“Totally is,” he said, and then made like an alien. Within seconds, he was placing my feet on the floor of the bedroom and closing the door behind us.

Clothing didn’t stay on very long. Things were fast and tumultuous at first. He spun around, backing me up until I hit the door, his large body crowding mine. There was something different about what was happening. It seemed truer in its nature, as if that funny piece of paper that was now lying on the floor changed everything, and maybe it did. My legs were wrapped around his hips, and everything moved at a fevered pitch. I told him that I loved him. I showed him that I loved him. And he did the same. We finally made it to the bed, and things were sweet and tender then.

Hours passed, probably a little more than the five that Daemon had promised Matthew. No one had interrupted us, which was surprising. I was mighty comfortable in his arms, my cheek resting against his chest. I know it might sound stupid, but I loved listening to his heartbeat.

Daemon played with my hair, twisting strands around his fingers while we talked about anything and everything that had nothing to do with the immediate future and everything to do with the one we hoped for—the one where we were in college, we had jobs.

We had a life.

It was good, like cleansing the soul in a way.

Then my stomach grumbled like Godzilla.

Daemon chuckled. “Okay. We’ve got to get some food in there before you start gnawing on me.”

“Too late,” I said, nipping at his lower lip. He made that sexy sound in his throat, the kind that led to things that would take up another couple of hours. I forced myself to put some distance between us. “We need to go downstairs.”

“So you can eat?” He sat up, running a hand through his hair. He looked adorably disheveled.

“Yeah, but we also need to find out what everyone is doing.” Reality was a bit sobering. “We need to figure out what we’re doing.”

“I know.” He bent over the edge of the bed and picked up my shirt. He tossed it to me. “But there better be food involved.”

Thank God there was. Dee was in the kitchen making a late lunch—or was it an early dinner?—consisting of cold cuts. Daemon headed off toward the sound of his brother’s voice, and I sidled up to Dee.

“Can I help?” I asked, rocking back.

She glanced at me. “I’m almost done. What kind do you want? Ham? Turkey?”

“Ham, pretty please.” I grinned. “Daemon probably wants ham, too. And I can make them if you haven’t.”

“Daemon wants anything he can consume.” She reached up, grabbing a paper plate. I thought it was kind of funny that this house even had paper plates in it. As she slapped two ham sandwiches on it, a burst of loud, male laughter caused her to glance over her shoulder. She looked relieved.

“What?” I asked, glancing back to the hall Daemon had disappeared down.

“I don’t know.” A small smile appeared. “I’m just surprised. Archer is in that room. I figured there’d be yelling instead of laughter.”

“Daemon is just…you know, a bit overprotective when it comes to you.”

His sister laughed. “A bit?”

“Okay. A lot. It’s not against Archer. He’s actually a really good guy. He helped me—helped us—while we were with Daedalus, but he’s older, he’s different, and he—”

“Has a penis?” Dee supplied. “Because I think that’s Daemon’s main problem.”

Giggling, I grabbed two cans of soda. “Yeah, you’re probably right. So have you been talking to him?”

She shrugged. “Not much. He’s not very talkative.”

“He’s a guy of few words.” I leaned my hip against the counter. “And he hasn’t been exposed to a lot. So he’s probably just taking all of this in.”

She gave a little shake of her head. “It’s just insane and horrible what they’re doing to people. And there’s more, right? I wish there was something we could do.”

I thought about the hybrids I’d seen and the origins we let loose. Could some of them have escaped? Setting the cans aside, I sighed. “There’s so much wrong with so much.”

“That is true.”

There was another explosion of laughter that I recognized as Daemon’s. I was smiling like a goofball before I even realized it.

“Look at you. Aren’t you chipper today.” Dee elbowed me. “What’s going on?”

I shrugged. “Just a really good day. I’ll have to tell you about it soon.”

She handed me a cold cut. “If it’s what you two have been doing in that room upstairs all afternoon, I don’t even want to know.”

I laughed. “I’m not talking about that.”

“Thank God.” Ash slinked between us, grabbing the jar of mayo. “Because no one wants to hear about that.”

Unless it involved Ash’s past with Daemon, then she was all kinds of talkative, but whatever. I smiled at her, which earned me a strange look.

Ash grabbed a spoon, scooped up some mayo, and popped it in her mouth. My stomach turned. “The fact that you’re so damn skinny and you eat mayo by the spoonful is universally messed up.”

She winked a catlike eye. “Be jealous.”

The funny thing was, I wasn’t.

“Then again, maybe I’m the one who should be jealous, Kitten.”

Dee smacked Ash’s arm. “Don’t start.”

She grinned as she tossed the spoon in the sink. “I didn’t say I wanted to be his Kitten, but if I did, well…this story may have a different ending.”

A couple of months ago, she would’ve gotten a rise out of me. Now I just smiled.

She stared at me a moment, and then her blue eyes rolled. “Whatever.”

I watched her leave the kitchen. “I think I’m growing on her,” I said to Dee.

She giggled as she put the last sandwich on the platter. There were more than a dozen. “Actually, I think the biggest problem is that Ash wants to dislike you.”

“She does a good job at it.”

“But I don’t think that’s how she really feels.” Dee picked up the platter, cocking her head to the side. “She really did care for Daemon. I don’t think it was ever love, but I think she always believed that they’d be together. That’s a lot to get over.”

I sort of felt guilty. “I know.”

“But she will. Besides, she’ll find someone who can tolerate her bitchiness, and all will be right in the world.”

“And you?”

She giggled and winked. “I just want everything to be right in the world for one night—if you know what I mean.”

I choked on my laugh. “Good God, do not let Daemon or Dawson hear that.”

“No kidding.”

Everyone was in the rec room—bodies draped over couches, settees, and lounges. The biggest TV I’d ever seen hung on the wall, damn near the size of a theater screen.

Daemon patted the spot beside him on the couch, and I sat down, handing him his plate and soda. “Thank you.”

“Your sister made them. I just carried ours.”

Dee placed the platter on the coffee table and glanced over to where Archer sat with Luc and Paris. Then she took two sandwiches and retreated to the burgundy settee. Two pink spots bloomed on her cheeks, and I hoped she was having nice, clean thoughts.

One glance at Archer, who was now staring at Dee, had me assuming that she wasn’t.

On the other side of me, Dawson leaned forward and grabbed two of the subs, one for him and the other for Beth. The girl was bundled up in a quilt, looking half asleep. Our eyes met, and a tentative smile brightened her face.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

“Great.” She picked at the bread, pulling off little brown patches. “I’m just tired.”

Again, I wondered what could possibly be wrong with her, because something was. She didn’t look just tired; she looked absolutely exhausted.

“It’s been a lot of traveling,” Dawson elaborated. “It’s kind of worn me out, too.”

He didn’t look worn out. If anything, he looked like he was bursting at the seams. His green eyes were particularly bright, especially every time he looked at Beth.

Which was all the time.

“Eat,” he said quietly to her. “You need to eat at least two of these.”

She laughed softly. “I don’t know about two.”

We stayed there for a while, long after the food was gone, and I think everyone was delaying the inevitable—the big talk. So much so that Matthew left the room, telling us he’d be back in a few moments.

Daemon leaned forward, dropping his hands to his knees. “Time to get down to business.”

“True dat,” Luc said. “We need to get on the road soon. Tomorrow would be best.”

“I think that’s assumed,” Andrew said. “But where exactly on the road are we heading to?”

Luc opened his mouth, but Archer held up a hand, silencing him. “Hold that thought.”

The younger origin’s eyes narrowed, but then he sat back, his jaw clenched. Archer stood and strode out of the room, hands closing into fists.

“What’s going on?” Daemon asked.

Unease snaked down my spine. I glanced over at Dawson, who also was suddenly on alert. “Luc,” I said, feeling my heart trip up.

Luc stood, his chest rising sharply. One second he was standing in front of the settee and the next he was across the room, a hand around Lyla’s throat. “How long?” he demanded.

“Holy shit.” Andrew jumped to his feet, moving in front of his sister and Dee.

“How long?” Luc demanded again, his fingers tightening on her throat.

Blood drained from the female Luxen’s face. “I-I don’t know what you m-mean.”

Daemon stood slowly and stepped forward. His brother was behind him. “What’s going on?”

Luc ignored him, lifting the frightened Luxen off the floor. “I’m going to give you five seconds to answer the question. One. Four—”

“I didn’t have a choice,” she gasped out, clutching the boy’s wrist.

My blood chilled.

Understanding rippled across the room, followed by horror. I moved closer to Beth, who was struggling to unwrap herself from the blanket.

“Wrong answer,” Luc said, voice low as he dropped Lyla. “You always have a choice. It’s the one thing that no one can strip from us.”

Luc moved so quickly that I doubted even Daemon could fully track what he did. His arm shot out. White swirled down his arm, exploding from his hand. A wave of heat and power flowed through the room, blowing the hair back from my face.

The energy smacked into Lyla’s chest, throwing her backward into the oil painting of the Vegas Strip. A look of shock crossed her face, and then there was nothing. Her eyes were blank as she slid down the wall, her legs tucking under her.

Oh my God… I stepped back, clamping my hand over my mouth.

There was a hole in Lyla’s chest. Smoke wafted out of it.