Read Online Covet (Clann) by Melissa Darnell - Free Book Online Page B

gulped. So wrong for my heart to leap at the sound of my name spoken in that deep, rumbling voice. So wrong of my feet to want to take off running toward him.
    “We need to talk,” he said, his tone like a brush of his fingertips across my cheek.
    I struggled to make my body move toward the Charmers director’s office door. Routine. Focus on the morning routine.
    I fought to keep my voice even. “What are you doing here? Didn’t your parents—”
    “In spite of the local rumors, my parents don’t actually rule the world.”
    Frowning, I got the office door unlocked. I walked inside, turned on the overhead lights, then headed for the closet door on shaky legs. “The Clann would disagree with that.”
    Closet door unlocked, I reached inside for the jambox and Megavox case. And sucked in another sharp breath as Tristan cupped my upper arms, his big hands warm and gentle on my bare skin below the sleeves of my T-shirt. I nearly moaned at the contact.
    “Sav, please stop for a minute and listen to me.”
    Oh sweet lord. How was I supposed to withstand that soft, deep voice pleading with me? I closed my eyes and prayed for strength as everything inside me begged me to turn around and hug him.
    “I’m sorry about your grandmother.”
    His words were velvet-covered blows to my stomach. I couldn’t breathe.
    “You have to know I never imagined anything like that would happen.”
    “But it did,” I croaked, still facing the closet. “Because of us.” Because of me .
    He pressed his forehead to the top of my head, his sigh warm in my hair. “We didn’t do that. The Clann did. I know how much you loved her. We tried to save her. You, me, your dad and mine, even Dr. Faulkner. She knew you loved her and were trying to help her.”
    Bitter acid rose up as a sour taste at the back of my mouth. “She shouldn’t have even been there. And she wouldn’t have been if we hadn’t broken the rules. We never should have gotten involved with each other.”
    “No, the Clann and the vamp council never should have barred us from seeing each other.”
    Strength slowly seeped back into my body. “Keeping us away from each other was one of the few things they did right.”
    “Savannah, I love you,” he whispered, his voice harsh, as if the words were torn from his lungs. “And I know you love me.”
    I wouldn’t lie to him. I nodded.
    “Then why can’t you see how this isn’t about whether to follow the rules or not? The rules are wrong. If ever two people were meant for each other, we’re it. We don’t have to let them control our lives. You and I determine our future, not them.”
    I turned to face him then, needing to see if he was truly this delusional. Didn’t he get it? This wasn’t about what I wanted, or even what he wanted anymore.
    “I’ll leave the Clann,” he said, speaking fast now. “You know I never cared about being in it anyways. Then they can’t stop us. Their rules won’t apply to us anymore.”
    “And break your parents’ hearts?” Oh lord, how badly I wanted it to be just him and me, free from the rules, free to be together. But then we’d be just like my parents, always on the run, always hiding. There was nowhere we could go to be together beyond the reach of the Clann or the vamp council. Even if he wasn’t in the Clann anymore, he’d still be a descendant. And I would still be a vampire.
    His lips thinned. “They’ll get over it, trust me.”
    “And the vampire council?”
    “We’ll talk to them, convince them that our being together isn’t a danger to their peace treaty.”
    “Tristan, you don’t get it. We’re not Romeo and Juliet. There’s a reason the Clann and the council hate and fear each other. We’re a danger to each other, whether you’re in the Clann or not. You could set me on fire with one snap of your fingers. And I could kill you just as easily. As long as vamps and descendants are each others’ biggest threats, they’re always going to be enemies. You and