Half-Blooded | The Dark Child Prophecy Series [✔️]

Chapter 12: Friends & Lovers

I woke up the next night still feeling guilty for what I had done to the kid at the bar. It would have been so easy to drain him dry then leave him for Death and all his friends. But I hadn't been that careless or reckless for years. All it took was for one dead body to scare me smart.

Sighing, I slowly crawled out of my bed in the pack house. I stumbled into the bathroom and ran the cold water into the sink basin. Still feeling half-asleep, I splashed a few handfuls onto my face and dried off. I straightened to look at myself in the mirror, only to find a tired and groggy blonde staring back.

"Wow, Seren," I grumbled to myself. I pulled my hair down out of its messy ponytail and ran my fingers through the tattered curls to smooth them. Once I was somewhat satisfied with my appearance, I went in search of clean clothes. I grabbed a pair of jeans and a white tank top. Next, I located a dark red cardigan and took the clothing back to my bed. I changed out of the dark purple nightie and into my chosen attire. I hadn't felt comfortable enough to sleep in my borrowed shirt. He'd seen the side of a vampire my coven didn't like to expose.

Before I could settle down onto my loveseat, there was a knock on the door.

"Serenity?"

It was Jason.

I stifled a sigh and lowered the book in my hand. "Come in."

He pushed the door halfway open, peeking in hesitantly. "I wasn't sure if you would be awake or not," he said quietly, as if I were still half-asleep.

I blinked and sat the book down next to me. "I wake up when the sun goes down," I answered. I leaned back into the cushions of the sofa, resisting the need to pull my legs up to guard my body.

Jason nodded and came in the rest of the way, closing the door behind him. He looked good, dressed in a dark grey Henley shirt and jeans with a pair of hiking boots. He pushed his hands into his pockets as he crossed my bedroom to lean against the spiral bedpost casually. "How about a walk?"

My eyebrows rose slightly and I couldn't help my smirk. "I don't think I have your leash," I teased.

"You're funny," he chuckled, shaking his head at me. "C'mon, I'll give you a real tour of this place."

I nodded and got to my feet. Swerving around the coffee table, I headed into the walk-in closet. I pushed some of the gowns and hangers to one side where I had found an assortment of stilettos on my first night. Hoping to find something other than heels, I moved a chunky pair of wedge-heeled boots to the side. Somehow the collection felt unusual to me when I thought of werewolves. It seemed more natural to not wear shoes.

I rummaged through the back of the closet, pushing the skirts of the dresses away from the rest of the shoes I hadn't noticed before. I found a pair of brown, flat leather boots, and then grabbed socks. When I reemerged from the closet to pull them on, I found Jason on the couch. He held the spine of the book I had been fixing to read.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I asked.

"Your choice of literature. You like the older ones, don't you?" he asked as he inspected the copy of Into the Wild in his grip.

I smiled as I sat down on the corner of my bed. "I'm one of the youngest people in a family of vampires. My grandparents are several hundred years old. Most of the references I grew up around are far older than you and I combined. I think my parents tried to raise us with a strong appreciation of the past."

He chuckled again. "That makes sense. What's your favorite?"

"To Kill A Mockingbird," I answered as I finished lacing up my first boot. "When I was growing up, we traveled a lot and it was just easier to get lost in a book."