John Ransom's smirk taunts me from the cheery family photo.

Tall, thin, sandy-haired; he looks nothing like his gorgeous sister, who is standing so close to me that I can feel the warmth of her body on my cool skin. I long to grab her and kiss that mouth of hers again, but the anger inside me is rising. There's no telling what I'd do to her in this state, so I need to leave. And the interruption by her roommate was unfortunate.

"Matteo? You don't have to go. We can just hang out, or sit in the lounge, or—"

I interrupt Evangeline, probably in a voice too abrupt, too harsh. But I don't care, now that I've seen all I need. "No, I should return home."

She blinks a few times and nods. I follow her out the door, through the hall, and down the stairs. We approach a group of drunk, giggling girls in the lobby who fall silent when they see us. Not only do I glower at them, but Evangeline does, as well.

The guy at the desk spots her and his face lights up, which makes my blood boil even more.

"I'm signing him out," she says as she gestures to me before making in the book with a pen.

"Evan, do you and Kerri want to come to my room later to watch MTV? That new Billy Idol video is out." the kid says.

Evan? Is that her nickname? It's both endearing and too rough for her. I scowl, thinking that Evangeline is such a delicate, lovely name. No, I'd never call her Evan. Not in a million years.

She looks to me, then at him, twirling a finger around a lock of her red hair. "No, uh, I'm kinda tired. Thanks, though."

The kid's expression crumples as if his Christmas has been stolen. Too fucking bad. A little surge of triumph runs through me, which is absurd.

She sweeps past me and opens the door, allowing a gust of frigid air inside that bites my face. It's like a slap, it's so bracing. A strike that jolts me out of my musings over the lovely Evangeline.

I'm about to tell her that she doesn't need to walk me outside, but she's on the sidewalk before I can finish. Obviously she wants some dramatic goodbye, a passionate kiss. I have mixed feelings about this, and rake in an inhale of cold air.

I walk outdoors, stuffing my hands into my pockets. Although I can feel cold, it doesn't bother me. I find it more invigorating than anything, and would prefer to be out here in just a long-sleeved shirt. But centuries of mirroring humans and a faint memory of when I was alive means pretending that I'm chilly so people don't ask questions.

There's no one in front of the dorm other than us, and we stand face-to-face.

"You said you were going home. Did you mean Italy?" she asks.

"No. I meant the place I'm staying. I'm in Boston for a little while longer."

She nods, a little smile tugging at the corners of that sinful mouth of hers. "Well. It was, ah, interesting. Tonight, I mean."

"That's one way to put it."

As angry as I am, as much as I loathe her family, as much as I'm suspicious of her very existence, I can't help but cup her face in my hands. There's something about this girl, something I desire—even though I'm simultaneously pissed at myself for my carnal thoughts.

Still. I need her in order to get to her brother. I stroke her soft cheeks with my thumbs. "This isn't a goodbye, you know."

She raises her eyebrows. "It isn't?"

"No. I'll be in touch. I'd like to get together again while I'm here. If you'd like to."

She nods, and I lean in for a slow, sensual kiss. Yeah, I want her, in more than a few ways. The little breathy moan that escapes her mouth is so fucking satisfying. But I'm not doing this to please her. Quite the opposite. I ease away from her and remove my hands from her face.

"Go inside. It's cold."

"Do you want the dorm payphone number?" She asks this in a halting cadence, like she's not sure if she should broach such a topic.

I shake my head. "I know where you live." And where every one of her classes are held, and the address of her childhood home. The only thing I don't know is the whereabouts of her murderous brother.

But that's where you'll come in, lovely Evangeline.

She grins. "Okay. You can always leave a note at the desk if I'm not here. See you around."

My gaze follows her as she goes back into the building, and I can't help but notice that she doesn't even pause to chat with the guy behind the desk.

* * *

Instead of taking a cab, I walk the mile or so to the flat on Beacon Hill, hoping to clear my mind. My thoughts are a tangle of confusion as I make my way up Marlboro Street.

It's around one in the morning, and a soothing calm settles over me, as it always does in the hushed darkness. This is my preferred time, when humans are just settling into sleep. For me, there are still many productive hours in this day.

As I stalk up this street lined with stately brownstones and cherry trees on the verge of blossoming, I think about Evangeline. Her scent clings to my skin, and with each inhale I feel a mixture of rage and lust. My steps grow light and soundless against the concrete sidewalk, and in the black of night, I'm sure I resemble a shadow flitting through the night.

How much does Evangeline know about her brother John? Does she understand that he's trying to resurrect their ancestor's plot to infect vampires with a deadly virus? Is she in on that plan? The fact that she's studying to become a doctor is highly suspicious.

It's plausible that she's aligned with John, but doesn't entirely make sense, either. As a half-human, half-vampire, she should have an inkling that I'm a full-blooded creature. Most half-bloods don't want anything to do with my kind. And yet, she wasn't afraid of me, not even a little. She seemed to want everything I did, and Lord knows I wanted so much from her.

Would've taken it, too, if her cock-blocking roommate hadn't come in. That girl's another problem, I can tell.

Logic tells me that I should proceed with pursuing Evangeline's brother and forget about her. Don't involve her in my vendetta, since she could easily become a casualty. Simply because her ancestor's evil virus killed my best friend hundreds of years ago, doesn't mean she's guilty—or that she's on board with her brother's plans to unleash the virus once again to finish the rest of us off.

But luring her brother out of whatever hole he's hiding in would be so much easier if she were my bait. After spending tonight with her, after hearing her sweet, girlish voice, looking into those guileless green eyes, feasting on that velvet-soft skin... I would find it difficult to believe that her brother would ignore her if she was in peril.

And if I'm being honest with myself—which I'm capable of doing, hell, I've spent enough time navel-gazing over the decades—I have ulterior, entirely personal motives. I want to see Evangeline again, for purely physical reasons.

Yes, I want to fuck her.

It's a crude impulse, to be sure. I'm fairly certain I can do it without turning her into a living dead girl. That threat needs to come later, when I'm trying to lure her vampire-hating brother to me. But before that, I want to feast on her flesh in a different way, sate my desire that's gone unquenched for far too long. Don't I deserve as much for this interminable hell, this infernal assignment?

The memory of Evangeline's mouth on mine is fresh, a sweet-hot lingering sting, bracing like the cold wind. There's also a taste of the forbidden, of course, and a twinge of guilt.

Because hunters like me have but a few rules in The Council, and one is to never get involved with a half-breed like Evangeline. Not under any circumstances, but especially under these circumstances. My elders in The Council would want me to kill her without question or mercy, given her heritage.

By merely kissing her, I've already broken several rules of my mission.

And you know what? I've always been a rule breaker, ever since I was turned. Damiano and I both were this way, and I still am. It's why The Council sought me out for this job, to find John and slay him so he doesn't carry out his evil plans.

What The Council doesn't know is that I don't give a fuck about their rules, at least when it comes to Evangeline. I'll get what I want from her and kill her brother, and perhaps finally, Damiano's death will be avenged.

____

AUTHOR'S NOTE: What do you think so far? I'm really looking for feedback since this is my first paranormal romance!