Pure (Book 1, Pure Series) (47 page)

           
One of the black-cloaked attendants came up to us and offered to show us where we could put our coats.

           
As we followed the attendant, Irina called after us.

           
"Simon, remember you promised me a dance tonight!"

           
The four of us shed our coats, and I put my wings back on.
 
We moved through the crowd, eating the food, which was delicious, and admiring all of the costumes.
 
Very soon a buffet table was revealed, and we ate even more.

           
Not long afterward, a big empty room with a parquet floor was thrown open, and the dancing began.
 
I danced with Simon, Branden, and even Charisse.

           
"I'm glad I wore the sneakers," she commented.

           
While out on the dance floor I spotted Bryony and Annamaria, and at one point, I noticed a tall figure dressed as a vampire that made me draw in my breath sharply.
 
I thought for just a moment that I had seen William.

           
While Simon was dancing with Irina, and Branden and Charisse were dancing, I went out on a terrace at the back of the house.
 
I was alone there, and the night air was cold and clear.
 
I thought of William, and for just one moment, I considered calling him to see if he would come.

           
"May I have the next dance?" asked a voice.

           
I was alarmed – the voice sounded a lot like William.
 
Maybe I was hallucinating.
 
Or maybe my visions were coming back – they'd disappeared since I'd returned to the U.S.
 
Could trouble be starting again?

           
"Katie, will you look at me please?"
 
The voice that sounded like William's had a note of despair in it.

           
I turned.
 
Standing before me was the vampire I had spotted earlier on the dance floor.
 
He looked like William, and he looked solid, but my last vision of him had looked real, too.
 
I was afraid to believe it was him and have him disappear.

           
"Katie, will you say something?"

           
"Are you real?" I asked.

           
I stretched a hand out toward him, half expecting to encounter empty air, but my fingers touched his solid shoulder.
 
I put my other hand on his other shoulder.
 
Then I gave him a little shake.
 
"You're actually here, aren't you?"

           
He gave me the little half smile I remembered and took my hands in his.
 
"Yes, I’m really here.
 
But you haven't answered my question.
 
May I have the next dance?"

           
"I don't want to go back to the dance floor," I said.
 
"I'm afraid if we move from here that you'll disappear again."

           
"Then we'll dance here," he said.

           
I smiled then, too.
 
"In that case, you may have the next dance."

           
William changed his grip on my left hand, and he dropped my right hand and slid his free hand onto my waist, just under my butterfly wings.
 
I moved my hand to his arm.
 
We began to move in a simple box step.

           
"What brought you back to me?" I asked.
 
I felt a flash of panic.
 
"Gleb hasn't come back has he?"

           
"No," William said.
 
"He's gone for good."

           
He paused for a long moment, as if he were gathering himself to say something difficult.

           
"I tried to stay away," he said at last, "but I lost a battle with myself.
 
I couldn't stand to be alone, knowing that I could be near you instead."

           
"I never wanted you to stay away," I said.

           
He looked down.
 
"I have something terrible I have to tell you – a confession."

           
He looked back up at me.
 
"I love you."

           
A wonderful feeling of happiness flowed through me.
 
"That's not so terrible."

           
William stopped the dance.
 
"Look at me, Katie.
 
This isn't entirely a costume.
 
I was bitten by a monster.
 
I was banished by my own people.
 
I'm a half creature – not really one thing or the other – not pure.
 
I'm loved by no one."

           
"Stay here," I said.
 
"And be loved by me."

           
"Katie, I came here because I couldn't stop myself, but you shouldn't talk about loving me.
 
You're too young to understand what that means.
 
All I want is to see you and talk to you from time to time.
 
I can't ask any more of you than that."

           
My heart began to beat wildly.
 
"So, you will stay?"

           
"Yes," he said quietly.

           
Joy welled up within me.
 
"Then I will be in love with you whether you want me to be or not."

           
"Katie, trust me, your feelings will change.
 
You'll meet someone else someday – someone like you.
 
And you'll fall in love with him.
 
And I will be destroyed.
 
But I know that going into this."

           
"You want to bet?" I asked.

           
Puzzlement flickered in William's eyes.
 
"What do you mean?"

           
"Do you want to place a bet on whether or not I'll fall in love with someone else?"

           
"I already have," he said.
 
"And I bet my life."

           
"I'll bet my life, too," I said.

           
His hand gripped mine convulsively.
 
"No.
 
You can't bet that."

           
"It's too late," I said.
 
"I've already made my decision."

           
His eyes roamed over my face.
 
He could tell I meant what I said.

           
"We'll see what happens," he said softly.

           
"Yes, we will," I replied.
 
"I love you."

           
He touched my face.
 
"And I love you."

           
Then he bent his head, and our lips met in a kiss.