When I pushed my door open and his cinnamon scent washed over me, I knew I had to tell him. Awake or not. If he went knowingly into a trap where he could be injured and didn’t tell me in advance, I’d be pissed. I took a deep breath to steady my racing heart. No need to add to his alarm. The quiet stillness of our room made me cringe with guilt. If he’d been awake, he would’ve already known something was wrong. I pushed the door shut and hurried over to the bed where I found him knocked the fuck out. I sighed and sat on the bed beside him, resting my palm on his bare back. I’d never seen Everest so passed out. He was stretched out on his stomach with one arm dangling off the side of the bed and his face under the pillow. His long white hair was draped over his shoulder, mostly covering his face as it too dangled off the bed.

Dammit. He’s so asleep. He needs this, I don’t want to wake him. But I had to try. I leaned forward and ran my fingers through the long silky white strands of his hair, brushing it to the other side of his head. His eyes were closed, his mouth parted slightly. I cursed. His breathing was steady and calm. Get it over with, Frankie. He’ll be more upset if you don’t wake him.

“Everest?” I brushed my fingertips over his cheekbone. “Everest, I need you to wake up.”

Nothing. Just the steady beat of his heart.

“Everest?” I pressed my hands to his back and arm and pushed gently. When he didn’t wake, I shook him a little. “Everest?”

He licked his lips but did not wake.

I leaned forward and pressed my mouth to his ear. “Everest. Wake up.”

He growled.

“Really? What are you? A puppy?” I shook him harder. “Everest, I really need you to wake up right now. I need to talk to you.”

A low growl rolled through his body, vibrating the muscles in his back.

“Fine. You leave me no choice.” I dropped to my knees on the floor right by his face, then carefully reached up with my pointer finger and sliced the tip of it on the bottom of his fang. Blood bubbled up to the surface of my skin. I smiled and pressed my now bloodied finger to his tongue.

His eyes flew open instantly. His mouth closed on my finger. Those royal blue pupils shot right at me. He looked a little like I’d woken a hungry tiger from his sleep. He was awake, but I was not sure how awake he was.

I smiled. “I need to talk to you. It’s important.”

He narrowed his eyes and growled low in his throat.