Page 31 of Vampires and Violas

He raises a brow. “Would you rather I give Ashlyn false hope?”

“No.” I’m not going to beg him to be nicer to the woman who’s obviously imagining monogrammed wedding invitations and “his and hers” towels.

“That was fun.” Cassian settles into his seat, nudging a duffel bag of stakes aside. “Sometimes you just need to throw a sharpened weapon. Back to Piper’s place?”

Grunting, Noah starts the car and pulls onto the road.

As soon as Noah parks in front of my house, Cassian starts toward the Lamborghini. “Well, kids, I have a long drive home, so I’m going to hit the road. It’s been real.”

I mutter a listless goodbye as I head up the porch stairs. Noah follows me, opening the door while I’m still rummaging in my purse for the door keys.

I don’t know if it’s because we’re arriving together, but walking into the empty house, just the two of us, feels intimate.

Noah flips on a light and sets his keys in a dish on the side table. He locks the door behind us, sets the fancy alarm system he bought while Ethan was watching the house, and then turns to face me.

“Well.” My eyes stray to the hall mirror. Noting how awkward my crossed arms look, I immediately drop them. “I’m going to turn in. So…night.”

Noah catches my wrist as I begin to walk away, his grip gentle. Startled, I look down, noting how his long, slightly rough fingers feel against my skin.

“What are you doing?” I give my arm a halfhearted shake. “Let go of me.”

“Guess what I did while I was in Denver?”

I raise my brows. “You went to a baseball game?”

“I watched a few K-dramas.”

That is the very last thing I expect. Laughing, I say, “Are you serious?”

He nods, his thumb rubbing over my wrist. “I know what ‘fighting’ means now.” He raises his free hand and clenches his fist, proving it. “And I learned a few other things.”

“Okay…”

“This wrist grab is romantic.”

“It depends on the context.”

“People who are soulmates definitely meet as children.”

“You’re acting really strange.”

“And pinky promises are supposed to be sealed with a thumb bump.” He lets go of my wrist and takes my hand, looping our pinkies. Then he tilts his hand forward, pressing the pad of his thumb to mine. “See?”

My heart dances, because this is really sweet, even if a little random. “Okay, but what are you promising?”

His eyes search my face. “I’m not going to keep things from you again.”

“Noah.”

“I mean it.” He changes our position, intertwining our fingers and pressing our palms together. Then he lifts our hands to his mouth and kisses my knuckles. “No more secrets. I promise.”

Oh, my poor heart.

“You actually watched a K-drama?” I reluctantly ask.

“Several—with subtitles.”

“Why?”

---