Page 49 of The Vampire Court

I collide with a solid mass. Muscular arms wrap around me in a tight hold.

“Clara?”

I jerk back and look up into Cassius’s face. I push against him, twisting, but his grip only tightens. There’s a whoosh of air, and the light from the hall is gone. The walls of my tiny room surround me again.

My legs give out from the unexpected speed. I slump to the floor. Cassius follows me, refusing to let go. He pins my back to his chest, holding my arms to my sides, and clamps his thighs against my hips and legs, rendering me unable to move.

“What are you doing?” I hiss, twisting my neck to glare.

“Me?” He returns the look. “I should be the one asking you what you’re doing. You were running through the halls crying.”

The fight leaves me all at once. I turn away, not wanting him to witness the new tears that spring up. Taking several deep inhales, I work on calming my racing pulse.

His heart beats against my back, and with each breath, the rise and fall of his chest echoes the rhythm. His closeness bothers me. It’s too intimate.

“You can let me go.” I squirm against him. “I’m fine now.”

Cassius gradually loosens his hold as if he doesn’t entirely trust that I won’t attack. As soon as he releases me, I scoot away. He remains where he is, watching me with a guarded expression. I press my back to the side of the bed across from him.

“I’ve been suffering from night terrors since…” I gesture toward him. “Since you found me that night at Windbury.”

Cassius’s brow wrinkles. He draws a leg up and rests an arm on his bent knee. “Then you will return with me and stay until you have a new master.”

I shrink back as if it could keep him from getting to me. “No,” I snap. “Why do you care? It’s not as if this is the first time you found me like this.”

Cassius rubs the light stubble along his jaw thoughtfully. A frown pulls at the corners of his mouth.

“It’s different…” he says but doesn’t elaborate. The stilted tone of his words makes it sound like he cut himself off before he said too much.

He’s keeping something from me.

Cassius climbs to his feet. Bending at the waist, he reaches out and takes my hand, helping me up.

“Why are you in my room?”

He blinks in surprise at the harshness of my tone. “You’re welcome,” he says, “I am here because you are my ward for the time being and I wanted to check on you.”

He runs his fingers through my hair, loosening the tangles and brushing it back off my face. I swat at his hands and miss.

Scrunching my nose, I lean away, unable to back up without falling onto my bed. “Why are you pretending to be nice?”

He drops his arms to his sides. “Despite what you think, little bird, I am capable of being nice, and as I’ve said before, I have my reasons.”

Reasons… I scoff inwardly. Reasons he refuses to tell me. The non-answer only fuels my suspicion.

“Well, you can stop. You’re in charge of bringing me to heel, but that doesn’t mean anything else has changed.”

“Why are you so untrusting of me?” he shoots back.

“Because you are still the same vampire who offered to turn me when—”

A broad grin stretches across his face. “You want me to turn you?” he asks, intentionally misinterpreting what I said.

“No,” I bite out. “I have no desire to be a lesser vampire.”

“Good. I love a woman who isn’t willing to settle for less power than she deserves,” he says.

I scoff. “This has nothing to do with power and everything to do with you wanting to take me away from Alaric.” I shake my head. “I’m not a thing for you to use in petty games.”