Tessa, Vampire/Werewolf Romance, (Standalone) (Shadow Creek Shifters Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

won’t hear of it,” Brendan said.
    Tessa had expected Brendan to act like this, and she wasn’t about to allow him to dictate to her how she’d lead her life as a vampire.
    “Try like ten months ago. I knew you’d feel that way, but Brendan, I need to leave. Otherwise, how will I ever figure out things for myself? You’ve never allowed me to even find food for myself.”
    “You can’t feed, you know that.”
    “I have the blood Paige gets for me and the animals you all leave at my door. I won’t be treated this way and I’m leaving, no matter what you think.”
    Brendan swept a hand through his dark hair. “I never meant it in a bad way. We were just trying to help.”
    “Well, it’s no help at all. I’ll speak to Paige tomorrow and I’ll be leaving once I figure out where I should go.”
    “We can’t protect you if you go,” Chase said with a sigh.
    “I don’t need protecting. I’m a vampire, remember?”
    “I know, but you can’t just bite a human to protect yourself, unless you plan on turning them.”
    “There are other ways. I know how to make sure nobody ever comes back as a vampire. Paige has taught me that much.”
    “If you plan to go on a murder rampage,” Brendan said. “They’ll be on the hunt for you for sure then.”
    “Look, I’m not planning to go on any kind of rampage, but know this—if trouble comes to me, I’ll do whatever I can to protect myself.”
    “I can see we’re at an impasse, so let’s not talk about this now. Tomorrow evening, meet us at the main house when you speak to Paige. I just hope she plans to talk you out of this,” Brendan said.
    Tessa hopped off the swing and said, “Until tomorrow night.”
    She walked to her cabin, more rattled than she wanted to let on. Brendan reacted exactly how she’d expected him to, but she hoped Paige would be on her side. Only she could explain to them how she might feel. Even mountain lion shifters like them had limitations when it came to knowing exactly how she felt.
    Tessa opened the refrigerator and took out a bag of blood, pouring a glassful. She put the remainder away and slugged the cold blood back. It wasn’t all that bad when it came to blood. It was just the temperature she had a problem with.
    She climbed the stairs after washing her glass when she finished her beverage. What else could she do but sleep? It was pitch black when she felt her way to the bed, pulling off her clothes and slipping between the sheets, loving how the coolness felt against her skin. Tessa tried not thinking about Raphael as she hugged her naked body. Had she made a mistake the other night when she left Raphael and Seth so soon? That night, she’d thought she was ready to experiment, but the thing was she wasn’t all that sure she wanted both of them.
     
     
     

CHAPTER FOUR
    Raphael dropped off Maxwell and Melody at the schoolhouse at Shadow Creek. Katlyn was outside like normal as she greeted the children.
    “Hello, Maxwell and Melody. You’re the last to arrive today. Why don’t you join Ivan and Joel inside?”
    Melody gave Raphael a quick hug, but Maxwell didn’t even look at him as he entered the schoolhouse.
    Katlyn frowned. “Maxwell certainly is having trouble adjusting to his father’s death. I tried to speak to him once about it, but he wasn’t in the talking mood. I have since backed off.”
    “Yes. He’s been rebellious of late, but Palina seems to think he’ll come around in time.”
    “I agree. He just needs our support. When he decides to reach out, we need to be there, but I don’t have to explain that to you, of all people. It seems it would be easier for a man to understand a boy than a woman.”
    “I can’t say I agree with you there. He’s been more distant of late.”
    “He’ll come around, I’m sure, but that’s not what I wanted to speak to you about. I just wondered if you knew why Tessa would want to leave Shadow Creek.”
    “I think she really is just trying to find herself in the