Page 48 of Anatomy of the Immortal Species

When Mikhail ended the meeting, Viktor pulled him aside for a brief conversation. While the two men spoke, the other members departed. But Amelia waited – she wasn’t leaving until given a proper explanation from Mikhail about what had transpired during the session.

Viktor waved goodbye to her, and Mikhail approached, offering his hand to help her stand. Amelia took it, jaw clenched. Oh, he could be gallant when he wanted to be, as if he hadn’t just made a critical decision on her behalf.

The emptiness replacing his hand when he moved aside only heightened her irritation. “Why didn’t you warn me you’d appoint me as a Council member?” she asked.

As soon as the words left her lips, a sense of unease crept up her spine. The air around her thickened with dangerous energy. Before she could brace herself, she knew Mikhail was the source.

His shoulders stiffened. “You don’t want to be involved?”

Amelia frowned. “I don’t know. We should have discussed it…”

His gaze locked onto hers with an intensity she couldn’t decipher. Realising she was trapped between his body and the table, she swallowed hard.

“Do you think you don’t belong on the Council?” His question was a growl that sent shivers across her skin.

“I don’t know if I belong…” she said with caution. “It felt… strange.”

Mikhail’s hands landed on her hips, his fingers moving to her knees, and he lifted her on the table.

“Mikhail, what are you – ?”

He pushed her legs apart and stepped closer, her pulse skyrocketing. For a moment, time seemed to stop as Mikhail stared at her, and she couldn’t move.

Then he withdrew his hands from her thighs. Bracing himself on the table’s edge, he leaned closer. “It’s time to decide, Amelia. Tell me if you don’t want to be the Oracle. Tell me if you don’t want this. Tell me and I could…”

She lifted her chin, determined not to show how deeply his nearness affected her. “You could what?”

He hesitated, dropping his head back and staring to the side. For a brief moment, the tattoo on his arm tempted her, and she craved to trace it and ask him what was wrong. But touching him was a risk. So, she waited.

When his eyes met hers again, they were softer. His golden irises traced her lips, and his fingers touched her shoulder, trailing down to her elbow. He smiled. “Who are you? Amelia or the Oracle?”

His smile triggered a painful longing deep in her abdomen. She took a second to steady herself. And another one to ponder her answer. The question felt like a trap, and there were still traces of that formidable energy in the air, so she sidestepped. “Who do you want me to be?”

A glint sparked in Mikhail’s eyes, his fingers resuming their path down her arm. “I need the Oracle’s knowledge… But IwantAmelia.”

Her breath hitched.

“Tell me, Amelia…” His voice dropped to a whisper. “What will you say if I ask to kiss you?”

She bit her lip, recalling the feeling of his kiss. More than ever, she wanted him to follow through on what he was saying.

“What will you say if I ask to feel your body the way I did before?” His hand slid down her inner thigh, and she shifted her leg to give him better access. God, how weak she was… “What will you say if I ask for even more than last time?”

She held her breath, waiting for his next move. What would she say?

That she couldn’t wait to find out what “more” meant? The answer to all his questions was “yes,” and Mikhail knew it.

When he leaned in and moved closer to her lips, a wave of relief washed over her. For a moment, she had feared none of this was real – that it was just a dream from which she’d wake up, burning with desire and unable to quench the fire. Just as she had often on the nights she’d spent outside the Hospital, away fromhim.

Amelia didn’t dare move, convinced her heart would burst if she made any further effort. She wanted to close her eyes and savour the sensation of his closeness. It was too easy to give in to his touch. The time she’d spent away from the Hospital had somewhat dulled her memory of Mikhail’s outburst. Of that time when he had projected sins committed by another woman onto her.

Back then, Amelia had glimpsed the demons from his past. The beautiful face and magnetic presence were only half of who Mikhail was. The other half was angry, aggressive, and primal, and although it rarely surfaced, it was always there, lingering underneath the surface.

The memory roused her from the spell of his closeness. With effort, she pulled away from him.

“What do you want from me, Mikhail?”

His eyes bore into hers with an intensity that made her head spin. “For you to let me in,” he said in a raw voice. “To stop keeping me at a distance from what’s going on in your head. The transformation is a complex and confusing process for any being. I can help you. I’ve been through it. But you have to share with me.”