Chapter 10 Lusting After The Devil

• Octavia takes Jess back to her house. Her friend's parents had long gone to bed by the time Via was half-dragging their daughter inside. Jess's younger brother was still up, probably playing those video games he was so obsessed with. He merely rolled his eyes at the sight of his unconscious sister and helped take her to her room. He dumped the older girl on the bed and messily threw her covers over her. Via tried to catch her breath, once again forgetting that she could go without it. That was the error of growing up with a mom who wasn't a vampire.
• "Thanks, Tyler, but could you keep this whole thing on the low? Jess would talk my ears off if she gets grounded for this."
• "My parents are aware, V. She's definitely getting her ass handed to her tomorrow."
• Well, if that was the case, there was really nothing she could do to save her friend at this point. She said her goodbyes to Tyler and drove herself back home.
• Her dad was in the living room when she got back, the cooking show he usually watched with her mom playing in the background. For as long as she'd known the man, he had always tried to pick up new recipes to surprise his wife with, as if that would make Kerry love him any more than she already did. The woman would literally present him with her heart if she could. As weird as it was to admit, her parents' love was couple goals. Maybe she'd find a man who would love her as much as her father loved her mom.
• "How was Jess?"
• "She's fine, asleep in her own bed now."
• "I see." He gestured for her to come closer, and Via did, rolling her eyes as she lowered herself so he could sniff her out properly. She had long gotten used to how invasive he was—must come with being a dad.
• "I didn't have sex, Dad. Chill out."
• "I know. You're amazingly good, baby."
• "Sure. And ew, pick another pet name for me—you call Mom that already."
• "You're both my babies," he stated, a fond smile playing on his lips. "Now, off to bed. Get some shut-eye."
• "Right. See you at breakfast."
• Via went upstairs. She started stripping off her clothes the moment she was safely in her room. She paused when she was about to dump them in the laundry basket. Against her better judgment, she brought the fabric to her nose and sniffed, just like her dad had done with her. She was searching for that sweet scent that had clung to Asher—the one that had seemed both off-putting and intoxicating at the same time.
• There was still some of it lingering on her clothes. Her mouth watered as she buried her nose deeper, wanting to take in more of it.
• Via's eyes widened when she realized what she was doing. She threw the clothes away in disgust. What the hell was wrong with her? Was she seriously losing her mind over that creep? She didn’t even know him well, and he screamed red flags. Nope. No way. She was definitely not thinking about him like that.
• "So stupid," she scolded herself as she slipped into some fresh nightwear that didn’t smell of seductive vampire. Via crawled under her sheets and buried her face in her pillow. She counted down the minutes in hopes of boring herself to sleep. But every time she closed her eyes, only one face popped into her subconscious.
• "You are so good. So perfect for me."
• Good? Was Via really good? If so, what exactly was she good at? What did he want from her? What made him so confident that she would want to become his, as he had implied?
• Via bit down on her lip and immediately felt the sting of her fangs piercing the soft skin. The metallic taste of blood in her mouth wasn’t necessarily as disgusting as her mom had said. It was almost sweet, but definitely not as tasty as full-blooded vampires would find it.
• Via traced a finger over her fangs. They could easily be mistaken for Jess’s synthetically sharpened ones. If she were to bite someone, it would take her twice as much effort as a full vampire. But Asher’s had been so sharp, she might actually cut herself if she even lightly touched the tip. And the way he had easily hidden them—it was like he was taunting her. One moment, he looked just like a normal human teen, and the next, he looked and sounded like someone who had lived for decades, someone who was anything but normal.
• Via wanted to scream into her pillow, but her dad might hear it and come up to check on her. She couldn’t help it—she had never been this attracted to someone before. He was hot, and his holier-than-thou attitude had a sort of appeal. She wanted him—maybe just for the taste. Maybe then she could finally clear her head and move on.
• * * *
• The next morning, Via made an effort to actually look pretty for school—just in case she ran into her mysterious stalker. She was wearing a dress today and had her hair down. Via was fortunate enough to have inherited her dad’s good looks and her mom’s perfect curves. She could easily turn heads if she wanted to.
• Her dad raised a brow at her when she joined them for breakfast. Her mom was dazed—she barely seemed to notice Via at all. It wasn’t that odd anymore. Her mom got like this from time to time, usually only when Via’s grandfather was in town. And just as expected, Seth was indeed in town, attending some educational event. He would come over to see them later that day, and then he would go away for a long time.
• Via liked her grandfather, but he was much too distant—a man of many secrets. At least, that’s what her mom had said.
• "What’s up, kiddo? Who are you trying to impress?"
• "Dad, I think I can dress however I want—for myself."
• "Right." He watched her with narrowed eyes, clearly in disbelief. At least he didn’t pry into her head. "Don’t have too much fun at school, though."
• Via chewed the last piece of pancake on her plate. "Got it." She grabbed her car keys and headed out.
• At school, Jess was back to her normal self. Via was already seated when her friend came sauntering into the classroom with messy hair and smudged lipstick. Considering someone had mentioned seeing Jess going to the principal’s office earlier, Via didn’t even want to think about what had transpired. Jess was technically an adult and could live her life how she wanted, but damn, it was still disgusting.
• "Whoa, you look so good, Via. What’s the occasion?" Jess slid into the seat beside her friend and pulled out a mirror and tissue to fix her smudged lipstick.
• "There’s nothing going on, Jess."
• "Is it about the guy from the party last night?"
• "You remember that?"
• "Glimpses. And it’s too bad I can’t remember everything—I had the best sex of my life last night. Also, I think your guy was super cute."
• "He is not my guy! And I sure hope you used a condom."
• "Relax. Incubi don’t get STDs. I’m safe. Now, let’s talk about your guy."
• "He is not my guy!"
• "Ooh, you like him. I can tell by how flustered you’re getting. OMG, are you planning to find him? Is he coming to see you?"
• "Jess, no." Via placed her forehead on the table and glared down at her hands. "He isn’t coming to see me." Not when she’d clearly told him to fuck off. But then again, maybe that was for the best.
• "Are you sure?" Jess asked, and there was something in her voice that Via didn’t like.
• It was the gasp and soft murmurs from their classmates that had her raising her head. Her jaw dropped.
• "No way."
• The principal, Dominick Shawn, had walked into the class at some point. And beside him, dressed in an expensive suit that hugged a body making Via’s mouth water, stood the object of her fantasies.
• Asher looked different dressed formally—somehow, he appeared even wilder. When their eyes met, he grinned, and Via felt like prey being cornered by the most dangerous predator in the jungle. She pressed her thighs together.