Gregor gestured to a nearby bench, and we sat on it. The temperature had been dropping since sundown, and he took off his coat and handed it to me.

The simple gesture touched me and made me feel shy again. It was the way a guy would act on a date, or so I imagined. Gregor sat very close to me as well. Self-consciously, I worried about my breath, or if there was anything in my teeth.

“What you are, Catherine,” he began, “is very rare. There are vampires in this world, as well as humans and ghouls, but there has only been one other known half-breed in all of history, and that was centuries ago. Because of your uniqueness, there are those who would exploit you. One man in particular would try to use you.”

“Who?” I gasped, feeling so alone at the knowledge that there was no one else like me. “And why?”

“His name is Bones.” Gregor almost spat the words. “He will force you to become a killer as he is. Turn you into a whore to lure his victims. Kill your family, so you will have no one but him to protect you. And you’ll need protection, Catherine. After the atrocities he’ll have you commit, you’ll be running from danger for the rest of your life.”

“No!”

It was a cry of denial at the fate he’d just predicted. Hearing I’d become a monster who would get my family murdered made me want to run, but Gregor put an arm around my shoulders, keeping me where I was.

“That’s why I came, ma chérie. He won’t find you here. Soon, I’ll bind you to me, then no one can take you. If you do what I say, you’ll never suffer such an existence.”

“My family? My mother? They’ll be safe?” I was shaking at the thought of their deaths.

“As long as you are with me, they’re safe.”

He sounded so confident. That’s why my mom sent me here, I thought dully. If I didn’t leave, they’d all be killed.

He brushed my cheek. “You must heed me, though, oui? Else I can’t protect you from this.”

“Okay.” I drew in a deep breath. “I’ll do what you say.”

“Good.” The green left his eyes, and his smile was relaxed. “It’s for the best. Now, come to me.”

He held open his arms, and I hesitated. He wanted a hug?

“Um,” I fidgeted. “What—”

“Already you question?” he interrupted, gaze narrowing.

“No, no.” At once I put my arms around him, my heart starting to beat faster. This wasn’t a position I was used to.

“Better.” It was almost a growl. Gregor tightened his grip until I blushed. “We’ll return home now. You must be weary.”

“Well,” I began, “A little—huh?”

He propelled us upward. My bleat of fright dissolved into a gasp of wonder as I looked down. Oh, wow. No wonder they called this the City of Lights.

Gregor glided us above the buildings, too high to be seen from below. It was indescribable to feel the wind whistling by me and the power radiating off him while looking at the stunning visual canvas. My heart wasn’t beating; it was thundering. If this is a dream, I thought, I don’t want to wake up.

All too soon, he landed at the gray building that was his house. I had to hold on for a second longer while I regained my footing, still overwhelmed with the experience. Flying. If that was a vampire perk, being a half-breed couldn’t be all bad.

“You enjoyed that,” he noted the obvious, smiling. “You see? All you must do is trust me.”

“I don’t know what to say.” It came out breathlessly. He’d let go of me, but he was still very close. “Thank you.”

His smiled deepened. That fluttering began in my stomach. No one had ever smiled at me like Gregor did.

“You’re welcome, Catherine.”

FOURTEEN

THE NEXT THREE WEEKS PASSED WITH AMAZING swiftness. Aside from Cannelle’s continued snootiness and worrying about my family, I had to admit I’d never been happier.

Gregor was wonderful to be around—as long as I didn’t argue with him or challenge him with a differing opinion. I learned that fast. Who was I, a teenager, to argue with a thousand-year-old vampire who possessed powers and knowledge I couldn’t even imagine? That was Gregor’s favorite line when he was ticked. It was a good one, too. I didn’t have much to rebut it with.

But when Gregor was in a good mood, it was heavenly. He’d listen for hours as I spoke about my insecurities growing up. He encouraged me to show my nonhuman traits, something I’d tried to hide as much as possible around my mother. Then he bought me clothes, shoes, and jewelry, overriding my protests by saying pretty girls should have pretty things.

No guy had ever called me pretty before. In fact, no one had ever paid attention to me the way Gregor did. I’d gone from being a lonely outcast to feeling very favored and special almost overnight. Here was this attractive, suave, charismatic man spending all this time with me, and even though I knew it was stupid, I was getting more infatuated with Gregor every day.

Gregor didn’t act like anything but a protector, however. Every day, I tried to talk myself out of my embarrassing crush. Not only is Gregor about a thousand years too old for you, he’s probably got ten girlfriends. Cannelle couldn’t be more obvious about how she wants him, but he doesn’t give her the time of day even though she’s a beautiful woman. So what chance do you have? None, that’s what.

I’d convinced myself to stop secretly mooning over Gregor by the time he took me to see The English Patient. After a crash course, my French was good enough that I didn’t need to read all the subtitles to know what was going on, and there were certain parts that required no translation.

The heroine’s name was Catherine. Hearing my name moaned during the erotic parts of the movie was like a spotlight on my hidden fantasies. I was hyperaware of Gregor’s knee grazing mine, his arm resting on the divider, and how very large he was in his chair. I started feeling flushed, and I bolted out of the seat with a hurried excuse about the bathroom.

I didn’t make it. In the hall, I was seized and whirled around, crushed against Gregor’s body. My mouth opened in surprise only to have his come down over it, shocking me with his invading tongue. He grabbed my hair and held my head as he kissed me.

It felt consuming, terrifying, and good all at once. I couldn’t move with the grip he held me in, and I couldn’t breathe from how deeply he was kissing me. Finally, my flapping hands must have registered, because he let me go. I almost stumbled, glad the wall was there to keep me from falling. My heartbeat must have been loud enough to make his head hurt.

“Your first kiss?” Gregor asked thickly, giving a rude glare to a couple who paused to gawk at us.

I didn’t want to admit it, but he always seemed to know when I lied.

“Yes.” How pathetic. I was sixteen; half my classmates had already had sex.

A smile curled on his lips. “‘Twas the answer I wanted. You take to it very well.” He placed each arm around me, caging me against the wall. “I wonder how well you’ll take to the other enjoyments I’ll show you.”

I stared, thinking I must have misunderstood him. This was such a switch from how Gregor normally acted around me, I couldn’t keep up. “You’re saying you want to, uh, have sex with me?”

He responded to my stunned whisper by yanking me to him. “Why do you think you’re here? Why do you think I took you into my home, garbed you in lovely clothes, and spent day and night with you? I’ve been waiting for you to adjust to your new home, and I’ve been very patient, oui? Yet my patience is running thin. You are mine, Catherine, and I will have you soon. Very soon.”

I was at a loss for words. Sure, I’d been madly crushing on Gregor, but I hadn’t been prepared to jump into bed with him.

Tentatively, I smiled. “You’re joking, right?”