The Mortal One (The Mortal One Series) Read Online Free PDF Page A

been looking for us?”
    I stared at him, wondering who he had me confused with. “Looking for who?”
    It was late and I just wanted to find my hotel. The sooner we could clear this up, the sooner I could be on my way.
    He shook his head slowly. “Don’t play coy.”
    What the hell was he talking about? His gaze met mine and his set jaw gave no indication of moving anytime soon.
    “You know what I am, Dylan.”
    I went rigid when he said my name. Panic set in all over again. I squirmed under his grip. “What do you want from me?”
    “Look at me and answer my question.”
    Before I could ask anything else from him, I saw what he wanted me to see. He smiled at me, showing two elongated incisors behind his lips.
    One word screamed through my mind. Vampire.
    “Correct.”
    No.
    “Why are you so quick to deny what’s standing in front of you? You seek the truth. Here I am.” He stepped back as if to make a demonstration of who—or rather, what—he was.
    I simply stared and took in what stood before me. Designer jeans, a button down shirt, and a stunning face surrounded by short and tousled, black hair. It’s not what I had ever imagined, though somehow it seemed to fit now. My heart pounded a little faster as I realized that a vampire was standing in front of me.
    My mouth went dry. I had questions to ask and couldn’t seem to formulate words.
    He stepped in even more intimately to me and kept me pinned to the wall while one muscular arm hovered beside me.
    I gulped hard, making a sound which seemed to echo out of my body.
    Could he hear that?
    “Yes.”
    “I’m sorry?”
    He chuckled softly. “I could hear you swallow. It is what you were wondering, yes?
    “Oh.”
    Oh. My. God. I was going to die.
    I continued to stare, trying to get past my shock and the giant knot now swelling at the base of my throat. I closed my eyes for a moment to try and gather my thoughts.
    “Are you ready to answer my question now?”
    What was I supposed to tell him? Ha, well I was only wondering if you guys were real and you are, so have a nice eternity . I glanced up at him to see an amused look on his face. Dimples formed on either side of his mouth.
    Shit. He was reading my thoughts again. My palms began to sweat and panic set in when the sound of his laughter filled the alley.
    This is great. I have to stand here while a vampire of all things laughed at me. I thought back on the night in Paris. I never actually saw anyone, but now it made me question if my gut feeling was correct.
    He abruptly stopped laughing. “Dylan, let me ask again. Why have you been hunting for vampires?”
    My shoulder was rubbing against his fingers but I couldn’t move. The touch of his cold fingers left goose bumps across my skin and me slightly breathless. “I was…” I couldn’t think of the right word to explain my curiosity. The whole idea sounded insane when it came down to it. “I wouldn’t really call it hunting-”
    “Listen, your mind is an open book.” He blinked and shifted his eyes to take the whole view of me in. I shifted awkwardly under his scrutiny. “You’ve come alone, have you not?”
    “Yes,” I cursed myself for telling him the truth. I swallowed again, wondering if I was going to die tonight. I shouldn’t have told him I was alone.
    “Did anyone know you were looking for vampires?”
    “No.” I opted for some honesty here, hoping my life would be spared. “But I wasn’t really looking for vampires. I was simply curious about your existence.” It sounded lame, even to me.
    “And now what?”
    “I don’t know. I never thought I would ever come face to face with one, so…”
    He laughed softly to himself. “Well, you’ve found one.”
    I nodded, unable to speak.
    “What made you decide to come here to look?” He inched into my personal space and inhaled something in the air around me.
    I held my breath as he sniffed my skin. His face was so close to mine that my whole body tensed. Part of me was hoping