Chapter 7

• I walked out of the classroom with my head held high. Luc had won that small battle, but I had won the war, and I wasn't about to let some bad-tempered bossy vampire ruin my life. I exhaled all the badness with a deep breath. The worst was over, and I could finally move on.
• BAM
• My entire body collided with a solid wall of flesh. I stumbled backwards but was quickly steady by an unfamiliar pair of hands. After regaining my balance, I looked up at the person I had run into and apologized, but then I stopped.
• This man was suspiciously attractive, almost too attractive to be human. He was shorter and leaner than Luc, but he appeared powerful. Indeed, his posture reminded me of someone from the military. His outfit was simple and functional, consisting of cargo pants and a gray t-shirt. He was looking at me, but he was also looking around the corridor.
• "Forgive your Highness, Luc sent me to protect you," he said, his voice accented.
• Oh my God, there were vampires everywhere! They looked like rats! I was always a few feet away from one, no matter where I was.
• "Listen, I don't want anything to do with your kind, so don't follow me," I said, raising my hands.
• I moved away from him, but I soon heard his footsteps behind me. I took a sharp turn and noticed him behind me. The asshole didn't even bother to look guilty or apologize. Instead, he just stood there waiting for me to move.
• "You're forgetting something, Miss Hayden!" Luc called out to me from the classroom.
• I swung around, biting my tongue, to see Luc casually strolling up the corridor. "Does this," I asked calmly, pointing to the G.I Joe, "belong to you?"
• "It's not Joe. "His name is Nico, and he'll be your bodyguard in college when I'm not there to protect you," Luc explained.
• "I thought I said I didn't want anything to do with you!" I exploded.
• Ignoring my point, Luc handed me a piece of paper and said, "I want to see you at this time and in this place."
• I ripped up the piece of paper and hurled it at his stupid chest. "Go to Hell," I yelled.
• "Mia, you're making things difficult between us. Now I'm politely asking you to meet me after college. If you don't want me to do things nicely, I can make things extremely difficult for you."
• "And how are you going to do it? By yelling at me in class, humiliating me in front of my peers, or perhaps just biting me again," I said quietly.
• "I could inform the department head that you were disruptive in my seminar. I could tell the head you smelled like alcohol. "I could ensure that this department took disciplinary action against you, leaving a permanent blemish on your otherwise spotless academic record," he said.
• My heart rate slowed. Crap. That would be disastrous. That would be disastrous. Anyone caught drinking underage on campus could be expelled, and if I ever wanted to work in government, a bad record could be disastrous for my job prospects.
• I took a breather and reconsidered my position, which was that Luc had me by the balls.
• "Fine, I'll be there, but that doesn't mean I have to listen to whatever nonsense you have to say," I snapped, stooping down and stuffing the piece of paper into my bag.
• "I'm glad we're finally seeing eye to eye, my love," Luc said triumphantly.
• "Never call me that. "Pet names were for people who truly cared about each other," I hissed.
• 'I love you, Mia,' Luc said softly in my head.
• "And stay out of my head," I said as I walked to my next class.
• I despised him!
• I walked with Nico to my next lecture. We didn't talk because I was too angry to. I couldn't believe Luc was blackmailing on top of it all. I stormed into my social research lecture and sat in the far corner of the back row.
• I looked into my bag and saw the messed-up paper slip he had given me. If only I could irritate him, I wouldn't be feeling so bad. I wished to make him as unhappy as I was.
• I sat quietly, playing with a few strands of my hair, as I always did when I was annoyed. Then, for some reason, I looked up and saw Jack Colter staring at me from the row next to mine.
• He was one of these athletic types, good looking but lacking in the thinking department. I yelled 'what' at him, annoyed that he was staring at me like a huge fish. Jack returned my smile and mouthed 'hi,' his gaze fixed on me.
• I took a breather. Was Jack attempting to seduce me?
• Inside of me, a mischievous little demon stirred. Luc despised other men; he couldn't stand Jacques touching me. I'm curious what would happen if he assumed I was in love with Jack. Perhaps he will lose interest in me, give up, and move on.
• Perhaps Jack was my ticket to liberty.
• I looked up at Jack, warmly encouraging him to flirt. We'd break eye contact and then look up at each other, I'd smile or bite my lip, and he'd just grin like a moron at me. I wondered if Luc was too preoccupied to notice what was going on in my head. Even if he didn't notice right away, I'd make sure I was thinking about Jack during our later meeting.
• As everyone was leaving after the lecture, Jack approached me. "Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to get together after college and study or something?" He inquired.
• "I like things. We might..." I was interrupted mid-sentence by Luc striding into the lecture hall.
• "I need to speak with you right now, Miss. Hayden." Luc said, staring at Jack as if he was about to rip off his head.
• I smiled sweetly at Jack, "Perhaps we could talk about this after school," I suggested, fluttering my eyelashes.
• "That would be fantastic." Jack smiled at me as he swung his rucksack over his shoulder.
• Luc's jaw twitched. "Unfortunately, Mr. Colter, Miss. Hayden has an important meeting with me after college today," he said calmly.
• "Well, I'll be free tomorrow," Jack said.
• "Come along Miss. Hayden, we need to talk," Luc grabbed my arm and began pulling me along the row of seats.
• He didn't even let go of my arm as we exited the lecture hall.
• I smiled to myself, satisfied with a minor victory.
• I walked ahead of him into the empty classroom, smugly releasing his grip. Luc quietly closed and locked the door behind him.
• "What's the matter, my love?" I inquired innocently.
• "Do you want that boy to perish?" Luc stated solemnly.
• "Why, Luc, I have two classes with Jack—you can't prevent me from talking to him." I mentioned perching on a desk.
• Luc approached me calmly, his dark eyes cold and harsh. I could feel his rage rising and falling within him.
• "I will kill that boy, Mia," Luc said, bending down and lifting my chin to his face. Please do not irritate me. I know you're upset with me, but please understand that when I'm angry, people get hurt." He said this while stroking my hair.
• "Are you going to hurt me?" I asked, looking up at him, his face inches away from mine.
• "Never," he said, shaking his head. Because you are my mate, I could never hurt you. Even if you did something heinous with Jack, I could never hurt you—but I would kill him. Anyone who threatened you, I would kill."
• He was now very close to me, and my entire body screamed for him. His lovely eyes caught mine, and he leaned in, lightly brushing his lips against mine.
• I didn't even move.
• I couldn't tell if I was scared or turned on.
• "You have no idea how much I want you Mia," Luc said softly as he drew away.