Serena

“I am being truthful.”

She had dropped the subject and had instead returned to enticing him physically, but he had already made up his mind to say goodnight.

He sensed her resignation as she turned away. She knew he was saying good-bye, and he knew she wouldn’t be deterred. “You want me. You will always want me. We are good together.”

He had frowned. She didn’t want to see the truth, and he knew Mary Beth’s history was such that she still wanted to parade him about as hers. He knew she would fight losing him.

She had stroked his dark blond hair and kissed his hard chin. “You know I more than want you, Chad.”

“Do I know that? Mary Beth … come on—”

“But … we are good for each other.”

“No—in fact, we are not.”

She pulled away. “Ah—this sounds like good-bye.” She wasn’t looking at him as the words were spat from her pretty red lips.

“Mary Beth … I told you what I wanted—didn’t want—from the start.”

However, she was already out of his bed and throwing on her clothes. “Don’t ye worry none about it, love. Ye be in the right of it. I knew where this was going the first time you kissed me. It was always about good-bye.” She’d grabbed her purse and coat, and he had hurriedly followed her out.

Now, he sighed over it all and looked up at the night sky bright with stars, and those stars reminded him of Shawna’s silver eyes. The last time he had seen her he had wanted to reach out and touch her … but she was a vision, only a vision.

And then his body rippled with pain. A hiss made its way up his throat, but he controlled the savage sound. He wouldn’t make animal sounds. He sighed heavily as he thought of the Blood Orchard. He hadn’t needed it in so long …

He had other things on his mind as well. He was going to come out of the shadows of anonymity and make certain Pentim Rawley’s life force disintegrated by his own hands. And he was going to have to use the pretty, blonde-haired, silver-eyed innocent, Shawna Wellsly, to accomplish his goals.

He had known that for months. He could no longer do what his father and grandmother required. He could no longer be content to stand along the edge and keep out of the fray.

His grandmother had already objected to his plan. She had called Shawna an innocent who should not be drawn into the new war, but he no longer had a choice … and at any rate, Pentim was already searching for the girl.

She couldn’t escape Pentim and his clan without help. There were too many of the Rawley Clan, and some of them had powers singularly suited for stalking.

No one knew the secrets his grandmother and father harbored. None knew his own deeply personal sorrows—sorrows born of power he wished he didn’t possess. However, as of late he was glad for the mana he owned. It gave him an edge, an edge he knew he would need soon.

He had turned to go back into his home when it hit him. A blast of darkness assaulted him, and he put a hand to his head. He felt as though he were being pulled into a black hole and then discovering himself on the other side—another episode.

He stood close to her. He reached out, but of course he was in a vision; she couldn’t see him or feel his presence. He couldn’t touch her, but damn, he sure as hell wanted to.

She was wearing a black silk nightgown. One thin strap fell from her shoulder, and her full breasts captured his attention. She stretched and then climbed into her bed. He felt a blast of desire, and his sudden hard-on made him uncomfortable. She was so incredibly beautiful with her golden hair a mass of waves around her intoxicatingly lovely face.

Shawna had been the woman that occupied his visions. In his nightmare vision he had seen Pentim Rawley take her and turn her …

He couldn’t let that happen—she was too important to him. He needed her to play a role in his plans to take down Pentim and his Rawley clan. All at once and with that thought, he realized where he was—on his front steps. He shook it all off as he went inside and closed the door at his back.

He still had a hard-on, and the image of her face and body swam around his mind, keeping him hot with desire.

There was no way he was going to allow himself to get involved with the beauty. He wanted one thing from her only, and that was to set her up as bait!

He had goals to accomplish. He had his family’s anonymity, so deeply treasured, to protect. He would have to proceed with stealth.

Another night to the full moon, and then he would be prepared for what lay ahead …

* * *

Had she known, Shawna Wellsly would not have agreed with his summation of her abilities—and innocent? She did not think so. Had the question of her innocence come up, she might have conceded that in some ways perhaps she was, but in most ways, she was streetwise and more. She had to be—she wanted to live, and she wanted to find a life more fulfilling than just staying alive.

However, now, staying alive would be good.