Dominic rubbed his head as he fobbed into his apartment. No one had ever dared to speak to his father that way. Who knows what his father would do tomorrow?

He entered, looking around for his bonded. Crockett was nowhere to be found. Dominic raced down the hall only to see Crockett standing over a pile of drywall on the floor. "Where is Raelyn?"

Crockett whirled, cocking a punch before realizing who it was. Crockett's eye flicked over to the drywall before back to Dominic. Dominic's entire body was tense, threatening to snap at any moment. "Your office."

Dominic whirled around and beelined toward the office. He let out a breath when he saw Raelyn perched at a laptop, typing away. She had found an extra-larger binder clip to pin up her unruly brown hair. She didn't notice him at the door.

Before she noticed, Dominic slid back into the hallway. He took a deep breath and did something he swore he would never do.

He made a plan.

He stepped into the room and Rae looked up. Her eyes lit up, but she hesitated. He pulled up another chair beside her. "What are you working on?" He slid right beside her, his knee brushing the side of her thigh.

She cleared her throat. "Um. A paper for class. It's due tonight."

"I am going to make you dinner. You must be hungry."

As if on cue, her stomach rumbled, and she wrapped her arms around her waist. She gave a small, apologetic smile. "Yes, please."

"Do you have time for a short break?"

Her eyes widened in panic. "The paper's due in, like, two hours. I haven't even finished the first draft."

"Keep working. I'll bring it to you."

Rae chewed on her lip. "Thank you." Dane shuffled under her feet.

Dominic nodded and headed to the kitchen. Crockett padded down the hallway, surprisingly quiet for a man his size. Dominic pulled a few carrots from the fridge and began chopping them. "What happened to the ceiling?"

"Your brother visited."

Dominic set the knife down and rubbed his head. "That poor girl."

&&&

Raelyn hit submit on her essay and leaned back. She glanced at the clock. Two minutes to spare. Too close for comfort, that was certain. She reached for the bowl of fried rice beside her, only to realize that it had gone cold about an hour ago. She shoveled some in her mouth, realizing that she hadn't eaten all day. She glanced at the clock. Granted, she had slept most of the day.

She thought back to Dr. Pina and shivered. She shook her head, as though she could physically dislodge the memory. She stared at the computer screen, taking a deep breath.

Then, the monitor shattered. The shards fell down and Raelyn plummeted down, landing hard against a wall. She tried to look around, but something had pinned her against the wall. She saw Dominic and Gabe dressed in tuxedos and someone who looked like Dominic but older staring at her. She blinked and suddenly, people were holding Gabe at knifepoint. Dominic was furious, but couldn't seem to see Raelyn.

She blinked again and realized that she was watching through a service window. She wasn't stuck, but her limbs felt syrupy. Dominic took a dagger that the older man was holding out and whirl, throwing the knife across the room. People gasped and started to run. Dominic stood there, gazing at where he threw the knife in determined fury. Then, he turned and made eye contact with Raelyn.

She blinked again and came to. Dane whimpered and Rae realized that he had placed his head in her lap. She reached down to comfort him and he huffed. "Sorry, boy."

"What are you sorry about?"

Raelyn glanced up and saw Dominic standing at the door, leaning against the doorpost. He wore black jeans and a graphic tee. Raelyn blinked, uncertain how to process his informal dress. "Um. What?"

"What are you sorry about?"

"Well, I just ignored your dog for a few hours." She scratched his chin. "How was the chat with your father?"

He shook his head. "As good as I expected." He sat down next to Raelyn again. Her head began to buzz with anticipation. His knees touched her thigh, and she resisted the urge to wrap her arms around his chest and snuggle her head in his chest.

"Do you have a few minutes?"

Raelyn nodded.

"Good. We need to talk about the next few months."

Raelyn gave him a small smile. "Are we making a plan?"

He sighed. "Yes. And the reason we're doing this is because I need you to trust me."

"I have no reason not to trust you. I mean, you did kind of save my life twice now. Technicalities aside. I can trust you for the next few months."

"Raelyn, you were born into this world. If you were only a source, you might had a modicum of a normal life. A hunter? As long as you stayed under the radar, you might have avoided this. But half-source and half-hunter bonded to the son of the one of the most powerful vampire families in the nation? You're in."

Raelyn blinked. "Your dad's a bigwig?"

Dominic nodded. "In Chicago, he's the bigwig."

"He doesn't like that we're bonded," Raelyn guessed.

Dominic shook his head.

Raelyn shifted in the chair. "And the bond is permanent."

Dominic waited a beat before nodding. "Unless one of us dies."

"Which means," Raelyn bit her lip, "your dad wants me dead."

Dominic nodded. Raelyn took a deep breath. Dominic grabbed her upper arms and moved her onto his lap. She tucked her head against his chest, breathing slowly. "That will not happen," he promised lowly. "I know we were off to a rocky start, but I am finished letting people hurt you."

Tears began to boil up inside Raelyn. "Your dad is a bigwig."

Dominic locked his arms around her. "I told you that won't happen."

"I'm not saying I don't trust your intentions, but what can you—?"

"I said it won't happen." His voice turned steely, and he moved Raelyn back to her seat, grabbing her arms and forcing her to stare him in the eye. "I need you to trust me. No running off. No leaving your watch at home. Understood?"

Raelyn nodded.

"Good." He nodded and stood. "From now on, you're going to be living here."

Raelyn's eyes went wide. "I can't just leave Sam. What about my stuff?"

Dominic shook his head. "Are you going to trust me?"

She took a deep breath before nodding.

"Good. I had Iggy scope out your apartment and grab your toiletries, makeup, and anything remotely connected to school. You'll be attending class digitally until graduation. Right now, we have a job to do." He nodded for Raelyn to follow. She jumped up and he slid his hand into hers.

He led her down the hall and unlocked one of the doors with his thumbprint. He gestured for her to step inside and she saw that her bedding, toiletries, and school supplies had been transferred over.

"Get freshened up. We're leaving in an hour."

"For what? What should I wear?"

Dominic smirked. "You'll figure it out pretty quick." He whirled and closed the door behind him.

Raelyn glanced over. Unlike her apartment, she had an attached bathroom. She peeked inside and saw that instead of her ratty yellow towels, she had fluffy yellow ones. Raelyn went over to the closet and peeked inside. Her wardrobe was gone. Instead, a single set of clothes hung from the rack. She pulled it off and set it on the bed.

"Guess that's what you meant."