Tessa’s POV“Can we please talk?” The text message from Brian read.I wasn’t sure what he could possibly want to talk about. It didn’t make sense to me. We spoke all that we needed to speak earlier. He promised that he would leave me alone.I didn’t want Joseph to know that Brian was still communicating with me, so I shoved my phone into my pocket without saying a word.Joseph only looked at me curiously for a long while. Probably trying to figure out why I was acting so suspiciously.I grabbed his plate and my plate and started to make my way into the kitchen area to clean the dishes, but Joseph stood up quickly, stopping me.“I can call back Monica and have her do the dishes,” Joseph said, eyeing my face carefully.“No, that’s okay,” I said quickly. “I wouldn’t want to trouble her. Besides, I’d rather do it myself.”“Then, I’ll help you,” Joseph surprised me by saying. “You cooked me a nice meal. It’s the least I could do.”I felt a smile tugging at my lips as I nodded. He was right

Josephs POVTessa’s eyes scanned the journal, and I could see the wheels turning in her mind. I knew which poems she was reading based on her reactions.I don’t typically let anyone read my poetry. I find them to be personal collections that I keep close to my heart. But there’s something about Tessa that made me want to show her. It was more than just her blood that continues to draw me in daily.Maybe it was the fact that she unapologetically posted her poetry publicly for her few followers to see. It was a brave move that I couldn’t help but admire.Tessa finally looked up from the journal and closed it in her lap. She looked at me for a moment longer, without saying a word, and then handed the journal back.I wasn’t going to ask her what she thought. I already knew.“Thank you for showing me those,” she said with a tone that was uncertain. “That was such raw emotion. I wasn’t expecting that from a fantasy author.”“I’m full of surprises,” I said in return. “As are you.”I kept my

Tessa’s POVThe drive into the city was silent. After Officer Jordan’s recent threat on my life, I thought it would be better if I said nothing. He wasn’t much of a conversationist anyway.It was infuriating that Joseph didn’t trust me to go into the city alone, but I wasn’t going to argue with a vampire. Just like I’m not going to argue with a Nightwalker officer who was highly trained and skilled in taking out supernatural creatures.He could take me out in a heartbeat.I was probably the least threatening individual, and I didn’t understand why Jordan had it out for me. He made it perfectly clear that he didn’t trust me whatsoever. His not trusting me is causing me to not trust him as well.But strangely enough, I trusted Joseph despite knowing what he was, and I trusted his judgment. He might not like Jordan, but he trusted him to protect me.The city was booming at this time of the day. For a little while, I didn’t think we were going to find any parking. But thankfully, Jordan k

Tessa’s POVI got the feeling someone was watching me, but figured it had to have been my imagination. I continued to write out my thoughts in my journal as I often did in the evenings. The sun was setting in the distance. There was just enough sunlight left to light up my journal and make it easy for me to see what I was writing.But soon enough it would be gone, and I would only be left with the rays of the moon.The outdoor lights would soon be turned on as well, lighting up the garden that I sat in.Roses have always been my favorite flower and I was excited when I saw that Joseph had a rose bush section in his garden. It seemed he had a section for everything. There were even fruits and vegetables.I was in awe of this entire area, and I couldn’t help but be amazed at how well-maintained his landscaping was.There were cobblestone walkways that lead into each section along with stone benches for resting. I sat on one of the benches with my journal, long after I had finished decor

Tessa’s POVI woke up to the sound of my phone going off.When I opened my eyes, I could see the faint sunlight beaming in through the window, nearly blinding me. I forgot to shut the blinds last night.I lifted my head and grabbed my phone off the nightstand where I left it charging overnight. It was Sunday, so there was really no reason anyone should be waking me up right now unless it was urgent.I was shocked to see Ruby’s name appear on my phone.It was a text message that read: “Oh my god, Tessa! Your newest blog post was amazing. did you mean to post an entry from your personal journal??”I rose my brows at my phone. My last conversation with Ruby wasn’t exactly a pleasant one. In fact, she was very upset and hurt by me. It was my understanding that I wasn’t going to hear from her this weekend and that I would just talk to her at school on Monday.“Does this mean you’re not upset with me anymore?” I texted back.“I’m still upset. I’m very hurt that you lied to me. But you are s