A Job From Hell (Ancient Legends #1)

know I wouldn’t turn you
without your consent.” It was a lie. Even though the chance she’d hate me was
high, keeping Amber alive was worth risking her wrath.
    Shaking her head, she stood. “I’ll never
change my mind. So, get this book and give me my old life back. Got it?” Shooting
me a last glance over her shoulder, she walked out. A few moments later, I
heard the living room door open and shut.
    I switched off the lights and opened the
back door to let in the freezing Highland air. I wasn’t surprised at Amber’s
reaction to my proposition. Given the same circumstances and choices, I
probably would’ve decided the same way. She was a mortal and had no reason to
trust me since I had done nothing to earn her trust. Were she any other, I
wouldn’t have hesitated to wait out the next race, even if it meant someone
else going after the mortal. But this was different; I couldn’t risk the
Shadows using Amber’s powers and let her die in the process.
    I swore under my breath and leaned against
the wall. A strong breeze ruffled the curtains. My once mortal body would’ve
shivered, but I didn’t feel the cold now. And soon Amber wouldn’t either,
whether she wanted it or not.

Chapter 22

 
    How dare Aidan try to fool me into giving
in to his sordid proposition? He could pay me a million bucks, but that wouldn’t
change a darn thing because no amount of money would make me give up my
espresso.
    I could picture myself at the Coffee, Anonymous Meeting For Vampires , talking
to a bunch of sympathetic, nodding, newly turned members. “I miss my old life.
I miss my coffee and tea. Sure, I love blood, but it can’t replace my latte. I
stare at my coffee cup and long for a sip.”
    The sponsor would smile and say, “These
intense feelings go away after a few years. Fifty tops. Okay, newbies, let’s
give Amber a warm welcome.”
    Horrified and fuming inside, I snapped out
of my thoughts and curled my lips into a smile as I tuned in to the trivial
chatter. Unlike Kieran—who kept throwing me questioning glances—the
others didn’t seem to notice my upheaval. And that was good because I didn’t
want to worry Dallas. Regarding my brother, I took a sharp breath and joined in
the laughter. His cheeks were flushed, eyes shining, as he hung onto Cass’s every
word. Great! As if I didn’t have
enough problems already. Now he had to fall for the demon and add more to the
pile.
    “You okay?” Kieran mouthed. With Aidan and
Clare gone to take care of what they called ‘important business’, he seemed to have
assumed the role of watching over me now.
    I looked away, ignoring him. For all I
knew, he could be working with Aidan on that ridiculous plan to turn me into
one of them. Frankly, I had no idea why Aidan kept pressuring me into agreeing.
In spite of his words, I didn’t believe it’d be such a hard task to get the
book—use the gift to find the place, get it, done. It wasn’t exactly
rocket science. No need to give up my life for it.
    “You think Amber’s a bad housekeeper? You
should see me,” Cass said, grinning.
    I blinked at hearing my name. “What?”
    “I was just telling Cass how surprised I
was you got the job.” Dallas winked. “You must’ve left out in your application
that you even manage to burn toast.”
    “Luckily for her, Aidan doesn’t eat toast,”
Kieran said.
    Dallas laughed, oblivious to Kieran’s
double entendre. If I didn’t get a chance to spend some alone time with my
brother soon, I might end up forgetting my good manners. I ignored Kieran’s
stare as I addressed my brother in the most nonchalant voice I could muster. “I
believe you came to talk about Mom and Dad?” Confusion crossed his features. I
opened my eyes wide, hoping he’d take the hint. He didn’t.
    “Huh?”
    “Their wedding anniversary, dummy,” I
prompted. There would be no anniversary for the next six months, but I doubted
Dallas knew. As expected, his expression turned from confusion to guilt. I
slapped my hand against my mouth in mock surprise, hoping I wasn’t going over
the top with my theatrical performance. “No! Don’t tell me you forgot again.”
    Dallas peeked at Cass. His rosy cheeks
turned bright red. “I’m not too late, am I?”
    Cass’s eyes shone as she sniffed the air. “Chaos
coming right up.”
    “You’d better not be. You know how angry Mom
can get.” I pulled Dallas up and motioned him to follow me, lest the demon read
my mind.
    “Hey, do you think you