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argue with the vampire women, who’d prepared her without speaking a word to her. She had wanted to wear at least her underwear, but they had got rid of all of her clothes. Her face was washed and clean of make-up. Neither of the women spoke to her—instead she was treated more as an object than a person.
    She’d been told to wait for them to escort her down to the main ceremonial chamber. Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking.
    Sophie wondered if she was doing the right thing. She shook her head. She didn’t have a choice. She needed to do this. Her friend would be protected. She loved her brothers, but they could guard themselves. And her parents had shown that they were more than capable of looking out for themselves, whatever the price. She would save them all through this bond, but Katie was the one who deserved it—who needed it. Once she was under the care of a blood bond, no one could get to her. She would be safe, even from the vampires.
    Sophie released a sigh of relief. After spending weeks planning for this, it seemed surreal that it was finally happening.
    She hoped she would have time to bask in the happiness she was feeling. It was as though a huge weight had been removed from her shoulders.
    The door to her room opened and the mother of the vampire she was about to be bonded to came in. Her smile was happy and cheery.
    “Are you ready?”
    Everything she had heard about vampires—all the rumours—had prepared Sophie for the prospect of dealing with evil creatures of the night. This woman turned her ideas upside down. They might not have spoken a word, but the gentle way the woman prepared her and the kindness Sophie could see reflecting from her eyes told her so much about the older woman. This woman—or vampire—wasn’t evil.
    Sophie nodded. The woman extended her hand, but Sophie refused to take it and followed close behind her instead. She couldn’t take in her surroundings. She couldn’t hear anything over her heartbeat. Every step felt like the tick of a great clock, marking away the remaining seconds of her life.
    Sophie, aged twenty-one, was about to enter into a lifelong contract.
    She wouldn’t break down. She needed to do this. She closed her eyes and pictured Katie. Her best friend. She was doing this for her.
    She entered the chamber through a heavy wooden door. Sophie believed she could sense all the other men and women who had faced the end of their lives in this very room. Those who had sold themselves for the protection of others. Her parents were on one side of the room, holding each other, and on the other side his family dominated the cramped space. Neither family acknowledged the other. On a dais in the centre of the room stood her intended bond mate. He wore a black gown, a darkness in contrast to her lightness. His mother helped her onto the dais opposite him. The closer she got to the man who would be her bond mate, the more her heart pounded in her chest.
    He was a darkness in more than just his robe. His hair was black, cut short and tight. His features were aged but not old, as though he’d matured into a man, then the aging had just stopped. He had crinkles by his eyes from years of laughter—eyes that caught her and held her attention. Never in all of her life had she seen black eyes. They weren’t scary, but watchful. He was staring at her, heating her body. Taking a breath, she stared back at him as her body awakened to the sensation of arousal. Robert Valentine might be a vampire, but her blood heated for him. She licked her lips, forcing herself to think of Katie one last time. Thoughts of her friend always stopped her thinking about anything but the protection she wanted for her.
    She turned away, not liking the effect his gaze had on her body.
      The priest at the head of the dais spoke. “We are here to join Sophie Ford with Robert Valentine Junior.” He began to chant in a different language.
    Sophie had no idea what he was saying but Robert moved closer to