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unshed tears, but he forced himself to say it anyway.
    “You know it was just sex.”
    Her eyes widened at the insult, but she didn’t flinch. Instead, she straightened her shoulders, blinked back the tears that never fell, and she vanished.
    Sebastian said, “I don’t normally interfere in things—”
    Nevin snorted, interrupting him. “Aye, you do. You make great sport of it.”
    Sebastian continued on, ignoring the comment, “She mated you that day.”
    “Yesterday? I know.”
    “Not yesterday. The day she found you dying in a field.”
    “What? No, she turned me into a vampire. She didn’t mate me.”
    “True,” he acknowledged with a dip of his head. “But you drank from her again after you became Nightkind. We don’t drink from our own, and very rarely do we mate. Mating is forever, you know, and forever is a long time when you’re immortal. That’s why you’ve been seen as such a threat. Most of us were fine with the mating, as long as she never claimed you.” Sebastian sighed heavily and shook his head. “But after yesterday? Her life will be in danger, and so will yours.”
    Nevin growled, “I will hunt down the Russian and put his head on a pike.”
    “Well, I think you would be better off by her side, than scouring the world for Vlad.”
    He eyed him warily. “Why are you telling me this?”
    “Amalia is my friend. She saved me from a bad situation once. She deserves my loyalty. And she deserves to have the man she loves stand by her, even if he is a barbarian from the Highlands who isn’t good enough for her.”
    She didn’t love him. Nevin knew she cared, but it wasn’t love. She was stubborn, she wouldn’t have left so easily if she loved him. A small voice whispered that she would never have turned him into what he hated if she truly loved him, but he knew that wasn’t true.
    Sebastian left as silently as he’d appeared, allowing Nevin’s mind to wreak havoc on emotions long-since forgotten. If Amalia loved him, Nevin would find a way to make sure she never regretted choosing him. He would spend every second of every day seeing to her happiness. If she loved him, he owed it to them both to find her. She had told him once that he was the best tracker out there. She wasn’t wrong. He’d hunted men he’d never met, vampires whose scents were masked. He could hunt her. And he had her taste now; she could never escape him. It was time for him to hunt. Besides, he knew where she was going.
    ***
    Nevin found Amalia in her condo, packing a suitcase and picking through the rubble.
    She stiffened, but otherwise ignored him.
    “I’m sorry about your home.”
    She still ignored him.
    Scrubbing both hands across his face, Nevin tried a different tactic. “In my seven centuries I’ve never needed anyone for anything. I handled becoming Nightkind on my own. I dealt with nearly being beheaded on my own. This is new for me.”
    “Are you saying you need me?” Amalia sounded wary, but she still hadn’t turned around.
    Nevin strode across the room, giving them both some space. He leaned back against the counter of her breakfast bar and shoved his hands in his pockets.
    He was silent for a long time before answering her. “I am.” He laughed, an ugly, harsh sound. “I can’t seem to help myself, can I? I breathe, I smell you. I eat, I taste you. I think, it’s about you. I fuck, and all I want is you.”
    She finally faced him, her lips twisted into a sad smile. “You keep going on like this, and I’ll think you like me.”
    Nevin didn’t like that look on her face. He had to fix this. “I don’t like you. Not even a wee bit.”
    “Wait, what? You don’t?” she gaped at him. “What the hell, Nevin!”
    He stalked towards her and interrupted her by placing his palm over her mouth.
    “Will you be quiet? I don’t like you. I love you.” Nevin felt her lips soften behind his hand. “You’re bossy, opinionated, and you think you know what’s best for everyone.” She tried to