Touch Me ✔

Chapter Three

Something about the words "family dinner" didn't sound as normal as it seemed. For one, the only vampires who looked as though they were actually related were Levi and Miles, so I couldn't see a family resemblance. Also, the members of this family seemed to be on a strict blood diet. Being that I was the only food in the vicinity, something told me being a part of a dinner would be unfortunate for me.

"I'm in," Miles immediately responded to the challenge, training his eyes on me as though he was preparing for a race and I was the finish line. I clasped my hands together, feeling nervous quite suddenly, but for the wrong reason. I remembered Jax's mouth over my shoulder and a hint of anticipation was ringing through my veins.

"If it's a matter of survival, there has to be rules. She won't survive her throat being ripped out," Levi added simply, still relaxed and seated on the bench. I immediately reached for my throat by instinct, causing a responding smile to cross his face.

"Fangs only," Oliver promptly demanded.

"Can we do the ripping if it's with fangs, then?" Miles suggested most unhelpfully.

"No ripping, tearing, or mauling. Only bite and feed," Oliver said, his voice low and dangerous.

"Boring," Miles responded with a sigh, "But fine."

"Jax shouldn't be included, he already fed from her," Oliver turned on Theo, who looked completely uninterested in anything as long as it meant not dealing with me in the future.

"Jax feeds," Theo answered simply, his tone indicating no breathing room would be allowed. I peered at Jax hesitantly. Though he wasn't adding any input, he didn't appear to disagree with the idea of feeding off of me again. "If that's all, let's get this over with."

Theo was instantly in front of me within a breath and didn't hesitate to snatch my upper arms in his grip. My previous instinct had been right. His skin was ice cold, solid like marble, and his grasp didn't invoke the luminance Oliver's and Jax's touch had across my flesh. I looked into his face with clear fear, losing my breath at the cold, void expression that greeted me.

I was suddenly shoved back, causing me to stumble over myself and fall onto the floor. I yelped at the slap of stone against my body, but before I could recover, my wrist was grasped in the same glacial grip. Theo began to pull me along the cold floor mercilessly. Something about the situation brought an instant realization to my mind. I was about to be dragged into a feast, where I would be the main course, and Theo would be sure to make my death final.

I inhaled sharply and screamed, kicking against the floor as if I could gain my balance and escape. I reached for his firm grip on my wrist, trying to pry his fingers from me, and then screamed in terror again. This second scream reverberated around the hall I was being pulled down, scratching at the walls. As we passed by frames and lamps that lined the walls, my screams bit into the material until glass was shattering alongside me.

Theo looked back at me momentarily, rolling his eyes, "Amateur casting won't scare me, little girl." He suddenly pulled me forward, tossing me through the threshold of a large room before letting me go mid throw. I lost my breath as I tumbled across the floor, slamming into the leg of a table placed in the center of the room. For a moment, I was stunned silent.

"I thought we said only fangs," Oliver's voice thundered from the doorway.

"She busted the frame to the Mona Lisa," Theo responded apathetically.