City of Blood

06

I have an alarm set on my phone so I can get Callum out of the house before anyone in my family potentially finds out and I find myself grounded for even longer. Last night, Callum told me that because he was a human for so much longer than he's been a vampire, he still sleeps through the night. It's not necessary for him, but he likes to stay connected with the human he was before.

Callum offered to sleep on the floor or leave last night, but I told him that I didn't mind sharing the bed. He's my mate, so naturally I want him around. Plus, he seems to like being around me and I've learned that while I'm attracted to him because he's my mate, he's also a lot of fun to be around.

Late last night, we played card games for hours because I don't have a TV in my room or any kinds of video games. We played Phase 10, Uno, and Speed, and both of us were aggressively competitive but I still had a lot of fun.

"Wake up and get out of my house," I say, shaking Callum's shoulder.

His eyes flutter open, the red wine color dull at the moment because he's still waking up. Callum smiles as soon as he makes eye contact with me and pokes my nose, which makes me growl in annoyance. He doesn't seem fazed at all by my growls, which I suppose is a good thing.

"Good morning to you, too," he says, stretching his arms above his head and yawning. "Sleep okay?"

I smile. "Yeah, how about you?"

"I mean there was a clingy werewolf breathing on my neck all night, but other than that, it was good."

My cheeks heat up and I'm sure that I'm visibly red. I elbow him and get out of bed, opening my drawers to get dressed. I'm not allowed to go out and go on a run, but I can still go work out in our basement gym. Honestly, saying "gym" is a bit of an exaggeration; there's a machine for weight lifting, a treadmill, and a stair-stepper.

"I was kidding," Callum whispers, wrapping his arms around me from behind, which makes a chill run down my spine. "You're cute when you sleep."

"That's such a creepy sentence," I respond, turning around to face him. "I wish you could stay here all day."

Callum shrugs. "It's okay, I'll do the forbidden Romeo and Juliet trope."

"Don't they both die in the end? I've never read the book."

"You've never read Romeo and Juliet? It's a classic!"

"I mean, I've heard of it but I just never got a copy of it or really had an interest in it. I've read The Great Gatsby, 1984, and The Catcher in the Rye, but I'm more interested in supernatural books or fantasy type books."

Callum still seems shocked by the revelation, but he regains his usual composed expression. "Can I come back tonight?" he asks.

I nod eagerly. "Yeah, but I have to leave my room today and act normal so come a little later."

There's a knock at my bedroom door and my eyes widen. Both Callum and I tiptoe to the window, trying to make sure that supernatural hearing won't ruin either of our days. He slips out, winking at me before climbing the branch back to the main tree.

"Lennox?" Dad calls through the closed door. "Are you up?"

I rub my eyes so I look a little more tired and open the door. It's easy to look annoyed because I still am really irritated with him. "It's, like, six in the morning."

"You usually get up early," Dad says, leaning against the doorframe. "I wanted to see how you were doing."

"Peachy."

Dad sighs as I put on my workout clothes and brush past him to head downstairs. "Lennox-"

"I'm just going to the basement, not outside. Since, you know, I'm grounded."