“You know,” she began, placing her hands on her curvaceous hips, “I don’t think that’s funny.”
“Oh?”
“If you’re just going to be an ass, then you can leave.”
“Aw, come on,” I began, my lips twitching with a suppressed grin. “I came to check on you, Piper. I wanted to be sure you were okay after last night.”
“Newsflash, Count Dracula, I’m not fine.”
Laughing at her response, I shrugged. “I do apologize that you were introduced to my world in such a way. It couldn’t be helped. You were attacked and ––”
“Attacked?” Her face went pale. “What do you mean?”
I never got a chance to explain last night. She left in such a hurry, pissed and scared. I decided she needed a little space. That decision seemed to be correct. “The damn Lycan sliced through your stomach and nearly spilled your entrails as I fought several of his kind off. You were gravely injured.”
“Shit.” She took a deep breath, hand resting over her heart. “Was that the hairy thing on the ground?” She swallowed hard. “The body that the ghouls were . . .”
“Consuming?” I asked when she didn’t complete her sentence.
“Yes.”
“Of course,” I confirmed. “Lycan are werewolves. Nasty fuckers. They kill without hesitation.” I shrugged, hoping to put her at ease. “I brought you back to my home to be healed. There should hardly be a scar if any at all.”
She lifted her shirt and gazed down at her flat belly. Not a mark.
“How was I healed?” Her voice was laced with accusation.
“It’s probably best you don’t ask,” I warned, hearing the attitude in her voice.
“Tell me.”
She wasn’t going to like my answer. “Fine, if you insist. I gave you a few drops of my blood.”
She began to pace, her fury increasing with every step. “I didn’t give my permission.”
“You weren’t conscious,” I argued. “Besides, would you rather have died?”
Pouting, her bottom lip stuck out. “No.”
“There’s hardly an argument then.”
“Except you took away my right to choose, Professor Black.”
Groaning inwardly, I hoped she would drop this topic of conversation. It was irrelevant. “I did what I had to do to keep you alive. I won’t apologize for that.”
“Of course not,” she blurted, stopping to stare into my eyes. “My apologies, Professor Know-it-all.”
Mildly humored, I was also sufficiently annoyed. “First of all, I detest being called Professor Black when I’m not in the classroom. Second, I’m in charge so you will obey me without question. And third ––”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it, Mr. Control Freak. Calm down.”
She cut me off. Fuming, I couldn’t believe she had the audacity. I snarled as I flashed in front of her so fast, she jumped. “Ms. Vanek ––”
“Piper.”
Closing my eyes, I attempted to rein in my temper. She interrupted me twice and I was highly agitated. Taking a deep breath, I blinked and stared deep down into her sparkling blue eyes. “I do not like to be interrupted. You will respect my position and authority. Am I understood?”
I expected more defiance, but instead her eyes filled with tears and she backed away a step, shaking her head. This wasn’t a normal reaction. Concerned, all my anger evaporated in an instant. Something was wrong and it was more than last night. I should have noticed earlier.
“I’m going to die,” she announced calmly.
Well, that was the fate of all humans.
“Eventually, but not for many long years to come.” Unless I killed her. It wasn’t important at the moment since I decided not to act on the contract. Never mind the fact that I still had to figure out a way to dissolve it completely.
“You don’t understand. How could you?” She chewed on her bottom lip, turning away as she hastily brushed the salty drops from her cheeks. “The countdown isn’t stopping.”
“What countdown?” Dread filled my stomach. Whatever secret she had hidden, it was a big one.
“It’ll be seventeen.” Her eyes were glassy, staring off into space.
Fear licked up my spine, a foreign feeling that was decidedly unwelcome. “What countdown?” I repeated, grabbing her upper arms as her head fell forward. “Speak!” I roared, demanding her compliance. I’d never been more flustered in my entire immortal existence.
A laugh bubbled up and out of her throat, the sound hollow and empty of emotion. “My unknown stalker.”
What was the matter with this human? Was she crazy?
“What do you mean?”
Her head lifted and she met my gaze with a look of pure unadulterated fear. “It started at twenty-one and every day it drops by one. Tomorrow is seventeen.” Swallowing hard, she blinked. “At zero . . . I’m dead.”
A hollow ache filled my chest the moment the final words left her mouth. Pulling Piper into my arms, I held her tightly as she rested her cheek over my half dead heart. The thought of anyone snuffing out her existence other than me was simply unacceptable. I didn’t know what I’d end up doing with her, but that decision was my own. No other immortal would touch what was mine.
“You’re not going to die,” I promised, refusing to accept that was her fate. I couldn’t let anything happen to her, no matter what sacrifice I had to make.
And it just might be everything I had to give.
I couldn't remember the last time I was so frightened. An entire day and a half had lapsed since I last saw Professor Black and awakened from that horrible nightmare of being licked by bloodsucking demons. I still felt violated even though I’d scrubbed my skin a half dozen times since returning home. Despite the need to resume classes, I hadn’t been back to school, and I even followed the annoying weirdo’s instructions about staying indoors. He alluded to the fact that I had constant protection, but I wasn’t sure who or what was keeping me safe.
I decided not to ask.
Morning came and went as I paced with nervous agitation, wearing a hole in my dorm room carpet when I heard a knock and the familiar low rumble of his voice.
“Let me in, Piper.”
Always so demanding. Such an arrogant ass!
He was smirking when I opened the door, and I was tempted to slam it in his handsome face. His annoyingly chipper expression made me want to throw things. I settled for a cup of coffee instead, restraining my urges, but barely.
“I haven’t been able to track down who is sending these messages to you. Are you still receiving them?”
“Yes, sixteen total this morning.” I picked up my phone and showed him the missed calls and texts. “The number changes every day, but it’s always the same message and phone calls, down to the number. Nothing changes. No demands. Nothing but the creepy repeated sentence over and over again.”
“This stalker is nothing if not persistent.” Disgusted, he handed the cell back.
“You don’t have any idea who would do this or why?”
“No, and that is worrisome.” He extended his hand, palm side up. “I think you should come with me. There’s something I’d like to show you.”