Free Venom (The Reawakening Series Book 1) by Daniele Lanzarotta Page B

you? Which one?”
    “ Oh—Oh! No, I’m not looking for that kind of company.”
    “ There are no strings attached. It’s always easier this way,” he says as if he has that line memorized.
    I look from the group of women to him. What the hell… I give in. It’s less hunting I have to do.
    He calls over the one with long brown hair and once she approaches, I see that she has highlights. Lexi had them once--.
    We get in the car and I drive to the house.
    “ I don’t usually get to meet many hot guys like you,” she says.
    I shrug and keep driving without saying a word.
     
    I glamour her as soon as we get to my room. “You have free will to make your own decisions, but you will ignore the fact that I call you Lexi and that I will drink your blood.”
    She nods.
     
    SARAH
    It’s strange… sitting at the table for dinner, surrounded by family. The last time this happened was in the 1600s in London, with Nicholas, his father (my stepfather), and my mother. No one ever said a word. Now here I sit and watch Mrs. Sullivan ask Ian, and me, about our day, all while his sister avoids looking at me. I don’t blame her. She did warn me to stay away from her brother.
    After dinner, Ian tells them we are going to get some ice cream and I follow him out of the house and into the truck.
    “ My mom likes you,” he says.
    “ Did she not like Megan?” I ask.
    He laughs. “No parent in their right mind would like Megan.” He looks at me and grins as we approach the shopping area where the ice cream place is located.
    He parks the truck and rushes around to open my door. He extends his hand to help me get down, and once I’m out of the truck, he readjusts, lacing his fingers between mine.
    We walk slowly.
    “ Your sister is mad a me,” I say.
    “ She’ll get over it. Your brother didn’t seem too bad.”
    “ Harvey is pretty laid back. Nicholas is the over-protective and over-dramatic one.”
    He laughs. “Are you trying to make me nervous?”
    “ No. I’m just trying to prepare you.”
    “ Okay, now I’m nervous,” he looks over at me and grins playfully. I hate not being able to read human emotions at times. I don’t know if he is being serious or not, and before I can ask, he pulls me into the ice cream place, which is full of guys from the school.
    A couple of the guys look confused, but only for a split second, then they wave us over to where they are sitting and talk to Ian as if everything is normal. The guys are actually really nice. One of them knew my name and asks how I like the school. Not once did they mention Megan.
    Once the store closes, we leave. We sit at one of the benches outside.
    “ I’m almost embarrassed to say this,” says Ian, “But I have to be back at the house by eleven.”
    “ Oh. It’s okay. You don’t have to be embarrassed.”
    “ Well, we still have a little over an hour. Do you want to go back to the house?”
    For a second, I wish we could go back to the farm and see the horses, but I know it’s too late.
    “ Sorry there is nothing much to do in this town, especially this late.”
    “ I kind of like that. The normal, small town life.”
    He grins, “it’s tough to like that when you have lived it your whole life. Can I ask where you are from?” he asks. “I can hear a slight accent every once in a while. Not often, but I did notice that it’s there when you are nervous.”
    Him noticing that much about me makes me nervous. “I—I was born in London.”
    Somehow, it feels good to tell him a small piece of information about me… the real me.
    He smiles and I know he notices I’m nervous, because he leaves it at that. He stands up, grabbing my hand on his way and pulling me up with him.
    He puts his arms around me, pulling me toward him.
    “ I’m dying to kiss you,” he says.
    I can feel my knees weaken.
    “ Are you asking me for permission?” I whisper.
    He grins as he nods.
    I bite my bottom lip. “I wish you hadn’t. Then I wouldn’t be so