Slowly—so slowly that I almost don’t notice it at first—he relaxes against me. The rigidness leaves his spine. His shoulders curve forward just a little. The hands that were fisted on the bed loosen up and wrap themselves around my waist.
And then he’s kissing me, too, really kissing me, with open mouth and searching tongue and hungry, desperate hands. He pushes closer, and I arch against him, pressing my mouth into his until his breath becomes my breath, his need becomes my need.
I slide my hands under his shirt, stroking my fingers along his smooth skin and the lean muscles of his back. Jaxon groans a little as I do, arching into my touch. And then my phone goes off at the exact same time there’s a heavy pounding on Jaxon’s door…
The sounds break the spell between us, and he pulls away with a laugh. I hold tight to him, not ready to let him go. Not ready for this to end. He must feel the same way, though, because his hands tighten on my waist even as he presses his forehead to mine.
“You should get your phone,” he says as it continues to ring. “Foster’s probably freaking out because he doesn’t know where you are.”
The pounding on the door grows harder, more commanding. “Or he’s freaking out because he knows exactly where I am.”
“Yeah, there’s that, too.” He grins at me, his hands lingering on my waist for just a second as I start to climb off his lap. “You want to get the door or should I?”
“Why would I…？” Horror sweeps through me. “You don’t think my uncle is the one pounding on the door, do you?”
“Not sure who else you think it would be, considering his beloved niece was last seen in the company of the guy who just picked a fight with every wolf shifter in the school.”
“Oh my God.” I look around for a mirror so I can fix my hair just enough that it doesn’t look like I’ve spent the last hour making out with a vampire, then kind of stop in shock as I realize that there’s nothing even resembling a mirror in here. “So are the old stories true?” I demand, combing my hair with little more than my fingers and a prayer. “Vampires really can’t see themselves in mirrors?”
“We really can’t.”
“How is that possible?” I tuck my shirt in and make sure my hoodie is pulled down over my hips. “I mean, how do you know what you look like?”
He holds up his phone. “Selfie, anyone?” He moves toward the door, which is practically vibrating under the force of my uncle’s knocks. “Is this seriously what you want to talk about right now?”
A little bit, actually. Now that the whole vampire thing is out in the open, I realize I have a million questions. Things like how long do born vampires live—or are they immortal, like the stories suggest? Which leads me to wonder if born vampires age the same way, or is this a baby Yoda thing, where their maturation is much slower than non-magical humans? And if it is, exactly how old is Jaxon? Also, did Mekhi not come into my room today because he was being respectful or because he couldn’t cross the threshold without an invitation?
There are more questions buzzing in my brain—so many more—but Jaxon is right. Now isn’t exactly the time to be thinking about any of this.
“Of course not.” I nod toward the door. “Open it and let’s get this over with.”
“It’ll be fine,” he promises with a wicked little grin that makes me think it will be anything but.
Especially if Uncle Finn is anything like my father. Then again, the guy’s a witch and runs a school for the supernatural…so probably not that much in common after all.
“It will be whatever it is,” I tell him, aiming for Zen and sounding completely out of touch instead. But come on, it’s hard not to freak out when I’m pretty sure the boy I’m crazy about is going to be expelled.
Jaxon winks at me, even blows me a kiss, before rearranging his face into blankness as he throws open the door.
“Nice of you to let me in,” my uncle says dryly. “So sorry you felt the need to hurry.”
“Sorry, Foster, but Grace did have to get her clothes back on.”
“Jaxon!” I gasp, my cheeks turning I can’t even imagine what shade of red. “I was fully dressed, Uncle Finn. I swear.”
“This is what you want to lead with after that stunt you just pulled?” my uncle demands. But before Jaxon can answer, he turns on me. “I thought you were heading back to your room more than an hour ago?”