Page 42 of Roman

He shrugged his shoulders.“So?”

His carefree attitude and obliviousness to something that would immediately alarm a normal person reminded her again of the difference between these supernatural beings and herself.“They will ask questions or call the cops.Won’t it draw attention to… everything?”she asked, confused.She figured the whole point of this secret supernatural world was to, well, stay a secret.

Declan looked down at himself, seeming to realize how bad he looked, then peered into the back.He leaned over, pulling a backpack from the floor behind her seat.

“Charlotte, you need water and painkillers.I bet you a hundred bucks those angels don’t have any Advil or anything in that mansion.Most of them probably have no clue what the needs of a mortal are.A lot of immortals tend to forget things like that,” he told her as he opened the bag, throwing things over his shoulder into the back seat.

By the looks of it, the bag contained mostly weapons until he finally pulled a black shirt from the bottom of it.

Charlotte watched him drag the shirt over his head, covering his bloodied torso.She glanced over at the 7-Eleven and saw there was no one in there but the clerk behind the counter.She saw his point.Immortals probably didn’t even need pain meds.Why would Roman and the others need things like that when Armaros could heal them with a touch?Her head began pounding even harder, making her feel sick, and she winced, her hands coming up to her temples.

“See, there’s no argument about this, Charlotte.I’m going in there to get you what you need.I will be quick, in and out.”

“You don’t even have any money,” she argued.

He grinned at her, holding up a wallet.

“Where did you get that from?”she asked, eyes wide.

He laughed.“The bag.”He opened it and pulled out a black credit card.“We can thank a Mister Bradley Smith for our purchases tonight.”

Charlotte giggled, her head hurting as he showed her a picture of Grigori on a fake ID.

Declan watched her wince again, his smile fading.“I will be right back.”He got out of the car, locking it behind him as he jogged barefoot over to the store.

Charlotte watched him enter the store, then leaned back in the seat, shutting her eyes.Her head hurt, her ears throbbed, and her whole body ached.She’d never been through so much physical and mental abuse and just plain bullshit in her whole life.People had hit and hurt her so many times in the last week that she had lost count.Tora’s words came back to her as she tried to rest for a moment.

You have much to learn.It really is a shame you’re going to die, Charlotte.There is so much of the world you have left to explore.

She hated how true the witch’s words were.Charlotte realized that none of this was going to go away.Tora, the demons, Lucifer.They were going to keep coming for her, and they would never stop until she was dead.Ultimately, she was going to die.She couldn’t hide forever.Roman and the others couldn’t be expected to continually protect her and rescue her each time she was abducted.She refused to be locked up like a prisoner in Roman’s mansion forever, either.

Tora was right.Charlotte still had so much to learn about everything, about this whole new world she had been exposed to, which had been hiding in plain sight her whole life.Hell, she’d just found out tonight that werewolves were real, too.There really was an entire world out there for her to experience, explore, and so much more for her to discover and learn.And yet, somehow, she knew she wouldn’t get to do any of that.Not when she was doomed to die.

Charlotte sighed, exhaustion taking hold.On top of everything, she had gotten no closer to finding Ava.Tears threatened.She felt useless, frustrated that she couldn’t protect herself or Ava.Then, Roman’s angelic image flashed in her mind.He had promised to help her find her friend.The thought of Roman calmed her.The memory of him standing in that warehouse, his beautiful wings spread wide for her to see.She would never forget that image of him.Her body heated at the thought of him.His bare chest, his black wings shimmering in the lights, the way his large, warm body had circled her when he’d pulled her into his arms.

Charlotte’s body ached, but in a different way than the pain she had felt.She ached for that angel to touch her, to kiss her.She longed to touch Roman as well.Run her hands over his hard body, kiss those sinful lips.She couldn’t deny her attraction to him.She had never felt such a powerful attraction to anyone in her life.But then, she had never met anyone like Roman in her life, either.

Shocked by her arousal, she opened her eyes, overwhelmed by the mere thought of him.She had to get herself under control.She could see Declan making his way out of the 7-Eleven.Now that Charlotte had come back to reality, her body ached in two ways, making her more miserable than she was before.

Declan unlocked the car and jumped in, closing the door behind him.“Right, I didn’t know what you liked, so I got a few things.”He handed her a bottle of water and a pack of Advil.

Charlotte thanked him, ripping open the pack, taking out three tablets, and throwing them in her mouth.She opened the water and took a mouthful, swallowing the painkillers.The water felt icy cold as it slid down her throat, pushing the tablets down.She gulped down more, her thirst taking over.After she drank half the bottle, she wiped her mouth, placing the lid back on.

“Thank you, Declan.”She smiled, hoping the Advil would kick in soon.

He shrugged, handing her a shopping bag.“Don’t mention it.Here are some snacks.Like I said, I didn’t know what you liked, so I grabbed some random stuff.We aren’t far from the mansion now.I will get us something warm to eat when we get there.”

Charlotte took the bag as he started the SUV and pulled out onto the road again.She looked inside, her mouth watering at the array of junk food.There were packets of Sour Patch Kids, Peanut M&M’s, Reese’s buttercups, and more.By the looks of it, Declan had grabbed every candy bar and packet of lollies the store had.Her stomach rumbled as she pulled out the M&M’s, tearing open the packet and eating a couple.She offered Declan a handful, and he grinned, taking them.

“So, what did Lucian mean back at the warehouse?About needing to warn people?”she asked curiously.

Declan’s brow furrowed in concern.“That bloody witch.She read my mind.Stole my memories,” he snarled.

“Who’s in danger?Your family?”she asked, concerned.

He gave a small nod.“Yes, my pack.Werewolves live in large communities; we call them packs.Each pack has a leader that we follow.We are very loyal.I’d just been visiting my brother in Germany.”

“Why are they in danger now?”she asked, confused.

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