June 2nd, 2025. Canterbury, United Kingdom.

Alex prowled in the Canterbury Cathedral, his boots pressing lightly against the worn marble. A storm raged outside that night, lightning flashing through the shattered stained glass, casting fractured colours over the dust-choked air.

What happened here? Why is the stained glass broken? He had come hunting—tracking a rogue vampire rumoured to lurk in the area, one with no respect for sacred places such as this. When the dust settled, Alex heard he wasn't alone.

A shift in the atmosphere sent a ripple through his senses. The hair at the nape of his neck stood on end. He turned, instincts sharp, fingers tensed at his side, prepared for an attack. His dark red sunglasses slightly slid down the bridge of his nose, revealing his vivid blood-shot irises.

But it wasn't the vampire he found in the shadows.

It was her.

Celeste emerged on the threshold of the grand altar, her silhouette framed by the cold silver glow of the distant streetlights filtering into the cathedral through the broken window. She had her sword drawn, but her stance was too relaxed—like she'd been watching him longer than she should have.

He immediately readjusted his sunglasses, shielding his inhuman eyes completely.

The wind fiercely combed the trees outside, making the light flicker as it danced over her features, illuminating the sharp lines of her face, the slight part of her lips, the challenge in her sky-blue eyes. Her high ponytail left her dark chocolate curls waving in the air.

"Are you following me now, Alex?" she asked, tilting her chin.

He let out a slow exhale. The sound of her voice curled around him, wrapping like silk around his neck and ribs as if it deprived him of air, pulling too tight. He didn't like it.

"No," he murmured, walking toward her despite himself. His steps echoed loudly from wall to wall. "But maybe I should be."

Celeste smirked, but something flickered in her expression—something wary. "Then we'd have a problem. Didn't you have enough by making me lose the scroll the other day?"

They already had a problem, but it wasn't losing a scroll. It was the inexplicable way his body reacted when she was near. The way his senses betrayed him, hyper-focusing on the way her pulse quickened when he stepped closer, the faint flush that rose to her cheeks, the scent of her skin—like rain on scorched earth and something pure and sweet like a recently plucked rose.

"Why are you here?" he asked, his voice lower than he intended. He pointed at the broken bits of coloured glass on the floor. "Destroying sacred property? Or... something else?"

"I could ask you the same thing," she shot back, voice steady, but he caught the way her fingers flexed against the hilt of her sword. Not out of fear. She was never afraid in his presence. So, it must be something else. But what? Does she sense that I'm a vampire like her usual targets? Did she see my red irises before?

Another gust of bitter wind howled outside the cathedral. It was so harsh that it forced open a thick wooden door with a flimsy metal door lock. The wood hit hard the stone wall. The intruding air swirled inside the cathedral, making the temperature drop a degree, and it spread her delectable scent all around him, making it more powerful and tempting.

His nostrils flared. His fists and his jaw clenched.

A mistake. A fleeting moment of weakness. That's all it took.

He moved too close, too fast. One second of restraint slipped through his fingers. His hand came up—brushing the side of her throat before he even knew what he was doing. His fingertips ghosted over her pulse point, the warmth of her skin searing him more than a thousand fires ever could.

Celeste sucked in a sharp breath.

He could feel her pulse reacting, hammering beneath his touch. Fast. Too fast. His gums itched where his fangs were, his biological imperative yelling loud and clear that he was an unstoppable apex predator.

Stop. This is not who you are. The warning blared in his mind, but his body refused to obey. His thumb dragged the barest fraction lower, and her breath hitched. She didn't move away.

Their gazes locked despite his dark red sunglasses. The air turned electric, charged with something primal, something neither of them had asked for.

Her lips parted just enough for him to wonder what they would feel like against his own. He hated that thought, hated the pull tightening between them—but above all, he hated the unknown reasons behind it.

Despite fighting against the same foe, we've been at odds ever since we met. Why would I even consider kissing her? Granted—she's strikingly beautiful. But that's never been an issue for me with other women. So, why do I feel this irrational pull, this ache to be near her, to touch her? It's so unnatural that I'd bet my soul—if I had one—that this longing is something supernatural.

Her sword was still between them, a barrier she hadn't lifted. If she wanted, she could drive it straight through his chest right now.

Maybe she should before I bite her. We would both regret that.

He leaned in—so close that her breath fanned across his jaw.

"You're playing with fire," she whispered.

A bitter smile pulled at his lips. "I've been burning for a long time."

My life as a vampire-hunting vigilante has never been easy. It'll never be. But you're making things unbearably complicated, Celeste.

Then, with every ounce of willpower he had left, he stepped back. With a tic in his hand, he took a couple of steps back. He turned slightly, only to hide the involuntary twitch from her sight. But it was harder to deal with the absence of her warmth, which left something hollow in its wake.

Celeste exhaled. But before she could speak, before she could turn that sharp tongue on him again, her lips shivered as if she hesitated. And then, in literally the blink of an eye—his—she was gone, vanishing into the night like a ghost.

And Alex, for the first time in two hundred years, wasn't sure whether he was relieved... or disappointed.

Again? How does she do this?! Where did she go?

Hello, my sugar cubes!

Do you like this near-miss between Alex and Celeste?

Stay tuned...

Mar