Tess
The following day after telling Freddy he is on a trial period, I wake up to someone tapping on the window of my balcony. I tiredly turn my head, eyes stopping on Freddy’s left hand, lifting in a wave while the right one appears from behind his back, holding a bouquet of roses.
I arch an eyebrow at him, and he smirks. “Hello, Princess,” he says in a lazy voice, and even though the sun is shining and the birds are singing, he manages to look dark, scary, and way too sexy for what is fair when he says, “You ready to head out on our first date?”
I’m baffled. When I told Freddy he can be good if he wants to and asked him to show me that he isn’t evil, I don’t know what I expected, but it surely wasn’t this.
“I didn’t—...” I purse my lips, eyes locked on the bouquet of flowers before I hesitantly change my sentence, “Those flowers are beautiful. Are they for me?”
“They are,” Freddy says from behind the glassed door, cocking his head to one side. “You have to invite me inside, Princess. It looks like Wesley’s grandma has taken precautions and put a barrier on the house.”
I slowly stand up from my bed, tiredly reaching for my white T-shirt. I’m not naked, though. I sleep in my underwear. “You can come in.”
Before I can pick up the T-shirt, Freddy does it for me. He appears out of nowhere, smirking when I stare up at his face and then at the t-shirt he holds for me.
He quirks an eyebrow at me. “Don’t look so surprised, Princess,” he teases. “You are dating a hybrid, after all.”
“You don’t have to keep reminding me by showing off,” I roll my eyes, but it only seems to edge him on.
“I’m not showing off,” he retorts, though his lips twitch with amusement.
I raise an eyebrow in challenge, and he can barely contain his laughter. He has to bite his lower lip to reel it in, but even then, his red eyes glitter with entertainment.
“Okay, maybe I am showing off,” he admits with a rueful smile. “But you have to admit things go much faster if you let me help you out.”
I sigh heavily to agree with him. “Yeah, yeah, because humans are so slow and weak, right?”
“I’ve been thinking about that, actually.”
“Oh? You’ve been thinking about my humanity?” I ask and feel oddly self-conscious and worried. Lucas didn’t accept me because I’m a human, and now I’m worried Freddy might be thinking the same thing. Maybe he just liked me because I was somebody else’s fated mate?
“I have,” Freddy strokes his chin. “A lot, actually...”
My heart sinks, and I slide into my clothes to busy myself so that he won’t see the hurt on my face. “Should I be worried?”
“No, I just...” He sighs, and when I look up at him, he is scratching the back of his neck, looking hesitant. “You told me to stay away from my lab.”
“I did.” I don’t want him making more hybrids.
“But what if my magic could be used for good? What if there was a way to remove my inner wolf from my soul and give it to somebody else? I would still be a vampire. Not a powerful hybrid, but if I could make a certain somebody feel like herself again, I wouldn’t mind.”
I pause, my heart pounding hard inside my chest. “Is...is that possible?”
He smirks. “I don’t know...but if someone allowed me to work in my lab, then I could easily find out.”
I eye him in silence, shocked by his words, and Freddy chuckles before offering me his hand. “Shall we go?”
His words make me snap out of my stupor, but, to my utter surprise, I feel a little shy about taking his hand. So instead, I stare down at it and ask, “Where are we going?”
He winks at me. “It’s a surprise.”
“Alright.”
I plop down the flowers in a random vase, put on a hoodie since it’s windy outside, and then, with Freddy’s help, I sneak out through the balcony.
It’s exhilarating jumping down from the second floor, and I giggle in delight. “Why do people use doors?”
Freddy shrugs before helping me to my feet. “I don’t know. Maybe because most people aren’t vampire hybrids?”
I snicker at that and then blink in surprise at the empty courtyard. I’m sure Wesley is aware of Freddy being here, yet he isn’t here to try and stop us from leaving. I’m grateful for that since I’m convinced his beloved Lily isn’t a fan of Freddy. But I actually don’t give a flipping fuck. She might be my Luna, but she doesn’t know this man like I do.
“There is vervain in your pockets,” Freddy suddenly says as we walk through Wesley’s garden.
“I didn’t put it in there,” I slide my hand down into the pocket of my jeans, surprised to find out there is a bundle of dried flowers in there.
“I’m sure it was Wesley that gave them to you,” Freddy doesn’t look offended. “I don’t mind. I’m actually happy that my old Alpha is looking out for you.”
“He didn’t stop you from kidnapping me,” I point out.
Freddy releases an amused laugh. “You wound me, Princess. I thought we were dating.”
My heart kicks up speed at the word “dating,” and I’m suddenly so shy that I can’t make myself say a single word. Freddy glances down at me with questioning eyes. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out I’m acting like a silly lovestruck teenager. The poor guy probably expects an answer, but since I can’t manage one, I hastily take his larger hand in mine, squeezing it tightly.
Freddy breathes a laugh, his lips curving into a smile. “You’re too damn cute when you’re blushing.”
I pout, feeling my entire face burn. “I’m not blushing...”
“And that’s why your ears aren’t red.”
I don’t respond, and Freddy chuckles at that. He doesn’t tease me about it, though. Instead, he leads me through the garden until my eyes land on a car parked outside Wesley’s black metal fence. It’s black and low, sleek, and clearly very expensive.
I gasp in amazement. “Wow...”
Freddy grins and opens the door for me. I slide inside the comfortable seat, and in literally the blink of an eye, Freddy appears in the driver’s seat.
I widen my eyes at him. “Will I ever get used to your vampiric super speed?”
“If you remove the vervain from your pocket, I can compel you to stop getting dizzy from it,” he teasingly suggests.
“Harr-harr,” I roll my eyes. “Very funny.”
Freddy snickers, and I watch as he starts the car and pulls out, admiring his strong, graceful hands on the wheel. When he shoots me a sidelong smile, butterflies swarm my belly. This is new, yet it feels so right. Could it be that the moon goddess was mistaken? What if Freddy is the right person for me and not Lucas?
I keep watching Freddy as he scans the road, liking how his long eyelashes fans out over his cheeks every time he blinks. He is otherwordly beautiful and not only that, but he is very thoughtful about every decision he makes in heavy traffic. I’m learning that it’s part of his personality—thinking before acting is so very Freddy-like. My heart flutters at the thought, and I inhale deeply at the warmth inside of me. When I’m with this man, I feel at home.
As we drive, the sun gets stronger, and the streets get busier. Freddy turns on the radio, filling the car with the sweet sound of jazz music. We ride in silence for a while, taking in the music and the beauty of the city.
Suddenly, we pull into a quiet street in the middle of nowhere, and Freddy turns off the car. He turns to me, his piercing red eyes locking onto mine. “I want to show you something,” he says softly. “Do you trust me?”
“Enough to get into the car with you,” I tease. “I think I can handle the forest too.”
He grins. “Good.”
We step out of the car, and Freddy takes my hand in his and leads me deep into the forest. We stop in front of a lake, one that looks like it could belong on a magical photoshopped postcard. My breath is taken away by its beauty, and I gasp when Freddy releases my hand, only for a picnic basket and a blanket to appear on the ground out of nowhere.
I laugh in surprise. “Okay, I will take back everything bad I said about vampiric super speed. This is amazing.”
“Thank you,” Freddy appears by my side, making me jump a little when I turn around. He tilts his head, seemingly amused by my reaction. “You going to keep jumping every time I use my powers?”
“I don’t know,” I answer truthfully. “Are you going to keep appearing out of nowhere?”
He laughs. “Maybe?”
I smile and take in my surroundings, feeling a sense of awe wash over me. This place is truly enchanted. I’m happy to be here and smile when Freddy sits down and taps the blanket as if wanting me to come and sit beside him.
I settle down next to him on the blanket, feeling the softness of the fabric beneath me. Freddy reaches into the picnic basket and pulls out a bottle of wine and two glasses. He pours us both a glass and hands one to me. I take a sip, savoring the rich taste as it hits my tongue.
“You’ve thought of everything, huh?” I ask.
“What can I say? I’m trying to get the girl.”
I blush, and because I’m shy, I turn my attention to the water. “This place is beautiful,” I say softly, looking out at the shimmering lake before us.
Freddy nods in agreement. “It’s one of my favorite spots. I come here often just to think.”
“Think about what?” I ask, taking another sip of wine.
He shrugs. “Everything, really. Life, death, love, pain, happiness...you know.”
I nod slowly, feeling like I do understand. There’s something about this place that’s so peaceful and serene. It’s like all the worries and stresses of the world just fade away when you’re surrounded by nature like this.
We have some more wine and fall into an easy conversation about places that we would like to visit and places we don’t want to visit. I laugh when Freddy tells me he would never like to visit Japan because of how weird they seem to be if you are to believe everything you find on the internet—I’m crying when he tells me about vending machines that sell used panties.
Suddenly, Freddy turns to me with a mischievous glint in his eye. “You know what would make this even better?”
“What?” I ask, unsure of where he is going with this.
“A swim,” he says with a grin.
I look at him skeptically. “In that freezing cold water? No, thank you.”
He chuckles. “Trust me, it’s not as bad as it looks. And besides, I will keep you warm after the dip.”
I sink my teeth into my lower lip before relenting, “Okay, fine! Let’s do it!”
Freddy smirks at me and begins taking off his clothes, but before I can look at him and admire his sexy body, I notice there is a new text from Lily on my phone. An ominous feeling sinks into my bones as I open it.
Lily: I know you’re out with Freddy, and I know you think that he has changed, but I ask you to think twice before you trust him, Tess. Two dead humans were found this morning, and both of them had bite marks left by a vampire. They were entirely drained from blood, Tess. And if Freddy isn’t hungry, chances are he has fed on someone else.