Authors Note:

Seriously, to my viewers who actually take time to review, I seriously love you guys. Reading your comments make me so happy and help propel me further into my story. You guys are playing the part of my muse 3 We made 30 reviews!

I re-read the last chapter after a wonderful guest told me that they had re-read the chapter 6 times! I was so excited, and then I realized just how many mistakes I made! I read my chapters frequently after writing, but I guess I always read what I meant to write instead of what I actually wrote. I'm sorry guys for any chapters littered with mistakes. Either I need a beta, or I just need to take an extra day and re-read my chapters with fresh eyes. I'll try harder.

I would also like to ask ya'll a question. I've been reading different peoples stories on and off. I feel like some people that haven't written as well as myself, have literally 10x's the followers that I do. Is it because my story is still new? Or am I just being a snob and being over confident in my writing style? I know that I am certainly not the best. My favorite authors on this website so far are Swimming in the Same Deep Waters, Hbarker, voldobaby, and now TheCoffeeShopMuse. Their works are amazing, and I wouldn't dare put myself in their categorization. They have the followers and reviews to prove how great their work is. Maybe, if I am lucky, the longer I stay on this website, the more followers I can receive. By the way, ya'll, don't be afraid to drop me a PM either. I like hearing from you guys. Although I do LOVE my reviews! (Yes, I'm from the south. My characters are not though, so I try not to drop ya'lls around in my work all that often, but I figured it was okay in my author's note since it is me speaking.)

Sorry I sometimes make my authors notes so loooooooong, but I have a question. How do you guys feel about long paragraphs? I keep trying to split them up so they aren't unbearable. I don't want to lose anyone because long paragraphs look intimidating. Depending on a writer's style, sometimes I have a hard time getting through them… let me know.

Chapter 10

The car ride to Altwood, West Virginia, which was the closest a GSP could get to the Keeper's location, was going to take around 7 to 8 hours, depending on the last leg of the trip not on the gps map. For the first time on one of our excursions like this, I had taken the keys. I was driving, and marked it as a personal victory in the scoreboard buried somewhere in my mind.

This left Dimitri in the passenger seat. He had managed to grab one of his books out of his bag before we had left court. Although I was driving, I was very in tune with Dimitri. We had already been on the road for several hours and had barely talked. For me, it was a comfortable silence. For Dimitri, it was a completely different matter. Dimitri wasn't sure what I was thinking, or feeling for that matter. He only knew a few things.

One- that he had gone to dinner with Irina and had returned at an unreasonable time.

Two- I had been upset enough to run out of the apartment and leave him behind without talking it through.

Three- I had not returned last night.

Four- I had appeared calm this morning, although in the case of Rose Hathaway, appearances were often deceiving.

Five- There had been no explosive behavior as of yet, which could mean that the pressure was still building. One could still happen. The longer we waited to address it, the worse it could be.

Six- Irina, the source of the problem, had showed up to see us off on our journey, and I had definitely been annoyed with her again. I could possibly be in a worse mood since she showed up and the worse opportune time. Should he wait until he knew I had cooled off?

Although Dimitri was sprawled out in the passenger seat, he wasn't comfortable. He was pretending to read, but I knew he wasn't accomplishing it well. We were several hours into our journey, and he had turned the page less than ten times. He was very distracted, his mind mostly on me. Every few minutes, he would spare a nervous glance at me. I could tell he was trying to do so discretely, attempting to assess the situation. He was also continually shifting in his seat, struggling to find a comfortable position. I guessed that he would continue to be uncomfortable until we talked about things.

I on the other hand looked the perfect picture of calm and collected. I was seated comfortably with one hand on the wheel. I had one earbud in the ear farthest from Dimitri, softly playing music to help keep me alert in the near silent car. I felt perfectly relaxed, and my outside features showed it. I knew that the silence was torture to Dimitri. Bad girlfriend or no, I was relishing in that fact. I was perfectly aware of his every movement. I could almost hear the conversation he was having with himself inside his head, or at least the gears turning inside his mind. Most people wouldn't have been able to see it, but I knew Dimitri well enough to perceive the storm cloud of emotions raging inside of him. I was enjoying his discomfort.

I already knew how I felt about the situation. I didn't want to let him off easy though. I wanted him to think about what happened and what he potentially had to loose, not that I was going anywhere yet. I was rather enjoying the reversal in our roles. Back when I was at St. Vladimir's, I was always the storm cloud of emotions. I acted first, thought later. I had been brimming with emotion for Dimitri and had a hard time controlling myself. My mind was always full of problems and trying to figure out how they all fit together or trying to solve them. My mind nearly never rested, except during my trainings when I had to turn off those dizzying thoughts in order to fight properly. Dimitri on the other hand had looked as cool as a cucumber. He always had his emotions in check. I had always been burning for him, and it looked like I barely affected him. At least I can give him kudos for being a good actor.

Part of me wanted to smile as I watched him mentally work through things. It had been a while since I had seen his mind so busy. It felt like Dimitri always knew the right thing to do, how to act, what to say. Since he usually did the right thing, he hadn't need to worry about it later. This time he was worrying though, and he was trying to figure out what to do. Should he wait for me to talk to him about it? Should he man up and bring up the conversation on his own? What if I wasn't ready to talk yet? What if he made it worse by bringing it up before I did? The entire time I was covertly watching his struggle, I fought down a smile. I had my guardian face up. Yes. I'm enjoying this way too much. This torture was good for Dimitri, I decided. Maybe it was good for me too though. It wouldn't bug him if I weren't important to him. I could see that written all over his face. I am important to Dimitri.

Looking down at my gas tank, I realized we needed to make a pit stop. Not only did we need gas, but refreshments would be nice, and a restroom break. Dimitri noticed as the car slowed down, but didn't say anything. I was taking an exit that lead to a gas station. It looked new, and most importantly clean. Most guys may not care, but women know the importance of a clean restroom.

"Gas. Refreshments. Restrooms." I held up one finger at a time as I said each word. Dimitri took it as a sign that I didn't want to talk to him. Honestly, I didn't mind torturing him even more, although he was wrong. Actually, it's not that I just didn't mind his anguish; I was thoroughly enjoying it. Maybe next time he will think twice before committing a similar mistake. If I were anyone else, like Lissa, I might have immediately launched into our much needed conversation as soon as the SUV started, or at least after we cleared the gates leading out of Moroi Court. But not me. I, Rose Hathaway, thoroughly enjoyed playing hard to get. I didn't really like making life easy for anyone, with the one exception being Lissa. Plus, I knew Dimitri was tough, he could handle anything I threw at him. Literally.

I hopped out of the SUV after parking next to an empty gas pump. My legs were rejoicing in being able to stretch after the car ride, not that it was over yet. I grabbed the credit card that Lissa had gotten for me, for court business. It made life so much easier knowing I had a steady supply of court mandated money, not that I could use it on personal things per se. I let the SUV fill up with gas, and I took this time to stretch my body in front of the vehicle. It was a tiny bit cleaner up there, no gas or oil spills.

After coming up from a particularly satisfying backbend, I noticed a whole group of cute guys staring at me. It looked like they were all from the same vehicle, and apparently they all had the same tastes. A couple tried to wave at me. I brushed them off, going back to the stretching my body so enjoyed. The way I saw it, there was no reason to give them the time of day. My time was precious. No use in wasting it on guys like that. I shot a look over at Dimitri, who had yet to leave the vehicle. He wasn't looking at me, but he looked angry or troubled. I guessed that he hadn't missed out on the exchange. Not that I had done anything wrong.

After the tank was full, I reattached the gas cap back to the SUV, put the card in my pocket and receipt back in the vehicle. Dimitri exited the vehicle just in time for me to lock it behind us as we made our way inside. It was similar to the other million gas stations around the United States, featuring plenty of drinks and unhealthy snacks. I made a beeline for the ladies room, knowing it would be easier to buy snacks afterwards instead of taking them into the restroom with me later. I could feel Dimitri following me, he apparently had the same thought. Although he passed me, assumedly retiring to the men's restroom. The bathrooms were exceptionally clean, a feature I quite admired about the place. There should be an app that lets people rate places based on clean bathrooms. This place would rank decently on the list.

Upon exiting the ladies room, Dimitri caught me by surprise, spinning me into a small alcove. It was technically a place for water fountains, but miraculously I managed to fit between the water fountain and the wall. Part of me almost wanted to smile. If anyone had been watching, it would have looked like an elegant dance move, planned and perfected. Dimitri, like most men, had apparently emptied the contents of his bladder faster than a woman could, and waited for me right outside the restroom. As it was, his body was inches from mine; his face was looking down at me, his eyes capturing mine. We were close, oh so very close. It was impossible to deny how his presence made me feel, especially when we were in this close of proximity to one another.

"I wish you hadn't gotten so good at wearing that damn guardian mask." Dimitri growled. Dimitri knew what his presence did to me, but his only clue were my eyes. The rest of my features I had trained to perfection.

"Well, Comrade, I am a guardian now. I had to practice so I wouldn't get thrown out of the club." I remarked back, having to refrain from smirking. I wanted to keep my face blank. I was absolutely loving driving him crazy.

"I miss the days where I could always tell what you were thinking. You're emotions weren't on your sleeve for everyone to read, just me." He growled again, keeping his voice low. Oh how I loved the sound of his voice. It called to my soul on a spiritual level.

"Well, someone, and I'm not going to say names, made me practice self-control while I was back at St. Vladimir's." I countered. His eyes narrowed.

"Oh how I am regretting that mistake." He breathed. I finally allowed myself to smirk.

"It wasn't a mistake, Comrade. Just imagine how much more trouble the world would be in if Rose Hathaway hadn't learned to curb most of her crazy schemes?" I asked, loving playful banter. I was careful not to let him know we were okay, not yet anyways. "Now would you mind releasing me, or do you see something you like?" I joked, making a stab at a comment I had said to him once long ago. This brought a smile to his lips as well. Those gorgeous lips that sent my body into a frenzy on many an occasion.

Suddenly, I could feel him leaning down towards me, his face coming closer and closer to mine. He's going to kiss me, I realized. Oh how I wanted to feel those lips against mine. I wanted to feel how soft they felt, the heat they spread throughout my entire body. Part of me almost forgot that I was still pretending to be mad at him. With my guardian mask fully operational again, I slid my face to the side at the last minute, resulting in his lips meeting my cheek. Dimitri was surprised, to say the least. I couldn't remember a single time in our history that I had refused a kiss from him. Maybe next time he will come home at a reasonable hour.

While he was momentarily shocked, I used the opportunity to push him away from myself and slide past him out of the alcove. I glanced back at him as I walked away. I tried to hide my delight at the shock covering his face. After all this time, I enjoyed being able to surprise him.

"Trouble in paradise?" A masculine voice asked me, snapping my attention back to where I was going. One of the guys from outside had apparently followed me into the gas station. He had short blonde hair with blue eyes, though not nearly as piercing as Christians. After being around the pyromaniac, this guy's eyes looked extremely lack luster. Although for a human, he wasn't built badly.

"Nope." I said, popping my 'p'. "Paradise is beautiful this time of year."

"That doesn't mean that you don't need a change of scenery." Lack luster guy suggested. I sighed while eyeing the guy, feeling rather put out. Maybe I needed to make myself more clear.

"I'm not interested in a change of scenery. I have an amazing boyfriend, plus, I wouldn't be interested in a guy like you anyways." I said bluntly, feeling like this guy was clearly wasting my time. I felt Dimitri's presence in close proximity behind me. He had apparently recovered from his shock when he realized his woman was being hit on by a buffoon.

"Don't let tall, dark and intimidating make your decisions for you. If you want to get away, I can protect you from him." Mr. Lack luster said, hoping to be persuasive. I couldn't help it, I laughed. He thought I was intimidated by Dimitri? He obviously had me pegged as the wrong type of girl.

"First of all, I make my own decisions. Second of all, I don't need any protection. Not from you, or him. I'm the kind of girl who can look out for myself. Now I suggest you move out of my way before you find out for yourself the type of damage I can cause." I stated, pushing my way past him. I had no time for fools such as him.

Dimitri followed me around protectively as we picked out refreshments for the rest of the ride. There was no way I was going to get through the remainder of the drive without soda and sugar. Those were two very important staples in my diet and daily routine. How could a girl live without sugar? When I placed all my selections down on the front counter, the cashier gave me an incredulous look.

"Do you happen to have an army of kids back in your vehicle that you're feeding?" She asked with a teasing twinkle in her eye. I laughed outright.

"Nope. These things are for me." I started, wrapping my arms around the majority of the goods, most of them being sugary delights. "And those are his." I finished, pointing to a few more practical items, including beef jerky and a water bottle. My Russian god apparently didn't run on sweets like I do. She chuckled as she rang up our items for me, placing our items in two separate bags. My bag was a lot heavier than Dimitri's. I passed her the credit card, paying for these 'essential' road trip items. Surely Lissa wouldn't begrudge me proper road trip food? The cashier handed me back the credit card before cheerily wishing us a good remainder of our day. My mood had brightened, or least it had until I made it out into the parking lot. I was once again addressed by the group of guys, primarily Mr. Lack luster. At least that's what I kept calling him in my head, since I didn't care to waste the time to ask for his name.

"Yo sweet thang, here's your chance to get rid of that extra baggage following you around and come with us to have some real fun." Offered Mr. Lack luster. Dimitri immediately tensed, ready for action. I could practically feel the words forming on his lips as he began stepping in front of me. He was my protective boyfriend after all. I placed my hand on his arm, distracting him from his retort. Instead he looked at me, our eyes connecting. He understood.

"Let me handle this, Comrade." I said softly, handing him the plastic bag I was carrying. He continued gazing into my eyes, as if asking my permission to dispose of them for me. I only shook my head. Dimitri sighed audibly, and took a couple steps back, resting against our SUV. I on the other hand took a few steps forward.

"I guess I didn't make myself clear back in the gas station. I'm not interested. In other words, I don't want anything to do with you." I stated haughtily, placing my hands on my hips. All their eyes seemed to follow my hands, checking out my curves. Who were these guys? Were they really that desperate?

"Don't be like that. I know once you come with us, you'll be more than happy, which is more than I can say about how you looked when you pulled up. Come stay with us, you'll have an excellent time." Mr. Lack luster said. Apparently he was the ring leader of the group, and extremely bad at persuasion. Could it be that he was just really that dumb? I sighed impatiently. This was going nowhere.

"I'll make a deal with you, brah." I said, using lingo that I thought was every bit as retarded as the guy I was addressing. "If you can manage to get me to your car, I'll come willingly. It will save you from having to kidnap me. If you can't, then you leave me the fuck alone." I finished, my voice becoming hard at the end.

"That stiff by your car will come to your rescue." Said Mr. Lack luster, seemingly unable to comprehend my defiance.

"No." I said, shaking my head. "Dimitri promises that he won't move a muscle in my defense. Don't you Dimitri?" I asked, turning my head towards the giant leaning against the SUV we drove in on. His arms were across his chest, plainly unhappy with the situation, but he had his guardian face on. He grunted in acknowledgement of his promise and nodded his head. Dimitri trusted that I could take care of myself, even if he didn't usually like leaving me defenseless. We both knew I could take on these suckers though. "See? Now, do we have a deal?" I asked with a fake sweetness to my tone.

"Deal, babe." Agreed Mr. Lack luster, cracking his knuckles. I could visibly see him assessing me. I was doing the same, although he never would have guessed it. I was trained, and much stealthier than him. I could see that he didn't view me as much as a threat. It seemed a continual problem for people that faced me. They always underestimated me, or assumed Dimitri was the bigger threat. This blonde human was definitely underestimating me. I cracked my neck while waiting for him to make a move. Ahhh, that felt better.

Finally, he dashed forward, attempting to grab me. I smiled widely. He made this much too easy for me. I turned, grabbing his arm. I then used his own momentum to flip him over my back. Everyone in close proximity heard when he hit the concrete. He hadn't broke anything, but it had more than certainly knocked the wind out of him, and with it, the will to fight. Looking down at him, I saw the defeat in his eyes. I had barely moved, and certainly not done anything difficult. I turned back to his friends, my self-confidence blazing.

"Anyone else wish to have a go?" I asked, my hands finding my hips again. No one spoke, but they were all shaking their heads. I smiled wider. Wussies.

With a wide smile, I skipped carelessly back to the SUV. No one would have guessed by my demeanor that I had just brought a grown man down on the ground. I was happy. Dimitri shook his head at me, as if in disapproval, but his small smile gave him away. I knew he enjoyed watching me put guys like that in their place. He had be confident that I could handle myself, and Dimitri had not been wrong.

I crawled back into the driver's seat, having to use the complimentary running boards along the side of the vehicle to help me inside. This seriously sucks. I am not that small. Dimitri gracefully filed into the passenger seat, placing our drinks in the cup holders. I drove off, leaving the human guys behind us. I couldn't stop smiling though. I had enjoyed the small confrontation, even though it hadn't been fair. Mr. Lack luster had no clue who he had been messing with. That really only made it more fun for me though. I personally liked putting bullies in their place. I had even tried taking the high road, but that guy couldn't take a hint.

"You certainly seem to be enjoying yourself." Said my Russian accented passenger. Remembering that I was supposed to be mad at him, I pulled my guardian mask back over my face before sparing a glance his way.

"Now why would I be enjoying myself?" I asked deadpan, all amusement gone from my voice. By the look on his face, he noticed it. He noticed, and certainly didn't appreciate it. I on the other hand was enjoying myself immensely. I enjoyed making the poor man suffer.

"Don't be like that Milaya. We need to talk about what happened." He said, looking at me with concern. I brushed it off.

"Talk about what?" I asked, playing dumb. The look I received made it definitely worthwhile. This was going to be too much fun.

Author's Note Part two.

I'm sorry I like to leave such long author's notes in the beginning, I just like communicating with my readers! I'll make this one short and sweet.

PLEASE REVIEW! (I'll love you long time if you do!)