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"Where are we going?" Anna asked, her body tre, her eyes ith fear as Ian and I led her out of The Catacoht, Anna," I tried to soothe her "You’re just going to spend a little tiet you back to who you were"

Clearly, frothat I said

"Everything’s going to be fine, Anna," Ian began rubbing his hand over her back "We can go to the gardens after Maybe you can go get some roses"

A smile lit up Anna’s face "Roses!" She nodded with enthusiasm "I like roses!"

I sed back the jealousy I knew that Anna and Ian had some sort of connection between them, one I was afraid to find more about, but it was there and I couldn’t deny it no matter how much it botheredto do with roses

We eventually made our way to The Sanctuary, where Corrine was already waiting Before she was brought to The Shade to becoe as a psychology major Sometimes, when around her, I foundme I had no idea if anyone else felt the sareeted in a rather for like a deer in headlights "We’re going to get roses later Ian proination, but I could swear I saw Ian sut clenched Is this forever my story? Will I forever be the man in love with a wohts away as I watched Corrine lead the beautiful young wo Ian and me instructions to do as we pleased while aited, but to make sure ere around when they were done

Any ti tense and unsure what to do or how to even spark a conversation with hi we had in common was Anna I was pleased to find out that Ian wasn’t up fora trip down memory lane… to the day I first saw Anna in The Shade…

Sauard the southeast area of the Criuard duty in The Shade, the whole thing was routine – sodom, because there really wasn’taround and trying to figure out hoile the tiuard duty

We’d been at it for a couple of hours e heard rustling along a nearby bush

"I’ll check it out," I told Sam and approached the area where the sound came fro that led to a large lake I peered past the bushes and onto the lake and founda breath when I saw her I didn’t know her na, silky, jet black hair, big reen eyes… A lovely fe water…

I was du that ith Brigitte I stared as she bathed in the lake water huht of her, I lost balance and stu on the ground beneath, breaking a couple of twigs and rustling a bunch of leaves as I did Her eyes greith horror at the sight of asped "I had no idea soet clean…"

I shook my head and lifted ht "It’s fine I was just surprised that a lovely young wo…"

She blushed "I like going for swims It relaxes me Besides, compared to the shoe have at The Catacombs, a bath at the lake seemed luxurious…"

There was a certain ease about her that most of the Naturals in The Shade didn’t seem to possess Whenever I interacted with any of the humans, they often didn’t look me in the eye They cowered as if they were fearful that I would suddenly just bite into their necks – so that was known to have already happened to some citizens of The Shade

She was different, however She see her bare, but that was more because I was a man and she was a woman, not because I was a varound where she left her dress, signaling to et out of the water

I nodded and turned around to give her the privacy she needed

"Thank you," she said and ratefulness

"What’s your name?" I asked, my back still turned to her

"Anna"

"Anna," I repeated, as I listened to the gentle ripple of the water as she got out of the lake "You live at The Catacombs?"

"Yes"