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“Probably was his soulmate. That’s why he didn’t pay you any attention. When you’re with your soulmate, nothing else matters, especially when y’all are connected as one.”

“Oh.” I gulped nervously at the intensity of Kenji’s words. He might have been talking about Dante, but he was talking about us too. “That makes sense now, I guess.”

“Told you, pay attention to everyone around you. Dante’s bitch ass pulled the wool over your eyes.”

“Let me start now.” I grinned, turning my body sideways to fully face Kenji. “I’m assuming you’re at least a hundred years old?” I pried to see if Kenji would give me a hint of how old he was. He nodded his head, shocking me because I half expected him to say he was younger than that. Kenji’s light brown-tannish skin was flawless, not a wrinkle in sight. “Why don’t you sound all ancient and old? I mean, you sound like you grew up in the hood, honestly. Except you don’t say nigga.”

“You gotta change with the times, or you’ll stick out like a sore thumb, and I don’t use that word because of all the shit I’ve seen. Ion care how people wanna slice it. It came from a word that was meant to tear our people down and keep us in bondage.”

My eyebrows shot up as shock and realization settled in. “You were alive for slavery?”

“Yup,” he replied calmly while I sat there staring at him in shock. He can’t really be that old. Can he? If Kenji was alive during slavery he’d have to be at least three or four hundred years old. No fucking way!

“Will you ever get old? I mean, do vampires just live forever?”

“Depends. You can live forever, but once you hit a thousand years, it starts taking your body more and more blood to live. Staying alive becomes more of a hassle then a blessing. A lot of vampires go to Arcadia by that time.”

“What’s Arcadia?”

“It’s like the vampire afterlife, where our elders go to rest peacefully.”

“Wow, so you get to choose to go there?”

“Ehh, basically. It’s more stuff that plays a factor, though.”

I sighed as I gazed out the window at the unfamiliar landscape. “This is crazy.”

“You don’t even know half of it.”

“Where are we going, Kenji?” For reasons I couldn’t explain, I loved saying Kenji’s name. It made my body tingle every time I said it. I turned my attention back to the side view of his handsome face.

“Home,” he replied, and my head jerked back in confusion.

“To my home or your home?” I asked, looking for clarity. My eyes burned a hole into the side of his face. Kenji showed no emotion; he seemed like all his focus was on driving until he turned his gaze on me.

Kenji’s eyes held an intensity to them that told me he wasn’t playing with me as he answered, “Our home, Quinny.”

I had nothing to say back to Kenji. His answer took the words right out of me, leaving me slightly dazed and stunned into silence as I contemplated the meaning of his words. Our home. The main thing that stuck out to me wasn’t necessarily what he said; it was the way I was feeling towards his words. Joy filled my heart at the thought of sharing a home with Kenji, waking up to him every day. I wanted that. At least that was what my heart was telling me. I chose not to respond because my feelings were all over the place. I sat back in my seat, closing my eyes. I trusted Kenji, for now anyway. I didn’t have any other options anyways.

Chapter 13

Quinny Parks

Kenji and I talked for about another hour before I dozed off to sleep. I was more tired than I realized, and the long drive knocked me out. When I finally reopened my eyes, it was because I felt the wind blowing on my face. Kenji had rolled down our windows. It took me a second to take in my surroundings. We were riding through a city I’d never seen before. Wiping the sleep from my eyes, I looked over at Kenji. He drove with one hand on the steering wheel, his seat slightly pushed back. I’d never had a man who made driving look so fucking sexy, but somehow Kenji did. I watched lustfully as he bit his bottom lip, and I wondered what was on his mind. He better be thinking about me. Being around Kenji was making me possessive over him, and at this point, I was starting to understand that even if I fought against these feelings, nothing would change them. I’d still want Kenji more than I wanted my next breath. My fight was starting to seem like a pointless fight and a waste of energy that would only prolong the inevitable. Fighting my desire for Kenji was going to be put on the back burner while I focused on more important things like finding Sutton, even just talking to Emberly because I knew she was probably worried sick about us. The three of us talked to each other every day even if it was just a text. When I had my phone back at the farm house I saw Emberly called me a few times. I wished I would have called her instead of Dante’s stupid ass.

“Where are we at?” I groggily asked.

“Idyll, the capital city of my region,” Kenji replied.

Looking at all the intricate and uniquely designed buildings that we passed, I was amazed. I had never seen skyscrapers as beautiful as the ones in front of me. The design and shape of the building were so unique they almost looked fake. I don’t know why I expected us to pull up in a gothic, medieval type of town. Idyll looked more up to date than some of the larger cities I’d been to. This had to be hands down the most beautiful city I’d ever been too.

“Idyll? I haven’t heard of that name before.” I frowned, trying to recall anyone ever mentioning a city with that name.

“No shit, you’re a human. Why would you know the name of a vampire city?” Kenji said.

“Only vampires live here?” I cluelessly asked.

“I mean, there’s some humans and other beings, but mostly vampires.”