In the Dark by Lila Rose

by Lila Rose

  Isaac glared at his friend, who took a step back. “I don’t care if she was wonderful at it,” Isaac snarled. “It’s the risk she takes in doing so.”

  Oh, shucks. He made me want to hug and kiss him for being so concerned. Then again, he also made me want to punch him in the face for thinking that I couldn’t handle it. It was my life I was playing with, and if I risked it to save someone else, then that was what I’d do.

  Reaching out with my mind to Isaac’s, after a few tries first, I told him exactly what I thought.

  “Leila.” He shook his head at me. “I understand. I only hope you will one day.” He sighed, seeming frustrated.

  What did he mean by that?

  Whatever it was, it had to wait. I rubbed my head against the side of his cheek and brushed my nose down his neck, making sure my scent rubbed onto him. Did he understand my cat had just claimed him? With one last bump of my nose under his chin, I walked off to my room.

  Of course I glanced back. I needed to see if he was watching, and he was. He also had a small smile upon his face. Therefore, he couldn’t be that mad.

  Right?

  I paused in the hallway when I heard Isaac ask Darik about the ones who attacked him.

  “Loner vampires and their minions. They belong to no one. I told them to leave this town. That you had ownership here. They’d grinned as if they had won the lottery and said since they were here, they might as well collect on the bounty. Gerald has set a reward for your capture or death. Whomever collects will receive $150 million. I told them they would have to go through me first. That was when the fighting started.”

  A whimper escaped me as soon as I was behind my bedroom door. If I hadn’t turned up to help Darik, I dare say he would have lost, and then they would have come after Isaac. For that reason alone, the guilt I had for leaving Isaac disappeared.

  Chapter Twelve

  “What the fuck is going on in here?”

  Shit, shit, shit. My uncle was home. What was he doing home?

  Already altered back, I quickly threw on some clothes and ran down the hall, straight into the kitchen, and sidled up to Uncle Jack. Unfortunately, a nice warm shower was going to have to wait until later.

  Gregory stood and held out his hand to Jack. “We just finished up dinner. My name’s Gregory. I’m Isaac’s father.”

  I nudged Jack in the ribs when he didn’t take Greg’s hand. Thankfully, he snapped to it and gruffly said, “Jack Helavay, Leila’s uncle.” Jack looked at Gregory with dubious eyes. “Do you condone men in my house with my eighteen-year-old niece? Men who have swords strapped to their backs?” he asked, eyeing Xavier, Adan and Darik. They stood in front of Isaac near the back door.

  It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him to mind his own business, but I didn’t get the chance.

  Greg chuckled. “Surely you can understand the importance of a self-defence lesson. When my son informed me Leila was staying in a house on her own, I insisted she become knowledgeable of being her own protector. Hence, the swords.”

  Whoa. I was impressed.

  “She doesn’t live here on her own. She knows I’m never far and if she called me, I would be here for her anytime. I don’t like this situation at all. Still,”—he looked down at me and I saw he wasn’t impressed at all—“I appreciate the thought.”

  He knew something else was going on. He wasn’t dumb. Anyone could see both Darik and Adan looked like they’d been in a fight and the ruffled look wasn’t by some self-defence lessons.

  I was grateful he didn’t point that out though.

  “So, Jack. What are you doing home?” I asked.

  “I came to see you. It was lucky I did.” He waved to Isaac’s guards. “Hey, I’m Jack, and if any of you mess with her, I’ll kill you.”

  “Jack!” I snapped.

  “What?”

  “Don’t be an arse. Sorry, guys.”

  “It’s fine, Leila.” Isaac smiled. He moved forward. Darik and Xavier stepped aside. “Nice to see you again, Jack. But we’ll be going now.” Isaac nodded at me. “I’ll see you tomorrow for school.”

  “Yes.” I blushed for some reason. “Uh, thanks for dinner, Greg. And for the lesson, guys.” They nodded and followed Isaac and his father out.

  I had hoped for a goodnight kiss. I guessed that was out of the question since my uncle was currently staring daggers down at me.

  The front door closed and Jack started. “So, kiddo, you have a dinner party and don’t invite me?” He stomped to the fridge to see what was left.

  Hell, he actually sounded hurt, causing guilt to form inside of me. Didn’t he understand why I wouldn’t even think of asking him home? Not that I knew we were having dinner in the first place. The fact was Jack never appeared to be interested in my life. Sure, he helped me out.

  But he didn’t know me.

  He didn’t know what music I liked. The anguish I’d been through with my parents leaving and what went on at school with the other students. Did he even know what made me happy or sad?

  Or that I was a shifter?

  Rubbing my forehead, I sighed. Maybe if he stuck around, if he showed the smallest amount of interest, then I could trust him with everything.

  Still, the one thought that plagued my mind was what would happen if I did open up to him, if I told him everything. Would he run? Would he try to hurt me? Would I lose him?

  I’ve never been happy we weren’t close, but I’d be destroyed if I lost him from my life forever.

  However, Isaac had taught me trust was important and I didn’t have to go all the way. Baby steps would have to be enough.

  Shrugging, I said, “That’s because I knew you would’ve eaten everything and left none for the rest of us. Maybe, um, maybe next time.” He spun around from the fridge with the plate of my leftovers in his hand.

  I’d shocked him.

  He composed himself, closed his mouth, lowered his brows and asked, “Are you okay, squirt?”

  So much for trying a little.

  Rolling my eyes, I said, “Fine, don’t be an idiot.”

  “Yep, there she is. You had me worried there for a second.” He sat down at the table and dug into the food. I went to sit opposite him and waited. He had to be home for a reason, right?

  Jack looked up from the plate. “What?”

  “Aren’t you going to give me grief about having them here? Last time you asked me to stay away from Isaac, and now he’s here with his mates.”

  Scoffing, he said, “His dad was here too, so I know you wouldn’t have been having wild monkey sex.”

  Laughing, I caught his smile before he quickly sobered and commented, “They… they seem different.”

  My heart jumped. “Well, yeah. They’re into combat, army stuff. That’s all.”

  “You know, if you wanted to learn self-defence, I could have taught you a few things.”

  Raising my brows, I asked, “What do you know about self-defence?”

  “I’m in law enforcement.”

  I laughed and slapped the table. “Yeah, right.”

  His face was serious. “Like your dad used to be.”

  No way. “A bounty hunter?”

  “Yep.” He nodded.

  “Why are you just telling me? Is this why you’re never around?”

  He shrugged. “Not like you tell me anything either. Just didn’t think you were interested.”

  That was true. My uncle and I never really talked. Regret formed in my stomach and heart. “Maybe we should change that?” I suggested lightly.

  “Sound’s good, kid. Anything you wanna tell me?”

  There was my chance. Tell him everything. Still, too much worry was burning in my mind. “Not that I can think of.”

  He shook his head, a sad smile played on his lips. “Anyway, I want you to know I still don’t know if I can trust those guys around you.” He held his hand up. “But before you start screaming at me, I won’t say or do anything until I have more of a background on them.”

/>   “Can’t you just trust my judgment?”

  What could he dig up on them if he started? I was worried.

  “We’ll see.” Which meant no. I had to warn Isaac.

  He sighed and sat back in his chair. “There’s something else we need to talk about.” I nodded and he went on, “We haven’t heard from your dad in a while. I’m concerned.”

  “Please.” I snorted. “They’re just off having some fun somewhere and forgot to call.”

  Jack sighed. “I don’t think so, kiddo. He would always call every second Friday. I’m leaving tomorrow to see if I can find them.”

  My eyes went to the table. If he was going to look for them, then it had to be serious. Nerves rolled in my stomach.

  Shaking my head, I couldn’t think about it. Not yet. There was enough going on. They’d be fine, probably on some island having the time of their lives.

  Yes. That had to be it.

  “I’ll leave in the morning.”

  Looking up and around, I nodded. “Okay.”

  “You ‘right?” He went to reach his hand to mine, only second-guessing at the last second and picked up his fork instead.

  “Fine,” I said, jutting my chin out and meeting his eyes.

  He smiled. “There’s one good thing about those people you have around here.”

  “What?”

  “You no longer hide. I hated it when you looked away all the time. Afraid you’d hurt someone with your gaze. But now you meet my eyes with confidence. It’s good to see. You’re not beneath anyone, Leila, and never let anyone tell you any different.”

  Thinning my lips into a line, because I knew they would have trembled, I then blinked rapidly. I had an urge to cry, to hug him. I did neither.

  Sniffing up my snot, I stood and asked, “Do you want a drink?”

  “That’d be nice. Thanks.”

  “Whatever,” I said and smiled to myself as he chuckled.

  After I poured us both a drink, I sat back across from him. Maybe it was because I was feeling mushy and happy, but I sat with my uncle and we talked.

  It was strange.

  But good.

  Chapter Thirteen

  A Hummer sat at the end of the driveway. As an added bonus, there was the sexiest man I knew in it waiting for me. It was only when I got in the car, my nerves took flight. Should I kiss him hello? Give him a handshake and thank him for my first and best kisses of my life?

  Thankfully, he made up my mind for me. Straight away, he leaned over, his heated eyes meeting mine as his fingers slid into my hair at the back before he gave me a long, deep kiss.

  After he moved away, I smiled at him and said, “So, the kiss last night, I didn’t dream it.”

  He barked out a laugh. “No, Leila. That was no dream.”

  Just to make sure, I reached out to him, pulled him close, and kissed him again. My tarty hands roamed over his hard chest, stopping at his waist, but wanting to go farther.

  “We’re going to be late,” he murmured against my lips.

  “So?” I felt him smile. Then, unfortunately, he untangled my arms from around his neck—how they got up there, I had no clue—and placed them in my lap.

  “As much as I would love to keep doing this, I don’t wish to get you in trouble. One of us has only had one education. I’ll not be the cause of you failing.”

  Isaac was old; of course he’d already been through school. Why he wanted to do it again was strange. Still, I found it sweet he was looking out for my education. However, I harrumphed like a spoilt child who had someone take away her new toy, and sat back in the seat and glared. He laughed, started the car and headed toward school.

  Maybe Isaac didn’t know he was my first boyfriend. I was eighteen, nearly nineteen, a virgin and ready to try everything. I’d been sexually frustrated for a while, and now that I had Isaac, I was ready.

  God, that made me sound like I was easy. At least I wasn’t until a certain vampire cemented himself into my life and sent my feelings wild.

  Distracting myself, I asked, “Why do you go to school? It’s not like you need it. You’re smart enough.”

  “Thank you, I think. Both my sister and brother don’t understand the whys of it either. I go because it keeps me occupied. I love watching people, even if I don’t want to be a part of their pack. I also like to seem normal to the humans, so attending school helps, and then at least we’re able to stay around longer if I act younger than what I am. Besides, there was also something telling me I needed to go to this school.” He shrugged. “I guess our paths were meant to cross.”

  “Fate works in wonderful ways sometimes,” I whispered.

  He looked at me intently before turning his eyes back to the road and saying, “I couldn’t agree more.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened. “How is your uncle?”

  Leaning my head back, I said, “Still a butt-head. Sorry about last night.”

  “Do you know that’s the first time you’ve ever smiled when I’ve asked about him?”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. I like it.”

  My smile widened.

  “Last night didn’t bother me, Leila. If anything, your uncle showed he cares for you and wants to protect you.”

  Shaking my head, I confessed, “Sometimes I just don’t see it. Maybe if he did care, he’d stick around longer.”

  “So, he’s gone again?”

  “Yes. Probably gone for a few days. He’s worried, because we haven’t heard from my dad in a while. He’s gone to investigate it or something.”

  “Are you worried?”

  “No. Yes. I think so. But I’m more worried about something else. My uncle wants to do a background check on you and the others.” I looked at him, his smile instantly reassuring me.

  “You don’t need to worry. We have everything in place. Jack will find nothing out of the ordinary. I live a rather boring existence of an eighteen-year-old boy. The same for every one of my people. It’s something we always have to do.”

  “Good. I’m glad.”

  We pulled into the parking lot. Isaac got out before I did and came around to open my door.

  “I can do that,” I snapped.

  “Sorry, I have a hard time ridding myself of some old-fashioned customs.”

  “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound grouchy. It’s just weird.”

  He gently shifted me away from the door and shut it. I went to step forward, but he held me against the car. I already felt the stares directed our way, but when I looked up into his serious eyes, I didn’t care what was going on around us.

  “It may seem weird, but you deserve to be treated the right way. I care for you deeply and I wish to do well by you.” He bent his head and kissed me hard.

  My breath hitched as our lips touched. My mouth opened under the slightest touch of his tongue against my bottom lip. My knees felt weak and I gripped his shirt tightly while he deepened the kiss, causing havoc to splutter to life in my belly.

  Never had I been kissed like that; it was even different from the night before and I knew I’d never feel it again from anyone else. Only Isaac.

  He astounded me, made my heart speed, put those funny butterfly feelings in my stomach. All of that and so much more, and it was every time he touched me, even if it was only one finger tracing along my jaw.

  Christ, I’d never be able to walk away from this. Him.

  I sighed when he pulled away again. It was time for class. He took my hand in his and led me to history. Only that time, Isaac took me to sit with him at his table, which made me feel like a giddy twelve-year-old. Dr Keffen stood up the front, droning on about something, but my mind was elsewhere.

  I sat back in my seat to admire what was now mine. Isaac eased forward with his elbows on the table to support his head and stared up the front of the class. He knew I was watching him.

  Movement caught my attention. I glanced over and saw Jenna, Monica and Bertina glaring at me. I had no idea why they even took damn history. I
was convinced they were some of the ones doing ‘favours’ for Dr Keffen. Funny thing was though, seeing them in that moment, made me feel even better. No one understood why Isaac chose me. Hell, I still didn’t, and to rub it in their faces a little, I ran my hand down Isaac’s back, down to his bottom and gave it a pinch. The girls gaped. Isaac turned to look at me, heat showing in his eyes. I raised my eyebrows at him and shrugged. He scoffed, gave me a quick peck and turned back to the teacher.

  The class door opened and in walked Darik. I’d forgotten he was now attending school with us, and I wondered why he was late. Dr Keffen barked at him for being tardy. Girls watched Darik, mainly his arse, closely, while he ignored everything and sat in the vacant seat beside us, glaring at Isaac.

  “What’s up with him?” I whispered to Isaac once Dr Keffen began to speak again.

  “He’s upset with me for not waiting for him while he showered,” Isaac replied.

  Oh, that wasn’t good, especially when Darik was only trying to keep his sire from any trouble that could arise. Still, if Darik had been in the car with Isaac that morning, I wouldn’t have been able to kiss him. It would have made me feel awkward having someone in the back seat watching us.

  Finally, after a double class and then my computer science lecture, which we all took together, it was break time. Darik turned sideways in his seat. “Please don’t do that to me again. I’m here to protect you and Leila. How can I do it if you leave me behind? I need an ample amount of time to check the perimeter before class begins. Which is the reason why I was late getting to class.”

  “I’m sorry, Darik. I won’t do it again. I understand the position I’ve put you in. Let’s get going. Leila must be hungry by now.” Just as he said it, my stomach growled and they laughed.

  We walked to the cafeteria. I hadn’t been in there for a while, since it reminded me far too much of high school, but I had no choice today. I hadn’t packed my lunch. Just as Darik was about to open the doors, someone called out my name. I turned and was surprised to see Raven, Sofia’s younger sister. Sofia was one of Jenna’s evil cronies. She stood a few feet behind us, dressed in her usual Gothic gear, with her raven-coloured hair hanging loosely around her shoulders. I only knew she was Sofia’s sister because I’d overheard a conversation at the start of the year between Jenna and Sofia. Sofia was trying to get Raven into the popular click, but Jenna refused and told her that Raven was too much of a loser to be allowed to hang with them. Jenna warned Sofia if she kept bringing it up, she’d soon forget they were even friends.