Chapter 4

Luke spent the night standing on the corner of the street, not far from where he knew his mate was. He even caught the glimpse of her when she walked by the window before the lights went off, but even for his eyes, it wasn’t enough to notice any significant detail about her.

He stood there long after she, for sure, was fast asleep. He knew it was pointless, but either way, he couldn’t make his legs move and take him from the spot where dawn found him. Only the first rays of the sun reminded him of where he was and what he was doing, so he quickly straightened and followed the way back to his home.

By some chance, the hotel his mate was staying at was not far from his villa. Yesterday, it took him just a couple of minutes to locate her following his senses. Now, he needed even less to get back to his sanctuary.

All along, Luke was thinking about what he had done. And what he is about to do…

A whole night of thinking and contemplating with himself, planning what to do next and what not to do, got him nowhere. He was still torn between hundreds of years of hate and the primal need to be close to the one that was important.

Why did she have to show up now? Why did she come here? To torment him? To torture him?

No, of course not. Luke was pretty sure his mate was human and there was no chance of her knowing of him or coming here purposely. No, this was pure coincidence. Or destiny! That bitch!

Luke stormed into his kitchen and made a couple of sandwiches. While he ate them quickly, not feeling the taste at all, he came to a conclusion. He did hate the mere idea of mates, that was the truth, and he will never accept her for who she was supposed to be to him. He couldn’t. Not after centuries of agony he lived through without her. But he also knew that he couldn’t let her go just like that like she never existed like he never felt her near... like he never laid his eyes on her.

No, Luke knew he won’t be able to let her be. His instincts, the other part of his being, the animalistic part of him was too strong, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to contain for long the yearning for that girl.

Will he be able to continue hating the mere thought of having her near, while actually having her near?

With that thought in mind and the last piece of a sandwich stuffed in his mouth, Luke hurried to the wardrobe to choose the most inconspicuous outfit he had. Yes, he decided to follow her today, the whole day. After that, he will decide on the best course of action. He will decide what he is going to do with all those raging, contradictory emotions he was feeling right now.

With light-washed jeans, a white tee-shirt, and sneakers on, topped with a baseball hat and shades; Luke was back at the same spot where he spent the night before the girl was even awake.

He spotted her at the same moment she left the hotel. Even though he wasn’t as close to her as he desired to be at that moment, he saw her clearly enough, and what he saw pleased him to no end. He was a girl of average height, slender but not overly thin, her body had curves in all the right places. Her eyes were blue, the most beautiful shade of blue he had ever seen, like the ocean… and her hair, oh that bundle of strawberry blond locks that uncontrollably moved in all directions… Shit! Why did she have to be like this? this… this… unimaginably beautiful! The prettiest girl that Luke has ever seen in his life and he wasn’t born yesterday.

He looked like any other tourist in the city, and that helped him blend with the masses and follow her like some stalker. He acted stupid, so not according to his age, status, and wisdom he believed he had, but either way, he couldn’t hold himself off.

By the lunch, the girl had already made a solid round through the city and Luke followed close behind, not taking his eyes off her. Even when she sat at the restaurant and ordered her meal, he was close… just a couple of tables away eating too.

And when she joined the organized tour to see some important landmarks, Luke increased his distance but still observed her carefully. It was easy to notice just how fascinated this girl was with everything that she saw, how she loved and enjoyed every piece of information she got, and he liked that about her. What? No! Why would he think something like that? He cannot like her or anything about her!

At that moment, Luke’s hawk-like eyes noticed a slight change in his mate’s demeanor. It was so subtle that if he wasn’t watching her as closely as he was, he would never have noticed her back straighten a bit and her eyes darting around so discreetly like she was a trained professional. Was she? His impeccable eyesight picked up goosebumps on her skin… did she feel him? Did her instincts warn her about him watching her? Impossible! No one has ever noticed him if he didn’t want to be noticed.

That’s when Luke saw something with the peripheral vision that got his attention and for the first time today, he redirected his attention from the girl to a man that was hiding behind one of the standing pillars in the Roman Forum. Judging by what he could see from where he stood, the man in question was in his mid-forties, dressed similarly to Luke, as a tourist.

At that moment, Luke was sure that he wasn’t the only one following this girl, and that raised an ocean of questions that had no answers. Who was she? Why would anyone beside him follow her? Was she in some kind of danger? The last question that passed through Luke’s mind made him feel uncomfortable. It made him feel like he was on some kind of edge and he didn’t understand it, he never felt like that before.

The need to protect her from danger rose in him against his will, and he knew he will have to stay close to her today… at least to make sure she’s safe.

And he did. He was always near, no matter where she went. He even dined in the restaurant just across the street from where the girl was sitting, positioned so she could watch her enjoy food and wine.

Only when the restaurant was about to close, this girl that piqued his interest more and more, got up and left. He still followed her, even though he hasn’t noticed that man from earlier for some time. He needed to make sure that she got to her hotel safe. And later he’ll see what will be his next course of action…

But she wasn’t going straight to the hotel… what was this girl thinking? Venturing the street alone at night… was she that brave or that stupid? he thought. Either way, he followed her hiding in the dark shadows of the surrounding narrow streets.

It wasn’t until she roamed into the most deserted and darkest streets of the old town, where Luke had trouble finding his way in the daytime, that he noticed that man following her again.

Judging by her reaction, she noticed the imposter too late. She ran, but not fast enough. She had no way of escaping because she was running towards danger, not the opposite of it, so in the last second Luke stepped in and did what he was supposed to. He saved her from the danger that lurked around the corner just on time.

But did he still had time to save her from himself, or was it now when he had her in his arms too late for that?