The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance

“—are obviously very touchable.” He swallowed. “Are you still afraid of me?”
    “I probably should be, but I stopped being afraid around the time I attacked your lips.”
    “I see.” His jaw tightened. “This will prove to be a very big problem for me. Seeing you with my brother. Knowing that you and he have found happiness together again.” He shook his head as if trying to clear it. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’ve never felt this way before.”
    “Me neither.”
    His gaze moved to hers again and locked. “No?”
    She shook her head.
    And it was at that moment that she felt something very strange - a clicking sensation deep inside of her.
    “What just happened?” Henry’s breathing increased. “That can’t be what I think it is.”
    “The thing that felt like we’re two Lego pieces that just got snapped together?”
    “Yeah, that.” He pulled away from her finally, releasing her completely to take a few steps backwards. “You are not mine. You belong to Evan.”
    “I don’t belong to anyone.”
    Except you, she amended internally. Then she frowned.
    What in the hell was happening to her? It wasn’t right. She hadn’t just clicked with Henry. She only recently met him, and under very unusual circumstances, to say the least. She didn’t believe in love at first sight, especially when the subject was a centuries-old vampire carrying a big knife. And she didn’t believe in soulmates.
    Never had. Never would.
    And yet . . .
    No, she told herself sternly. Just no.
    Or, well . . . maybe.
    “Something has gone terribly wrong,” Henry managed after a moment, his expression now giving way to a little of that panic she was very familiar with. “One cannot have two soulmates. It doesn’t happen.”
    “Then I think we have a problem here, don’t we?”
    He nodded, his expression haunted. Then without another word spoken, he moved towards her and pulled her into his arms. “Tell me to stop. Tell me to go away and never come near you again.”
    “Kiss me,” she said instead.
    His eye widened. “That definitely isn’t helpful.”
    “Sorry.”
    Then, just as she thought Henry was going to kiss her again, he stiffened. And not in a good way.
    “Release her,” Evan growled from behind him.
    Henry moved his hands away from her and raised them up to his sides. He shuffled back a few steps so Julia could see that Evan had grabbed the machete from the ground and had it at Henry’s back.
    “This isn’t what you think,” Henry began.
    “This is exactly what I think. You’ve always hated her. How could you do this to me after my long, difficult search? Do you deny that you planned to kill her?”
    “I can’t really deny that, actually. But—”
    “Shut up,” Evan snarled. “You always try to run my life, brother.”
    “What, by keeping you safe and alive?”
    “I’m tired of it. Hundreds of years of being under your thumb. I wanted to escape you once and for all, and you follow me here?”
    “You weren’t that hard to follow.” Henry shrugged. “You’re kind of sloppy when it comes to travel arrangements. Always have been.”
    “How did you learn of her?” Evan flicked a glance in Julia’s direction.
    “I overheard you with the witch.”
    “I see. So you followed her from the club after I’d made contact with her. And you planned to use this—” Evan now pressed the sharp blade against Henry’s throat “—to end her life over an old squabble.”
    “She took my eye. Not to mention that she was generally evil and liked killing people for fun and profit. Remember that?”
    “She had her reasons. Just as I have my reasons for killing you now where you stand.”
    Julia watched them in horror. There was nothing friendly or brotherly about this confrontation. It looked as deadly as that machete. A fine line of red appeared at Henry’s throat to prove just how sharp that blade was.
    Evan turned to her. “Are you OK, my love?”
    She held out her hands. “Put down the knife.”
    “I can’t do that. I need to kill him once and for all. Now that I’ve found you again, I won’t let you come to any harm.” His expression softened. “I know you don’t believe all of this yet. I know this has been a great shock. It will take my genitals some time to recover from what happened earlier—”
    Henry raised an eyebrow at that.
    Julia shrugged. “I kneed him in the balls when he got a bit frisky with me.”
    A small smile twitched at the corners of