Shadow Touched: A Paranormal Vampire Romance (A Touch of Vampire Book 1) by Becky Moynihan (great reads TXT) 📕

Like he wanted me to see him.

Had he left me the rose? I couldn’t think of any other explanation. But why had he? And how? My room was on the second floor and there were no trees nearby to climb.

An emotion I couldn’t define shivered through me. It should have been fear, but it was something else entirely. Something that didn’t make sense.

I cranked the windows shut and drew the curtains closed with a snap. My heart thundered as I backed away. I spotted the rose but continued to retreat, letting it lay where it had fallen.

* * *

I just don’t want you dead yet.

I couldn’t get Shadow Man’s last words out of my head. What did they mean exactly? Was he planning on killing me at some point? It was hard to feel afraid though when he left me a rose instead of sneaking inside my bedroom to kill me.

I scratched out the doodle I’d drawn in my notebook and started a fresh one. Instead of harsh lines, I softened my strokes, outlining the figure in dark, billowing smoke. Argh, why couldn’t I stop thinking about him?

The bell rang and I closed my notebook, relieved that lunch hour was next. Isla and Hailey’s chatter should help distract me from thoughts of my mysterious stalker. If only I had someone to confide in. I’d always dreamed of having a close friend I could share all my secrets with, and I wanted that friend to be Isla. But her dad was the sheriff. One slip of the tongue and Aunt Tess would be notified. One slip and I’d lose my new friends.

No, keeping all the weirdness bottled up inside was safest. That way I wouldn’t lose anyone.

But when I spotted Isla and Hailey in the cafeteria minutes later, my heart sank. They were sitting next to Peyton at Reid’s table. After my botched attempt at fixing things Friday night, I hadn’t spoken to them all weekend. Maybe they’d given up on me.

Maybe I’d already lost them.

My eyes smarted with tears and I furiously blinked them away. Crying wouldn’t fix things. I used to cry every time Aunt Tess announced we were moving again. I used to beg her to let me stay. It never did me any good.

I hadn’t truly cried in years. A few tears here and there, yes, but I’d learned that my vulnerable side could be used against me. People saw tears as weakness, as a sign that you couldn’t handle the hard stuff. Well, I could handle it, and I wouldn’t give anyone a reason to doubt that.

Clenching my teeth, I strode into the room. As I headed for the lunch line, I tried to ignore the mostly unfamiliar gazes that followed me. They continued to pummel my back while I grabbed food I had no appetite for, then tracked my progress to an empty table far from Reid’s.

Maybe I was the problem here. I could have walked over to their table and sat down, but . . . I wasn’t brave enough. What if they took one look at me and told me to leave?

Apparently I could only handle so much of their rejection.

Okay, I was sulking big time. Pathetic.

With my eyes glued to my tray, I didn’t notice the person beelining for my table. They bumped into it hard. The round metal top lurched sideways and my tray skidded off before I could grab it. Out of nowhere, a hand snatched up the tray midair while the table settled with a loud clang. Not a single thing was out of place when the hand slid the tray in front of me.

I tipped my head back to thank my food rescuer and was startled to find Lochlan there. I hadn’t seen him in nine days—not that I was counting. The sight of him now brought mixed feelings, the most prominent being a fluttering beneath my rib cage.

Whatever, body.

It was on the fritz these days. First Shadow Man, now this guy. I couldn’t trust my weird reactions toward the two of them.

Lochlan didn’t meet my gaze though. He was too busy glaring at something to my left. I swung my attention that way and stiffened.

August was looking over his shoulder at me with an ugly frown. Remembering the feel of his blade, I itched to cover the bandage on my neck. I assumed he must have been the one to bump my table. Despite Shadow Man’s warning, I doubted he would leave me alone. He hadn’t enacted his revenge yet.

He continued to stare at me until I heard Lochlan shift. A small movement, but August’s eyes flew to his. Visibly paling, he averted his gaze and rushed from the cafeteria.

I blinked, gaping after him. What was that all about?

Behind me, I heard a familiar, darkly amused chuckle. “That guy has a death wish.” Without asking, Kade slid into the chair next to mine and set down his lunch tray. I did a double-take at his plate, which only contained a heaping mound of fruit. “You look lonely, little Kenna,” he said, startling me into looking up at him.

Before I could answer, Lochlan claimed the seat opposite me. A very unfortunate blush decided to make an appearance then. Which was probably why I spoke without thinking, muttering a quick, “Girl problems.”

Kade choked on a piece of fruit, spluttering, “What kind of girl problems are we talking about here?”

I froze, my eyes widening in horror. “Not that kind. I mean girlfriend problems. As in—”

He wouldn’t let me finish as he hooted with laughter and slapped the table.

“Okay, thanks so much. I’m gonna go die now,” I said over his cackling and grabbed my tray to leave.

A hand shot across the table and gripped the tray before I could. My gaze focused on the deep crimson stone in Lochlan’s ring, then the thorn-covered vines tattooed up his forearm, refusing to go higher. I was that mortified. “Stay,” he said in that smooth,