“Yeah, but, Tristan, your mother and sister still love you, too.”
He didn’t say anything for a long time, staring in silence as the sun disappeared beneath the curve of the earth and the sky deepened into dark shades of purple.
When he finally spoke again, his voice was quieter, deeper. “Your dad’s right, Sav. We might be able to help prevent another war. If the peace treaty fails, it’s not just the vamps and the Clann who would be hurt. It would be your friends—Anne and Carrie and Michelle—and any other humans who got caught in the cross fire. Not to mention Ron and all of the Keepers.”
He draped an arm around my shoulders, and I nestled against him, resting my head in the hard curve where his shoulder and neck met. I wished I could burrow even deeper, somehow get away from his words and the entire world around us.
But there was no way to escape my own mind or the realization that Dad and Tristan were both right. Much as I hated it.
“Is it so wrong of me to just want to be with you without a panel of judges constantly weighing in on everything we say and do?” I whispered.
“No, it’s not wrong.” He slowly rubbed my back, his broad, strong hand soothing my nerves. It was every bit as comforting as a cup of Nanna’s homegrown chamomile tea used to be.
Silence fell like a soft blanket over us. But its weight seemed to grow heavier on me with every passing second.
Finally I sighed. “Okay. We’ll do the right thing and go back to Jacksonville.”
CHAPTER 4
“Please?” Tristan murmured with big puppy-dog eyes. “I love you. I adore you. Don’t tell me you’re going to hold out on me now, after all we’ve been through.”
“No, Tristan. The answer was no yesterday, and last night, and two hours ago, and it’s still no now.” Crossing my arms, I leaned against my silver Corvette Stingray. “And if you keep up the whining, I’m going to be late for Charmers practice. And we both know how much Mrs. Daniels loves people who show up late for practice.”
“But, Sav, it’s a Corvette! How can you refuse to let me drive it? Just this once? Pretty please?”
“Nuh-uh. You say it’s just this once. But once you’ve driven a ’Vette, there’s no going back. You’ll be whining the same old tune every single day for the rest of our lives. Which means you’ll literally be bugging me for all eternity about this. Let’s just agree to drop it now and get on with our day, okay?”
He stuck out his lower lip in a pout.
“Nope. Not going to work.” I made a point of looking at my watch then circling around the car to the driver’s side. “Now would you please hurry up and get in?” Thank heavens we lived in town. If we’d had to drive the ten miles from Nanna’s house, we would most definitely be late. I would have to push the speed limit as it was just to get us there on time.
Heaving a noisy sigh, he got into the car, and I had to hide a smile as I reached for my seat belt. “Put your seat belt on, please. I don’t want to get pulled over for a belt violation again.”
“Again? How often do you get pulled over?”
“Trust me, you don’t want to get pulled over by a Clann cop even once when you’re a vamp.”
I slipped and let a memory flit through my mind of the one time I’d been pulled over. To this day, I still occasionally had nightmares of the hatred and barely restrained violence in that uniformed descendant’s thoughts as he’d held me trapped there in my car for ten long minutes while he decided whether to be a good cop or an even better descendant.
Tristan grabbed my hand, his eyes furious. “Seriously? Did he do anything, or just think about doing it?”
Crap. I really needed to find a way to block this mind connection thing between us. I swallowed hard. “Don’t worry, he was a good cop. That day. But I don’t ever want to tempt him again. Which is why we can’t speed this morning to make up time.”
“I should—” he began in a growl.
“No, you shouldn’t. Just use it as a lesson. We’ve got to be on our toes about this stuff. And I’m not just talking about following the traffic laws here. We can’t do anything to give any of them a reason to go after us. Okay? No matter how much they may push us, we’ve got to keep it together. No mistakes, no losing control.” I searched his eyes, needing to know he was hearing me loud and clear here.
He sighed, letting go of his anger for now. “Yeah, okay.”
He put on his seat belt, and I put the key into the ignition. Then I caught his longing stare at the steering wheel.
He really wanted to drive my car.
I groaned. “Fine. Just this once, you can—”
But he was already out the door and around the car, opening the door for me like a chauffeur.
Laughing, I got out and let the spoiled brat have his way, as usual.
Ten minutes later we pulled into the parking lot with two whole minutes to spare, Tristan still grinning just like he had the whole way here. Shaking my head, I grabbed my trusty blue leather Charmers duffle bag, got out and circled the car so I could lean in through the driver’s side window to say goodbye.
The plan was for him to stay in the car till the bell for first period rang in an hour and a half. Then he’d head for the office in the main hall, where he would once again be helping out as an office aide till second period.
So I was surprised when he got out of the car with me.
“Just wanted to say a proper goodbye now that we don’t have to hide anymore,” he murmured, leaning against the side of the car and pulling me against him for a kiss.
Realizing we were out in the open where anyone could see us together sent a thrill skittering across my every nerve ending and made my lips curve into a huge grin against his. “Hmm. I could get used to this.”
We kissed again, then he leaned his head back a few inches and grinned. “And just think, we’ve also got lunch together in the cafeteria to look forward to.”
I pictured his sitting beside me at my friends’ table. Just the idea seemed like a fantasy that couldn’t possibly ever come true. And yet it would. Today. My heart skipped another beat in anticipation.
Then I remembered...all the Clann kids would be staring at us in the cafeteria. I could already imagine how much they would love seeing their former leader, now a vamp, sitting with the enemy instead of them. I sighed, my excitement deflating a bit. If only we were at some other school...
“They’ll get over it,” Tristan said. “Today might be rough, but eventually they’ll get so used to seeing us together that they won’t even think about it anymore.”
“Promises, promises,” I muttered. Then I checked my watch and hissed. “Ouch. I have really gotta go.” I gave him one last kiss, turned away then hesitated. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?”
“With sitting in the ’Vette till first period? Sure. What’s the big deal?”
“No, I mean with...this.” I waved a hand at the school campus. “You, me, being back here so soon. I know what Dad and the council and your mother want, but are you sure—”
The image of him pinning that nameless hunter to a tree in the Arkansas woods flashed through my mind. I pushed it away, but not fast enough.
Tristan’s head rocked back as if I’d slapped him. After a long beat of silence, he muttered, “That won’t happen again, Savannah.”
Great. Now I’d done it.
“Right,” I said too quickly with a smile that felt fake even to me.