My alarm clock shrieks at me to get up, and I groan; the massive headache that hit me when I opened my eyes tells me to sit the fuck down and sleep, not to mention my body aches from being thrown down the stairs at four am. However, if there's one thing I remember, it's getting whooped when I was eighteen cause I thought since I was an adult, I didn't have to go to church if I didn't want to.

Don't get me wrong; I love Jesus Christ; what I don't love is this church....so judgemental of what they believe is evil.

I take some pain meds and walk into the bathroom to get ready. When I finish, I walk back to my bedroom.....Derek and I don't share a bed or a room. I sigh, looking at myself in the mirror in self-pity before Khascian and that man comes to my mind.

I'm sure I heard things, but I saw his teeth change into fangs.

I need to make sure I'm not crazy.

I knew Derek was awake and out getting coffee for himself before going to church, so I called Khassy on FaceTime.

She's always looking fine, with a black top tucked into a brownish-orangish skirt with a Gucci belt, stockings, high-heel black boots, and a blazer. "You look beautiful," I whispered in awe.

She smiled. "And you need to get dressed."

I shrugged. "I pressed the snooze button a couple of times before waking up." I cleared my throat. "I just want to make sure I'm not going crazy, but do you remember a man named Silas, an actual Vampire? I must've been hallucinating, but it was too real."

She sighed, nodding. "My mate, yea, you're not crazy. Just remember what I told you, Elora can't know until she finds her mate, and if she doesn't have a Vampire mate, then she can't know. You have a Vampire mate, but he doesn't really like you."

I looked at her....for a long while. "Khascian, how? How do you know this? No, what is this?–"

"Silas is an assassin. He knows everything in the Vampire world, including your mate, who's apparently an important person that he won't tell me about until he comes to you."

"How is this real? What if I don't want him, or what if he doesn't come to me?"

"I don't know how it's real, ok, but he has to come to you because he's automatically attracted to you, he can smell you, and you'll always be horny around him."

I smirked. "I know, I saw."

She rolled her eyes. "Go get dressed, and don't think much about it. Just know that.....anything that has a name or a legend has once been or is still around. It's not just a fantasy. I learned that months ago when I met Silas."

I nodded, hanging up....this wouldn't make sense to me before yesterday, but I met a Vampire and found out that I had a mate to that I would be attracted to for the rest of my life.

•┈••✦ ❤ ✦••┈•

Church was horrible today; Elora got in trouble for wearing a crop top. She was physically slapped, yes, at her big age, for wearing something her mother deemed as inappropriate. She wore a white two-piece classy outfit. It wasn't showy, but her mother was furious and disgraced. I didn't feel like dressing that much, so I chose to wear a black blouse with black bell-bottom pants.

After church, people lingered around, talking about the sermon, when my mom's nemesis, the pastor's wife, walked by. Luckily, Derek didn't want to see my face because of yesterday, and he went to the Dunkin' near the church.

My mom, Khasian's mom, Deborah, and Elora's mom, Konstantina, put on fake smiles. "Adah, what a pleasant surprise." My mom speaks up.

The pastor's wife–Adah, smiles back. "Yes, are these your daughters?"

"Yes, they are," Konstantina answers this time.

Khascian, Elora, and I bow a little in respect. "Hello, girls, but I must say, I have not seen the others, A'roya, has your father finally taken custody of the rest of them?"

Deborah rolled her eyes as my mother's jaw clenched. "No, they came. They went to the Dunkin' Donuts next door to us."

Adah nodded. "Have any of you married?"

We all shake our heads. "Only A'roya, ma'am. You know Derek Foundler?" Elora answered, earning a glare from her mother.

Adah giggled mockingly. "Oh, yes, Derek is a nice man. Oh, I remember now, he proposed in the church. How lovely." She sighed. "All but one of my daughters have married beautifully in the hands of the lord. Maybe you should find some suitors."

"With all due respect, I think our mothers respect our choices and preferences of who we want to be with. This isn't the 1800s." Elora stated bluntly.

Khascian and I share a look.....we totally agree, but she's the only one getting an ass whooping cause our mouths are shut.

"You have a smart mouth. Maybe that's why you're still single. It's not good to have such a dirty habit. Konstantina, I hope you don't raise your children like that."

"Adah, I don't see the point of you coming here to spite us." Deborah finally speaks up.

Adah looks her up and down. "I hope that your daughter doesn't have that disrespect that you have. It would certainly add more grief to her," Adah looks at Khascian. "Unfortunate stature."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked as Adah's daughter....that bitch slept with my husband, comes up to her like a goody-two-shoes.

"Hello, mother." She said, smiling at me.

"Anyway, Vanessa, I noticed your eldest son was twenty-seven, and my daughter is the same age as your A'roya, so I wanted to set them up."

My mom scoffed. "Why would I offer Jericho to your daughter?"

At this point, I have no interest whatsoever in this conversation. Plus, I want to tell Jericho about Adah's plans to marry her daughter, Grace, to him. "Excuse me; I have to use the restroom, Elora, Khascian, please accompany me." I used my professional voice, and we were excused.

I scoffed in annoyance. "I need to tell Jericho this."

"And Khassy, don't worry about that bitch. I can't believe she is saying all this shit to us." Elora exclaims.

Khascian sighs. "Honestly, I'm used to it. It doesn't affect me now because I have people who care about me and not about how much I weigh."

Silas being one of them.

"You know it so well." I smile before ringing up my brother. "Yo, Jericho, the pastor's wife, wants you to marry Grace."

I heard shuffling before I got my answer. "Tell that bitch I said hell no." He yells. "Fuck you looking at? Yes, I'm shouting in public, does that concern you? What I thought, fool. Anyway, I don't want to marry that ho, and I'm telling you right now, I will cheat in less than two minutes of our marriage."

"Take that up with mom if she agrees, and get me and my friends some donuts. I'll cash app you." I said before hanging.

"You're dead wrong for that," Elora said, and Khascian nodded.

"I could hear that man screaming from miles away." Khascian giggles. "I don't think Grace's that bad."

I almost frowned, but then I remembered I didn't tell them the exact reason I hated her. "She slept with Derek, and I witnessed her squirt onto my bed with my husband's help."

Khascian and Elora's jaws dropped. "Ew, what the fuck?! I always thought she was the pretty girl we hate because her mom's a bitch."

"Elora! We're at a church. Please, I still do want to go to heaven."

Elora rolled her eyes. "I'm so sorry, A'roya, I–we didn't know. You need to divorce him!"

I shook my head. "You know I can't do that."

They both frowned; they knew my mother would never allow it.

Elora sighed. "Oh, baby."

We get into a group hug, and Khascian's phone rings, interrupting us. "We should start going," she sighed, hanging up the phone. "You know before our moms kill us."

Was that Silas?

We nod and walk out of the bathroom.

"A'roya Belford." A husky and quite enticing voice called out my name.

Damn, I almost forgot to turn around when I heard my name being called with a sexy sound.

I turn around, and the other two turn around as well. I know damn well this man from the club does not go to our church. He looks sinful, a nose ring, tattoos littered everywhere, peeking out from his neck, like....like Silas and I put two and two together.

He's obviously not a churchgoer.

The reason he was staring at me, his annoyance and lust at the same time, because he doesn't like humans but finds me attractive because I'm his mate.

I sound crazy and savvy at the same time.

This hot-ass, gray-eyed man is a Vampire in a church, looking for me.

"You're right, princess, but you forgot one fact." He speaks up, leaning in close to me. "I can read your thoughts too."

No. That means...... he can come show me how annoyed he is right now.... He heard that that's why he was– HE WAS SMIRKING.

"I think Elora and I should leave you two to talk," Khascian says, totally understanding what is happening here.

"I– ok, but deets on how good the sex is later." Elora winks, and I literally feel my body turn into dust and blow away.

"Elora, we're not–you know what, just tell my mother I will be there soon."

Khascian nods, dragging Elora with her.

I turn back to the hunk of a man smirking in front of me. "You're a Vampire....?"

His eyes narrow. "No, I'm an apple, dumbass."