Page 112 of Hospital for Immortal Creatures

He didn’t think, his beast simply took over, and he was beside her in a few long strides. “If I hit you with a snowball, you might never get up again,” he said in a serious voice.

“I suppose you’re right, but… You’ll have to catch me first!”

She took off into the forest.

Fuck.

“Amelia, stop!” Mikhail raised his voice, but she continued running further away from the building and deeper into the woods. The piles of snow slowed her down some, but she still leapt through them faster than he would have expected for a human. “Amelia!”

She didn’t turn.

For heaven’s sake, she had no idea what she was doing.

“Amelia!” he yelled again, but she was already far away.

Adrenaline flowed through his veins. He could reach her in a second…

He darted after her. In a moment, he was behind her, grabbing the belt of her jacket. “I told you to stop!”

But it was too late. The thrill of the chase coursed through his veins, pounding in his ears, making his heart beat faster. Awakening parts of his body that hadn’t been satisfied in much too long.

Amelia faced him, her enthusiasm faltering. “Your eyes are yellow,” she whispered.

Mikhail closed his lids, his body tense. He couldn’t turn now. His pulse raced, and his hardness rose, pushing against the zipper of his jeans.

He was aroused by her.

Calm. The fuck. Down.

When he looked at her again, the relief on her face proved his eyes had returned to their normal colour. “Let’s get back.”

She shivered. “I’m sorry.”

They had barely taken a few steps when, for no obvious reason, he tensed up again. His senses went on high alert. He smelt the air, but the strong wind carried every scent away. He continued walking in silence next to Amelia, without giving away that something was troubling him.

Amelia suddenly halted. “I think someone’s following us,” she whispered.

So, she’d felt it, too. And his experiment had worked.

Taking her outside had been a gamble, but he’d needed to see if the enemy would be interested in her, as he’d assumed. If they’d be provoked. And they had been. Now all he had to do was wait until they revealed themselves.

“Mikhail?”

He didn’t move. It was dangerous for them to stay still, exposed, but there was no other way.

Except, the feeling of imminent threat became unbearable.

Mikhail glanced around in the dark. Whoever it was, their target had to be Amelia. All they had to do was come and take her.

“Mikhail, why aren’t we moving?”

He looked at her.

So I can risk your life, and find out once and for all who’s been attacking me…

Mikhail was convinced that whoever hid in the shadows, wouldn’t be able to get their hands on Amelia while he stood by her side. However, his confidence wavered at the impending menace. The mere possibility of her being hurt sent his beast into a fury.

With a final glance through the dense forest, he made his decision. He had to protect her.

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