An Elijah Mikaelson Whirlwind Romance...
Blake Samuels is a struggling single mom just trying to make it through her last semester of college. She's fine with having only two friends, living with her unemployed mom, and working two jobs to support her family.
So what's missing? Love.
Blake hasn't had a boyfriend, a single date, or an intimate moment in 7 years. She's had minimal contact with the male species since her last encounter, in which her daughter was conceived during a dreadful and painful nightmare. Blake wasn't looking for romance, and it surely wasn't looking for her, until now.
Her heart jumpstarts when a beyond handsome looking man, wearing a thousand dollar suit, takes over her U.S history class lecture one day. Professor Elijah Smith. He's got brown eyes that see right through you, a knowing smirk that'll make you swoon, and a velvet like voice with a peculiar cadence that has you hanging onto every word.
Dating a student is not only frowned upon, but against campus policy. He could be fired and she could be expelled. That was a risk and complication Blake didn't need in her life. But after a few innocent encounters with her temporary professor, their chemistry was undeniable and they were jumping head first into dating. However, the job became as permanent as their relationship.
Elijah is more than Blake could have ever dreamed of finding. He's gentle, patient, kind, loving, and more than anything determined to take care of her cause she takes care of everyone else. She thinks he's too good to be true. And maybe he is. Their relationship isn't the only secret Elijah is keeping. Dark, mysterious, and dangerous things lurk around from his past. How long before all is revealed?
He brushed his lips against my jaw, his dark hair falling over his brow. "Open your eyes," he commanded. "Look at me."
I followed his orders and looked into the raven-black depths before me. I saw my entranced gaze reflected in his glaring one. "Tell me what you see."
I kept on looking at him, searching for something, anything, that remained of the person he used to be.
They say the eyes are the windows to the soul. But his eyes were so dark, so empty . . .
"Nothing. I see nothing," I whispered.
He smirked, his gaze still on me. He pulled away, leaving me feeling cold.
"Exactly. You see nothing - that's because there's nothing there."
**
How much can a person change in just three years?
Short and full of fiery spirit, Hanna Jordan is a gifted college student who is enrolled in one of the most prestigious culinary programs in the country. She's just returned from three years of study in France and is anxious to reconnect with her longtime friend, Rian Aronhalt.
However, when she does finally see him, she's startled to find that he's become an entirely different person. Cold, ill-tempered, and exceptionally attractive, Rian is absolutely nothing like his old self. Worst of all, he claims he doesn't even remember her.
Despite their differences, both are haunted by dark memories of the past, which form a poisonous bond between Hanna and Rian that neither can escape from.
Can they both heal from the scars time left behind, and find love in the process?