Hunting Daylight (9781101619032) (57 page)

“You’re still my girl,” he said.

I knew he was waiting for me to say the words, our litany, but my throat clenched.

Vivi sat down on my lap and put one arm around Jude, one around me. I couldn’t seem to pull in a breath, as if the whole lagoon were caught in my chest. The wind kicked up, and my hair streamed across my face.

I pushed it out of my eyes. Raphael stood at the bottom of the terrace, washed in golden light from the villa. He
rubbed his eyes, leaving a damp sheen on his cheeks. I felt a sudden longing to run back to him. His lips parted, as if he’d released a sigh, and his thoughts brushed through me. His expression was caught somewhere between grief and yearning. I held his gaze and pulled him deep inside me, out of the night, into a sun-drenched place. His eyes brimmed with knowing.

Raphael, I will always love you.

Always,
mia cara.
Always.

I owe a debt of gratitude to everyone at Berkley, including my editor, Faith Black; my copyeditor, Amy Schneider; and Lindsay T. Boggs, my publicist. Nancy Nicholas checked my French (all mistakes are my own). I will always be grateful to Ellen Levine for believing in these vamps from the beginning, when no one else did. Love and thanks to the in-house biochemist, Tyler West, and medical/genetics expert, Dr. Will West.