Page 37 of The Secrets of Roan Island

I growl and pull her back against me, hands firmly gripping her hips. A whiff of her sweet scent hits me, and my claws lengthen.

Jafeth laughs. “Touchy. Touchy. Noah has never liked to share his toys.”

“I’m not a toy,” Ruby says. “I’m a person.”

“Yes, well.” My brother shrugs and turns, leading the way toward our rooms.

The din of clinking silverware and conversation drifts upstairs, the night early enough that everyone is still in the dining room. I think about throwing Ruby over my shoulder and carrying her off before the party really begins, carrying her somewhere far away from here. But then she’d be stuck with me, and I would be all over her. I can’t be trusted either.

“You can stay in your room,” I say through a tight jaw, wanting to save her from me, from everything and everyone here that would threaten her.

She stops at her door and lifts her chin. “I will do as I please, Mr. Roan.”

Then she disappears inside, the door clicking shut.

I listen for the lock, hear it, and my heartbeat simmers to a rolling boil from the raging beat I’ve been fighting since waking up, grateful she’s listened. Though every part of me wants to break down the door between us, I back away.

“Well, well, well, Mr. Roan,” Jafeth says with humor in his tone.

I grind my back teeth together.

“I knew the stodgy professor did it for you, but this is a side of you I haven’t seen.” He tilts his head back and laughs. “What are you planning to do? You know you won’t be able to control yourself. Once a predator catches a scent, we don’t often switch prey.” He sniffs the air, and as his eyes travel to Ruby’s closed door, a growl rumbles in my chest.

“Are you planning to starve yourself?” he asks.

“Fuck.” The curse rips out of me as I tilt my head back, look up at the ceiling, and clutch my hair.

He slaps a hand on my back. “Feed and enjoy yourself, brother.”

He doesn’t understand. She’s different. She’s so much more than any of the others. She’s smart and quick, curious and hungry to learn. She challenges me. She’s awake with her own desire and asleep to pretension. She’s not afraid to speak her mind and face every fear she encounters. I think of the way she spoke to my father, of the way she’s confronted me, of the way she’s faced the dark in spite of her obvious fear.

Jafeth smoothes his dinner jacket into place. “I've got a little morsel waiting. So if you don’t mind.”

He starts down the corridor.

“How did you know?”

He stops and turns. “Know what?”

“Where to find us?”

“You weren’t anywhere else.” His grin spreads, splitting his lips and revealing his sharp fangs. “And I didn’t want Ruby to miss the party.”

I clench my fists, trying to refrain from ripping out my brother’s teeth. The last time we fought it didn’t go well for either of us, and I won’t be able to protect Ruby if I’m injured. This time of month, when it’s been so long since my last feed, I wouldn’t heal as quickly as normal.

I take slow breaths and stay perfectly still until my brother is out of sight, then retreat to my room to get ready.

The new moon parties are always formal affairs, dinner soirees for the New Essik elite, though it's a kind of joke because the revelry slips into debauchery so easily. What those with money will do for access and anonymity is a shame, really. Government officials, corporate moguls, lead scientists, religious leaders, daughters and sons of politicians—all people with something to lose should their secret attendance be discovered. This is the only way it works, which is one of thereasons I didn’t want Ruby here. She’s a wild card, and her unpredictability could not only be a danger to her, but to us.

As I rip off my wrinkled attire, I can’t stop turning over what Jafeth said. Am I planning on abstaining tonight? I’ve been so caught up in getting Ruby off the island I haven’t thought much about the party itself. I think I assumed if she was gone, then I would feel free to feed, but she’s not gone and the thought of feeding from someone else is repugnant. Her scent is too powerful a temptation.

I pace while I button my fresh shirt, eyes continually flicking to the wall that divides Ruby’s room from mine. Starving myself will only make me more uncontrolled when it comes to Ruby. If she’s going to stick around, I’ll have to feed and be satiated. Otherwise… I don’t want to think about what I could do.

There’s no choice. Ruby will stay safely in her room. I’ll feed on someone else. There’s a new guest I’ve invited who should do nicely. And tomorrow, when the other guests leave, she’ll go with them.

I fix the black bow tie in the mirror, stark against the stiff white shirt, feeling better having come to a decision. Then I hear water flowing through the pipes. I bite my lip and grip the edge of the dresser. She’s bathing. Just on the other side of this wall her body is naked and slick with soap. My own body surges again at the thought of Ruby, of hunting her, of having my hands on her.

Head bent, chin to chest, I close my eyes, breathing through the wave of need as it swells. When it crests, I let out another breath and straighten. “You can control yourself,” I coax my reflection, a hope rather than a belief.

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