I'll read next," Victoria said smiling, while Abe, Janine and Dimitri were glaring at Adrian. All three of them were blaming Adrian for Rose getting drunk and stumbling into a fight.
FOURTEEN
TWO GUYS I'D NEVER MET before were squaring off against each other. They looked to be in their twenties, and neither noticed me. The one who'd bumped into me shoved the other one hard, forcing him to stagger back considerably.
"Please for the lover of god, get out of the fight," Abe begged, not wanting to hear about Rose getting hurt while she was drunk.
"You're afraid!" yelled the guy by me. He had on green swimming trunks, and his black hair was slicked back with water. "You're all afraid. You just want to hole up in your mansions and let the guardians do your dirty work. What are you going to do when they're all dead? Who'll protect you then?"
"Well that is a good point," Abe and Ivan said looking at Tatiana who was just shaking her head.
The other guy wiped the blood off his face with the back of his hand. I suddenly recognized him -thanks to his blond highlights. He was the royal who'd yelled at Tasha about wanting to lead Moroi to battle.
"Oh kick his ass," Christian said hoping to get revenge for his aunt.
She'd called him Andrew. He tried to land a hit and failed; his technique was all wrong. "This is the safest way. Listen to that Strigoi-lover,
At that, both Dimitri and Christian glared at the book.
and we'll all be dead. She's trying to kill our whole race off!" "She's trying to save us!" "She's trying to get us to use black magic!"
"It's not black magic," Christian, Ivan and Abe said at the same time. Tatiana just rolled her eyes and sighed.
The "Strigoi-lover" had to be Tasha. The non-royal guy was the first person outside of my little circle whom I'd ever heard speak in her favor. I wondered how many others out there shared his view. He punched Andrew again, and my base instincts -or maybe the punch-made me leap into action.
"Both," Janine and Alberta said at the same time. Everyone was just hoping that Rose wouldn't get too hurt in the fight.
I sprang forward and wedged myself between them. I was still dizzy and a bit unsteady. If they hadn't been standing so close, I probably would have fallen over.
"And that is why you should not be in the middle of a fight," Dimitri shook his head.
They both hesitated, clearly caught off guard. "Get out of here," snapped Andrew. Being male and Moroi, they had greater height and weight than I, but I was probably stronger than either one alone.
"Yes but they weren't wasted," Abe shook his head. He would have been proud of her for kicking their asses as long as she was sober.
Hoping I could make the most of that, I grabbed each of them by the arm, pulled them toward me, and then shoved them away as hard as I could. They staggered, not having expected my strength. I staggered a little too. The non-royal glared and took a step toward me. I was counting on the fact that he'd be old-fashioned and not hit a girl.
"What are her chances for that happening?" Christian asked worried a little bit for Rose.
"Not much," Alberta shook her head.
"What are you doing?" he exclaimed. Several people had gathered and were watching excitedly. I returned his glare. "I'm trying to stop you guys from being any more idiotic than you already are! You want to help? Stop fighting each other! Ripping each other's heads off isn't going to save the Moroi unless you're trying to thin stupidity out of the gene pool." I pointed at Andrew.
"I'll say it again. I like her," Ivan smiled. Abe nodded proud, of his little girl.
"Tasha Ozera is not trying to kill everyone off. She's trying to get you to stop being a victim." I turned to the other guy. "And as for you, you've got a long ways to go if you think this is the way to get your point across. Magic -especially offensive magic-takes a lot of self-control, and so far, you aren't impressing me with yours. I have more than you do, and if you knew me at all, you'd know how crazy that is."
"Thank you," Christian smiled pleased with Rose.
"Well that is a terrible thought," Alberta smiled shaking her head. She never thought she would see the day where Rose was the more responsible one in a fight.
The two guys stared at me, stunned. I was apparently more effective than a taser.
Everyone laughed at that.
Well, at least for several seconds I was. Because once the shock of my words wore off, they went at each other again.
"Boys," Karolina shook her head.
I got caught in the crossfire and shoved away, nearly falling in the process. Suddenly, from behind me, Mason came to my defense.
"Thank you," Abe and Dimitri said at the same time, Mason smiled feeling proud of himself.
He punched the first guy he could -the non-royal.
"Smart," All the guardians nodded.
The guy flew backward, falling into one of the pools with a splash. I yelped, remembering my earlier fear about skull-cracking, but a moment later, he found his feet and rubbed water out of his eyes.
"Aww she cares," Adrian smiled shaking his head.
I grabbed Mason's arm, trying to hold him back, but he shrugged me off and went after Andrew. He shoved Andrew hard, pushing him into several Moroi -andrew's friends, I suspected-who seemed to be trying to break up the fight. The guy in the pool climbed out, fury written all over his face, and made moves toward Andrew. This time, both Mason and I blocked his way. He glared at all of us. "Don't," I warned him. The guy clenched his fists and looked as though he might try to take us on. But we were intimidating, and he didn't appear to have an entourage of friends here like Andrew - who was shouting obscenities and being led away-did. With a few muttered threats, the non-royal backed off.
"And no one was hurt," Janine breathed in relief.
"Well they handled that very well," Dimitri nodded impressed, he so used to Rose getting into fights and getting hurt he didn't want to see what would happen if she got into a fight while being drunk.
As soon as he was gone, I turned on Mason. "Are you out of your mind?" "Huh?" he asked. "Jumping into the middle of that!"
"Didn't she jump in too?" Victoria asked shaking her head.
"Yes but she doesn't care if she gets hurt in a fight but her friends are another matter." Eddie shook his head.
"You jumped in too," he said. I started to argue, then realized he was right. "It's different," I grumbled.
"See," Eddie pointed out with a smile.
He leaned forward. "Are you drunk?" "No. Of course not.
"Yes," Everyone nodded.
I'm just trying to keep you from doing something stupid. Just because you have delusions of being able to kill a Strigoi doesn't mean you have to take it out on everyone else."
"Ouch," Mason pouted.
"Well she is right," Dimitri said looking pointedly at Mason.
"Delusions?" he asked stiffly. I started to feel kind of nauseous just then. My head spinning, I continued toward the side room, hoping I didn't stumble. But when I reached it, I saw that it wasn't some kind of dessert or drink room after all. Well, at least not in the way I'd been thinking. It was a feeder room.
'Fuck' everyone thought at the same time.
Several humans reclined on satin-covered chaise lounges with Moroi by their sides. Jasmine incense burned in the air. Stunned, I watched with an eerie fascination as a blond Moroi guy leaned forward and bit into the neck of a very pretty redhead. All of these feeders were exceptionally good-looking, I realized just then. Like actresses or models. Only the best for royalty.
Tatiana nodded smiling.
The guy drank long and deep, and the girl closed her eyes and parted her lips, an expression of pure bliss on her face as Moroi endorphins flooded into her bloodstream.
"Can't she just turn around and leave," Janine asked not wanting her daughter to be there.
I shivered, taken back to when I too had experienced that same kind of euphoria. In my alcohol-hazed mind, the whole thing suddenly seemed startlingly erotic.
"Not a word," Abe said glaring at Adrian who looked about ready to say something.
In fact, I almost felt intrusive -like I was watching people have sex. When the Moroi finished and licked the last of the blood away, he brushed his lips against her cheek in a soft kiss. "Want to volunteer?" Light fingertips brushed my neck, and I jumped. I turned around and saw Adrian's green eyes and knowing smirk.
"Do you want to die?" Alberta asked looking at Adrian shaking her head at him. Abe, Janine, Dimitri and Ivan looked about ready to kill Adrian.
"They won't," Adrian shook his head.
"Oh yes He will," Alberta said pointing at Abe whose eye was twitching with rage. Ivan grabbed Dimitri's arm to keep him in his seat.
"Don't do that," I told him, knocking his hand away. "Then what are you doing in here?" he asked. I gestured around me. "I'm lost." He peered at me. "Are you drunk?"
"Yes," Adrian smirked. Janine grabbed Abe's hand hoping to calm him down.
"No. Of course not...but ..." The nausea had settled a little, but I still didn't feel right. "I think I should sit down." He took my arm. "Well, don't do it in here. Someone might get the wrong idea. Let's go somewhere quiet." He steered me off into a different room, and I looked around with interest. It was a massage area.
"Not helping," Abe glared, Adrian just smiled. Ivan was debating with himself if he should let Dimitri go or not.
Several Moroi lay back on tables and were getting back and foot massages from hotel staff. The oil they used smelled like rosemary and lavender. Under any other circumstances, a massage would have sounded great, but lying on my stomach seemed like the worst idea just now.
"Definitely," Ivan shook his head.
I sat down on the carpeted floor, leaning back against the wall. Adrian walked away and returned with a glass of water. Sitting down as well, he handed it to me. "Drink this. It'll help." "I told you, I'm not drunk," I mumbled. But I downed the water anyway.
Everyone chuckled at that.
"Uh-huh." He smiled at me. "You did nice work with that fight. Who was the other guy that helped you?" "My boyfriend," I said. "Sort of."
Mason glared at Adrian.
"What I'm right, aren't I?" Adrian asked Mason who just looked away from him.
"Mia was right. You do have a lot of guys in your life." "It's not like that." "Okay." He was still smiling. "Where's Vasilisa? I figured she'd be attached to you."
"Now she's attached to her boyfriend," Eddie chuckled looking at Christian.
"She's with her boyfriend." I studied him. "What's with the tone? Jealous? You want him for yourself?"
"God, no," Christian said horrified.
"Now those children would be hellspawn," Alberta said horrified at the idea.
"God, no. I just don't like him." "Does he treat her badly?" he asked.
"I would never," Christian glared at Adrian.
"No," I admitted. "He adores her. He's just kind of a jerk." Adrian was clearly enjoying this. "Ah, you are jealous. Does she spend more time with him than you?" I ignored that. "Why do you keep asking about her? Are you interested in her?"
"You better not," Christian glared.
"Please," Ivan and Dimitri whispered under their breaths.
He laughed. "Rest easy, I'm not interested in her in the same way I am you."
Ivan and Dimitri both sighed annoyed.
"But you are interested." "I just want to talk to her."
"Why?' Christian didn't believe Adrian,
"She's a spirit user and we are pretty rare," Adrian said looking at Oksana who nodded agreeing with him.
He left to fetch me more water. "Feeling better?" he asked, handing the glass to me. It was crystal and intricately carved. It seemed too fancy for plain water.
"You lot can't do anything plainly can you?" Sonja asked shaking her head at Tatiana. Tatiana chooses to ignore her.
"Yeah ... I didn't think those drinks were that strong." "That's the beauty of them," he chuckled. "And speaking of beauty ... that's a great color on you." I shifted. I might not have been showing as much skin as those other girls, but I was showing more than I really wanted to with Adrian. Or was I?
"What the hell," Dimitri, Abe and Ivan asked.
"This is not going to end well," Janine and Alberta said looking between Mason, Adrian and Dimitri.
There was something weird about him. His arrogant manner annoyed me...but I still liked being around him. Maybe the smartass in me recognized a kindred spirit. Somewhere in the back of my drunken mind, a light clicked on.
"Nope it's the darkness," Mark shook his head.
But I couldn't quite get to it. I drank more water. "You haven't had a cigarette in, like, ten minutes," I pointed out, wanting to change the subject. He made a face. "No smoking in here." "I'm sure you've made up for it in punch." His smile returned.
"Definitely," Adrian nodded.
"Well, some of us can hold our liquor. You aren't going to be sick, are you?" I still felt tipsy but no longer nauseous. "No." "Good." I thought back to when I'd dreamed about him. It had been just a dream, but it had stuck with me, particularly the talk about me being surrounded in darkness.
"I wonder if it looks like yours," Adrian said looking at Mark.
"Doubt it," Mark smiled at Oksana.
"Why do you say that?" Adrian asked but he didn't get an answer.
I wanted to ask him about it... even though I knew it was stupid. It had been my dream, not his. "Adrian..." He turned his green eyes on me. "Yes, darling?"
Dimitri glared at him while Adrian smiled innocently.
I couldn't bring myself to ask. "Never mind." He started to retort, then tilted his head toward the door. "Ah, here she comes." "Who -" Lissa stepped into the room, eyes scanning around.
"How did you know?" Oksana asked looking at him questioningly.
"I'll wait and see if the book will explain," Adrian smiled.
When she spotted us, I saw relief break over her. I couldn't feel it, though. Intoxicants like alcohol numbed the bond. It was another reason I shouldn't have taken such a stupid chance tonight.
"Well, that's a change from the previous book," Janine smiled.
"There you are," she said, kneeling beside me. Glancing at Adrian, she gave him a nod. "Hey." "Hey yourself, cousin," he returned, using the family terms royals sometimes used around each other.
"That is weird," Victoria shuttered.
"Yeah, it is," Christian agreed.
"You okay?" Lissa asked me. "When I saw how drunk you were, I thought you might have fallen in somewhere and drowned." "I'm not -" I gave up trying to deny it. "I'm fine." Adrian's usual expression had turned serious as he studied Lissa. It again reminded me of the dream. "How'd you find her?" Lissa gave him a puzzled look. "I, um, checked all the rooms." "Oh." He looked disappointed.
"What did you expect her to say?" Alberta asked looking at Adrian like he was crazy,
"Probably something to do with the bond or her powers," Adrian sighed.
"I thought you might have used your bond." Both she and I stared. "How do you know about that?" I demanded. Only a few people at school knew about it. Adrian had spoken about it as casually as he might have my hair color. "Hey, I can't reveal all my secrets, can I?" he asked mysteriously.
"How would you have found out about it?" Mark asked
"I can see it," Adrian smiled looking at Mark then Okasan.
"And besides, there's a certain way you two act around each other ... it's hard to explain. It's pretty cool... all the old myths are true." Lissa regarded him warily. "The bond only works one way. Rose can sense what I'm feeling and thinking, but I can't do it back to her."
"Well that is a shame," Ivan shook his head.
"Ah." We sat in silence a few moments, and I drank more water. Adrian spoke again. "What'd you specialize in anyway, cousin?"
"You're fishing for information," Abe shook his head not believing he didn't see it earlier.
She looked embarrassed. We both knew it was important to keep her spirit powers secret from others who might abuse her healing, but her cover story of not having specialized always bothered her. "I haven't," she said. "Do they think you're going to? Late bloomer?" "No." "You're probably higher in the other elements, though, right? Just not strong enough to really master any?" He reached out to pat her shoulder in an exaggerated show of comfort. "Yeah, how'd you -" The instant his fingers touched her, she gasped. It was as though a bolt of lightning had struck her. The strangest look crossed her face. Even drunk, I felt the flood of joy that came pouring through the bond. She stared at Adrian in wonder.
Christian glared at Adrian.
"Why couldn't you just tell her you had the same power?" Mason asked not understanding why Adrian was being so cryptic.
"Now where is the fun in that?" Adrian smirked.
His eyes were locked onto hers too. I didn't understand why they were looking at each other like that, but it bothered me. "Hey," I said. "Stop that. I told you, she has a boyfriend."
"Thank you, Rose," Christian pouted.
"I know," he said, still watching her. A small smile turned his lips. "We need to have a chat someday, cousin." "Yes," she agreed. "Hey." I was more confused than ever. "You have a boyfriend. And there he is."
"Well, at least she remembers me," Christian crossed his arms over his chest annoyed.
"Jealous?" Adrian smirked.
She blinked back to reality. All three of us turned toward the doorway. Christian and the others stood there. I suddenly had a flashback to when they'd found me with Adrian's arm around me. This wasn't much better. Lissa and I were sitting on either side of him, very close. She sprang up, looking mildly guilty. Christian was regarding her curiously. "We're getting ready to leave," he said. "Okay," she told him. She looked down at me. "Ready?" I nodded and started to clamber to my feet. Adrian caught my arm as I did and helped me up.
"Ass," Mason shook his head.
He smiled at Lissa. "Nice talking to you." To me, he murmured very quietly, "Don't worry. I told you, I'm not interested in her in that way. She doesn't look as good in a bathing suit. Probably not as good out of one either."
"Hey!" Mason and Ivan yelled while the Olena, Karolina, Victoria and Sonja looked at him like he was about to die. Janine was holding onto Abe while Alberta and Ivan were holding Dimitri back. Mason sat frozen not sure what to do, while Eddie was looking at Christian waiting to see what the fire user was going to do. Yeva was chuckling enjoying herself. Mark and Oksana looked at everyone and shook their heads.
Tatiana sighed and crossed her arms over her chest waiting for everyone to calm down. Dimitri and Abe were yelling at Adrian in Russian so fast everyone was having a hard time understanding them while those restraining them were having a hard time making sure Adrian was safe.
"How long do you think he's going to be alive?" Sonja asked looking at her mother,
"Not long," Olena said shocked that Adrian had made it far.
"Who do you think is going to kill him?" Victoria asked,
"I say Dimitri," Karolina smiled,
"Why?" Olena asked,
"We already know what Zmey is capable of. Dimitri on the other hand we only know the good part of him," Karolina explained,
"Well I'll say Zmey," Olena said not believing that her son would harm anyone.
"Are you done?" Tatiana asked when she got bored. Abe and Dimitri froze before glaring at her. They didn't want to stop but they took a deep breath before retaking their seats, their holders took their seats still worried about Abe and Dimitri.
I pulled my arm away. "Well, you'll never find out."
"Good," Abe and Dimitri glared.
"It's okay," he said. "I have a good imagination."
"Yep, he's not going to make it," Victoria shook her head.
I joined the others, and we headed back toward the main part of the lodge. Mason gave me as strange a look as Christian had given Lissa and stayed away from me, walking toward the front with Eddie.
"Aww they are jealous," Sonja shook her head not understanding boys.
To my surprise and discomfort, I found myself walking beside Mia. She looked miserable. "I... I'm really sorry about what happened," I said finally. "You don't have to act like you care, Rose." "No, no. I mean it. It's horrible...I'm so sorry." She wouldn't look at me. "Is...that is, are you going to see your dad soon?" "Whenever they have the memorial," she said stiffly. "Oh."
"Well at least she tried to be a better person," Janine said proud, of Rose.
"We all know Mia would not have tried," Eddie added.
"Agreed," Victoria nodded smiling at Eddie, who blushed and looked away.
I didn't know what else to say and gave up, instead turning my attention to the stairs as we climbed back up to the lodge's main level. Unexpectedly, Mia was the one who continued the conversation. "I watched you break up that fight ..." she said slowly. "You mentioned offensive magic. Like you knew about it."
"Great, more people learning about something they should not know off," Tatiana shook her head, annoyed.
"At least she's trying to defend herself," Christian snapped.
Oh. Great. She was going to make a play at blackmail...or was she? At the moment, she seemed almost civil. "I was just guessing," I said. No way was I going to bust Tasha and Christian. "I don't really know that much. Just stories I've heard." "Oh." Her face fell. "What kind of stories?" "Um, well..."I tried to think of something neither too vague nor too specific.
"Good luck with that," Mason shook his head. by now, they all know how smart Mia was.
"Like I told those guys...the concentration thing is big. Because if you're in a battle with Strigoi, all sorts of things can distract you. So you've got to keep control." That was actually a basic guardian rule, but it must have been new to Mia.
"It would be," Alberta nodded.
Her eyes widened with eagerness. "What else? What kind of spells do people use?" I shook my head. "I don't know. I don't really even know how spells work, and like I said, these are just...stories I've heard. My guess is you just find ways to use your element as a weapon. Like ... fire users really have an advantage because fire'll kill Strigoi, so it's easy for them. And air users can suffocate people." I'd actually experienced that last one vicariously through Lissa.
"Thanks for the reminder," Abe and Dimitri growled at the same time. Both of them were still annoyed and just wanted to fight something or someone.
It had been horrible. Mia's eyes grew wider still. "What about a water user?" she asked. "How could water hurt a Strigoi?" I paused. "I, uh, never heard any stories about water users. Sorry." "Do you have any ideas, though? Ways that, like, someone like me could learn to fight?" Ah. So that's what this was about.
"Am I the only one who is worried about her and Mason becoming friends?" Alberta asked looking worried.
"That is not going to end well is it?" Karolina asked not sure how to feel.
"Most likely not," Alberta said worriedly.
It actually wasn't all that crazy. I remembered how excited she'd looked at the meeting when Tasha had talked about attacking Strigoi. Mia wanted to take revenge on the Strigoi for her mother's death. No wonder she and Mason had been getting along so well. "Mia," I said gently, catching hold of the door to let her pass. We were almost at the lobby now. "I know how you must want to ... do something. But I think you're better off just sort of letting yourself, um, grieve."
"Agreed," All the adults in the room nodded.
She reddened, and suddenly, I was seeing the normal and angry Mia. "Don't talk down to me," she said. "Hey, I'm not. I'm serious. I'm just saying you shouldn't do anything rash while you're still upset. Besides..." I bit off my words. She narrowed her eyes. "What?" Screw it. She needed to know. "Well, I don't really know what good a water user would be against a Strigoi. It's probably the least useful element to use on one of them."
"Yes make her angry that is going to get her to listen to you," Ivan rolled his eyes, wondering how Rose could be smart one moment and dumb the next second.
Outrage filled her features. "You're a real bitch, you know that?" "I'm just telling you the truth." "Well, let me tell you the truth. You're a total idiot when it comes to guys." I thought about Dimitri. She wasn't entirely off base. "Mason's great," she continued. "One of the nicest guys I know -and you don't even notice! He'd do anything for you, and you were off throwing yourself at Adrian Ivashkov."
"She wasn't," Mason and Eddie said at the same time.
"But Mia isn't completely wrong," Adrian added.
Her words surprised me. Could Mia have a crush on Mason?
Mason blushed at that.
And while I certainly hadn't been throwing myself at Adrian, I could see how it might have looked that way. And even if it weren't true, that wouldn't have stopped Mason from feeling hurt and betrayed. "You're right," I said. Mia stared at me, so astonished I'd agreed with her that she didn't say anything else for the rest of the walk.
"That would surprise anyone. Rose agreeing with you is very rare," Alberta nodded.
We reached the part of the lodge that split off into different wings for guys and girls. I grabbed a hold of Mason's arm as the others walked off. "Hang on," I told him. I badly needed to reassure him about Adrian, but a tiny part of me wondered if I was doing it because I actually wanted Mason or because I just liked the idea of him wanting me and selfishly didn't want to lose that.
"I don't want to know," Mason said before anyone could say anything. Eddie looked at his best friend sadly, he knew how much Rose meant to him and what they were reading was not easy one Mason. Eddie just wanted to help, but he also knew that Mason needed to accept that Rose would never love Mason the way he loved her.
He stopped and looked at me. His face was wary. "I wanted to tell you I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you after the fight -I know you were just trying to help. And with Adrian...nothing happened. I mean it." "It didn't look that way," Mason said. But the anger on his face had faded.
"Whipped," everyone shook their heads.
"I know, but believe me, it's all him. He's got some kind of stupid crush on me." My tone must have been convincing because Mason smiled. "Well. Hard not to." "I'm not interested in him," I continued. "Or anyone else." It was a small lie,
"It's not small," Mason mumbled.
but I didn't think it mattered just then. I was going to be over Dimitri soon,
Dimitri looked sad at the thought, while Ivan glared at the book.
'Not on my watch,' Ivan thought to himself.
and Mia had been right about Mason. He was wonderful and sweet and cute. I would be an idiot not to pursue this ... right? My hand was still on his arm, and I pulled him toward me. He didn't need much more of a signal. He leaned down and kissed me, and in the process, I found myself pressed up against the wall -very much like with Dimitri in the practice room.
"Sure you're going to get over him," Karolina shaking her head.
Of course, it felt nothing like how it had with Dimitri, but it was still nice in its way. I put my arms around Mason and started to pull him closer. "We could go ... somewhere," I said.
"Oh hell no," Abe and Ivan said at the same time, glaring at Mason who was beet red.
He pushed back and laughed. "Not when you're drunk."
"Smart boy, you get to live another day," Abe said glaring at Mason.
"I'm not... that... drunk anymore," I said, trying to pull him back. Giving me a small kiss on the lips, he stepped back. "Drunk enough. Look, this isn't easy, believe me. But if you still want me tomorrow -when you're sober-then we'll talk."
"No gonna happen," Dimitri and Ivan added, Mason just glared at them.
He leaned down and kissed me again. I tried to wrap my arms around him, but he broke away once more. "Easy there, girl," he teased, backing toward his hallway. I glared at him, but he only laughed and turned around. As he walked away, my glare faded, and I headed back to my room with a smile on my face.
"Done," Victoria relaxed holding up the book
~~~~
I'll read next," Mark smiled reassuringly at Victoria. She passed the book over to him and he quickly opened it.
Fifteen
I WAS TRYING TO PAINT my toenails the next morning -not easy with such a god-awful hangover-
"Hopefully, that teaches her a lesson," Janine shook her head.
when I heard a knock at the door. Lissa had been gone when I woke up, so I staggered across the room, trying not to ruin my wet nail polish.
The girls nodded, understanding the struggle.
Opening up the door, I saw one of the hotel staff standing outside with a large box in both arms. He shifted it slightly so that he could peer around and look at me. "I'm looking for Rose Hathaway." "That's me." I took the box from him.
"Who is it from?" Everyone wondered.
It was big but not all that heavy. With a quick thank-you, I shut the door, wondering if I should have tipped him. Oh well. I sat on the floor with the box. It had no markings on it and was sealed with packing tape. I found a pen and stabbed at the tape. Once I'd hacked off enough, I opened the box and peered inside. It was filled with perfume.
"Why would someone send her perfumes," Abe asked still confused.
"Definitely not from Mason," Eddie smirked.
"Hey!" Mason complained.
There had to be at least thirty little bottles of perfume packed into the box. Some I'd heard of, some I hadn't. They ranged from crazy expensive, movie-star caliber to cheap kinds I'd seen in drugstores. Eternity. Angel. Vanilla Fields. Jade Blossom. Michael Kors. Poison. Hypnotic Poison. Pure Poison. Happy. Light Blue. J Aμvan Musk. Pink Sugar. Vera Wang. One by one, I picked up the boxes, read the descriptions, and then pulled out the bottles for a sniff. I was about halfway through when reality hit. These had to be from Adrian.
Abe and Dimitri glared at Adrian again, while Adrian just smiled pleased with himself.
I didn't know how he'd managed to get all of these delivered to the hotel in such a short amount of time, but money can make almost anything happen.
"So very true," Tatiana and Adrian nodded,
Still, I didn't need the attention of a rich, spoiled Moroi; apparently he hadn't picked up on my signals. Regretfully, I started to place the perfumes back in the box -then stopped. Of course I'd return them...but there was no harm in sniffing the rest before I did.
Adrian smiled happily.
Once more, I started pulling out bottle after bottle. Some I just sniffed the cap of; others I sprayed in the air. Serendipity. Dolce Gabbana. Shalimar. Daisy. Note after note hit me: rose, violet, sandalwood, orange, vanilla, orchid ...
"That's not a good idea," Adrian shook his head.
"Leave her be, she's enjoying herself," Alberta glared at Adrian. Ivan made a small note of his own, when he met Rose he was going to make sure he was going to spoil her.
By the time I was finished, my nose barely worked anymore. All of these had been designed for humans. They had a weaker sense of smell than vampires and even dhampirs, so these scents were extra strong. I had a new appreciation for what Adrian had meant about only a splash of perfume being necessary.
Adrian smiled like he had just achieved the greatest thing in the world, both Ivan and Dimitri rolled their eyes at him.
If all these bottles were making me dizzy, I could only imagine what a Moroi would smell. The sensory overload wasn't really helping the headache I'd woken up with either.
"Well now she knows hopefully she won't make the same mistake again," Janine shook her head.
I packed up the perfume for real this time, stopping only when I came to a certain kind that I really liked. I hesitated, holding the little box in my hand. Then, I took the red bottle out and re-sniffed it. It was a crisp, sweet fragrance. There was some kind of fruit -but not a candied or sugary fruit. I racked my brain for a scent I'd once smelled on a girl I knew in my dorm. She'd told me the name. It was like a cherry...but sharper.
"Currant," Adrian and Ivan said at the same time, shocking everyone.
"What?" they asked looking confused at the people around them.
Currant, that's what it was.
"You know what I don't want to know," Christian said shaking his head.
And here it was in this perfume, mixed with some florals: lily of the valley and others I couldn't identify. Whatever the blend, something about it appealed to me. Sweet-but not too sweet. I read the box, looking for the name. Amor Amor.
"Well that is fitting," Dimitri smiled softly.
"Fitting," I muttered, seeing how many love problems I seemed to have lately. But I kept the perfume anyway and repacked the rest. Hoisting the box up in my arms, I took it down to the front desk and acquired some packing tape to reseal it. I also got directions to Adrian's room. Apparently, the Ivashkovs practically had their own wing.
"Of course we do," Tatiana said proudly. Everyone else just rolled their eyes.
It wasn't too far from Tasha's room. Feeling like a delivery girl, I walked down the hall and stopped in front of his door. Before I could manage to knock, it opened up, and Adrian stood before me.
"How?" Ivan whined,
"Hell, if I know," Adrian chuckled.
He looked as surprised as I felt. "Little dhampir," he said cordially. "Didn't expect to see you here." "I'm returning these." I hoisted the box toward him before he could protest. Clumsily, he caught it, staggering a bit in surprise.
That got a few chuckles.
Once he had a good grip, he took a few steps back and set it on the floor. "Didn't you like any of them?" he asked. "You want me to get you some more?"
"No," Ivan, Dimitri and Abe said at the same time. Janine looked at Adrian questioningly wondering if she should join Abe in threatening Adrian.
"Don't send me any more gifts." "It isn't a gift. It's a public service.
"What the hell," Karolina looked at Adrian shocked.
"Don't answer," Sonja shook her head when Adrian tried to say something.
What woman doesn't own perfume?" "Don't do it again," I said firmly. Suddenly, a voice behind him asked, "Rose? Is that you?" I peered beyond him. Lissa.
Christian glared at Adrian.
"Nothing happened. I think I have made it pretty clear who I am interested in," Adrian defended himself.
"What are you doing here?" Between my headache and what I had assumed was some interlude with Christian, I'd blocked her out as best I could this morning. Normally I would have known the instant I approached that she was inside the room. I opened myself up again, letting her shock run into me. She hadn't expected me to show up here. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "Ladies, ladies," he said teasingly. "No need to fight over me."
"You are an ass," Victoria shook her head not believing him.
"No I have a great ass," Adrian winked. Ivan and Dimitri growled at him.
I glared. "We're not. I just want to know what's going on here." A breath of aftershave hit me,
"Oh thank god, Dimitri to the rescue," Abe and Ivan said at the same time.
and then I heard a voice behind me: "Me too." I jumped. Spinning around, I saw Dimitri standing in the hallway. I had no clue what he was doing in the Ivashkov wing. On his way to Tasha's room, a voice inside me suggested.
Ivan's smiled turned back into a frown and he glared at Dimitri who just shook his head and rolled his eyes.
Dimitri no doubt always expected me to get into all sorts of trouble,
"True," Dimitri chuckled.
but I think seeing Lissa there caught him off guard.
"As it would,"
He stepped past me and came into the room, looking between the three of us. "Male and female students aren't supposed to be in each other's rooms."
"Sure that's what you wanted to say," Karolina laughed shaking her head at her baby brother.
I knew pointing out that Adrian wasn't technically a student wasn't going to get us out of trouble here. We weren't supposed to be in any guy's room. "How do you keep doing this?" I asked Adrian, frustrated. "Do what?" "Keep making us look bad!" He chuckled. "You guys are the ones who came here."
"You shouldn't have let them in," scolded Dimitri, making Mark laugh.
"You shouldn't have let them in," scolded Dimitri.
"Oh you never change," Olena laughed along with everyone else.
"I'm sure you know the rules at St. Vladimir's." Adrian shrugged. "Yeah, but I don't have to follow any school's stupid rules." "Perhaps not," said Dimitri coldly. "But I would have thought you'd still respect those rules."
"In what world?" Adrian asked looking at Dimitri like he had lost it.
Adrian rolled his eyes. "I'm kind of surprised to find you lecturing about underage girls."
"How?" Everyone yelled at the same time.
"That's for me to know and you to …" Adrian smiled devilish
I saw the anger kindle in Dimitri's eyes, and for a moment, I thought I might have seen the loss of control I'd teased him about.
"Please hit him," Ivan begged Dimitri.
But he stayed composed, and only his clenched fists showed how angry he was. "Besides," continued Adrian, "nothing sordid was going on. We were just hanging out." "If you want to 'hang out' with young girls, do it at one of the public areas."
"Oh please never say young girls again in regarding Rose," Ivan shuttered.
I didn't really like Dimitri calling us 'young girls,' and I kind of felt like he was overreacting here. I also suspected part of his reaction had to do with the fact that I was here. Adrian laughed just then, a weird kind of laugh that made my skin crawl. "Young girls? Young girls? Sure. Young and old at the same time.
Dimitri and Ivan glared at Adrian while Abe glared at Dimitri.
They've barely seen anything in life, yet they've already seen too much. One's marked with life, and one's marked with death...
"What the fuck?" Christian asked looking at Adrian who looked just as confused.
but they're the ones you're worried about? Worry about yourself, dhampir. Worry about you, and worry about me. We're the ones who are young." The rest of us just sort of stared. I don't think anyone had expected Adrian to suddenly take an abrupt trip to Crazyville.
"That's spirit talking," Oksana shook her head, Adrian nodded.
"I'll ask again, what the fuck?" Christian asked.
Adrian was calm and looked perfectly normal again. He turned away and strolled toward the window, glancing casually back at the rest of us as he pulled out his cigarettes. "You ladies should probably go. He's right. I am a bad influence." I exchanged looks with Lissa. Hurriedly, we both left and followed Dimitri down the hall toward the lobby.
"Run," Ivan nodded wanting Rose away from crazy Adrian. Dimitri was still trying to understand what Adrian had said.
"That was...strange," I said a couple of minutes later. It was stating the obvious, but, well, someone had to. "Very," said Dimitri. He didn't sound angry so much as puzzled. When we reached the lobby, I started to follow Lissa back toward our room, but Dimitri called to me. "Rose," he said. "Can I talk to you?"
"Better not hurt her," Abe threatened Dimitri.
I felt a sympathetic rush of feeling from Lissa.
"Oh she had no idea," Christian shook his head wondering how Lissa had not picked up on anything going on between Rose and Dimitri.
I turned toward Dimitri and stepped off to the side of the room, out of the way of those passing through. A party of Moroi in diamonds and fur swept past us, anxious looks on their faces. Bellhops followed with luggage. People were still leaving in search of safer places. The Strigoi paranoia was far from over.
"And that is just going to make things a lot harder to keep them safe," The guardians shook their heads not approving.
Dimitri's voice snapped my attention back to him. "That's Adrian Ivashkov." He said the name the same way everyone else did. "Yeah, I know." "This is the second time I've seen you with him." "Yeah," I replied glibly. "We hang out sometimes." Dimitri arched an eyebrow, then jerked his head back toward where we'd come from. "You hang out in his room a lot?"
"You're jealous," Ivan and Adrian laughed at the same time, Dimitri just glared at them.
Several retorts popped into my head, and then a golden one took precedence.
"Hit him where it hurt," Ivan cheered. Dimitri looked at Ivan hurt clear on his face.
"You deserve it for the shit with Tasha," was all Ivan said.
"What happens between him and me is none of your business." I managed a tone very similar to the one he'd used on me when making a similar comment about him and Tasha.
Ivan smiled, proud of Rose. Abe and Janine shook their heads laughing.
"Actually, as long as you're at the Academy, what you do is my business."
"Not her personal life," Alberta smiled.
"Not my personal life. You don't have any say in that." "You're not an adult yet." "I'm close enough. Besides, it's not like I'll magically become an adult on my eighteenth birthday." "Clearly," he said. I blushed. "That's not what I meant. I meant -" "I know what you meant. And the technicalities don't matter right now. You're an Academy student. I'm your instructor. It's my job to help you and to keep you safe. Being in the bedroom of someone like him ... well, that's not safe."
"I'm harmless," Adrian shook his head.
"Plus I'm sure she can handle him," Ivan nodded.
"I can handle Adrian Ivashkov," I muttered. "He's weird - really weird, apparently-but harmless." I secretly wondered if Dimitri's problem might be that he was jealous.
"Oh, he definitely was," Karolina and Sonja smiled.
He hadn't pulled Lissa aside to yell at her. The thought made me slightly happy, but then I remembered my earlier curiosity about why Dimitri had even wandered by. "Speaking of personal lives ... I suppose you were off visiting Tasha, huh?" I knew it was petty, and I expected a "none of your business" response. Instead he replied, "Actually, I was visiting your mother."
"Why?" Janine asked looking at him questioningly.
"Probably strigoi related," Dimitri answered.
"You going to hook up with her too?" I knew of course that he wasn't, but the quip seemed too good to pass up. He seemed to know that too and merely gave me a weary glance. "No, we were looking over some new data about the Strigoi in the Drozdov attack."
"Thank goodness for that," Abe relaxed,
"I would never," Dimitri said looking shocked at Abe and Janine.
My anger and snarkiness dried up. The Drozdovs. The Badicas. Suddenly, everything that had happened this morning seemed incredibly trivial. How could I have stood there arguing with Dimitri about romances that might or might not be happening when he and the other guardians were trying to protect us?
"Well, the distraction was good while it lasted" Christian sighed, everyone agreed with him.
"What'd you find out?" I asked quietly. "We've managed to track some of the Strigoi," he said. "Or at least the humans with them. There were witnesses who lived nearby who spotted a few of the cars the group used. The plates were all from different states -the group appears to have split up, probably to make it harder for us. But one of the witnesses did catch one plate number. It's registered to an address in Spokane."
"Why are you telling her this?" Tatiana asked,
"Despite many things, the book shave shown us that Rose is serious about being a guardian. So it's natural to trust her." Dimitri answered trying hard not to smile, as he thought about how wonderful Roza was.
"Spokane?" I asked incredulously. "Spokane, Washington? Who makes Spokane their hideout?" I'd been there once. It was about as boring as every other backwoods northwest city.
"Well that makes it the perfect place," Janine said worriedly. She agreed that Rose was serious about being a guardian, but Rose was still reckless sometimes.
"Strigoi, apparently," he said, deadpan. "The address was fake, but other evidence shows they really are there. There's a kind of shopping plaza that has some underground tunnels. There've been Strigoi sightings around that area." "Then ..." I frowned. "Are you going to go after them? Is somebody going to? I mean, this is what Tasha's been saying all along... If we know where they are ..."
"They need permission from higher up," Janine and Dimitri glared at Tatiana.
He shook his head. "The guardians can't do anything without permission from higher up. That's not going to happen anytime soon." I sighed. "Because the Moroi talk too much."
"Agreed," Abe nodded.
"They're being cautious," he said. I felt myself getting worked up again. "Come on. Even you can't want to be careful on this one. You actually know where Strigoi are hiding out. Strigoi who massacred children. Don't you want to go after them when they don't expect it?"
"It's not that easy, even if we wanted to," Dimitri shook his head annoyed.
I sounded like Mason now.
"Oh the horror," Eddie chuckled,
"It's not that easy," he said. "We answer to the Guardian Council and the Moroi government. We can't just run off and act on impulse. And anyway, we don't know everything yet. You should never walk into any situation without knowing all the details." "Zen life lessons again," I sighed. I ran a hand through my hair, tucking it behind my ears.
"Still it's a good lesson," Janine admitted,
"Let's just hope Rose hears it," Ivan added.
"Why'd you tell me this, anyway? This is guardian stuff. Not the kind of thing you let novices in on." He considered his words, and his expression softened. He always looked amazing, but I liked him best like this. "I've said a few things...the other day and today...that I shouldn't have. Things that insulted your age. You're seventeen...but you're capable of handling and processing the same things those much older than you do."
"Aw you're a sweetheart," Olena smiled proud of her son. Abe nodded impressed and pleased, Adrian just rolled his eyes.
My chest grew light and fluttery. "Really?" He nodded. "You're still really young in a lot of ways - and act young-but the only way to really change that is to treat you like an adult. I need to do that more. I know you'll take this information and understand how important it is and keep it to yourself." I didn't love being told I acted young, but I liked the idea that he would talk to me like an equal.
Dimitri had a soft smile on his face, he was pleased with how he had treated Roza and how she reacted to him just made him feel al warm inside.
"Dimka,"
"No go away," Ivan said annoyed that Tasha had ruined the moment.
came a voice. Tasha Ozera walked up to us. She smiled when she saw me. "Hello, Rose." There went my mood.
"Mood," Ivan agreed.
"Hey," I said flatly. She placed a hand on Dimitri's forearm, sliding her fingers over the leather of his coat. I eyed those fingers angrily. How dare they touch him?
"Why does she always ruin everything," Ivan mutters to himself.
"You've got that look," she told him. "What look?" he asked. The stern look he'd worn with me vanished. There was a small, knowing smile on his lips. Almost a playful one. "That look that says you're going to be on duty all day."
"What? Is she blind?" Christian asked, worried for his aunt.
"Really? I have a look like that?" There was a teasing, mocking tone to his voice. She nodded. "When does your shift technically end?" Dimitri actually looked -I swear-sheepish. "An hour ago." "You can't keep doing this," she groaned. "You need a break."
"Hate to agree with her, but she's right," Ivan admitted.
"Well ... if you consider that I'm always Lissa's guardian..." "For now," she said knowingly.
"No," Ivan glared at the book.
I felt sicker than I had last night. "There's a big pool tournament going on upstairs." "I can't," he said, but the smile was still on his face. "Even though I haven't played in a long time ..." What the -? Dimitri played pool? Suddenly, it didn't matter that we'd just had a discussion about him treating me like an adult. Some small part of me did know what a compliment that was -but the rest of me wanted him to treat me like he did Tasha. Playful. Teasing. Casual.
"Oh just wait. I'll get him to even if I have to die," Ivan promised Rose shaking his head.
"I'm really starting to dislike Tasha," Abe said looking at Janine who agreed with him.
They were so familiar with each other, so completely at ease. "Come on, then," she begged. "Just one round! We could take them all." "I can't," he repeated. He sounded regretful. "Not with everything going on." She sobered a little. "No. I suppose not." Glancing at me, she said teasingly, "I hope you realize what a hard-core role model you have here. He's never off duty." "Well," I said, copying her lilting tone from earlier, "for now, at least." Tasha looked puzzled.
"Go sassy Rosie," Christian chuckled.
"Should you not be on your aunt's side?" Mason asked
"I should but she needs to lay off of Dimitri," Christian shook his head.
I don't think it occurred to her I'd be making fun of her. Dimitri's dark look told me he knew exactly what I was doing. I immediately realized I'd just killed whatever progress I'd made as an adult. "We're finished here, Rose. Remember what I said." "Yeah," I said, turning away. I suddenly wanted to go to my room and veg for a while. This day was making me tired already. "Definitely." I hadn't gotten far when I ran into Mason. Good God. Men everywhere.
"Oh please don't kill me," Mason begged, fearing for his life. Janine just hoped that Rose would not tell Mason about the strigois.
"You're mad," he said as soon as he looked at my face. He had a knack for discovering my moods.
"It's not really hard," Mason said thinking about how easy it was to read Rose's face and body language.
"What happened?" "Some ... authority problems. It's been a weird morning." I sighed, unable to get Dimitri off the brain. Looking at Mason, I remembered how I'd been convinced I wanted to get serious with him last night. I was a head case. I couldn't make up my mind about anyone.
"Oh please don't do what I think you are going to do," Karolina hoped looking at the book.
Deciding the best way to banish one guy was to pay attention to another,
"Firstly that is not going to work," Karolina shook her head
"And secondly it's not going to end well, for either of you three," Sonja added. Mason just sighed, he wished Rose could love him for him and not just use him as a way to forget about Dimitri.
I grabbed Mason's hand and steered him away. "Come on. Wasn't the deal to go somewhere...um, private today?" "I figured you weren't drunk anymore," he joked. But his eyes looked very, very serious and interested.
"Naturally," Mason said sadly under his breath.
"I assumed it was all off." "Hey, I stand by my claims, no matter what." Opening my mind, I searched for Lissa. She was no longer in our room. She'd gone off to some other royal event, no doubt still practicing for Priscilla Voda's big dinner.
Everyone but Tatiana laughed at that.
"Come on," I told Mason. "We'll go to my room." Aside from when Dimitri inconveniently happened to be passing by someone's room, nobody was really enforcing the mixed-gender rule.
"Naturally it would only be you," Victoria shook her head looking at her older brother.
It was practically like being back in my Academy dorms. As Mason and I went upstairs, I related to him what Dimitri had told me about the Strigoi in Spokane.
Janine, Alberta and Dimitri shook their heads disappointed.
Dimitri had told me to keep it to myself, but I was mad at him again,
"How is it possible for her to be mature in one moment and then be so childish the next?" Alberta shook her head not understanding Rose.
"Well it's done let's just hope Mason and Eddie aren't going to go and do something stupid," Janine said looking at Mason and Eddie.
"Hey, why am I added in that sentence?" Eddie asked
"Because where Mason goes you go as well," Alberta answered.
and I didn't see any harm in telling Mason. I knew he'd be interested in this. I was right. Mason got really worked up. "What?" he exclaimed as we walked into my room. "They're not doing anything?" I shrugged and sat on my bed. "Dimitri said -" "I know, I know ... I heard you. About being careful and all that." Mason paced around my room angrily.
"Yes but the difference was Roza listened while I doubt that Mason wasn going listen about sitting still," Dimitri said looking at Mason.
"But if those Strigoi go after another Moroi...another family...damn it! They're going to wish they weren't so careful then."
"Being careful is how you save a life," All the guardians said at the same time.
"Forget about it," I said. I felt kind of miffed that me on a bed wasn't enough to deter him from crazy battle plans.
"Now that is a shame," Adrian pouted.
"There's nothing we can do." He stopped walking. "We could go."
"Hell no!" Alberta, Dimitri, Ivan, Janine, Olena and Abe yelled at the same time. Mason looked about ready to protest but he was cut off
"When we are done with these books you both are grounded till after graduation," Alberta looked furious at the two boys.
"But…" Eddie slapped his hand over Mason's moth and nodded at Alberta accepting their punishments.
"Go where?" I asked stupidly. "To Spokane. There are buses you can catch in town." "I ... wait. You want us to go to Spokane and take on Strigoi?" "Sure. Eddie'd do it too
"See," Alberta said looking at Eddie than the book. Eddie just blushed and nodded.
... we could go to that mall. They wouldn't be organized or anything, so we could wait and pick them off one by one ..."
"That is going to get you killed," Dimitri shook his head not understanding why they were willing to be so reckless.
I could only stare. "When did you get so dumb?"
"Rose," Mason moaned looking hurt,
"No I agree with her," Christian said looking at Mason like he was crazy.
"Oh, I see. Thanks for the vote of confidence." "It's not about confidence," I argued, standing up and approaching him. "You kick major ass. I've seen it. But this ... this isn't the way. We can't go get Eddie and take on Strigoi. We need more people. More planning. More information."
"Exactly," All the guardian nodded.
I rested my hands on his chest. He placed his over them and smiled. The fire of battle was still in his eyes, but I could tell his mind was shifting to more immediate concerns. Like me. "I didn't mean to call you dumb," I told him. "I'm sorry." "You're just saying that now because you want to have your way with me."
"Sadly," Ivan shook his head. Mason just glared at him.
"Of course I am," I laughed, happy to see him relax. The nature of this conversation reminded me a little of the one Christian and Lissa had had in the chapel.
"Well I don't want to think about that," Abe shook his head, he really doesn't want to hear about his daughter having sex and he hoped for Mason's sake they didn't do anything.
"Well," he said, "I don't think I'm going to be too hard to take advantage of." "Good. Because there are lots of things I want to do." I slid my hands up and around his neck. His skin was warm beneath my fingers, and I remembered how much I'd enjoyed kissing him last night. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he said, "You really are his student."
This time it was Adrian who hit Mason over the head.
"Whose?" "Belikov's. I was just thinking about when you mentioned needing more information and stuff. You act just like him. You've gotten all serious since you've been hanging out with him."
"Good," Janine, Alberta and Dimitri said at the same time.
"No, I haven't." Mason had pulled me closer, but now I suddenly didn't feel so romantic. I'd wanted to make out
"Oh thank god," Abe let out a breath his whole poster relaxing.
and forget Dimitri for a while, not have a conversation about him. Where had this come from? Mason was supposed to be distracting me. He didn't notice anything was wrong.
"Because you are an idiot," Adrian shook his head.
"You've just changed, that's all. It's not bad ... just different." Something about that made me angry, but before I could snap back, his mouth met mine in a kiss. Reasonable discussions sort of vanished. A bit of that dark temper started to rise in me, but I simply channeled that intensity into physicality as Mason and I fell on top of each other. I yanked him down on the bed, managing to do so without stopping the kissing. I was nothing if not a multitasker.
"Not a word," Abe glared at Adrian who was smirking.
I dug my nails into his back while his hands slid up the back of my neck and released the ponytail I'd just made minutes ago.
Dimitri mumbled something about it not being fair that Mason got to play with her hair.
Running his fingers through the unbound hair, he shifted his mouth down and kissed my neck. "You are ... amazing," he told me. And I could tell that he meant it. His whole face glowed with affection for me. I arched upward, letting his lips press harder against my skin while his hands slipped under the bottom of my shirt.
"Kill me now please," Mason said as red as his hair.
"No, you got us grounded you deserve to suffer," Eddie smiled at Mason sarcastically.
They trailed upward along my stomach, just barely tracing the edge of my bra. Considering we'd just been having an argument a minute ago, I was surprised to see things escalating so quickly. Honestly, though ... I didn't mind. This was the way I lived my life. Everything was always fast and intense with me.
Mark nodded, he understood how that felt.
The night Dimitri and I had fallen victim to Victor Dashkov's lust charm, there'd been some pretty furious passion going on too.
Oksana and Mark looked at Dimitri shocked but he choose to ignore them, he was more focused on the glares from Janine and Abe.
Dimitri had controlled it, though, so sometimes we'd taken things slowly...and that had been wonderful in its own way. But most of the time, we hadn't been able to hold ourselves back. I could feel it all over again. The ways his hands had run over my body. The deep, powerful kisses. It was then that I realized something. I was kissing Mason, but in my head, I was with Dimitri.
Ivan smiled happily, while Mason looked like he had been kicked.
And it wasn't like I was simply remembering either. I was actually imagining I was with Dimitri -right now- reliving that night all over again. With my eyes closed, it was easy to pretend. But when I opened them and saw Mason's eyes, I knew he was with me. He adored me and had wanted me for a long time. For me to do this ... to be with him and pretend I was with someone else ... It wasn't right.
"Thanks, Rose," Mason said under his breath, he was hurt in more ways than he could imagine but a small part of him was happy that Rose had stopped in the book.
I wiggled out of his reach. "No ... don't." Mason stopped immediately because that's the kind of guy he was.
"Good boy," Abe nodded impressed with Mason.
"Too much?" he asked. I nodded. "That's okay. We don't have to do that." He reached for me again, and I moved farther away. "No, I just don't... I don't know. Let's call it quits, okay?" "I..." He was speechless for a moment. "What happened to the 'lots of things' you wanted to do?" Yeah ... it looked pretty bad, but what could I say? I can't get physical with you because when I do, I just think about the other guy I actually want. You're just a stand-in.
"Yeah don't say that, but do tell him the truth in a more nice way," Victoria nodded feeling bad for Mason. Eddie smiled at her, happy that someone else was on Mason's side.
I swallowed, feeling stupid. "I'm sorry, Mase. I just can't." He sat up and ran a hand over his hair. "Okay. All right." I could hear the hardness in his voice. "You're mad." He glanced over at me, a stormy expression on his face. "I'm just confused. I can't read your signals. One moment you're hot, the next you're cold. You tell me you want me, you tell me you don't. If you picked one, that'd be fine, but you keep making me think one thing and then you end up going in a completely different direction. Not just now -all the time."
"Don't you smile mister! You are to blame," Yeva said looking at her grandson who had a smile on his face before it disappeared. Dimitri and Ivan were hoping this was the part where Mason and Rose would break up and then this would be better between Roza and Dimitri, both of them forgetting that Tasha was still in the book.
It was true. I had gone back and forth with him. Sometimes I was flirty, other times I completely ignored him. "Is there something you want me to do?" he asked when I didn't say anything. "Something that'll... I don't know. Make you feel better about me?"
"You are a sweetie you know that. Rose just isn't the right one for you?" Sonja said sadly at Mason.
"I don't know," I said weakly. He sighed. "Then what do you want in general?" Dimitri, I thought. Instead, I repeated myself. "I don't know."
"Well at least we know that is a lie," Ivan smiled sadly, he wanted Rose and Dimitri together but he didn't want to see Mason get hurt for no other reason than Dimitri being stubborn and an ass.
With a groan, he stood up and headed for the door. "Rose, for someone who claims she wants to gather as much information as possible, you really have a lot to learn about yourself." The door slammed behind him. The noise made me flinch, and as I stared at where Mason had just stood, I realized he was right. I did have a lot to learn.
"Done, so…?" Mark asked looking around
"I'll read next," Alberta smiled at Mark.