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He retracted his fangs, and my shoulders relaxed. The fear I had felt, though, at seeing him transform into a vampire, still lingered.

I took one more step back to give myself some space from him, but Maurice grabbed my hand and gestured toward the hallway. “Come on, I’ll show you around. Maybe the more you see, the more memories will come back.”

During the entire tour of the house, my nerves wouldn’t settle. Sure, I had memories with him that felt familiar and safe, but my defenses stayed up after he shared with me that he was a vampire. I couldn’t relax. I must not have cared, or why would I be dating him? I had hoped the memories of a world filled with dark creatures only seen in movies would flood over my mind, but they didn’t.

I steadied my breathing as we walked down the hall, taking in my surroundings.

We entered a spacious room on the first floor, which had mainly been packed, other than a few pieces of furniture. Nothing looked familiar to me, though. I spotted a dresser in the corner and opened the drawer. Female underwear and socks were in the first drawer, pajamas in the second, and shorts in the bottom.

“Are these clothes mine?” I asked.

A playful smile pulled at the edge of his lips. “I don’t live with anyone else, Mercy. Of course, they’re yours.” Maurice walked to the other side of the room and began rummaging in another dresser.

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and I looked down again at my clothes, then eyed the bathroom connected to the room. “Maurice?” I called.

“Yes, babe?”

Babe.Darling. I wasn’t ready for these pet names.

“Um, would you mind if I took a shower? I feel pretty dirty, so I’d like to clean up and change my clothes.”

The truth was, I needed to step away from him so I could absorb everything he had shared with me and try to make sense of the visions I did have.

“Well,” he said, taking a step in my direction, “Maybe I can join you?”

I shook my head, tempted, but kept my lips in a flat line.

Annoyance read on his features. “Of course. I understand. Do what you need to do,” Maurice said before leaving me alone in the room with my thoughts.

I sifted through the dresser drawer and pulled out underwear, plaid shorts, and a T-shirt before entering the bathroom and turning on the water.

During my shower, I thought about what I had seen. Without a doubt, I knew I was a witch. I felt it, and I saw it in my visions. But I didn’t fear it, though. The thought hit me that since witches are real, vampires and whatever else was out there should be just as familiar and normal to me. I shouldn’t fear it, right? If Maurice was going to hurt me, he would have done it by now.

After half an hour in the warm shower, I examined myself in the vanity mirror. My skin was lightly tanned, with barely noticeable freckles sprinkled along my arms and across my nose, relatively flawless except for one part. I ran my hand along the top of my chest and paused at the long, pink, knotted scar. I touched the raised flesh and tried to recall how I could have received such an injury. I made a mental note to ask Maurice about it in the morning when things had settled down a bit more.

I put my pajamas on, pulled my hair into a wet bun, and rubbed some lotion I found in one of the drawers on my face. After brushing my teeth, I resigned back to the bedroom, spotting Maurice resting on the side of the bed, closest to the window. He pulled the blankets back, leaving an empty space below the other pillow.

Was I supposed to lie down with him? Of course, he’d assume that if that was our regular routine.

I didn’t want to upset him, so I climbed into bed and lay down. “Maurice, I don’t … I’m not ready to do anything with you.”

His smile was there, but it seemed forced. “I won’t touch you yet,” he said.Yet. “But we’ve been together for over three years, Mercy. I hope all your memories return so we can get back to where we were before the attack.”

I gathered my thoughts, then asked, “Are we really moving tomorrow? Shouldn’t we try to find out who took my memories away, and more importantly, why?”

Maurice shook his head. “This isn’t new, babe. You’ve been targeted for centuries. You’re a powerful witch, and those who want to hurt you will stop at nothing. That’s why we have to leave this place. We need to find a new home where your enemies can’t find you.”

I looked up at the ceiling, still confused and unsure about everything. Still, Maurice was the only one here—the only one I had even the slightest memories of. Memories filled with love. It showed me I could perhaps trust him. I had to. I had nowhere else to go.

“Okay,” I said, smiling and placing my hand on his cheek in a bold gesture. “I’m sorry I don’t remember everything, but I promise I’ll keep trying.”

He leaned in and kissed me on the forehead, the cheek, and the lips. His hands lingered by my hips, caressing my skin, inching under my shirt and up my stomach before his fingers reached my breasts. That arousal was back, and my nerves tingled, my body responding to him as if we had done this a thousand times before.

But then, my body felt distant, as if my mind and body weren’t agreeing then, one trying to win a fight over the other. I placed my hand on his, stopping him. It felt good. My God, did it feel good, but I couldn’t be intimate with someone I didn’t remember, let alone a vampire who frightened me.

Maurice pulled his hand out and ran his thumb along my lips. He didn’t say goodnight, only kissed me on the forehead and turned over, his back facing me now.

I shut my eyes, facing away from him until our backs almost touched, but Maurice turned back, wrapping his arms around me, holding me close to his chest. He didn’t try to kiss or touch me again, but he held me until we fell asleep.

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