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Mason undressed quickly and joined me He covered my body with his and cradledof safety hit me that a rush of fear immediately followed it There were too many what-ifs between us Too many unresolved issues Too many unanswered questions

Mason moved from my lips to kissmy nipple into his ht was forced out of ue touched h that he growled But he didn’t slow his assault And withinhis na my own

He slid back over me and kissed and bit my neck softly, then I could feel his hardness, nestled so close to where I desperately needed it

"I love you," he murmured in my ear But before I could process the words, he tookhard within entle assault all night I held onto hi beneath his hard, sweat-soaked body to ain when my body exploded beneath him, and his cry joined mine as he pushed himself into me as far as he could, and shuddered on top of me

Realization hit as he heldin my skull I loved him too

But could I trust him?

He’d turned his back on his fa o on without the people he loved, the people he’d sworn to protect If I loved him and he pushed me away, he’d move on But I’d be broken

How could I put my faith in someone who could so easily turn froet a chance to rise beforeI wanted to stay in the heat of Mason’s ar in my muscles, just under et up Get out there and look for Min And I had to get away fro felt too cohtened around ave hiht before from the corner of the bed I threw it on and headed for the spare bathroom

After a quick shower I felt alain But his words still bounced aroundondering hoere going to find Min, and how the hell they’d gotten that coin out of the evidence warehouse

Mason was eating cereal when I reached the kitchen

"Cocoa Puffs or Frosted Flakes?" he asked, face entirely too straight for a rinned and he raised his nose up "They’re both very good, I’ll have you know"

I laughed and grabbed the Frosted Flakes Less than five minutes later, ere headed out

Mason opened the door and waved for rown old But the sight that greeted rin falter

A white box with a large blue borapped around it The fancy kind of bow that has to be tied by hand, not stuck on And the bottom of the box was rimmed with a dark liquid

Mason already stared at the box, his posture stiff His nostrils flared Of course He’d probably smelled it the second he opened the door

"Blood?" I asked, already knowing the answer

"Yes"

What the fuck is that? How the hell did they get it on your doorstep with an officer parked across the street? I wanted to fling the questions at him, but instead I asked, "Smell any explosives? Traps?"

"No What do you see?" he asked, and I knew that he wasn’t talking about ht

I closed my eyes and tried to calically--no witchcraft traces were on it that I could sense One distinctive energy clung to it heavily, seeping in and around the box Another otherworlder poas there too, slighter, fainter, but fading more slowly than the other Burnt coffee filled ue

"Fucking vampires," I spat out "And Mason…"

"What is it?"

I sed hard "I think it’s Mary Stone"