Chapter 188

Tessa’s POV

I was waiting for Joseph for what felt like an eternity. We already had sex at the ice rink; we had sex once more when we returned to his place. But I really wanted to have sex again; I was craving him in ways that I couldn’t even describe. My entire body needed him; it felt like I’d been so deprived of him that I was catching up on lost time.

But Joseph remembered that he needed to make a phone call and told me we would continue once he returned. As the clock ticks, I’m still naked in his bed and he’s still in his study speaking to some mystery person on the phone.

My assumption is Carter because he called the ice rink earlier. It must have been important if he went to those drastic measures to reach Joseph.

A knot formed in my stomach at the thought of what could be so important. I wondered if Joseph would tell me.

Were we at that part in our relationship where he could confide in me about these kinds of things? I wondered where this relationship was heading in Joseph’s mind. He was a vampire, and I was a human. Not to mention he was my professor for the next couple of weeks.

It’s not like we could go public with our relationship right now.

I knew he was planning on resuming his life and returning to the mountains. He was a vampire retriever, Elder, and trainer at the vampire academy. He had to return to that, and I couldn’t keep him here with me.

But I would be willing to go with him and I wondered if he’d be willing to take me.

Now that Ryan was dead, there wasn’t a threat waiting for me.

I wondered if that even mattered to him.

I heard footsteps in the hallway and my body tensed. They didn’t sound eager, more hesitant than anything. My heart started to beat rapidly in my chest; I knew something was wrong, I could feel it.

My suspicions were confirmed when Joseph opened the bedroom door and stood before me. He put on pants before he left, but he kept his shirt off. I still couldn’t get over how incredible this man looked. His appearance alone stopped my entire world, but his face was reading something other than desires. There was concern and confusion in his eyes as he looked at me and it made me sit up in bed, covering myself with the blanket and narrowing my eyes at him.

“What is it?” I asked as he closed the door behind him and walked further into his room.

He was quiet as he processed his thoughts and then he sat down on the edge of the bed. He was no longer looking at me, but staring at the ground like he dropped something very interesting.

“I just got off the phone with Carter,” he finally spoke, his voice low. I had to inch closer to him to hear him.

“Okay?” I urged, wanting him to continue.

“Remember when I told you I did some research when I returned from your father’s farm? I recognized him and the farm, but I couldn’t figure out why I recognized him,” he said, his eyes finding mine.

I nodded, not able to speak. This had to do with my family. What did he find out?

“I sent the images and research to Carter, hoping that he’d be able to help me,” he said in a breath, and then he paused as he assessed my confused face with his eyes. “He had the idea that if I was involved, then it wouldn’t be recorded in the mortal media. So, he dug a bit deeper, and he found something.”

I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat.

“What did he find out, Joseph?” I found myself asking; my voice came out as a whisper, but I knew he could hear me with ease.

“Years ago, there was a battle between witches and vampires,” Joseph explained. “Apparently the vampires were looking for something called the Heavenly Heart. Does that sound familiar to you?”

I shook my head; I had never heard of such a thing in my life, and I wondered why he was asking me specifically about it. But I kept quiet, wanting him to continue.

“The Lunar Coven held onto it like their lives depended on it. It was worth starting a war over. We had never heard of such a thing either, but I imagine it was a powerful tool that everyone wanted,” Joseph continued, shaking his head with dismay written all over his face.

“What does this have to do with my father’s farm?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

He was quiet for a moment as he thought about how to answer my question, but then he sighed.

“This battle took place on the farm,” he finally said, making me gasp. He held my eyes with his own when he said this next part. “And your mother was in the battle.”

In an instant, my entire world stopped moving around me. I stared at him with disbelief all over my face. I couldn’t have heard him correctly; my mother? Fighting in a battle between witches and vampires?

I couldn’t speak to ask what he meant by this. Telling from his face, I knew he understood that I was completely speechless, so he continued to speak.

“She was a witch, Tessa,” he said slowly. “She was protecting the Heavenly Heart and because of this…. she lost her life.”

I was utterly frozen. Tears threatened to spill from my eyes as I stared at Joseph unblinking. This wasn’t real. This couldn’t have been real life.

My mother wasn’t a witch. My father would have told me. Wouldn’t he?

I couldn’t have lived for this long not knowing that I was part of a witch lineage.

I stared down at my hands, not realizing how badly they were trembling until I focused on them. Joseph noticed this too and he reached over to gently grasp them in his own. His hands were soft and warm; they made me feel calm, but with everything that was just thrown at me, I don’t think I don’t think he could make me feel calm enough.

Tears were pricking at the corners of my eyes, and I knew they were going to spill at any moment.

“Tessa…” Joseph breathed; his voice incredibly soft and making me look up at him. I saw the compassion and love in his eyes, but it was also decorated with worry and concern. Worry and concern for me and what I was thinking.

“What does this all mean?” I found myself croaking; my voice came out as a hoarse whisper.

He kept his eyes on mine as he reached up and brushed a fallen strand of hair from my face, tucking it neatly behind my ear.

“It means that you have magic inside of you,” he said softly, confirming my thoughts. “You must be a witch too. Or at least part witch.”

I pulled my hands away from his and shook my head, not wanting to believe what he was saying.

“No,” I said, still shaking my head. “I don’t have magic. I would know if I had magic.”

“Not necessarily,” Joseph said; he was still searching my face with his eyes, and I was feeling claustrophobic. It felt like I couldn’t breathe, and I had to take deep breaths to steady myself. “Witches don’t get their full powers until they are 25. However, they can start practicing magic when they are 21.”

I was 23. I don’t feel as if I had magic inside of me. What he was saying wasn’t making any sense, so I kept shaking my head.

“No, it can’t be true,” I said, refusing to hear any more of what he had to say.

I couldn’t get out of bed fast enough. I grabbed my clothes off the ground and struggled to put them on with my trembling hands.

“Tessa….” Joseph breathed.

He remained on the bed, watching me with worry and concern still all over his face. But I kept shaking my head as I pulled on my underpants and strapped on my bra. I couldn’t look at him; I couldn’t even look at myself if a mirror was presented to me.

I was feeling sick to my stomach.

Had my father been keeping this information from me this entire time? That still didn’t explain why Joseph couldn’t remember my father or the farm.

Was he the reason my mother was dead?

The thought came crashing into my mind and I was feeling sicker than ever.

I felt Joseph standing behind me now and I knew he wanted to comfort me. But I needed to get out of here.

I pulled on my dress and grabbed my shoes from the corner of the room.

“Tessa, just sit down so we can talk about this,” Joseph said, keeping his tone low and compassionate.

“I have to get out of here,” I kept murmuring.

It was more to myself than to him, but I knew he could hear me.

“Tess—“ He tried to say, but my shoes were already on and I was grabbing my purse off the little table on the far side of the room.

I began to rush toward the door and surprisingly, Joseph allowed me out of his room. He was saying something from behind me as I rushed out of his room and down the stairs of his villa. I knew he was following me, and I knew he was trying to get me to stay.

It was the middle of the night after and I realized quickly that I didn’t have a way home. I was going to have to call Ruby to come pick me up. Or I could call a rideshare.

Though I knew Joseph was speaking I couldn’t hear him. But I paused once I got to the front door and pulled it open. I turned to him, and I saw that he was incredibly worried and desperate to make me stay and talk with him.

“I’m sorry,” I managed to sputter as I turned and ran out of his villa.

As soon as the door shut behind me, like a dam that broke inside of me, I began to cry.