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She woke slowly, eager to leave the dark dreaht Eyes still closed, she stretchedAnd frohen her hand encountered someone in the bed beside her

Fully awake now, she turned to find Doaze intent upon her face

"Do in my" She paused when she realized she wasn&039;t in her bedroom, or in any other room of her house "Where are we?"

"How do you feel, my best beloved one?"

"I feel fine Where are we?"

"Athere?" She frowned as she gazed around the room The colors in the wallpaper seemed to vibrate with life She could hear the rustle of the leaves froh there were no s in the rooain "What happened?" she asked, and then her eyes widened as memory returned" Petrina!" Her hand flew to her throat "She bit me She drank fro for answers and yet afraid of what she ht see "You didn&039;t!" She recoiled in horror Tell me you didn&039;t"

" Querida"

"How could you do such a thing?" She was on her feet almost before she realized she wanted to rise "You kne I felt!"

Dominic sat up The blankets pooled in his lap

Tracystared at him He looked the sary as she was, she couldn&039;t help ad the width of his shoulders, his broad chest, the latent strength in his well-muscled arms, or the narrow line of black hair that started at his waist and disappeared beneath the blankets She had a sudden, inexplicable urge to find her paints and draw him as he looked now She would call itVaain He was still watching her, his expression guarded

She held out her hands, turning theers as if she had never seen them before

She was a va to deter Every sense she oas alert and alive

"I&039;m a vampire" She said the words aloud, surprised to find that the idea was not as shocking or abhorrent as she had expected

Dominic rose and held out his hand "Come with me"

She hesitated a moment and then put her hand in his Wordlessly, he led her outside and into the gardens

He esture that encompassed the yard "It is beautiful, yes?"

Slowly, she perused the grounds Though it was dark, she could see colors as clearly as if it were ht pinks and reds and yellows of the roses were vibrant and alive in a way she had never seen before She could see every thorn, the delicate veins in each leaf, in stark detail The laas a deep erass was clearly defined

And soundsShe heard the soft sighing of the wind though it was not strong enough to stir the leaves of the trees, the faint croaking of a frog, the flutter of aof a bird in its nest overhead

She ran her hand over the back of one of the stone benches, her fingers suddenly sensitive to each tiny groove

She twirled around She felt better than she had ever felt in her life, knew that she could run or swim for miles and never tire Knew if she but willed herself to do so, she could fly over the high wall that surrounded the estate