As I stepped from the wooded patch, my exit startled two young men huddled together. Their gazes tripped over me, eyes glittering under the shadows of their hoods, like jackals spotting easy prey. I met the stronger one’s gaze. He broke first, grumbling deep in his throat. Then he shuffled back and waved his friend away as he muttered some excuse for moving on.

I watched them go, considering…then dismissing.

It was easy to separate one victim from a group. Not nearly so simple when the “group” consisted of only two people. As the young men disappeared, I resumed my silent trek across the park.

My goal lay twenty paces away. Had I not sensed him, I likely would have passed by. He’d ignored a park bench under the light and instead had stretched along the top of a raised garden, hidden under the bushes and amidst the dying flowers.

He lay on his back with his eyes closed. His face was peaceful, relaxed. A handsome face, broad and tanned. He had thick blond hair and the healthy vitality of a young man in his prime. A big man, too, tall and solid, his muscular arms crossed behind his head, his slim hips and long denim-clad legs ending in work boots crossed at the ankles.

I circled north to sneak up behind his head. He lay completely motionless, even his chest still, not rising and falling with the slow rhythm of breathing. I crossed the last few feet between us and stopped just behind his head. Then I leaned over.

His eyes opened. Deep brown eyes, the color of rich earth. He snarled a yawn.

“’Bout time, Cass,” he said. “Couple of punks been circling to see if I’m still conscious. Another few minutes, and I’d have had to teach them to let sleeping vamps lie.”

“Shall I go away then? Let you have your fun?”

Aaron grinned. “Nah. They come back? We can both have fun.” He heaved his legs over the side of the garden wall and sat up, shaking off sleep. Then, catching a glimpse of my face, his grin dropped into a frown. “You didn’t do it, did you?”

“I couldn’t find anyone.”

“Couldn’t find—?” He pushed to his feet, towering over me. “Goddamn it, what are you playing at? First you let it go until the last minute, then you ‘can’t find anyone’?”

I checked my watch. “It’s not the last minute. I still have ten left. I trust that if I explode at midnight, you’ll be kind enough to sweep up the bits. I would like to be scattered over the Atlantic but, if you’re pressed for time, the Charleston River will do.”

He glowered at me. “A hundred and twenty years together, and you never got within a week of your rebirth day without making your kill.”

“Hungary. 1867.”

“Sixty-eight. And I don’t see any bars this time. So what was your excuse?”

“Among others, I was busy researching that council matter Paige brought to my attention. I admit I let things creep up on me this year, and a century ago that would never have happened, but while we were apart, I changed—”

“Bullshit. You never change. Except to get more imperious, more pigheaded, and more cranky.”

“The word is ‘crankier.’”

He muttered a few more descriptors under his breath. I started down the path.

“You’d better be going off to find someone,” he called after me.

“No, I’m heading home to bed. I’m tired.”

“Tired?” He strode up beside me. “You don’t get tired. You’re—”

He stopped, mouth closing so fast his teeth clicked.

“The word is ‘dying,’” I said. “And, while that is true, and it is equally true that my recent inability to sleep is a symptom of that, tonight I am, indeed, tired.”

“Because you’re late for your kill. You can’t pull this shit, Cassandra, not in your condition.”

I gave an unladylike snort and kept walking.

His fingers closed around my arm. “Let’s go find those punks. Have some fun.” A broad, boyish grin. “I think one has a gun. Been a long time since I got shot.”

“Another day.”

“A hunt then.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Well, I am. Maybe you couldn’t find someone suitable, but I can. I know what you look for. We’ll hunt together. I’ll get a snack; you’ll get another year. Fair enough?”

He tried to grin, but I could see a hint of panic behind his eyes. I felt an answering prickle of worry, but told myself I was being ridiculous. I’d simply had too much on my mind lately. I was tired and easily distracted. I needed to snap out of this embarrassing lethargy and make this kill, and I would do so tomorrow, once Aaron had gone back to Atlanta.

“It’s not the end of the world—or my world—if I don’t take a life tonight, Aaron. You’ve been late yourself when you couldn’t find someone suitable. I haven’t—and perhaps I’d simply like to know what that’s like.” I touched his arm. “At my age, new experiences are few and far between. I take them where I can.”

He hesitated, then nodded, mollified, and accompanied me from the park.

Aaron followed me home. That wasn’t nearly as exciting a prospect as it sounds. These days we were simply friends. His choice. If I had my way, tired or not, I would have found the energy to accommodate him.

When I first met Aaron, less than a year after his rebirth, he’d accused me of helping him in his new life because he looked like something to “decorate my bed with.” True enough.

Even as a human, I had never been able to rouse more than a passing interest in men of my own class. Too well mannered, too gently spoken, too soft. My tastes had run to stable boys and, later, to discreet working men.

Finding Aaron as a newly reborn vampire, a big strapping farm boy with hands as rough as his manners, I will admit that my first thought was indeed carnal. He was younger than I liked, but I’d decided I could live with that.

So I’d trained him in the life of a vampire. In return, I’d received friendship, protection…and endless nights alone, frustrated beyond reason. It was preposterous, of course. I’d never had any trouble leading men to my bed and there I’d been, reduced to chasing a virile young man who strung me along as if he were some coy maiden. I told myself it wasn’t his fault—he was English. Thankfully, when he finally capitulated, I discovered he wasn’t nearly as repressed as I’d feared.

Over a hundred years together. It was no grand romance. The word “love” never passed between us. We were partners in every sense—best friends, hunting allies, and faithful lovers. Then came the morning I woke, looked over at him, and imagined not seeing him there, tried to picture life without him. I’d gone cold at the thought.

I had told myself I’d never allow that again. When you’ve lost everyone, you learn the danger of attachments. As a vampire, you must accept that every person you ever know will die, and you are the only constant in your life, the only person you can—and should—rely on. So I made a decision.

I betrayed Aaron. Not with another man. Had I done that, he’d simply have flown into a rage and, once past it, demanded to know what was really bothering me. What I did instead was a deeper betrayal, one that said, more coldly than I could ever speak the words, “I don’t want you anymore.”

After over half a century apart, happenstance had brought us together again. We’d resisted the pull of that past bond, reminded ourselves of what had happened the last time and yet, gradually, we’d drifted back into friendship. Only friendship. Sex was not allowed—Aaron’s way of keeping his distance. Given the choice between having him as a friend and not having him in my life at all, I’d gladly choose the former…though that didn’t keep me from hoping to change his mind.

That night I slept. It was the first time I’d done more than catnapped in over a year. While I longed to seize on this as some sign that I wasn’t dying, I knew Aaron’s assessment was far more likely—I was tired because I’d missed my annual kill.