Jasmine stared at the television, the words and pictures were nothing more than background noise, flashes of light. She hurt, physically and emotionally, stuck between longing and disgust for the way she still yearned for Kiran. Her body missed his touch, her lips cried out for his kisses, her ears strained to hear his voice and her eyes missed seeing his smile…and that fine body of his. She didn't even want to think about the pitiful way she smelled her coat because his scent lingered on it. She was addicted and she felt like a junky, fiending for her next fix of Kiran Odysseus Channing.
Jasmine had left her job that day, the day her world as she knew it came crashing down, and drove straight to the nicest, nearest hotel. She stopped in the hotel's gift shop, picking up essentials and buying a t-shirt and a pair of sweats with the hotel's logo on them to hang out in. There was no way she was throwing a pity party dressed in a designer suit.
She knew instinctively that Kiran was waiting for her at her house, mostly because he wasn't waiting outside by her car when she exited the building. So, she had taken a week off and planned to spend the entirety of it at the four star hotel, wrapped in a blanket and mindlessly watching TV soap operas. Her life felt like one at the moment, so she could relate.
If she could just walk away from them, her best friend and the man that she had fallen for, it would have been so much easier. But, she couldn't. Candace had been there for her through thick and thin, and as much as she wanted to be mad at her, she couldn't stay that way for long. She was closer to her than a sister, and that kind of deep bond was not easily ignored or forgotten.
And Kiran…well, he had been so wonderful, taking her out and catering to her every whim, sharing himself with her. Then again, the issue raised its ugly head. He hadn't shared himself with her, had he? The knowledge that they were vampires had stopped bothering her after the first two nights of contemplation. It was the fact that they had hid it from her, and for so long, that kept her holed up in the hotel room.
The feelings of betrayal wrapped around her heart, the tears that she wept over her friendship and lost love were almost unbearable. She thought she could handle anything, but this was too much. It hurt, not being trusted after putting all of her trust in those two. After a couple days of remorse, she chided herself for being so weak and decided to move past the tears. So, instead of crying, she sulked in the confines of her hotel room, ordering room service and consoling herself with a gallon of ice cream.
Jasmine tried to focus on the television, but the restless sleep that had plagued her that week was finally catching up to her. She had just drifted off when the jingle of her cell phone woke her. She was disoriented enough to grab the phone off the bedside table and answer it without looking at the caller ID.
"'lo?"
"Jasmine Antoinette Ward! Where in the hell are you?"
"Candace?"
"What the hell, Jazzy? You scared the crap out of me, disappearing like that. Apparently, it's bad for the baby when I'm stressed out for an entire week because my best friend is AWOL. And it's also bad for the baby when I try to beat the immortal out of Kody while he's trying to give me an exam. You owe me and your namesake one hell of an apology. Now, where are you?"
Jasmine debated whether or not to just come out and say what she was thinking. But, her need for honesty at the moment spurred her on. "You're a vampire."
"Yes," Candace breathed.
"Why…"
"Why didn't I tell you?"
"Well, yeah."
"How much has Kody told you?"
"He's told me that all of you are vampires."
"Yes we are. Now, what did he say concerning your relationship?"
"Just that he wanted to spend the rest of time loving me. That I was his everything…that I was his mate," Jasmine admitted, feeling her heart swell as she thought of Kiran and the way he made her feel as if she was the only woman in the world.
"Well… It seems like most of it is out there, so it can't hurt to tell you. Peter explained it to me this way. When a vampire takes a mate that is not a vampire, it is his responsibility to tell his mate about himself. It's kind of a way for the couple to establish a strong, trusting bond that will last for ages, like their love."
"What do you mean?"
"The vampire is exposed to great peril by revealing himself, but he opens up and trusts his mate not to tell anyone. His mate needs to believe him, first. Then, she is allowed to choose between returning to her old life and making a new start with her mate. And so, she takes a huge leap of faith when he asks to turn her and she agrees. She has to trust him with her life."
"Hmmm."
"I wanted to tell you so badly when Peter changed me…but I had the dream that showed me that your mate was one of Peter's relatives. When I told Peter about it, he told me that I had to keep things to myself until you were properly informed."
"Why? We're best friends and I wouldn't have told anyone," Jasmine stated, feeling slightly indignant.
"It's against the rules to tell a human about the existence of vampires when that person is to be mated with another vamp. Because it's such an intimate and giving act, it should only be shared by those who are pledging their lives to each other. Dreams and premonitions prevent others from letting it slip too soon. Those dumb bitches ruined that moment for you and Kody, and for that, I will never forgive them."
Jasmine chuckled. "So what happened to them, if it's against the rules?"
"The head of the family is supposed to deal with the breaking of rules. Their mother is in charge of discipline in their family and she saw fit to relegate those three to silence. They can't talk for the next year or so."
"How does that work?"
"Their voices are gone. Their mom touched each of their mouths and muttered something…now they are mostly relying on sign language and note writing to communicate. One of them is telepathic though, so she can project her thoughts. If it were up to me, I would have ripped their tongues out."
"Seriously? Their mom can do that?"
"Seriously. I thought my momma was scary, but Mrs. Philippa A. Channing is also a force to be reckoned with."
"She's that tough and she spawned the three bitches?"
"She blames the vamp boarding school that her husband talked her into. She said they went there and came back totally different. Nothing is good enough for them now and they seem to get off on causing other people heartache."
"I see. Note to self, don't let Kiran send our kids there."
"So, you're warming back up to Kiran, huh?" Jasmine could hear Candace's smile over the phone.
"Shut up. I may still be carrying a torch for him, but that doesn't mean I don't feel betrayed."
