Free Pure Blood (Time Spirit Trilogy, #3) by Melissa Pearl Page A

have declined if she’d wanted
to. Her body saw the mattress and dove for it like it was made of
million dollar bills. A pleasure filled sigh escaped her lips as
her aching body enjoyed the sheer delight of modern day padding.
Closing her eyes, she nestled into the comfortable blackness and
lost all track of time.
     
    * * * *
     
    Soft lips brushed her cheekbone then worked
their way down her neck, lingering over her collarbone before
ascending back up to her earlobe.
    “Babe, it’s time to wake up.” Harrison’s
voice was so delicious, she thought she was dreaming.
    Squeezing her eyes tight, she willed the
fantasy to continue, afraid that once she fully woke, his voice
would vanish and she’d be lying alone on a cold, forest floor.
    “Sweetie, you’ve got to get home before your
parents start asking questions.”
    Her eyes flew open and her head jerked to the
side. Harrison’s lips were less than an inch from her own. She
gazed into his pale brown orbs and felt the comfort of his
presence.
    “I wasn’t just dreaming.” Running her hands
over his cheeks, she threaded her fingers through his hair. “You’re
really here.”
    Fire raced through her veins as she enjoyed
the softness of his lips and the warmth of his tongue welcoming her
home. Wrapping her arms around his neck she pulled him on top of
her and got lost in the feel of his body melding with hers.
    “Not on my bed you don’t!”
    A sharp slap on her upper thigh had Gemma
pushing Harrison away with a reluctant groan.
    “He was only welcoming me home.”
    Gemma’s feigned innocence earned a very droll
look from her real father. Sitting up with blushing cheeks, she
shot him a look of insincere remorse. He rolled his eyes in
response, before spitting a black glare at Harrison and ushering
them out of the caravan.
    Her boyfriend looked embarrassed as he
fumbled for his keys, but Gemma knew he didn’t regret a second of
their ardent interlude. She certainly didn’t.
    Clearing her throat, she donned her jacket
and turned back to Gabe.
    “Thanks for your help. Hopefully it’s
worked.”
    “I guess you’ll find out tomorrow… after school.”
    “But…”
    “If Helen’s waited over 18 years, another day
ain’t gonna kill her.” Gabe’s head dipped with a stern expression.
“Promise me you’ll go to school first.”
    Gemma rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.
“Fine. I promise.”
    She watched his lips twitch with a smile
before he grabbed her head in his hands and planted a kiss in her
hair. “Thank you.”
    “I’ll be by to tell you all about it on the
weekend.”
    “See ya then, kid.”
    Gabe waited by the door to wave. Harrison
cruised behind her bike all the way to Lions Bridge, where he
jumped out to gift her one more kiss before leaving her for the
night.
    She felt her heart hammer as she watched him
pull away. He’d only gone four and a half hours without her, she’d
had to last eleven days and she was feeling highly ripped off. She
vowed to make up for it over the weekend, formulating plausible
excuses in her head as she meandered home.
     
    The house was quiet when she arrived. It was
more than tempting to head straight to her room and pretend she
lived alone, but she wanted to be in her parents' good books for
the rest of the week, so decided to seek them out.
    The kitchen, dining room and lounge all sat
silent. Rather than hollering through the house like she used to,
she began a systematic search. It wasn’t until she reached her
father’s office that she picked up on the murmur of
conversation.
    Resting her ear against the wood, she ignored
the discourtesies of eavesdropping and listened in.
    “I’m telling you it’s changed. When I looked
at my notes this morning I had a plan fully mapped out. We could
have gone tomorrow, but now my pages are blank.”
    “Which means someone’s gone back and changed
something.”
    “It also means all the research I’ve been
doing for the last few months has been a waste of