Page 49 of The Prince's Curse

“You said you didn’t want to hurt me.”

“I don’t. If I wanted you dead, you would already be dead,” he said.“You know that.”

Through their bizarre conversation, she had been floating in limbo, a sort of stunned disbelief as she took everything in. Now the reality was sinking in. She was in arm’s reach—in fangs’ reach— of an old, powerful vampire, and she was as exposed as she could be in the middle of a public park with God only knew how many vampires watching and waiting.

She took a big step back.“I need to leave. I can’t be here, I just?—”

He lunged and caught her wrist, and for some reason, she didn’t resist. “Please don’t run again. At least let me walk you back,” he said.

She couldn’t help laughing. “There’s not a lot of people in this city who scare me. It seems a little strange to be escorted home by the only one who does.”

“Is that a no?”

Her heart thrummed as she stared up at him. This was insane. This was her chance to kill him. She could lure him upstairs to the hotel and finish him there, easy as pie.

Or she could hear him out. She could look in his eyes in the light. And if he would help her save Kova, then perhaps she could trust him.

“Okay,” she finally said.

The smile that spread on his face was not the toothy grin of a predator. It was soft, almost sweet, one that told her something she didn’t yet know about herself. She hadto fight the urge to smile back out of instinct.

And that was how she found herself walking side-by-side with Julian Alcott down the dark streets of Atlanta. For a big city, the late night was quiet and strangely peaceful. A hazy yellow glow poured across the empty streets. His steps were light, and it was odd to be so close and not hear his heartbeat.

And there was the smell of him; he was older than Kova, with the same underlying smell of vampire that was richer somehow. But that smell didn’t unsettle her; it was something pleasant, reminding her of the familiar warmth of wood smoke and pine. The strong, clean smell was reassuring, radiating to command the space he moved through.

His voice startled her from her thoughts. “It was clever to hide the tracker.”

“I…” She sighed. “I don’t know what I was hoping would happen.”

He chuckled. “I left you my number, but I guess that’s a moot point now.”

“Yeah,” she murmured.

Ahead of them, the glowing lights of the hotel lobby poured through glass doors. A single car idled near the valet stand. Her heart thumped as they approached, and she meant to tell him to leave well before they reached the doors. But her lips wouldn’t move, because she was… Was she enjoying his company?

Before they walked inside, his callused fingers brushed across the back of her hand, and a shiver sparkled across her skin. She nearly grabbed his hand to feel it again. Turning to look at him, she found him frowning.

“I want you to know that I don’t expect anything from you. This situation is strange for me, but it must be infinitely more difficult for you,” he said. “Please don’t be afraid that I’m going to…I don’t know, force myself on you or demand your affection. I only want to see that you’re safe.”

“Oh. Good,” she said. Vampires could have tortured her for days, and she would never admit to the feeling of disappointment that swept over her at the thought that Julian had no intention of touching her. Did that mean all her lovely, carnal dreams would just be dreams?

What the hell is wrong with me?

“Will you come back to our sanctuary?” he asked. “I can protect you there.”

She swallowed, glanced at the glowing entry of the hotel, then back at him. Shaking her head, she said, “This is a lot to take in. Maybe too much.”

“Regardless of all that came before, you have to believe me. Armina Voss means to kill you, and time is running out,” he said firmly. “I just?—”

“I heard you,” she said sharply. “And I need time to think. I haven’t slept in nearly two days, and in that time, I’ve met the man I thought killed my family, learned that I’ve apparently been reincarnated and killed multiple times, and that the woman who raised me wants me dead to punish the man who widowed her before falling in love with me in a past life. It’s a lot to process.”

His lips pursed in a faint smile, as if he heard something funny. Finally, he nodded, and he said,“You’re not wrong.” He took a card from his wallet and handed it to her. Sleek and charcoal gray, it had just two phone numbers embossed in raised white letters. “Here’s how you can get in touch with me. Use it.”

She took it, fought down the urge to say come inside and tell me more, and nodded to him. “Thanks for not killing me.”

“The same to you,” he said, a wry smile pulling at his lips. Then he put out his hand. “We never officially met.”

“We met at Underground Atlanta.”

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