Page 35 of Watch Me Turn
"Me too, but we have to join the real world at some point. How are you feeling?"
"Incredible," he sighs. "I've never felt so content, and it's all thanks to you, Sophia."
"Shh," I say, edging closer to his ear and dropping my voice so low only a vampire could hear it. "Be careful with your words. They could still be listening."
He nods and drops his own voice to match my hush. "I want to be with you, mi amor. I want to know everything there is to know about you. I want to stay young forever by your side." His breath on my neck makes me shiver. "You are magnificent. So magnificent, and I'm in awe of you."
His words are like nectar, and all I want is to drink them in, but it's too dangerous to believe we could be happy.
There's nothing I want more than to run away with Angel, but I know that if the most powerful vampire in the state wants you for his own, then a girl like me is no match.
Lazaro turned Angel to punish his father. To break the paternal bond once and for all. To have a weapon to wield against his enemy.
I wonder what he'd do if he discovered that his precious son's blood answered to another.
To me.
10
FLY HIGH
“You look perfect,” I say as I brush a microscopic piece of lint from Angel's shoulders.
He regards his reflection in the mirror and puffs his chest, fussing with his hair and making tiny adjustments. "I'm just glad the vampire mirror thing is a myth. I don't think I'd be able to do my hair without one." He leans closer to the glass, smoothing a hand over the glossy black waves that soften his sharp features and slicking down a baby hair into a neat curl below his temple—too pretty for a man like him, but somehow fitting him exactly.
I want to freeze these last few precious moments together. Like we savored the hours leading up to today—the digital clock ticking down above us, impending doom creeping ever closer to the door. I would do anything to rewind time. Back to a few hours ago when we lay twisted together, talking about everything and nothing all at once. It was bliss.
"Forgive me, Sophia. I was so angry," he'd said as his lips brushed my shoulder. "I'm sorry for all the things I said...and for trying to kill you."
"I'm sorry for being complicit in your kidnapping and death."
We'd stared at each other for a heartbeat. Then we both lost it—laughing so hard the bed shook, gasping and breathless. The sound was so sweet and magical I wanted to bottle it, preserve it for spellwork.
He'd told me he'd come around to the idea that he was going to be living amongst strangers for a while, bound to a man who wanted to punish his family in some twisted revenge fantasy.
"I know it sounds fucked up, but it has to be better than the hell I was living in before. Always trying to please a man who hated me to the core." Then he'd brushed the scar on my eyebrow with his fingers and kissed the side of my temple. "What happened here? You never told me."
I'd turned to face him and lifted a bundle of curls from my forehead to give him a better view. "It happened when I was hitchhiking to find the Malditas. I ended up in a few sketchy situations. A few pervs looking to trade a ride for a BJ, that kind of thing."
Angel's face had hardened, his jaw set into a grimace, but his fingertips stayed light as he traced my scar like it was made of something fragile.
"Most of the time I could subdue them with a few harsh words, but one time this country prick in a pickup truck got grabby is all. I said no. He pulled a box cutter on me. I fought like hell and thankfully lived to tell the tale."
Angel swallowed then kissed my scar. "You might always be older and stronger than me, Sophia, but trust me. If anyone ever lays a finger on you again, I'll kill them myself."
The gesture was so sweet that I couldn't help but humor his enthusiasm. "I appreciate it. And I'd do the same for you."
I glance up at the clock and then back to the mirror. One more minute. I slip my hand in Angel's and drink in the imageof us standing together like an odd couple, waiting for fate to deliver her next hand.
"Maybe I should have put on a dress?" I say, gesturing over to the closet crammed full of designer gear.
"You're perfect," he says as he runs his knuckles along my cheek. "I love the red lips. Very vampire of you."
"Ha! Funny you should say that. By the way, there's one thing before I forget..." I press a little piece of paper into his palm. "My number. Just text me whenever you get settled, and we'll arrange to meet."
He raises his eyebrows. "You mean I can't just send you a psychic message or something?"
"I wish it was that easy, but alas, we're bound by the laws of magic and forever chained to technology."
