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I noticed something was wrong the moment Amber strolled into the kitchen and started sweet-talking me. Was Landon avoiding me because of our kiss last night, or was it something more? Every time I brought up the topic, Amber said, “He’s helping Aidan. It’s gonna take a while.”

If that were true, why hadn’t I gone with them? We had helped Aidan and Nathan and the others before, together, so why not now?

Being mad was a waste of time, so I let that go and enjoyed my day with Amber. We trained for an hour or so. It was nice to fight someone other than Landon for a change. Then, she helped me bake a carrot cake with a thick chocolate frosting. Later, we watched a movie. All the while, we talked and I learned a little more about her and the hunters.

Her father, Hendrick, who was out on a big case in Nevada, had become a hunter after his own father. He fell in love with Sabrina, a human from out of town. They couldn’t keep away from each other, so he told her about his job and brought her to Willow Harbor. A couple of years later, they had Aidan and then Amber. Sabrina had vowed to keep her children away from the hunter life. Until the day a crazed werewolf killed her. Aidan had been eight, and Amber six.

Everyone in this manor had a tragic past. Landon had lost his entire family and now my father. Helen had lost her husband and her son. Sophia, the youngest of the group, had lost both her parents when she was twelve. Douglas had lost the love of his life when they were still young, and he vowed never to love again. I didn’t know what the other hunters’ stories were, but by the lack of parents and spouses and girlfriends, I could only assume they all had lost family.

A hunter’s life was a dangerous, heartbreaking life.

In the evening, Amber went up to take another shower, and I decided to go to the dining room and work on my neglected homework. My professors had sent more work and a quick note. I couldn’t miss many more classes or they wouldn’t have a choice but to fail me.

With my pen in hand and my notebook by my side, I tapped on my iPad and started reading the notes that had been for today’s classes.

“Hey.”

I looked up from my homework, surprised to see Landon. At this rate, I was starting to believe I wouldn’t see him today.

My heart squeezed as I took him in. He looked tired with his expression unusually soft, but somehow the strength and determination I always admired in him were still visible in the square of his wide shoulders, and the tension in his jaw. His hair was a little out of place, as if he had run his hands through it one too many times, but he still looked incredibly hot. Why did a simple pair of jeans and dark gray T-shirt look so good on him?

“Hi,” I said, feeling lame. Small. Unwanted.

He walked in the dining room, his gaze on my notebook. “Homework.”

“Yeah.”

He grasped the top of a chair across the table and looked up at me. “Amber just told me you guys had a good day.”

My brows slammed down. “Yes, we did.” My voice was a little harsher than I expected, but what did he want? He said he would be back in an hour or two, but he was gone for most of the day. And I still felt like he was hiding something from me. “Were you able to help Aidan?”

“Oh, yeah. I did. Sorry I didn’t come back sooner. We had no idea it would take so long.” I shrugged as if I didn’t care. He glanced at my homework again. “Are you almost done?”

“I should be. In about fifteen minutes or so. Why?”

“I’m hungry. I can fix us a mean omelet for dinner. Is that okay?”

Why was he being so nice and speaking so softly to me all of a sudden? “Sure.”

He nodded once, and then left the dining room. A minute later, I heard the clank of pots and pans, and it was impossible to focus and finish my homework. I closed my eyes for a minute and concentrating on filtering the sounds coming from the kitchen out.

I finished my homework in ten minutes and went to the kitchen.

With a dishtowel on his shoulder, Landon added salt and pepper to the omelet. Slowly, I made my way to him and leaned on the counter three feet from him.

I sniffed and the scent of rich butter and bacon filled my nose. “That smells good.”

A lopsided grin stretched his lips. Almost a smile. Almost. “It tastes even better,” he said. “But probably not as good as your dinner last night.” He glanced over his shoulder to the carrot cake on the kitchen island. “Or that cake.” He turned back to the frying pan. “This is all I can do. Paninis and sandwiched and omelets.”

“At least you can cook. A lot of people can’t.”

“True.”

He reached for the plates he had set on the counter and split the omelet in half, as if I ate as much as he did, but I didn’t say anything. We took the plates to the island, grabbed water, and then sat down on stools side by side.

I took a forkful. Yes, butter, eggs, bacon, ham, tomato, spinach. The perfect texture. I moaned. “This is good.”

Landon cleared his throat. “Thanks.”

We ate in silence, but despite our arguments lately, it wasn’t a tense silence. It was a nice, comforting silence. Somehow, I felt safe and not alone beside him.

I ate two thirds of my omelet, and then gave him the rest.

“You eat like a bird,” he said before shoving the last big bite in his mouth.

“I already told you, I eat like a bird, but I eat often.” I pointed to the carrot cake. “I’ll be back in about one or two hours, and I’ll have a piece of that.”

He chuckled. “Ending the day with something sweet.”

I smiled. “Something like that.”

He finished the omelet, and then took our plates to the sink. I stared at him, while he rinsed the plates and the glasses and put them on the dishwasher. Then, he closed the dishwasher and turned around, finding me boring holes into his back.

“What?” he asked, drying his hands on the towel that had been on his shoulder moments ago.

“We haven’t researched or talked about our demon all day,” I finally said. “You want to go to my father’s office and try to make sense of all we learned this morning?”

While Amber and I had been watching the movie, I had written notes on my phone about what I knew about this case, so I could try to make sense of it while Landon was out with Aidan. Turned out, I didn’t know much and I couldn’t find any sense of anything.

I bet Landon had more notes, and maybe if we put our heads together, we could see something there.

He frowned. “I don’t want to talk about that tonight.”

“What? Why?”

He sighed. “Because I’m freaking tired of this demon, and I want a breather. That’s all I want.” His tone wasn’t harsh, but it wasn’t his normal either.

“Okay,” I whispered. Suddenly feeling like I was suffocating inside the kitchen, I stood and turned to the outside door. “I’m gonna go for a walk before I grab a piece of cake and go to bed. Good night.” Without looking at him, I marched out of the kitchen and onto the wide stone patio outside.

It was dark out, but the moon was high and full and, together with the many lamps outside the manor, illuminated enough of the large backyard. The gentle, warm summer breeze brushed against my skin, and I lifted my face, enjoying it.

If I closed my eyes, I could imagine this place was a castle, and instead of demons hunters, all the people who lived here were princes and princesses, living happily ever after. That was what I wished for them. Enough of deaths and hurt and wounds and loses. They needed a long streak of good luck and happiness.

“I like coming out here at night too,” Landon said from behind me. Letting out a long breath, I opened my eyes, but I didn’t turn to look at him. “When I’m here, looking at this beautiful place, I feel safe. Like everything will turn out okay, you know.”

I felt a knot forming between my brows. His words … it had been somewhat similar to what I had thought. “Why are you telling me that?”

He stood beside me, his body turned to the backyard too, as if bathing in the moonlight. “I’m sorry I’ve been such a jerk lately. I promise I don’t mean to be. It just happens.”

I glanced up at him. “What’s wrong with you?”

The lopsided grin was back. “There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“Yes, there is. You’re never this cool or relaxed.” I pointed to his face. “And that almost smile. I’ve seen it twice tonight alone, when in reality, you never smile.”

“I smiled last night. I even laughed.”

Could we stop talking about last night? Last night was when he had kissed me and then regretted it. “Yes, you smiled and laughed at Cole’s silly jokes.”

“He can be a goofball when he wants to.”

Oh my word. “Landon, what’s wrong?”

He shrugged. “Despite the fact that there is a demon out there leaving bodies left and right and I can’t seem to catch it? Nothing.”

“It doesn’t seem like nothing.”

“Tessa, just … stop worrying and enjoy the peace and quiet of the night.” He gestured toward the immense darkness of the garden.

“There’s definitely something wrong with you.” He chuckled and I gaped at him. “See? You’re practically laughing.”

A smile—a real smile—appeared on his lips and my heart did a little pitter-patter. “You’re cute when you’re trying to solve a mystery.”

Narrowing my eyes, I turned toward him and put my hands on my hips. “Are you admitting you’re a mystery?”

The smile held, shining bright and causing more turmoil inside me. “Perhaps. I think everyone is a mystery; some are more and some are less.” Eyes fixed on mine, Landon reached over and tucked a lose strand of my hair around my ear. His smile faded. “Like you. You’re a mystery to me.”

I gulped. “Why?”

His fingertips lingered on my jaw. “Because … you were pushed aside by your father. Your mother got married again and had another family, one you don’t feel a part of. Your father adopted a random boy and raised him as his own.” His fingers traveled down my neck. I suppressed a shiver. “Then you lost said father. And here you are. Still bright, still happy, still smiling at every chance you get, still trying to make the most of every moment, still loving your sisters with all your heart, still caring for your mother and helping her out when you can, still trying to make a bunch of depressed hunters see that there’s more to life than hunting and killing and death.” His feathery touch trailed over my shoulder. “And, even though you didn’t know your father well, you’re trying to avenge him with everything you have. Besides all that, you’re kind and smart and beautiful. Stunning, actually. How in the world can a single person be this … complete? This perfect?”

Warmth spread through my cheeks and I looked down at my feet. “You don’t need to lie to me, Landon.”

His fingers traveled up my neck and pushed on my chin, forcing my head up. My eyes met his. “I’m not lying. You’re incredible and … I’m drawn to you. Like a moth to the light. I can’t …” He took one large step, towering over me. His body was only a few inches from mine, but I felt the heat, the energy, rolling off him in waves. I sucked in a sharp breath. “I tried staying away from you. I really did. But I can’t.”

“What—?”

My question was silenced by the pressure of his lips on mine. This time, I didn’t hesitate. I was surprised, yes, but since last night, I had imagined kissing him several times, even though I thought it would never happen again.

Wait … Why had he pushed me away last night, but was kissing me again tonight? It didn’t matter right now, not when his lips moved against mine, so soft, so warm. With a moan, I parted my lips and let him in. He groaned, pushing his tongue inside. I leaned into him and wound my arms around his shoulders, gluing my body to his. His hands trailed to my back and pressed me tight against him.

Going lower, he clasped my waist, lifting me up. Surprised, I let out a yelp against his lips. My ass met the cold stone railing around the patio. I opened my legs and Landon stepped in, pressing his chest to mine once more. I wrapped my legs around his hips and tugged with my feet, wanting him closer.

He groaned as he bit my lower lip. His lips peppered kissed along my neck, and I moaned, loving the trail of fire his lips left on my skin, loving the way his hard body felt against mine, loving the way his hands grabbed at me as if he would never let me go.

Not really remembering where we were, I tugged at his T-shirt, wanting, needing, it off.

He pulled back a little and locked his gaze on mine. The heat in his hazel eyes, the want and lust in them, it was enough to make me shiver.

“We don’t …” He swallowed hard. “We don’t have to do anything.”

I ran my tongue over his lips. His eyes fluttered close and he inhaled sharply. I loved seeing my effect on him. “I want to.” My voice was firm and clear. “I want you, Landon.”

His mouth crashed on mine again, his hands cupping my face, holding me in place, as if he was afraid I would change my mind and leave him.

Finally, he broke the kiss and stepped back. His hand shot out between us. “Come on.”

With a smile, I took his hand.

Together, we practically raced to his bedroom.