The silence stretches between us for an eternity until he places a finger underneath my chin to bring my face up but I refuse to look at him. "Danica," he says, pinching my chin between his thumb and index finger. "Danica, look at me."

Something in the tone of his voice makes it hard for me to ignore his command and my eyes flick up on their own accord.

His long, dark, curly lashes frame the hazel eyes that now seem more golden than green. They're intense, staring into mine, and instead of pity, I see something else. Determination and anger. In fact, his anger is swirling around him, darker than before. Thankfully, his anger isn't directed at me this time. "I won't let that happen to you again. I won't let him or anyone else hurt you," he says, his jaw tight. "Do you hear me? I won't let anyone hurt you."

I nod even though I don't really know what that means and he wraps his arms around me, fierce, protective, and possessive. He's warm and strong and I sag against him.

I'm not fully convinced that it's as easy as Alistair had mentioned for me to be free of Astaroth but when I'm in Sacha's arms, I feel safe and protected. I don't feel alone.

I wrap my arms around him and I feel his storm calming down.

We hold on to each other for a long time- half an hour? An hour? I don't know, but even that doesn't seem long enough. However, when he lets go, something seems to be different about him. It's as though he's made up his mind about something.

"Come on, let's get out of here," he says, letting his arms slowly fall from around me. He takes my hand in his and twines our fingers together.

Leading me towards the door, he says, "To answer your question, this is not a sex room, princess." His eyes wander around the room for a little bit and he shakes his head. It's a beautiful room, but it is a bit over the top. "At least not that I know of. My friend owns the club and he spends too much time up here. His wife watches too many HGTV shows and she's in this decorating phase. Unfortunately, he's too whipped to stop her from doing...that." He indicates the room.

We both step out and I'm standing in the hallway while he pulls the door close when the sound of the bed creaking and the moaning start again in the room across from us. The corners of his firm mouth quirk up. "That would be them and maybe you're right. Maybe it was a sex room," he says. "By the way, we won't be stopping by to say thank you for letting us use the room or to say goodbye." He rolls his eyes upward. "Maybe next time."

Instead of going back to the club, we go through another way where we go down several steps of stairs that lead us straight toward an emergency door.

He opens the door and ushers me down a few concrete steps and I find myself on a small street at the back of the club. We're heading toward a grey Ferrari Roma that's sitting under a streetlight like a panther crouching low on the ground, ready to pounce. It's sleek and sexy, just like Sacha.

The engine purrs like a dream and I hope he'd let me drive it one day.

"Where are we going?" I ask him. He hasn't said a single word since we got in the car twenty minutes or so ago. "We're not going back to the penthouse, are we?" I'm positive that we're leaving the bright light of the city behind.

I turn my gaze back to him. "Sacha?" I don't know the area at all but it seems to me that we're heading out of the city.

He's deep in thought while his chin and jaw are set with determination. His eyes flicker off the road and stay on me for a beat before he takes my hand in his and says, "We're going back to my family home."

*****

This is the first time I see Sacha drives a car and he handles it with the efficiency and skill of a race car driver.

He doesn't drive overly fast; maybe just a bit over the speed limit. The traffic is light but it's almost 40 minutes before we turn into a private drive.

"Sacha..." I grip his hand tight, full of alarm when we arrive at the massive wrought iron gates.

The gates are left wide open but the whole property beyond the gates is protected by a powerful shield. It is there to keep someone or something like me out.

Sacha stops the car a few feet from the opening but I don't relax my grip on his hand. I can feel the sizzling heat coming from the shield, warning me to stay away. Even sitting here, a few feet from it is like sitting in front of a massive bonfire.

He turns to me and brings my hand to his lips. "Princess, you're going to be okay."

I shake my head. No, it's going to burn me alive.

"Sweetheart, look at me."

"There's a shield..."

"I put it there."

My eyes find his. "I put it there and I control it. My power will not burn you," he says, cradling my face in his hands. "It's there to keep us protected. It will protect you too, it won't harm you."

I turn to look out the car window again. The shield is dense, raging, violent, and strong. It shimmers white, gold, and blue and it's flaming. It reminds me of lightning. Just the look of it is enough to put fear in any demons and suddenly I'm in awe of his power.

"Do you trust me not to hurt you?" he asks, bringing my face back to him with his palm on my cheek.

I swallow hard and take a deep breath. "Okay," I whisper. It's scary but I know that he'd never purposely hurt me. Not physically, anyway. Besides, when have I ever cowered away from anything? "Let's go." I'm ready to be burnt into cinder and ashes.

So, the shield doesn't burn me. It's petrifying only when we're getting close to it because of the look and the threat of the heat. But once we enter the flaming outer rim, I no longer feel the heat. My skin hasn't melted off and I'm still in one piece.

I frown, looking back behind us. "So, it's all just for show?"

"Oh, no princess, it's not just for show," he says with a smirk. "Anything or anyone who's not supposed to enter will burn."

I nod. "It wouldn't harm the humans though?"

"No, most humans can't see the shield. They wouldn't even know that it's there," he answers. "Welcome to our home."

In front of us, at the end of the long driveway, is a huge three-story stone dwelling that looks more like a palace than a house. It seems white in the moonlight with an elegant sloping dark roof. There are four pairs of thick white columns supporting the front porch. Several huge open balconies hug the second story.

There are dim lights in a few large windows on the second story and the main entrance but the rest of the mansion is shrouded in darkness.

"That is my youngest brother, Ives's room. He's probably still up on the computer when he's supposed to be in bed by now," he announces indicating the windows on the second story with the lights on. He has parked the car on the side of a circular driveway.

Instead of going to the main entrance, Sacha leads me toward the North Wing of the house. He unlocked and opens the door. "You don't have to worry about waking up anybody," he says after turning the lights on. "Everyone is on the other side of the house and I live alone on this wing. This is my private entrance."

"You have a beautiful home," I tell him, letting my gaze wander everywhere. The entrance hall is probably the size of his apartment in Manhattan.

"Thank you," he says, pulling me further inside.

The floor is rich hardwood and the walls are cream and dark grey. The ceiling is high and there is a set of built-in wall units flanking a slightly hidden curving staircase.

There is a large stone fireplace in the sitting area with pictures of him and his family over the mantel. All the furniture is elegant yet comfortable looking.

His home is beautiful and posh without being ostentatious. His suite on the second level and is as tastefully decorated.

*****

I wake up to an empty bed and the sound of the shower running in the ensuite. It's still dark outside. I sigh and press my nose to his pillow. I'm a morning person but he gets out of bed earlier than I do. Every single day. I wish he had stayed longer in bed with me this morning.

Last night he just held me with his fingers playing with my hair while he stared at the ceiling. I wonder what he was thinking but I didn't ask questions because I had things on my mind too.

Like a freak, I breathe in his scent again before I get out of bed. I'm so addicted to his manly smell. In fact, I think I'm addicted to everything about him.

Maybe I'll go exploring around a bit before he gets out of the shower? I didn't get to see much last night.

I'm just wearing his shirt but I don't think there's anyone around to be offended by my lack of clothing.

I wander outside his bedroom and decided to go downstairs. The pictures above the mantel drew my attention last night but I didn't get to see them properly.

There are pictures of his parents and an elegant older lady. There are also pictures of him with his younger twin brothers, Elias and Ronan. The youngest must be Ives. They are all beautiful looking.

While studying one photo after another, I sense a presence and immediately look around.

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of a furry tail disappearing behind the curve of one of the wall units.

A cat!

I hasten my step and when I catch up to it, it stops to look back and blink at me from underneath a shelf.

"Come here, baby," I call out. "Here kitty, kitty..." I crouch on my hands and knees as I approach it and offer it my hand. Instead of sniffing my fingers, the cat just stares up at me with wise glittering eyes and I jerk my hand back.

"You're not really a cat, are you?" I whisper. Then I lean my face down closer to it and take in a long deep breath. Hmmm....soil and rotting tree barks and leaves. Morning dew and fresh spring grass and wildflowers. A woodland spirit.

My eyes widen in surprise. "Why, hello there, fellow miscreant," I whisper with a grin. A woodland spirit is the last thing that I'd expect to find in a Nephilim's domain. "You're a familiar, aren't you?" A witch is close by. I gingerly crawl closer, keeping a watchful eye on it. "Come here, kitty, kitty..." If it likes to be a cat, then I'll play its game.

I used snakes and lizards as my spies in Astaroth's lair because they're inconspicuous. But really, I'd rather use cats or dogs. Reptiles could only be my eyes because they don't have ears, canines and felines could be my eyes and my ears. A woodland spirit works too, if it allows me.

I carefully place my hand under its nose like an offering. When it doesn't make a move to hiss at me or bite me, I gently stroke its head and neck before I pick it up to cradle it in my arms. Then I bring its face up to mine.

"Oh, you're loyal to your mistress, aren't you?" I croon to it while staring into its beautiful pale blue eyes. It's mischievous but wise and it will lend me its sight and ears as long as I'm not hurting its mistress. "What's your name, baby?"

"That's Yokai," says Sacha from behind me and I jump in surprise. A feeling of guilt flares in my gut. I'm using this creature to spy on him and his family.

He's looking casual in a pair of dark wash jeans and a white t-shirt. His hair is still damp from the shower and the end is curling at the nape of his neck. He looks as sexy as hell and smells like my sinful addiction. "He belongs to my brother's girlfriend, Katherine."

So they have a witch living here. Interesting.

****************************************************

Hello, my dearies!

My next update is going to be on Friday evening (est). If you want to read three chapters ahead, go to:

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Nicole♥