They reached her class far faster than she would have liked. Hesitating in the hall, she turned to him, reluctant to let go. “I’ll see you soon,” he said softly, his eyes rapidly scanning her face, seemingly trying to remember every detail of her.

Cassie nodded, not fully trusting herself to speak. She half felt like crying, which was completely crazy, it wouldn’t be that long before she saw him again. She hoped. His hand tightened around hers, his skin burned into hers. He took a step closer, and for a moment Cassie was certain that he was going to kiss her. She held her breath in anticipation, her entire body clamored for the feel of his lips against hers.

Instead, he squeezed her hand briefly and released it quickly. Cassie felt the loss of his touch as acutely as a knife to her heart. Her entire being ached for it again. She couldn’t move as he slipped away, disappearing into the remaining crowd.

CHAPTER 9

Devon folded his arms over his chest, leaning against the wall as he waited impatiently for the bell to ring. He had tried to sit through the whole study hall thing, but he didn’t understand what he was supposed to be doing, or why he even had the class. But then again, he didn’t understand any of this high school stuff. They were like rats in a maze, going through the same thing day after day.

He supposed education was a good thing; he simply had no use for it. Maybe if he was a human in this day and age he may have needed it, but he wasn’t. When he had been human, he’d had schooling because he had been a member of the aristocracy, and it had been expected of him. But even before he’d died, he’d seen no reason to continue with his education. Even as a human he had simply taken everything he wanted, with no regard for whom he hurt in the process. And when he’d died he’d become even worse, far far worse. It was not a fact he was proud of, it was just a fact that he had to live with, and try to atone for, every day of his lonely existence.

An existence that somehow wasn’t as lonely whenever she was near.

Now, staring at the empty hall, he wondered if he had missed out on something. His, had been a long existence. He’d thought that he had done everything there was to do; apparently he had forgotten one thing. He just wasn’t so sure that he wanted the experience, it was tiring. He did want her though. He wanted to see her and touch her, and he wanted to be near her, and she spent a good chunk of her time within this building.

His dreams had been nothing compared to the reality of her, but he had known that they wouldn’t be. Her skin was even softer, warmer, and gentler. The feeling of rightness she brought to him was amazing. It was something he had never expected to experience in his life, but now that he had it, he was not going to let it go. Ever.

Though he knew where his fierce possessiveness of her might be coming from, he was still unwilling to explore that possibility, or reality, yet. There was still a chance that he could walk away from her even if he didn’t want to. Her safety was number one as far as he was concerned, and she could never be truly safe with him in her life. He needed to be able to walk away, but if what he suspected was true, there was a good possibility that he may not be able to.

He had meant what he’d said to her earlier, he was not lost when she was near. He was whole in a way that he had never been whole before, not even when he had been alive. When she was near, he did not feel adrift in a world where he was not welcome among humans, or vampires. She was an anchor in a world that was cold, uncaring, and cruel. If staying here, torturing himself in high school was the only way to be close to her then he was going to suffer through the classes like everyone else.

He shifted slightly, the discomfort in his veins growing by the second. He should have fed before he came here today, but he hadn’t realized how hard it would be to keep control around her. She was a temptation that he couldn’t resist, not anymore; especially now that he had touched her. And now that he had felt her, he knew he would never stop touching her.

The only problem was that the burning in his veins had kicked into hyper drive the minute his skin had brushed against hers. The sweet scent of her blood had slammed into him, causing his mouth to water and his body to burn with the fierce hunger that engulfed him. It had taken every bit of self restraint he had not to rip her against him and sink his teeth into her delicate white throat, draining the delicious blood that flowed through her veins.

He had not touched a drop of human blood in a hundred and thirty seven years, and until that moment he had never felt the desire so fiercely, or so acutely. He had never had his control nearly shattered, never nearly snapped and drained a person simply from touching them. But as much as she unsettled him, and rattled his firm restraint, she had also calmed him in a strange way. His baser instincts were held at bay as her delicate fingers curled around his. Touching her had locked the demon inside him back in its cage; it had calmed his raging urge to drain the blood from her even more than it had enticed it. Whatever spell she had cast over him had him completely ensnared.

Glancing at the clock on the wall, he shifted slightly, growing impatient to see her, growing completely impatient with the high school life. Over seven hundred years old and he was lurking in the hallways of adolescent teenagers, and all because of a girl. Granted, she was an exceptional girl, and he was captivated by her, but never had he gone to such lengths for a woman before. He had never thought that he would either. And he was fairly certain that this was only the beginning of what he would do for her.

The annoying bell rang suddenly, its sound was exceptionally sharp in his sensitive ears, but it was a welcome distraction from his disconcerting thoughts. Stepping away from the wall, his arms fell back to his sides as he eagerly waited for her to emerge from the class. Doors were flung open around him, chatter spilled into the halls as students emerged. He was barely aware of the humans as they filtered around him, the boys instinctively leaving a larger gap then they would with anyone else. The girls drifted closer, “accidentally” bumping into him, giggling flirtatiously as they openly admired him.

He ignored them, his attention fixed upon the people filing out of Cassie’s class. He could smell her; feel the beat of her tiny, delicate heart. She appeared in the doorway, her mouth parting, her step faltering slightly as she caught sight of him. The small redhead that had been speaking to her broke off abruptly, her brown eyes widened in surprise.

He did not think about it as he instinctively reached his hand out to Cassie, relief filled him as her fine boned fingers slid into his, locking tight. The beast inside of him quieted instantly. The burning in his veins lessened as her presence soothed the edgy rawness in him. He could not separate from her again. If he did, he would not make it through the rest of this day.

Her smile was easy and bright as she stared up at him, the sight of her beautiful face calming him even further. “Um yeah, I’ll talk to you later Cass.”

Cassie glanced at the redhead, giving her a brief nod before turning her full attention back to him. “You got here quick.”

He shrugged, unable to tear his gaze away from her. “I don’t really see the point of study hall.”

She laughed softly, the sound beautiful and sweet, like the gentle ring of wind chimes. It resonated through his body, shaking him to the marrow of his bones. At that moment, he knew that he would do everything in his power to make her laugh as often as possible. Her eyes twinkled merrily as the laughter broke off, but she continued to smile radiantly up at him.

“Most people look forward to study hall; it’s their favorite time of day, other than lunch of course.”

“I don’t see why, there’s nothing to do.”

“That’s exactly why.”

Devon shook his head, realizing that he would never understand humans again. Though, he hadn’t really understood them when he’d been human. There was no pleasure in doing nothing, it drove him crazy. “I see,” he said, even though he didn’t.

Her smile slid away as she frowned questioningly up at him. “Didn’t they have study hall at your old school?”

“Of course,” he lied smoothly, sensing that to do anything else would seem odd. “I didn’t see the point of it then either.”

She smiled again, shaking back a strand of golden hair that had slid into one of her exquisite eyes. Without thinking, he reached forward and brushed the hair aside. She froze, her breath catching in her chest, her eyes wide upon him as his fingers lingered on her silken skin. He found he could not take his hand away as he stroked lightly over the delicate contours of her face. He recalled touching her like this last night but it was nothing, nothing compared to this.

She did not move, did not even breathe as she watched him in silent, fascinated wonder. Her eyes searched his face in awe, her mouth parted slightly. In her gaze he could see her own recollection of the dream. Her heartbeat kicked up, her pulse pounded loudly through her veins. He did not feel a surge of hunger this time, felt no desire to drain her dry as he was completely ensnared and entranced by her.

“Cassie!”

She jumped slightly; his hand fell away as Chris’s sharp voice broke through the odd spell encasing them both. He took a step closer to her, fierce possession tearing through him as Chris appeared at her side. Chris’s blue eyes narrowed as he met Devon’s gaze, his shoulders stiffened. “Hi Chris,” she greeted, her voice sounding slightly strained and confused.

“Did you do the homework?”

Cassie rolled her eyes. “Yes, but there’s not enough time for you to copy it.”

“I know I just wanted to make sure you had done it also.”

Cassie’s forehead furrowed in confusion as she frowned at Chris. Devon was nowhere near as confused as Chris shot him a dark, warning look. Though Melissa felt that they were more like siblings, Devon was beginning to believe that Chris’s feelings were not so platonic, and he did not like the competition that Devon threw into the mix.

Devon didn’t particularly care what Chris thought, or wanted. Cassie was going to belong to him no matter what. He took another step closer, his shoulder brushing against hers, his hand tightening on hers. Chris’s narrowed eyes followed him, his broad shoulders stiffened slightly. “Are you going to English now?” he asked sharply.

“Of course, I’ll see you there.” Though it had been a clear dismissal, Chris lingered for a few seconds more, his gaze was steady as he stared hard at Devon. Chris glanced briefly at Cassie before turning on his heel and disappearing into the thick throng of students. She turned back to Devon, confusion still evident in her features. “Ready for class?”

He fought back a groan, he wasn’t ready at all. He wanted to stay here, with her, but he was in her world now, and unfortunately he had to obey the rules that came along with it. Even if the rules sucked. The only good thing was that he knew they had the same class now.

He followed her down the hall, taking note of the people surrounding him for the first time. Or at least taking note of the boys. Many of them didn’t acknowledge his presence as they gazed eagerly upon her. His temper bristled at the obvious desire behind their stares. They did not care about his presence, would easily ignore him if they thought they had a chance to talk to her, to be near her.

It was a fact he didn’t like, but would remedy very shortly. Following her into a classroom, he reluctantly released her hand when he slid into the desk next to her. He had been assigned a seat a few desks away from her, but he had no intentions of sitting there today. Though he could no longer touch her, he wasn’t moving any further away from her than this. She watched him with wide eyes, her head tilted slightly to the side.

Chris and Melissa entered the room, their heads bent close together as they talked softly. Chris grew quiet; his eyes darted toward him and Cassie. Melissa quirked a dark eyebrow, a smile flitted across her mouth. She gave Devon a brief nod before sliding into the seat in front of Cassie. Chris sat next to Melissa. The boy who had been assigned Devon’s seat hesitated for a moment, looking as if he wanted to argue with the new arrangement. Instead, he wisely closed his mouth and resigned himself to Devon’s abandoned seat.

Cassie’s grin widened as she chuckled softly. Unable to resist her any longer, he leaned across the aisle and took her hand. He was acutely aware of the fact that she had stopped breathing and was watching him in wide eyed wonder. She clung to him with a desperation that he recognized instantly, as it resided inside of him also.

He never wanted to release her again; unfortunately he didn’t have a choice as the teacher breezed into the classroom. She dropped her books on her desk, and turned swiftly toward the chalkboard. Though she had not noticed them yet, it was only a matter of time before she did. He released Cassie’s hand reluctantly.

Though they were separated, he kept his hearing attuned to every beat of Cassie’s heart. He was well aware of the delicious scent that wafted from her skin and hair. Now that they were no longer touching the hunger began to kick in again. His mouth started to water, the burning in his veins intensified. For a moment it took all he had not to grab hold of her and taste her. The temptation was almost more than he could handle. Clenching his teeth, and his fists, he forced himself to relax, to keep restrained. The last thing he wanted was to hurt her, to take her against her will, to have her know that he was a monster. He would rather kill himself first.