“My personal life is your business.” His voice drifted from the kitchen island to the bar where she sat resting her elbows on the counter. “You have every right to know anything you want to about me.” He turned to face her, a plate in each hand. His eyes were intense and gentle all at the same time.

She watched him as he walked over to her, his steps smooth and confident. He placed one plate down in front of her and the other in front of an empty barstool next to her. Then he grabbed them both a bottled water from the fridge.

“Losing control is a dangerous thing for any male of my species. My previous Alpha is a testament to that,” he began. Drake motioned to her sandwich. Bethany picked it up and took a bite as he continued to talk. “But it’s especially dangerous for an unmated male.”

“Because of the darkness?” she asked in between bites.

Drake took a swig of his water as he nodded. “Sounds cliché doesn’t it?”

She shook her head quickly. “No. No, not at all. Everyone has darkness.” She set the sandwich down and dusted the crumbs from her hands. “I’ve lived with darkness for a very long time, Drake. And in that time I’ve realized that it isn’t only the monsters that have the darkness within them. We all have a touch of darkness in us. How could we not? Without the darkness, we wouldn’t recognize the light.”

A small smile tugged at his lips. “So you think there is light in me as well?”

Bethany nodded. “It’s there, whether you see it or not.” Their eyes met and she felt her heartbeat speed up. It wasn’t the first time that she’d felt herself respond to him on a level that she didn’t understand. For the most part, Drake made her feel every bit his equal. But then there were instances like this one when her heartbeat would pick up, her palms would begin to sweat, and her chest would tighten. It was in those instances that she felt completely out of her league.

As their day continued on, they talked in little spurts about anything and everything. Drake filled her in on current events, as well as important past events that had happened while she’d been imprisoned underground. At one point, he even got out his laptop and started pulling up pictures of the World Trade Center towers and told her all that had happened in New York City the very year she’d been snatched. Bethany had missed so much by being tucked away by the vampires. Who knew how much the world could change in eleven years?

By the time the sunlight was fading, Bethany’s head was hurting and it felt as though it might explode from all the new information she was absorbing, and her stomach was beginning to hurt right along with it. She pressed a hand to her lower abdomen and cringed.

“You okay?” Drake asked as he placed a hand on her leg.

She nodded. “Just have a stomach ache.”

“Perhaps, it’s time we get some rest?” Drake suggested.

Bethany stood up from the couch where they’d been sitting for the past several hours. She put her hands over her head and stretched up onto her toes. Drake watched her in that intense way of his, and she found that she liked it when his eyes followed her movements.

“I’m going to take a bath, if that’s all right?” she asked, thinking that a good soak might make her stomach feel better. A knock at the door interrupted Drake’s response. Instinctively, Bethany took a step toward the door. Her hand was reaching for the door handle when a strong arm came around her waist and smoothly moved her behind an equally strong body. Drake’s movements were so quiet that she hadn’t even heard him behind her.

The knock came again and he growled in clear irritation.

“Do not growl at me you mangy, ticking time bomb. Open this door. We’ve got business.” Jen’s voice came through the door practically slapping them both in the face.

Drake glanced over his shoulder at her and Bethany shrugged and then mouthed “open it.”

Drake let out another growl as he snatched the handle and jerked the door open. Jen strode into the room as seamlessly as if she’d been the one to open the door.

“Bethany,” —she nodded to her— “good to see he hasn’t eaten you.” Jen looked over at Drake. “Your Alpha wants to see you in his office.”

Drake looked from Jen to Bethany and back again. Bethany could tell that he didn’t want to leave her alone, but she could also tell that Jen wasn’t feeling gracious and her patience was about gone. She walked over to Drake and placed a hand on his chest, just over his heart. Then she used the bond that she was still getting used to. “I’ll be fine. You go do what you need to, and I’ll be here when you return.”

Drake stared down at her for several seconds before finally wrapping his large hand around the back of her neck and pulling her to him. He pressed his lips to her forehead and then she felt his breath blow out over her. She shivered under the sensation.

“I’ll be back soon,” Drake murmured and then turned on his heel, exiting the room and closing the door sharply behind him.

Bethany looked at Jen and she opened her mouth to ask a question but Jen held up a finger to stop her. Bethany snapped her mouth shut and waited. After a few minutes the Alpha female let out a sigh and sank down onto the couch. “Good grief, I didn’t think he’d ever get out of earshot.” Jen rubbed her hands together and looked up at Bethany. “Now, tell me how things are going. Do you have any questions? You’re looking a little tired. Is he letting you rest? I’ll skin him alive if he’s not giving you time to rest.” Jen’s words poured out of her faster than Bethany could answer so she waited until she was sure nothing more was going to be said before she finally spoke.

“I’m fine,” the young girl responded. “Tired, but not because Drake isn’t letting me sleep. Still trying to get my days and nights worked out, or at least that’s what Drake says must be happening. Since I was underground for so long, my body had lost all sense of…circadian rhythm, I think that’s what Drake called it.”

Jen’s mouth opened in an ‘O’ movement, but she didn’t say anything.

“As for questions, well, Drake’s been answering anything I ask.”

“What about girl questions?” Jen interjected.

Bethany’s head tilted. “Girl questions?”

“Yep,” Jen said, making the ‘p’ pop. “You know, questions that you might not feel comfortable asking Drake.”