There was a small click- the sound of someone closing a door quietly. I jolted up in bed, scanning the room. Gabriel was gone. My eyes flashed over Lydia and Anna's bed, and I noticed with a shock that Lydia had vanished as well.

Moving silently, I slipped out of my bed. Pulling on a jacket and my sneakers before tiptoeing across the room to the door, I sent one last look over my shoulder and left the motel to search for Gabriel. I could feel his presence through the web despite his mental walls, strong waves of hunger rippling out and towards me and causing me to wince.

I found him pacing in the shadows in an alley, a ways away from the motel. His eyes had dark circles under them, his hands hooked into claws. I stepped into the dark space between the two buildings and wrapped my arms around myself, chilled. He didn't noticed me at first, not until I spoke.

"Where's Lydia?"

He whipped around, startled. Stormy eyes flashed dangerously. "Can't you leave me alone?"

"Are you alone?" I asked boldly, taking a small step towards him.

Gabriel didn't say anything for a moment. Then he said slowly, "I have no idea where Lydia is. I came out myself."

I sighed, deciding to trust him on that one. "Look, that's not what I came out here for. What are you going to do tonight?" Lydia could wait. Gabe's appetite was much too large for my liking at the moment.

He narrowed his eyes and took a step back. I took a step forward. "Are you going to go hunting? Are you going to find some girl walking alone and grab her?"

Gabriel looked away, clenching his jaw. His eyes were darker than normal; his whole body rigid. I knew he was close to breaking now. I felt a small triumph blossom in me and quickly smothered it, taking another step towards him. "Whoever she is, you'll probably kill her. She won't have enough energy for you, so she'll die, Gabriel. Is that what you want?"

"I don't have any other choice!" He growled, his hands balling into fists.

"Don't be stupid, Gabriel," I said, and wrapped my arms around him. I felt his resolve fade, his hands moving to the back of my neck to brush away my hair. His lips pressed gently against my skin, his arms supporting me now as my energy flowed into him. I shuddered at the dragging feeling, but started to relax in his grip. My eyes slid closed.

That's when I realized how weak he was, or had been. All of Gabriel's walls were down. His emotions rushed around us, and my eyes snapped open. Joy, appreciation, wonder... love. Gabriel loved me.

It seemed like hours had passed until he finally released me, his neck straightening as he leaned away.

I pulled away, shocked. "Gabriel..."

He didn't answer. His eyes were still dark, but there was something different about the look in them. There was a new kind of hunger glinting in them now; it took me a moment to place the emotion in his gray-black eyes, but when I did I gave a little gasp. Lust. Gabriel was staring at me with lust in his eyes.

I swallowed.

I heard his mental voice in my head. It sounded too heated for the two words he spoke, almost a growl. Thank you.

Gabriel's hand slid down my spine, coming to rest on my lower back. Its heat sent a shudder through my bones. My mouth was dry. I started to edge away, confused and a little dizzy. I don't love Gabriel; I love Rob.

Do you?

I stared at the pavement below us, trying not to notice his scent or the way his stormy gray eyes, boring holes into my skin, were suddenly like an aphrodisiac to me.

His other hand cupped my cheek, forcing me to look at him. His eyes searched mine, carnal and greedy. There was a heat in my lower stomach now, and my mind was fuzzy, clouded with a sudden longing.

I don't know anymore. I sent the thought to him weakly, my hands shaking.

His eyes were softer now, but the lust was still there. He bent his head and brushed his lips lightly against mine. I swallowed again, moving my hands to his hair and pulling his head away from mine.

Just then the hand on my back slipped under my jacket, his long fingers splayed across my hot skin. My eyes widened, and my body reacted on its own. I pushed myself up on the tips of my toes and crushed my lips to his.