Because Boaz didn’t understand it himself.
This strange heat. The way his skin tingled whenever they got too close. It had started the first time Alexander bit him. And it was there in his dream too.
Fuck… that dream.
Boaz pulled his hand back, releasing the firefly and watching it drift away into the night.
“Yes,” Alexander said. “I’ve never really left. Just visited the nearby towns in the mountains.” His gaze moved overthe meadow again. “I’ve never seen this much color before. Everything there is white… buried in snow. And the few flowers that do bloom…they don’t last long.”
“You should travel more. There’s more to see in the world,” Boaz said, stepping back, putting some much needed space between them. “It’s even easier for vampires. You just disappear and show up somewhere else.”
“Teleportation is useful,” Alexander replied, turning slightly toward him, “but dangerous if you don’t know where you’re going. We only teleport to places we’ve already been. Otherwise, you don’t know what you’re walking into.” He paused, then said, “Besides, I never wanted to leave the mountains. Not until the war… and the prophecy.”
Boaz’s jaw tightened at the reminder. Alexander was here for Lyla.
And somehow, instead of telling him to stay away, Boaz was here talking about fireflies.
Dammit.
“Prophecy or not,” Boaz snapped, “Lyla is not yours to claim. Just leave.”
He didn’t wait for a response.
He turned and walked off, anger burning in his chest. By the time he reached his cabin, he was livid. And he knew he wouldn't sleep unless he worked the energy out of his system.
Inside, he stripped out of his clothes, tossing them everywhere. He shoved the back door open hard enough for it to slam against the wall as he reached within. His body twisted and transformed, until a massive black wolf stood in his place.
Without hesitation, his wolf bolted straight into the forest, leaving the confusion and the anger behind. His thoughts dissolving into basic animal instinct. He ran for hours, until his body finally gave in to exhaustion. Only then did he turn back.
When he reached the cabin, he shifted back into human form as he stepped inside. He went to the bathroom, and turned on the shower, standing under the water as it washed away the dirt and sweat from his run. When he was done, he dried off. He didn’t bother with clothes as he dropped onto his bed.
Still after running for hours, his mind went straight back to the vampire.
“I hope he never comes back,” Boaz muttered into his pillow as he drifted off to sleep.
The dream started immediately.
Heat cascaded down his spine as if liquid fire was being poured on his back. Boaz rolled to his stomach, gritting his teeth as the vampire’s weight sank into him. It felt so good… so fucking good, he forgot he hated him.
And the best part was yet to come. Boaz tilted his neck to the side, silently begging the vampire to bite him. And when he did, something inside him exploded.
“Hold me,” Boaz moaned. His body trembled as his orgasm barreled down on him. Strong arms came around him, holding him tight. “Tighter,” he begged, but it never came.
Boaz’s eyes snapped open, the desperate words still lingering on his tongue as his grip tightened around his pillow.
“What the hell was that?” he groaned into the pillow, stunned. He suddenly went still as he picked up Alexander’s scent—pine and cold mountain air.
Boaz’s nostrils flared slightly as he breathed in, his body going tense. It was faint, but there. As if the vampire had been in the room only moments ago.
Fuck. Now he was imagining things.
Shoving the covers off, he pushed himself out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom. He stepped in front of the mirror, his gaze immediately going to his neck.
For a second, he expected to see a bite mark.
Proof that the vampire had been there. That it wasn’t just some twisted dream playing in his head.
But there was nothing. His skin was unmarked.