by Elena Gray
Immortal Mayhem
Elena Gray
Kelli McCracken
Immortal Mayhem © copyright 2019 Elena Gray and Kelli McCracken
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Cover Art by Taurus Colosseum
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
About the Authors
Chapter 1
I glared at the door as a fist pounded against it. Why couldn’t Mike just get over himself and move on? He’d been blowing up my phone for two days begging me to give him another chance.
If I was smart, I would have gone to one of my girlfriend’s houses for the weekend but I really didn’t feel like hearing the “I told you so’s” from any of them right now. I was still licking my wounds.
So here I sat, downing a bottle of wine, while I scared the crap out of myself watching horror movies alone. Living the dream.
And screw you, Mike. I was done being his personal ATM. Luckily, I realized what a jerk he was before he swindled me out of my life savings. He had no clue what it was like to actually earn a dollar. Unless he considered scamming people a career.
I refused to waste another minute of my time on him. It was bad enough that I had sacrificed almost a year of my life on that prick. I had screamed into my pillow earlier, hoping that would relieve some of the pent-up anger I was still holding onto. No such luck. I had also hoped the wine would dull some of my frustration, but based on the fact that I still wanted to rip his head off, the alcohol wasn’t helping either.
When the knocking continued, I drained my glass of wine and swiped the tears from under my eyes. Crying was another thing I could add to my list of stupid things I did for him. I wasn’t even crying over the fact that he was out of my life. I was crying over the fact that I hadn’t ended it sooner.
Glancing in the mirror by the door, I cringed at the sight of my red, swollen eyes. I hated that he would assume I had been crying over him. A strand of auburn hair had worked its way loose from my ponytail. I smoothed it back and tried to take a calming breath. Who the hell was I kidding? One inhalation of air wasn’t going to keep me from punching him in the throat.
Yanking the door open, I yelled, “Go the fu—”
Heat flooded my cheeks when I was greeted not by my asshole ex, but by my sexy neighbor, Trevor. His six-foot-three frame filled my doorway. He definitely couldn’t be mistaken for Mike. Trevor knew how to make a navy blue sweater and jeans look good.
“Sorry,” he said, holding his hands out in front of him. “I didn’t mean to keep knocking. I figured maybe you couldn’t hear me over the noise from the TV.”
I glanced over my shoulder. He’d heard the TV through the door? It wasn’t even that loud. He either had really good hearing or the walls were thinner than I thought.
“No. I’m so sorry.” I forced a smile to my lips. Of all people to be at my door when I looked like such a hot mess, it had to be Trevor. “I thought you were someone else. Did you need something?”
He studied me for a moment, taking in my red eyes, oversized sweatshirt, and leggings. “If now isn’t a good time, I can come back later.”
I quickly folded my arms over my chest when I remembered that I wasn’t wearing a bra. Who wears a bra to their own pity party? Obviously not me. My list of embarrassing moments was growing longer by the minute.
“No. It’s fine. I’m fine. Just cutting up some onions for dinner.” Why I felt the need to add that last part was beyond me. He must think I’m a complete idiot. Might as well add that to my list too.
He reached behind him and pulled a card from his back pocket. As he extended it toward me, he said, “I know it’s short notice and you probably already have plans, but there’s a Halloween party tonight. If you’re not doing anything, would you like to go with me?”
What the Chuck Norris was happening? I had lived next door to Trevor for over a year, and most of that time I had spent drooling over him. Trevor had always been friendly, but never seemed interested. He’d stopped by to check out my Halloween decorations the other day, and it was the most we had ever spoken to each other.
So why was he asking me out today, and right after I’d broken up with Mike? Had overhearing my breakup last night encouraged him to make the first move? Or was this a pity invite?
I was going to guess pity invite, because I wasn’t about to get my hopes up over Trevor finally showing interest.
When I didn’t answer right away, he continued, “To be honest, it’s a can’t miss party. My friends really go all out. Fireworks, aerialists, and there might even be a fire-breathing dragon. Last year, they had a Pegasus. If you only knew how hard it is to get one of those.”
I laughed for the first time in days. He was actually funny and it made my decision even harder. Little did he know that I didn’t need an incentive to go with him, even if there was a real fire-breathing dragon there.
If the timing had been different, I would have jumped at the chance to go out on a date with him. Right now, I couldn’t be sure if he was just being nice because he felt bad for the poor girl next door who’d just had to kick her thieving boyfriend out of her house.
What if I went with him thinking it was a date, and some other girl showed up? Nope. No matter how tempting. And boy was he tempting.
I couldn’t go through with it. I would have to be content with a bowl of chocolate-covered popcorn as my date.
“Um. I would really love to go, but it’s been a long day and I just feel like relaxing tonight.”
I must seriously be crazy. Granted, I was newly single, but when would I get another chance to go out with my hot neighbor? What if I was wrong and he really was interested?
His smile fell, but he continued to hold the invitation out toward me. “Take this anyway. In case you change your mind. You’ll need it to get in.”
I stared at the cream-colored invite in his hand, still unsure whether I should take it. The quality of the invitation looked way out of my league. The only party invites I ever received were by text or email. None were ever this formal.
“Are you sure you don’t want to ask someone else? You must have a long list of girls who would love to go with you.”
Why did I feel the need to keep running my mouth? I might as well tell him about my hot fantasies of him while I was at it.
His lips curled up, flashing the whitest teeth I had ever seen. That smile alone had my stomach flipping.
“No. You’re my first and only choice.” Blinking at me with puppy dog eyes, he added, “I’ll somehow manage to make it through the night all alone, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed that you’ll take pity on me and change your mind.”
Wow. He was good. He didn’t need to use the sad face to get
my attention. Those silver-gray eyes would do the trick just fine, because I was already lost in them. I highly doubted he would spend tonight alone, but I couldn’t deny that the flirting was making me feel a little better.
Mike had managed to suck the life out of me for the past eight months. It didn’t take long for the honeymoon phase to be over with him. Just thinking about him again made me want to punch something.
Trevor leaned in. I held my breath. Was he really going to kiss me right now? If he did, then the answer to his invite would be, hell yes! My eyes began to drift closed, and I prayed that he couldn’t hear my heart hammering in my chest.
“Thirty Nights of Screams?” he said. “Now I can see why you turned down my invitation.”
My eyes snapped open and I nearly fell into him. Now my pulse raced for a different reason. I was afraid to shift my gaze and find him smirking at my total misinterpretation of the situation. If only I could remember what he’d just said.
Plastering a smile on my face, I slowly swiveled my head to find Trevor’s attention not on me, but on my TV. I may have just dodged a bullet with that one.
“Uh. Yeah. That’s right, you love horror movies too.” How could I forget? It was one of the things we’d discussed the other day, when I was scrambling to get my last-minute decorations up.
He leaned away from me, but not before I got a whiff of his cologne. He was slowly chiseling away at my willpower to stay home.
“Listen, if I didn’t have to make an appearance at this party tonight, I would be back over with some sweatpants and Thai food. Work has kept me so busy this month that I haven’t had a chance to watch one movie, let alone watch it with someone who appreciates it as much as I do.”
If I thought for a minute he was serious about that, I would give him a reason to stay. Curling up on the couch with Trevor was definitely better than curling up with a bowl of popcorn. He probably tasted better, too.
Grrr. Why couldn’t I be like my friends? They would have no problem seducing Trevor into giving up his plans for the evening. I just wasn’t that girl. It was the same reason I didn’t have the courage to go to this party. Not knowing anyone there terrified me. What if he had to go to the bathroom? I’d be standing there alone, feeling awkward and uncomfortable.
Put me in a room full of people that I know, and I’m the life of the party. Put me in a room full of strangers, and I try to blend in with the furniture.
I stared at the invite before finally taking it out of his hand. I convinced myself that it would be rude not to accept it. “Thanks for thinking of me. Maybe I can take a rain check for another night?”
Trevor began to back away from the door. “I’m hoping you change your mind and I won’t need that rain check. See you later, Claire.”
The throaty way he said my name caused more than my stomach to flip. He was not only hot, but dangerous too.
I watched him walk toward his house, then get in his car and drive away. I was totally going to regret my decision in the morning. I should have flirted back. Anything that would’ve let him know that I was even mildly interested.
He would probably never ask me on a date again.
Closing the door, I stared at the invitation. The lettering was pressed in gold foil. It looked more like an invitation to a wedding than to a Halloween party. The address didn’t look familiar, but the town was just outside the city.
Curious about where this party was, I walked over to the couch and sat down. I refilled my wine glass, then grabbed my computer, resting it on my lap. Taking a rather large and unladylike gulp of wine, I began to type in the address.
I nearly spilled my wine on my laptop when the photo of the house came up on the screen. I wasn’t even sure it could be called a “house.” This place was massive. It looked more like a resort than someone’s home. Maybe they would have a fire-breathing dragon tonight. With the kind of money they must have, I’m sure they could find a mythical creature somewhere, perhaps bribe one to show up for the party.
My phone chirped, signaling that I had another text. I didn’t need to check to know it was Mike. I mean seriously, did the guy not have any dignity? Wait, this was Mike, so of course he didn’t. The only thing he had was an empty bank account and I would have been in the same damn boat as him if I hadn’t hidden the password to my account.
That loser honestly thought I would take him back after he’d tried to steal the money I refused to give him for one of his stupid ventures.
Karma would make sure he got what he deserved.
Picking up my phone, I tapped the screen and pulled up Mike’s contact information. Then I selected the feature to block him. That was so much easier than having to change my number. See ya, Mike.
I had two options for tonight. Continue my Halloween movie marathon alone with lots of alcohol. Or put on my big girl panties and go to the party with Trevor, where there would also be lots of alcohol.
If I didn’t go to the party, I would be kicking myself for weeks. When would I ever get the chance to set foot inside a mansion like that?
And with Trevor.
But there was one problem. I didn’t have Trevor’s phone number. Now I would have to meet him at the party.
I would need plenty of wine to step out of my comfort zone. This wasn’t even a step. This was a major leap.
I’d played it safe my whole life, too afraid to take a risk. Maybe now it was time for a new Claire to evolve. Dating Mike was supposed to have been a safe choice, and look where that got me.
This was a costume party, anyway. What better way to pretend that I was someone else? The mask could be my armor. Instead of blending in with the furniture, I could blend in with the crowd.
Finishing my glass of wine, I grabbed the bottle and headed toward my bedroom before I changed my mind. I prayed I had something to wear. I had never been big on dressing up for Halloween. The only thing I even liked about the holiday was the month-long marathon of horror movies.
Yet here I was, ready to abandon the one thing I enjoyed most to go socialize.
I hoped Trevor was worth it.
Chapter 2
My driver whistled as he pulled his car around the circle and stopped in front of the steps that led to the front door. Lights were on in every window and expensive cars lined the driveway.
“This is some place,” the driver said, his eyes never leaving the front of the house.
I couldn’t blame him for staring. The stone exterior stretched up three stories with brown trim framing it. The photos online hadn’t done the place justice. Why did it have to look so much bigger in person?
I was about to tell him I’d changed my mind and to take me home when a valet opened my door.
“Miss?” he asked, holding out his hand for me.
My heart thrummed a steady beat in my chest. This had seemed like such a good idea an hour ago. Thankful that I’d finished the bottle of wine for liquid courage, I whispered, “Big girl panties,” before placing my hand in the valet’s.
“Excuse me, miss?”
I could feel my cheeks flaming. Had I said that out loud? I couldn’t just think it in my head like a normal person.
“Oh, I was just thanking my driver.”
The driver twisted in his seat, narrowing his eyes at me. “Actually, it sounded more like you said…”
Giving my driver the look of death, I shoved my fare toward him, daring him to say another word.
He cleared his throat and quickly continued, “It’s been a pleasure.”
I rolled my eyes at him, then let the valet finish helping me from the car. I pulled a Marilyn Monroe as soon as I stepped onto the driveway. The wind lifted my skirt and gave the valet and probably my driver a free peep.
Tugging on the hem of my extremely short skirt, I regretted my costume choice. My choices had been either slutty witch or grandma. Obviously, slutty witch won. Trevor would pretend he didn’t know me if I came dressed like an old woman.
When I’d bought the witch costu
me a few years ago, it hadn’t been slutty. It had actually fit. That was, until I’d washed it. I had failed to read the label, so it shrunk a little. Well. Maybe more than a little. My boobs were two seconds away from popping out of the corset and punching the valet in the face. Based on the way his eyes were glued to my chest, he was hoping they would win the war against the buttons they strained against.
Great. So much for blending in with the crowd. In this costume, I would be lucky if they didn’t lead me to the nearest pole.
When he held onto me a little longer than was comfortable, I tugged my hand free. Gripping the edge of my cape, I pulled it over my costume. He blinked as if coming out of a trance and cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed by his behavior. He turned his attention to the doors at the top of the stairs and swept his hand forward.
“Enjoy your evening, miss.”
As I climbed the steps, I focused on not falling down them. The heels I wore tonight were a little higher than I normally wore. Add in the obscene amount of wine I had already consumed and I was one step away from a broken neck. When I reached the front doors, I closed my eyes and gave myself a silent pep talk. I was not going to be caught talking to myself again.
I didn’t know why I was so worried. It wasn’t like I knew anyone here, aside from Trevor. All I needed to do was walk in and have a good time. What was the worst that could happen?
I took a steadying breath and willed my heart rate to slow. I was about to press the doorbell when someone approached me from behind.
“I wouldn’t bother trying to ring that. The music is so loud no one will hear you.”
Glancing over my shoulder, I let out a squeal. A man stood behind me with horns. His teeth resembled a walrus’s. His arms, neck, and face were covered in tattoos, all of which seemed to glow under the entryway light.