Vincent moaned. “Fucking bastard…”
Annette hurried toward Aidan, carefully stepping around the chunks of broken glass. She pointed at him. “You changed Jane.”
“No, that would be the jerk-off vampire—”
“He was right,” Annette cut in, shaking her head. Her finger jabbed into his chest. “You had given Jane your blood. But Jane wasn’t a werewolf when you did that, and she wasn’t human, either. I saw…in the mirror…you changed her.”
Aidan’s muscled tensed.
“Ripped sheets,” Annette whispered. “In my mirror, I saw Jane’s hands become claws as she gripped the sheets and gave herself to you.”
Aidan felt heat sting his cheeks. “That would be damn personal, Annette. Do you always see people having sex in that mirror?”
“Jane was already different then. A wolf had started to rise within her. You suspected…that was why you came to me.”
Aidan glanced back at Jane. “She’d been injured so badly. I was just happy to have her with me. She…she seemed a little different.” He winced at that. “Her senses were sharper. She was stronger, but I…I thought it was just temporary.”
“You can’t fuck with nature,” Vincent snarled. The vamp was back in fighting form. The broken neck hadn’t slowed him down nearly long enough. “When you do…bad things happen. Why do you think most vamps are so screwed up? They aren’t supposed to be made. Humans can’t handle the transformation. They go wild with the feelings and the needs exploding in them. Vamps are supposed to be born. Like me. Like Jane. Born and then guided so that we can keep our control. I’m Jane’s guide. I’m here to help her.”
A born vampire had a guide? “Where the hell was my mother’s guide?” The question ripped out of him, the bitterness and pain never far from the surface. “When she was killing my family, where was her guide, huh? Where?”
Sadness flashed on Vincent’s face. “I don’t know. There…there aren’t many born left. Until Jane, I was worried there wouldn’t be more. Vampires aren’t all evil, despite what you think. I’ve tried hard all these years to fight my own darkness. To help others. That’s why I’m here now. I will do anything to see that Jane makes it through this change.”
“That’s why we’re all here,” Aidan muttered, his fingers still holding tight to Jane. “To make sure…” He cleared his throat and focused on Bob Heider. “I knew when I pulled you out of that fire that you’d come in handy.”
Bob’s eyes narrowed as he slipped his glasses back into place. “Are you saying you didn’t just save me because it was the right thing to do?”
Aidan stared back at him.
“Liar…” It was a soft whisper, so faint that, even with Aidan’s enhanced hearing, he almost missed it. But—
His gaze whipped down to Jane.
Her lips moved again, the smallest of motions.
“Liar…” Her voice was louder. “You saved…him…because it was…right.”
“She shouldn’t be awake.” Paris grabbed another drug-filled syringe and hurried toward them. “She shouldn’t be—”
Jane’s lashes lifted. She stared up at Aidan and said, “If he knocks me out again, we’re going to…have issues.”
“Stop, Paris.” Aidan couldn’t look away from her eyes. His beautiful Jane. “Are you…in control?”
“Are…you?”
“Yes.”
Her lips curved. “Then so am I.”
Without thought, he bent and pressed his lips to hers. “I missed you,” he whispered against her mouth.
Missed her so much that his entire word had gone dark.
“Uh, excuse me.” Dr. Bob’s voice—though not as pompous as normal—filled the room. “About these tests…”
“The tests aren’t needed now,” Annette announced, as if giving a decree. “Aidan changed her. He didn’t know it at the time but giving Jane his blood…it made her different.”
Aidan was trying to figure all of this shit out. Staring into Jane’s dark eyes, he said, “You can only feed from werewolves.”
A furrow appeared between her brows.
Annette stepped toward the exam table. She smoothed back Jane’s hair. “You can only feed on them because you need the blood of your own kind to survive. To give you power.”
But Jane was shaking her head. “Werewolves aren’t just going to let me drink from them…”
“Not them,” Aidan stated. “Me. You drink from me.”
Fear filled her eyes. “I don’t want to hurt you. If I lose control…I-I will.”
I won’t let you lose control. “That’s why when you have your first drink, we’ll do it with these straps in place.” His hand moved to the metal strap that slid over her chest. “Just as a precaution.”
“But your wolf…”
“I will keep him controlled.” And if he didn’t, well, he’d make sure Paris was close with his drugs. Still, there was something else Aidan needed to test out before he was sure they were in safe waters. “Paris, come closer to Jane.”
Paris inched closer.
Jane tensed.
“Smell her,” Aidan ordered.