doing, stop. I don’t want to play games with you.”

“Who’s playing games? I’ve been locked up in your prison. How on earth am I playing games with you?”

She began walking toward me and I suddenly felt vulnerable as she got closer.

“Stay there,” I commanded.

She stopped in her tracks and studied me. “You really are quite a man, Derek Novak. What a team we’d make together.”

What am I doing here? She was danger and I knew it and yet I was right there with her, standing on the precipice, very close to taking a leap. Eager to get away from that place and as far away from temptation as possible, I asked her what I needed to ask. “Did you or did you not come here to lose a battle?”

Her face turned serious and she creased her brows in seeming bewilderment. “That wasn’t very subtle,” she commented. “And it doesn’t make sense. Why would I purposefully lose a battle – especially against you? Do you have any idea what my father could do to me for this failure?”

The strangest thing happened when I realized that she could get into trouble for not having accomplished what she came to do. I actually felt sorry for her, worried even. I couldn’t understand why. I couldn’t understand why she had that effect on me, but much as I tried to fight it, I was at ease around her – almost as if she were a kindred soul I’d known all my life.

“What’s he going to do to you?” I found myself asking even if I knew that it was a step closer to danger.

“I don’t want to talk about that. How long do you intend to keep me here?”

I shrugged. “For as long as this war lasts maybe.” I could swear that she sighed with relief. I narrowed my eyes at her. “You want to stay?”

“If I go back, I would have to face the Elder, my father. And my siblings. I find that terrifying.”

“So there are others like you who belong to the Elder’s family.”

“Family,” she scoffed. “I don’t know if I could call it that.” She sat back on the cot and stared at the space in front of her, sadness marring her beautiful face.

I fought the urge to draw closer to her, but I lost. I took a couple of steps forward and held her by the chin, lifting her face up so that I could look at her loveliness. “We vampires are very loyal creatures. Betraying your clan is practically unforgivable. Speaking against it to other clans is unheard of. If you really are the original vampire’s daughter, you don’t seem very fond of your father or your clan, Emilia. Why is that?”

She didn’t respond. Instead, she bit her lip and blushed the moment our eyes met. I looked away, bothered by the flutter in my stomach. This girl is dangerous. I backed a couple of steps away from her, letting go of her chin as if the feel of her suddenly burned. “I think I have to go,” I quickly said, not trusting myself around her. I spun around and I was about to call the guard when I heard her speak in a thoughtful tone.

“Don’t deny it, Derek… I know you feel it too. We have a connection, and you may not understand why, but it’s there. You can keep fighting it, but eventually, I hope you realize that we belong together.”

I shook my head against any thought that could possibly coax me to agree with her. “No,” I said firmly. “I belong with Sofia. She’s the woman I’m in love with, the one I will marry soon. I can’t deny my attraction to you and yes… maybe there’s some sort of mysterious connection between us, but it’s Sofia who holds my heart. No other connection can break what I have with her.”

I was saying the words more to myself than to Emilia and even with my back turned to her, I could sense her anger like a powerful wave rushing over me. I was then fully aware that she was no fragile creature, trembling at the thought of what her father would do to her. It’s almost as if I saw Emilia in a completely different light the moment I let my love for Sofia call the shots. What I saw in her was someone I couldn’t trust.

I turned my head toward her, twisting my upper torso in order to once again look her in the eye. “I’m giving orders that they let you off the island as soon as possible.”

“No…” she gasped. “You can’t do that! Derek, please… You have no idea what my father will do to me!”

“Then don’t go to him, Emilia. Run. I don’t care what you do, but I can’t have you here.” What I have with Sofia is too precious for you to pose a threat against it.

To my surprise, she stopped begging and a dark glare took over her countenance. “You want to play it that way? Then so be it.” A bone-chilling, almost manic, smirk formed on her face. “You’ll find quite quickly that you can’t get rid of me that easily, Derek.”

Chills ran up and down my spine when I realized that she was right. Something was telling me that Emilia would soon find her way back. Strangely, at that moment I didn’t find myself threatened.

I clenched my fists and smirked right back at her. Bring it on.