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

I felt it every time Alec’s eyes passed over me. It felt like a warm caress over my body, especially over the parts of my mark that peeked out from my tank top. It angered me and I growled my command to Matias and Xander again, ready to work out my aggression.

Oblivious as they were to Alec at the moment, they were more than happy to oblige. They each took turns fighting with me through different scenarios, allowing me to call on the different parts of me-at least the ones I could call on-and never took it easy on me. By the time we were finished, the sun was dipping below the treeline and most of the other supes had cleared out of the training grounds as they headed to dinner. The few that remained were packing up like we were, Alec being one of them.

He kept his distance through the whole session, never alerting anyone else what he was doing, but I knew. I just needed to find a way to prove it.

Chapter Fifteen

Sunset had become my favorite time of day ever since moving to California. Watching the sunset over the ocean was something I truly believed to be life changing. I loved to sit and just watch as the sun would dip below the horizon, leaving the sky streaked in fantastic colors that could only be described as breathtaking.

Sunrise, while not as spectacular while living on the west coast of the country, was still something to behold. I didn’t know if it was because life seemed to be less hurried where we were compared to the hustle and bustle of New England, but it was something I learned to appreciate. While dusk always felt like the perfect way to end a day, dawn made me feel invigorated, happy to be alive and in love with my mates.

I was at my most hopeful during the early morning and late afternoon hours. I had been down on myself a lot lately, I knew it and most of the time I couldn’t see beyond my problems, but at the sun’s rise and fall, it all seemed to melt away.

I sat on my deserted beach, the same exact place I had my first real talk with Matias after learning I had a vampire mate. I faced westward over the darkened sea and sky, watching it change from inky black to navy blue as the sun rose behind me, revealing the new day.

I was alone that morning for the first time in a long time, not counting the morning I met Alec, and honestly, I was glad for it. That little stretch of beach had become one of the only places I could find solace, a place to quiet my mind and I knew that the sunrise was the perfect time to visit it. When Matias told me the night before that he was going on a mission for the rebellion and would be gone until breakfast, I didn’t hesitate to make plans for my early morning hours.

So when I woke that morning, I kissed Xander and slipped out from under his arms before throwing on a sports bra and leggings and stuffed Dev’s potion vial in a little pocket in my leggings, and heading down to the first floor of the mansion. I waited until just before the predawn light, drinking a couple glasses of blood, then tied the laces on my shoes and ran the seven or so miles up the coast to my stretch of beach.

“Emelia.”

I hadn’t been there very long before I heard my name spoken on the wind as it whipped around me, pulling strands of hair out of my ponytail. I stood up in a flash, and turned on the spot letting my predators out simultaneously but finding no one but myself. Narrowing my eyes and letting my senses extend even further, I felt no one else on the beach with me.

Satisfied that I was merely hearing things, I relaxed ever so slightly and pivoted my foot to turn back around. When I turned back toward the ocean, I wasn’t met with the view of the rolling waves but Alec’s smiling face as he stood there smugly with his hands stuffed in his front pockets. As fast as a snake strikes its prey, I had my hand wrapped around his throat. His hands flew to cover mine as he began making choking sounds dramatically. He had no business being there and my suspicions about him were climbing by the second.

“What are you doing here?” I growled out in a low voice. I was pissed he had the nerve to follow me, but I was even more pissed he was able to sneak up on me like that.

He tapped on my hand asking for me to let up while he continued to try and gargle out his plea, but I didn’t want to give him the chance to try and use a spell on me, or worse. However, I did want to know what he was up to. At war with myself, I let him go with a shove, but kept my vampire and dragon close to the surface.

He loudly breathed in and out as he hunched over with his hands on his knees and looked up at me with his hair falling into his eyes. It took a couple of seconds of this before he was able to stand again, combing his hair back with his hands before stuffing them nervously back into his pants pockets.

“I’m, I’m sorry,” he said to me in a hoarse voice. A lesser person would feel bad for his then scratchy voice, but not me. I still had the itch to pummel him into next week for following me and sneaking up on me like that.

“Why are you here?” I asked again, my voice coming out as a growl. My patience was running out