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  Jessie woke in a daze. It took her a minute to realize she was in the apartment. The rising sun was shining through the large glass windows. She looked down as she laid on the sofa with a blanket pulled over her. She glanced around the room, but didn’t see Daniel. A moment of panic rose in her until Daniel came around the corner of the kitchen with a coffee cup in his hand. She took in a deep breath as she tried to steady her hands.

  “You’re up,” Daniel said, sitting down on the couch next to her. “You want some coffee?”

  “No, I’m fine,” she said, sitting up. “What time is it?”

  “It’s almost eight.”

  “Oh my god!” Jessie shot off the couch, spilling Daniel’s coffee down his shirt. “I need to call my dad. Where’s your phone?”

  “It’s okay,” Daniel said, wiping his shirt. “I just got off the phone with Boyd. Your dad and brothers are at the bar. They’re safe. I told them we would be there after you woke up.”

  Jessie took a deep breath in. Okay. Her family was all right. She slowly let her breath out and then took another deep breath.

  “And now, I need to take another shower,” Daniel said as he stood up. Jessie turned to him as she let out her breath only to have it catch. Daniel pulled off his shirt, the coffee running down his perfectly sculpted torso. He mopped it up with his shirt, his muscles twisting and contracting as he moved.

  “I’ll be back in a few,” he said. “Unless you wanted to shower first?”

  “No,” Jessie said, snapping from her thoughts. “I’ll shower later.”

  “Okay, there’s coffee and muffins in the kitchen.”

  Jessie nodded. Daniel gave her a smile before he walked from the living room, his muscles rippling down his back with each step.

  Jessie wiped the drool from her lip before she shuffled her way to the kitchen. The smell of coffee filled her nose. She walked to the cabinet and saw that they weren’t finished yet. Some of the cabinet doors were still missing and others didn’t have any shelves. She looked around the kitchen and saw the drop cloth in the corner with some buckets of paint. Where was she? She grabbed a coffee mug and poured the coffee. She grabbed some milk and poured it in the mug, as well as half a cup of sugar. She grabbed the spoon from the top of the coffee maker and swirled the liquid inside.

  She looked out the windows. The whole wall seemed to be made of windows, letting an abundance of sunlight in. The light reflected off the white and black checkered floors. Everything about the apartment looked sleek and modern. She let her spoon circle the mug as the milk mixed with the dark coffee. She wasn’t really paying attention to it as she looked at the blue sky. The clouds slowly passed as the wind blew them. She was so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t hear Daniel come in. It wasn’t until he cleared his throat, making Jessie jump. She looked over to see Daniel leaning against the corner of the wall. His jeans hung low on his hips and his chest was bare. His hair was still wet as drops of water fell down his neck to his shoulders, and then traced down his chest.

  “You look beautiful in the sunlight,” he said as he walked towards her. Jessie watched him take one slow seductive step after another. Her heart started beating against her chest as he neared. “But then again, your beauty shines in the dark, too.”

  He stood right in front of her. He was close enough to touch. The smell of maple rolled off his damp skin. She looked up as his brown eyes looked down at her. She didn’t know what came over her, but she reached up and pulled him down to her. His lips enveloped hers. They were soft, warm, and inviting.

  His tongue licked her lips, parting them, and then the sweet taste of him filled her mouth. She gave in to him as his hands trailed down her hips to her thighs. She dropped her cup of coffee and it clunked to the floor. He grabbed the back of her thighs and lifted her to the counter. The granite was cold against her burning skin. He lifted the hem of her shirt and she raised her arms so he could pull it off. He stepped back and looked at her naked chest. His eyes scorching her skin. He came back to her and her breasts bounced to life as he cupped them in each hand.

  His lips trailed down to her neck and she felt her body come to life, like a jolt of electricity shooting through her nerves. His lips kept trailing down to her chest, licking each nipple. They hardened to his mouth and she arched her back as he continued his trail down, licking every inch of her skin.

  She felt his fingers tugging at the button of her jean shorts and then the sound of her zipper lowering filled her ears. She felt him take her hand and lead it to his jeans, showing her how to stroke him. His bulge was bigger than her hand as he pushed into it. She rubbed the outside of his jeans, his erection growing against her skin. His hand disappeared from her wrist as she kept stroking him. Then she felt his hand under the waist line of her shorts as his fingers found their way to a spot that was begging to be touched.

  Parting her legs farther, he plunged his finger inside her. First one and then another. Jessie let out a moan as he stroked her. She felt her hips moving with his fingers, wanting him deeper. His lips found hers as a wave of pleasure rolled through her. She went to unzip his jeans to free his erection when the door started pounding.

  Bang. Bang. Bang.

  Jessie and Daniel jumped at the same time as the door banged again.

  “Daniel! Jessie! It’s Boyd!”

  “Son of a bitch,” Daniel cursed under his breath.

  “Open up! Rickon and Robb are on their way.”

  “Shoot!” Jessie jumped off the counter and quickly scrambled to get her shirt back on.

  Daniel let out a growl as he walked to the door to let Boyd in.

  “Hey, sorry, but I figured you would rather have me at the door than her father,” Boyd said as he walked in.

  “Yeah, thanks.” Daniel took a deep breath.

  “You might want to get that under control,” Boyd said, gesturing to his pants. Daniel looked down and cursed as he readjusted himself.

  “Yeah, well an hour later and it would have taken care of itself.”

  “Sorry, buddy. Maybe next time.”

  “I’m starting to think we will never be alone.”

  “Nah, just bad timing right now. Speaking of which, where is she?”

  “I’m right here,” Jessie said, coming around the corner fully dressed.

  “Good,” Boyd said. “Your father’s on his way. He’s a little mad, so I told him you went here since it was closer than the bar.”

  “Thanks,” Daniel said.

  “Here.” Boyd handed him a T-shirt. Daniel quickly threw it on right as Rickon and Robb came up the stairs.

  “Jessie!” Rickon shouted. Jessie ran to him, throwing herself in his arms.

  “Dad!”

  “I was so worried,” Rickon said, holding his daughter tight.

  “I’m fine, dad. Daniel saved me. He got me out of there.”

  Rickon looked up from Jessie to Daniel. He nodded his head and Daniel nodded back.

  “I’ve got your bags in the truck,” Rickon said, pulling Jessie back.

  “My bags?”

  “I need to take you somewhere safe. Where Rocco can’t find you. I have the pack already moved there.”

  Daniel froze as he heard Rickon’s words. Jessie can’t leave. How long will she have to stay in hiding?

  “We can protect her,” Daniel said.

  Rickon looked over at him.

  “Look, I appreciate what you did for my daughter, but we need to go. With Rocco still out there, it’s not safe for my family.”

  “It’s the safest place for your family, sir,” Daniel said. “Ashley is an original and the Dark Lords practically live at the bar. There is no safer place than there.”

  Rickon looked back to Robb before he turned back to Daniel.

  “I can’t ask you to fight my battle,” Rickon said.

  “I’m offering to protect her,” Daniel said. “I know you don’t like me much, but Jessie means the world to me. I can keep her safe.”

  “It’s not a b
ad idea,” Robb said.

  “You know why it is,” Rickon replied. They were trying to be quiet, as if Daniel didn’t have werewolf hearing. He had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. That wouldn’t help in convincing Rickon to leave Jessie with him.

  “At least we know we can trust them. Otherwise, we have to leave her in the bayou.”

  “Excuse me,” Jessie said. “I’m right here. How about you talk to me instead of about me.”

  “Sorry,” Rickon said. “But you can’t stay in the city.”

  “I don’t know who Rocco is or what he wants,” Jessie said. “But if it wasn’t for Daniel, you would have come home to a dead body. He can protect me.”

  Daniel saw the horror flash in Rickon’s eyes as he contemplated his options.

  “Two days,” Rickon finally said. “If I can’t get Rocco by then, you’re leaving the city.”

  “We can help you get him,” Boyd said.

  “No. He’s my problem and mine alone.”

  Daniel took a deep breath. Jessie was staying. That’s all he cared about.

  CHAPTER 8

  Jessie followed her father up to the third floor of the bar. Her brothers were right behind her. Rickon opened the door to the room Ashley had given her. It was small, but homey. The wood floors were a dark brown with matching furniture. A small chest of drawers and a nightstand sat beside the twin size bed. A desk sat to the right of the door and two more open doors were on the far right wall, one leading to a closet, the other to the bathroom.

  “I don’t like this,” Justin said, throwing her duffel bag on the bed. The sheets wrinkled under the weight of it. “We should leave.”

  “And just keep running for the rest of our lives?” Robb asked.

  Jessie walked to the window. She looked down at the small alley that sat below her room. She knew why they ran. They ran because of her. It was no life to live, especially for her brothers. How will they ever marry if they are constantly on the run? How would their children live?

  “It’s better than dying,” Justin said. Jessie rolled her eyes. There are somethings that are worse than death, but not at the expense of her family.

  “Nobody is dying,” Rickon said. “That matter has been decided on. We’re staying to finish this. Rocco wants me. He doesn’t even know about Jessie’s situation. If I can get rid of him, then this will all go away.”

  “Until the next time,” Justin said. “Or until we slip up. Jessie already had a nose bleed in front of everyone, and that scraped knee isn’t helping.”

  “I’ll wear pants,” Jessie said, still facing the window. It took everything in her not to cry. If she looked at her family, she knew she would break down.

  “We should still leave,” Justin said again.

  “Two days,” Robb said. “New Orleans has been good to us. The Dark Lords and Ashley’s pack have been good to us. Plus, Agnes is here. We need a witch that doesn’t ask a lot of questions.”

  “Fine,” Justin said.

  Jessie waited until she heard them leave. She turned to her empty room and looked around. She walked to the bed and pulled out her jeans and a T-shirt from her duffel bag. She looked down at her knee where the blood had dried. She might as well clean up first. She tossed her clothes back on her bed, along with her phone, and grabbed the towel at the bottom of the bag. She was glad to see that Robb had packed her shampoo. She knew Robb had packed it, because if it had been left to Justin or her father, then it would be a bag of shirts only. They never paid much attention to what they threw in the bags. They just wanted to get out as fast as possible. She also grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste and walked to the bathroom. She let the water heat up before she jumped in and showered.

  It was the oddest feeling having no say in her life. Everything her family did was because of her, but none of it was for her. They loved her and she knew it, but their lives would be much simpler if she weren’t in it.

  She let the water wash over her as she lathered up her hair. She looked down at the bruises on her wrist, hip and thigh. Her knee was still red and stung when the soap rolled over the scrape. This was her fault. And now Daniel was being roped into it. What was she doing with him?

  Jessie touched her lips, still swollen from his kiss. Her head knew to stay away from him. But her heart… her heart was begging for him to kiss her again. She felt like she was being torn in two by what she should do, and what she wants to do.

  Why did everything have to be so hard? Why couldn’t she have had a normal life? With a normal mother who wasn’t a witch. Then she wouldn’t have black blood. She wouldn’t have powers she could barely control. She wouldn’t have to worry about Daniel, or Ashley or the Dark Lords finding out her secret. Her family wouldn’t have to live in fear. Her pack wouldn’t have to move so much.

  She turned off the water and toweled herself off, then walked back into the room and dressed in her jeans and black T-shirt. The duffel bag gave a thump as she pushed it to the floor. She sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the door. She needed to do something, but she didn’t know what she could do. She wanted to help find Rocco, but she wasn’t a fighter, and her father would never allow it. So she just sat on the bed, staring at the door.

  ***

  Daniel sat down in the bar as Robb and Justin came downstairs.

  “Is she settled in?” Daniel asked, standing from the stool.

  “Yeah, thanks for letting her stay. It won’t take long for us to get Rocco,” Robb said.

  “We can help,” Daniel said. “Really, we can.”

  “No,” Robb said as he grabbed a can of coke from behind the bar. “Rocco is a threat to our pack. We need to deal with it.”

  As soon as Robb opened the can, coke started spraying everywhere.

  “What the hell?” Robb said, holding the can from his body and wiping his face.

  “Sorry,” Daniel said. “Old habits. Here, I didn’t shake this one.”

  Robb shook his head as he took the new can. He opened it only to have more spray on him.

  “Really, Daniel?” Robb wiped at his shirt. “Grow up.”

  Daniel cracked a smile as he looked at the gullible wolf. They will learn eventually.

  “But seriously.” Daniel handed Robb a napkin. “If you need our help, it’s yours.”

  “You’re only saying that so my sister can stay in the city,” Justin said.

  “Yes, but we would have offered regardless,” Daniel said, handing Robb another napkin. “New Orleans is our home, and we protect our home and those that live in it. If Rocco is your enemy, then he’s ours, too.”

  “We’ll keep that in mind.” Justin turned to the stairs as Rickon walked down.

  “We need to get going,” Rickon said. He looked back up the stairs.

  “She’ll be safe here,” Daniel said. “I promise you that.”

  Rickon looked to him before he nodded.

  “I’m sending over Dani and Brandon. Ashley said they could stay here until we found Rocco. They aren’t ready yet, and with their transformation, they’re still a target for demons. I don’t need to worry about the demons attacking my pack on top of Rocco.”

  “Sure thing. Do you need us to stand guard in the bayou over the rest of your pack?”

  “No. I have Ty and Sky there. Agnes set up the protection spells so only a member can find the pack, anyways.”

  He signaled for Justin and Robb to follow. Daniel watched the three men walk out of the bar while he stayed helplessly behind.

  “Don’t look so glum, chum.”

  Daniel turned to his brother Drew as he came from the kitchen holding a sandwich.

  “I’m not glum.” Daniel turned back to the door.

  “You look glum. Is it the weather? I hear a storm is on its way.”

  “No, it’s not the weather.”

  “Girl problems then?” Daniel rolled his eyes.

  “Don’t you have something better to do?”

  “Nope.” Drew took a bite from his sandwich. “B
esides, we need to set up for tonight. Since you went AWOL last night, we had to postpone playing. We promised everyone we would play tonight.”

  “Yay.”

  “You all right?” Drew said, stopping in front of him.

  “If they don’t get Rocco and his pack in two days, Jessie is leaving.”

  “And that makes you sad?”

  “Yes.”

  “Nailed it!” Drew said, proud of his accomplishment to pick up on human emotion. Daniel shook his head.

  “Just go set up.” Daniel stood and pushed Drew towards the stage.

  Playing in the band was the last thing Daniel wanted to do right now. He decided to go see if Jessie needed anything. He walked up to her room and knocked. He waited a second before he knocked again. The door slowly opened and Jessie stood in front of him. She was breath taking as her blond hair fell around her narrow shoulders. It was still wet and the water dripped down to her shirt, outlining her breasts. When he looked back to her, she looked sad. He could see she had been crying. He stepped into her room, wrapping her in his arms.

  “It’s okay, Jess.”

  “This is my fault.”

  “No. That psycho, Rocco, is the one to blame. You’re safe here. I promise you.”

  Jessie closed her eyes as she sunk into his arms. If only that were true. She closed her eyes, wishing it was just Daniel and her. If the entire world would go away for one night, her problems fading with it.

  But this was not a dream.

  Reality was a bitch and something that brought Jessie right out of her trance. She could feel her blood dripping from her nose. She pulled back and saw the black stain on his white shirt.

  “You’re bleeding,” Daniel said as he reached for her face. Jessie stepped back and held her hand to her nose.

  “I’m fine,” Jessie said as she ran to the bathroom. She grabbed a handful of toilet paper, wadding it in her hand before she held it to her nose.

  “Do I need to get your father?” he asked.