The Mark of Fate: Book 3 of The Marked series by Ford, Rinna (romantic love story reading .TXT) 📕

He reached for the glass and when I noticed what he was doing, I picked it up and handed it to him. He smiled a bit wider as he brought the cup to his lips and took a drink, never taking his eyes off of me.

He drank half the glass before his hand began to shake from the weight of it. I quickly put my hand around his to try and steady it so he could drink his fill. When the glass was nearly empty, he pulled it away and sagged even further into the pillows, letting me take the glass from him.

“Thank you…”

“Emelia. My name is Emelia.”

“Thank you, Emelia. I’m Alec. I thought for a minute there I’d have to get up and get it myself.” His smile was weak but genuine in a teasing kind of way. I couldn’t help but smile back.

“Well, you’re welcome, I guess,” I replied. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“I’d like some company, if you don’t have anything else to do at two o’clock in the morning, that is.” He moved his leg over to make room on the bed, as if making a place for me to sit.

I eyed the bed then looked back up to his face and awkwardly smiled. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a plain wooden chair and I snagged it instead, pulling it over to the side of the bed.

“I don’t have anything else to do other than drink my breakfast,” I told him and sat down. “Are you sure you don’t want to sleep? It is pretty early.”

“Nah. I feel like I’ve slept too much lately.” He rolled his shoulders and adjusted himself better in his bed. It looked as though he wanted to be anywhere but in that bed and I didn’t blame him. Being held prisoner in the facility and experimented on must have been draining, if nothing else.

“I bet,” I told him. “But you need to rest… to build up your strength.”

“Yeah, I guess.” He shrugged his shoulders. “So tell me, beautiful Emelia, are you a vampire? Because that’s the only reason I can understand why you’d be up so early and looking for breakfast.”

“You could say that,” I chuckled.

“I’m guessing that empty glass you brought in didn’t have orange juice in it.”

“Nope. Definitely not orange juice.”

I smiled at Alec, liking his sense of humor, although there was something else about him that had me on edge. I shrugged it off, having absolutely no intention of anything romantic with him, but it was nice to find someone I could get along with. I always felt like making friends never came easily to me, but I could see it being almost effortless with Alec. It was nice, to say the least.

“Em?”

Matias was standing in the open doorway, his tattooed arms crossed over his strong chest as his gray eyes were locked on my new friend. I didn’t even hear him open the door.

“Your mate?” Alec asked, his eyebrows raised up his forehead in question.

I shrugged my shoulders and stood from the chair. “Yeah. Well, one of them at least.”

His eyebrows went up even further. “One of them?”

I smiled at him again and returned the chair to the corner. “Get some rest, Alec. I’ll come back and check on you later. Do you need anything else before I go?”

“Emelia,” Matias interrupted, rudely.

I looked over at him and saw my mate was less than happy with what he was witnessing. I had never seen him act like that before. Protective and ferocious, yes, but rude? Never.

Soliel nudged me, letting me know I needed to tend to my mate and not the new guy. She was all about keeping our mates happy, well that and destroying our enemies, whoever they may be. She had no problem with Alec until Matias did and she was letting me know in no uncertain terms that we needed to leave him alone.

“One second,” I finally said to Matias, trying not to roll my eyes, then I turned back to Alec. “Do you need anything else?”

“Maybe a little more water?”

I nodded once and picked up his glass, taking it back to the pitcher before refilling it and setting it back onto his bedside table.

“Thank you, Emelia,” he grinned.

“Get some rest,” I told him and walked toward the door and my pissed off vampire mate.

I walked out into the hall and when I turned back around, I saw Matias was still looking in Alec’s direction. What was wrong with him? I put my hand on Matias’ forearm that was still crossed over his chest, and that was when he finally looked away from the resting supe and toward me. He then stepped outside of the infirmary and into the hall with me, closing the door behind him.

He gripped the sides of my face and kissed me desperately. My hands fisted his shirt at his waist and I melted into him, loving the feeling of his lips on mine. Man, I loved it.

His kisses slowed and he opened his eyes as he gently pulled back. He looked down at me and I could see his anger from earlier retreating.

“What was all that about?” I whispered.

Matias sighed and I could see the edges of anger returning at my question. “He wanted you.” Those three words were his reply and after a few seconds of silence, I knew that would be all the answer I would get. Matias was jealous.

I raised my eyebrows and the right side of my mouth turned up in a small smile as I decided to tease him a little bit. “He wanted some company and a little water, that’s all. But let’s say you’re right. What about it? Do you honestly think that I would take him up on any offer that he’d propose? Do you think I’d go behind your and Xan’s backs, or that I’d leave you both behind for someone else? I had hoped you knew me better than that by now.”

“Don’t