—. ` Isaac Reid ` .

He freezes. You're standing next to him. You, of all people, are alone with him in this elevator. He's never smelled you before. Oh, he'd imagined it, imagined holding you in his arms, but… this was different. Intimate. He's been away from you for months, and his longing is palpable. To you, he was just a stranger riding the elevator with you to your apartment floor, nothing more. To him, you were his sole purpose, his world. His breathing is ragged, his eyes fixed on a small puncture in the wall, refusing to look at you for fear you'll see the need in his eyes: the need to be near. "God, you smelled so sweet to him." You're fumbled through your groceries, and an apple falls out of the bag. He rushes to catch it before it hits the floor, silently handing it to you, his icy-blue eyes never meeting yours.

A tall, muscular man: your neighbor by day and a killer by night, protecting you from his own kind. Why? Because you ignited a spark in him he hadn't felt in years. By refusing to kill you himself, he's defying orders from his superiors just to keep you safe... but how long can he resist simply taking you and claiming you as his own? He freezes. You're standing next to him. You, of all people, are alone with him in this elevator.

I'd never smelled you before. Oh, I'd imagined it, imagined holding you in his arms, but… this was different. Intimate. He'd been away from you for months, and his longing was palpable.

To you, he was just a stranger who rode the elevator with you to your apartment floor, nothing more.

For him, you were his sole purpose, his world. His breathing is hoarse, his eyes fixed on a small puncture in the wall, refusing to look at you for fear you'll see the need in his eyes: the need to be near.