Sunset Rising (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 5) by Jaz Primo Read Free Book Online Page A

was
unpleasant,” I said. “You don’t like Chance much, do
you?”
    I immediately realized that it was a stupid
thing to ask.
    Kat patiently looked at me. “No, Caleb, I
don’t like her, and I’m relatively sure the feeling’s mutual. But
of course, she has quite the crush you, I see.”
    “ What?” I asked. “She and
Trey—”
    “ Are friends, I suspect,”
she said. “Little more.”
    “ She’s barely turned
twenty,” I said.
    “ And you’re a whole what?
Twenty-seven as of July?” she asked.
    Okay, that obviously wasn’t the proper tack
to take with her.
    I rubbed my palm against my forehead as a
weary feeling permeated my body.
    “ Well, I’m only interested
in being friends. I’ve already told her as much,” I
said.
    “ That’s good,” she said,
staring at me. “So, I suppose that I’ll be reluctantly tolerant of
your friendship.”
    Honestly, it had suddenly turned into a
night from hell.
    “ Now, with that over,
let’s try to put it all behind us and recapture the moment,” she
said, reaching out to grasp my hand.
    I offered my best reassuring smile despite
the mild headache that had formed throughout my temples. In fact, I
had nearly lost my appetite altogether.
     
    * * *
     
    By the time we returned to the house, I had
a full stomach and my headache had largely subsided.
    In the end, Kat and I had enjoyed a nice
meal and visit together. And while we hadn’t quite recaptured the
emotional tone we’d experienced prior to Chance’s unexpected
arrival, we had enjoyed each other’s company.
    We had barely walked through the front door
before Alton presented me with a four-foot length of cylindrical
leather-wrapped wood. It was a couple of inches in diameter and
rather weighty.
    “ Wow, I could really
wallop someone with this,” I said.
    “ That’s not for walloping,
it’s for training,” he said.
    “ Oh,” I said. “How
so?”
    “ Often, a blunt instrument
is the most available item to use in defensive situations,” he
said. “I’m going to issue techniques for you to begin practicing
with.”
    “ Well, you can forget
about him practicing tonight,” Kat said. “I already have plans for
him, thank you.”
    I grinned at the suggestive look in her
eyes.
    “ Very well,” he said.
“We’ll go over things in the morning then.”
    “ Later in the morning,” I
suggested. “I’m thinking about sleeping in.”
    He arched one brow in a nearly imperious
fashion. “Oh, really?”
    “ Or not,” I
said.
    “ Earlier is better,” he
said.
    Before I could say more, Kat took me by the
hand and led—rather, half-dragged—me upstairs to our bedroom.
     
    Later that night, she lay in my arms as I
dozed.
    The effect of my day’s stresses had finally
abated and I was more than content to lay there next to her.
    I wished it could last forever.
    However, reality had its way of interrupting
even the most blissful of moments and, before long, the day’s
events resurfaced in my mind.
    “ You don’t need to feel
jealous of Chance, you know,” I said.
    “ What? Hardly,” Kat said.
“I feel no more threatened by her than a fly buzzing about my head.
My challenge is not swatting it, that’s all.”
    No, she really didn’t like Chance at all,
did she?
    “ My mistake then,” I
said.
    She scraped a sharp fingernail across my
bare chest in soothing fashion.
    “ If you want to remain
friends with Chance, I’ll accept that,” she conceded, albeit in a
glum tone of voice. “Though I can hardly imagine why you’d want
to.”
    “ Thanks for being flexible
about the situation.”
    “ Hm,” she said. “I don’t
know how I let you talk me into it.”
    Then she made a purring sound. “Actually,
your talented tongue just made a rather compelling argument, my
love…without even saying a word.”
    Amidst the darkness, a smile formed on my
face.
     

 
     
    Chapter 6
     
    Caleb
     
     
    The next morning, well before breakfast,
Alton wasted no time instructing Roman and me in how