Page 42 of Dance With Death

“Don’t leave.”

She pauses and turns. “Why?”

“Because I’m scared you’ll leave, leave.”

“I’m more rational now. I will not leave the vicinity until I’ve visited Holly at the hospital, which I shall do tomorrow morning. My attendance tonight may be unwise.” She hesitates for a moment. “Good night, and, again, I apologize for your injuries.”

“Could’ve been worse,” I say. “Thanks for leaving me intact.”

“Intact? Unlike Holly,” Violet says as she reaches for the door handle.

A wave of Violet’s energy smacks me hard across the face. The girl who prides herself on inner strength, and thrives on solitude, can’t be alone tonight. I curl my fingers around the back of Violet’s neck and, as she turns her head to speak, I slam my mouth on hers, kissing Violet in the way I’ve dreamed every day since she pushed me away.

I’ve ached to taste Violet again, experience the heady mix of sweetness and power that causes her to run hot in my veins. The kiss that dented the lockers came from the unleashed need that’s built up since the first time I touched her in the woods: tonight, that’s tinged by an admittance that we can’t avoid each other. Violet tasted my blood that night Rory died and triggered an inevitable future.

The charge created by this evening has us both in its grip, Violet’s scent surrounding me still, and my own driving us into a moment I’d hold onto forever. She’s different, yielding to something, her kiss edged with a darkness she hides. This Violet is raw, torn open by tonight’s events, both in the woods and in this room.

Violet doesn’t want to give me her blood, but she’s giving me a part of herself that she’s hidden. The first time I kissed her, I was surprised I couldn’t sense something dangerous, and now I know why. The hybrid she suppresses wasn’t with us—she felt my fear and saw my injuries, and came to me out of concern that night. Tonight, Violet’s harsh passion could pull me into directions I’d never dare go right now. Not just into my bed. This girl’s grip on my heart and soul is vice-like, worse than any hybrid attack, and that’s a descent into a bond that’s wanted but terrifying.

Violet holds onto me, face pressed to my chest, breathing as raggedly as she did when she held me down before. Her fingers tangle into my shirt, but she’s still. Thinking of walking away again? Scared of what we’ve prompted?

“Stay with me,” I whisper. “Don’t be alone.”

Violet’s darker eyes lift to mine. “Are you worried I’ll walk straight to the hospital? I’ve explained that I won’t.”

“I want to support you.”

She blinks at me.

“Do you mean keep me away from others I might attack?”

Shaking my head, I step back and run a hand down Violet’s hair until I cup her chin. “No. Wait with me for updates on Holly. I’ll message Rowan. You shouldn’t be on your own.”

Violet sits on the end of the bed facing the door as if ready to bolt at any moment, and I send Rowan a text with shaking hands as she pulls out her phone too.

“Rowan already sent me a message.” Violet stares at her screen. “I never heard due to… our altercation.”

“And?” I ask cautiously.

“Holly’s injuries aren’t life-threatening. The police are interviewing him.” She rubs her forehead. “Asked me not to tell Leif until the morning, and?—”

“And?”

Violet looks up. “’Don’t kill Grayson’.”

I splutter. “He thinks you would?”

“Difficult to say.” Violet looks back to her phone and chews on her lip. Wow. Okay. “I hope nobody tells Dorian. Not yet.”

“Why?”

The room fills with a silence I wish I could bypass by sensing Violet’s emotions the way she can mine.

“Because I don’t trust his methods of investigation. Especially around my injured friend,” she says eventually. “I should rest and be at full strength tomorrow.”

Phone gripped in her hand, Violet lies on my bed and turns away. I hesitate. “You’re staying then?”

“Evidently.” She rolls back to look up at me. “If you’re willing to share your bed.” I struggle to form a response. “And if you can keep your teeth away from my veins.”

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