My father had always been fond of Ella, but he wanted me to embrace being an elf. Although he had nothing against humans, he preferred when I was surrounded by elves and fairies. I asked him once whether he was ever going to tell Mum about his true nature. He said my mother wouldn’t be able to handle it. I didn’t know if this was his decision or if he was more influenced by my grandma. When I found out I was an elf, I didn’t understand why he married Mum. After all, she was ordinary—not magical—and she hated anything abnormal.
I had a feeling that he was uncomfortable about the lies, but Dad was too scared to share this kind of secret with Mum, especially after so many years.
I didn’t doubt that my parents loved each other very much, maybe even more than they loved me. He had chosen her because he wasn’t going to live without her, even if he had to go against his better judgement.
"Hey, Jen, I got a CV for that tooth fairy," I said on Friday afternoon, ready to end my long day shift. We had been looking for a tooth fairy for about a week and I finally found the right candidate. There was still no news about Claudia and I hated being so inactive in the investigation. Dad made me promise that I wouldn’t do anything silly, and now I regretted that I went to speak to him about Nathaniel.
"That was pretty quick," Jennifer said, narrowing her green eyes.
I was just about to hit the reply button, when I heard someone entering the office. A large, well-built man stormed through the door holding a chainsaw.
For a second, I thought that maybe there was something wrong with my eyesight, but then Jen screamed. I was definitely seeing a man with a chainsaw.
I jumped back on my feet and my chair swirled. In my head, I was still trying to process what was happening.
If I had stayed in bed today, then my day would have been so much easier.
"Where the hell is he?" the man roared, waving the chainsaw in his arms like a maniac. "Where the hell is that bastard?"
I swallowed a giant lump in my throat and stared at the lunatic who was storming towards my desk. Chainsaw. I couldn’t seem to move from the spot where I was standing—I was paralysed from head to toe. First, the strange phone call, then Claudia was snatched from the street right in front of my eyes, and now this?
I really needed to catch a break at some point.
"Where the hell is that fucking vampire?" the stranger growled again. His chest heaved and his whole face turned scarlet.
"What vampire?" Jennifer mumbled, glancing nervously at his weapon.
"Mathew," the man growled with rage. He obviously didn’t like Jennifer’s response because he switched on the saw.
I wanted to cover my ears when the scampering sound filled the office. I couldn’t even hear my own thoughts.
My heart was jackhammering in my chest, seeing in my head as body parts scattered around. Great, yeah, that wasn’t even necessary; I knew that I needed to pull myself together.
Chapter eight
More trouble.
"Mathew left. He doesn’t work here anymore!" I managed to shout over the noise of the saw, struggling to stand straight. My legs felt like jelly.
Then Jennifer fainted. One moment she was standing by her desk, the next she was lying on the floor. Crap, I hoped she was going to be all right.
He cursed loudly and finally switched off the saw. “I want to kill him.” I glanced at the phone and calculated whether I would have enough time to call 9-9-9. "He fucked me right off! I still haven’t been paid for all the hours that I worked.”
"Just calm down. I’m sure we can help you," I assured him. Mathew was a terrible consultant and I wasn’t surprised that he had messed up the payroll. I clenched my fists, wanting to hurt him too.
Then the stranger approached my desk, this time with his weapon lowered. He sat in the chair in front of me, taking long pulls of air.
"I want my money. I worked for two months and I still haven’t seen a penny in my account,” he said. I was still standing, staring at him blankly. "Sit down," he said. "You’re distracting me."
I did as he said and managed to ask, "What’s your name?" Then clicked on my internal system which often happened when I sensed someone didn’t mean me true harm. This allowed the feeling to come back to my limbs.
"Michael Longbridge, a shapeshifter."
I don’t know why he came to see a vampire in the daytime. Maybe he didn’t realise that they only worked at night?
I nodded and typed his name into the computer. I tried to focus, feeling that he was watching me. I saw that Michael Longbridge had been on our books for more than two months. He was working as a security guard in one of the supermarkets.
Shit, he was right. He hadn’t been paid because some arsehole put him on cheque instead of BACS payment. Now I was going to die because that stupid idiot had made a mistake.
"Well?" he asked impatiently.
"You’re right; it’s our error. You should have gotten paid last month," I said, and wiped the sweat from my forehead. I looked at him, noticing his eyes. They were beautiful, dark ebony, but the image of that chainsaw flashed through my brain and I quickly waved it off.
Michael wrinkled his forehead and moved closer to me. “I’ve called every single day for the past two months. That fucker, Matthew, kept telling me there was a problem with my bank. I had to borrow cash for food. Do you know how humiliating that is?”
I wasn’t surprised Michael was so pissed off. Matthew had only lasted here a few months. He’d had no clue how to run an office. I didn’t understand on what basis Rufus had given him a job.
“I’m sorry that you didn’t get paid, but I’ll fix that right up," I assured him, plastering a smile on my face. "You’ll get your money within twenty-four hours."
"So, hopefully tomorrow?"
I nodded.
"I want to smash the face of that fucking prick," he growled, shaking his head.
"The money should be in your account sometime tomorrow," I added quickly before he lost control again.
"Fine, do whatever you’re going to do."
"Not to worry, Mr. Longbridge," I said with confidence. "Matthew is no longer employed by us. He has been dismissed."
"He better be," Michael said. "Thanks for your help, love."
Then he stood, picked his saw up off the floor, then left. For a long moment, I wondered if he was going to come back. When he didn’t, I flopped back on the chair, breathing hard, barely believing that I was still alive. My mind was spinning, and my palms were damp with sweat. I picked up the phone and dialled Rufus.
"Julia, I’m busy at the moment," he said, picking up after the third ring. "Is everything okay?"
"I don’t care that you’re busy, Rufus. Someone just tried to kill me with a fucking chainsaw!" I shouted into the phone. There was a long silence on the other end of the line, so I continued. "If you want me to do this job, then you need to hire security. First my cousin, now this?"
"Julia," repeated the smooth, calm voice of my regional manager, “Calm down and tell me exactly what happened."
I took a few deep breaths, and shut my eyes. He needed to know that, although I’d handled it, things could have gotten bad. I could still visualise my death by chainsaw.
"Are you okay?"
"Of course, I’m okay. I sorted it out, but Jen is still unconscious."
"Well done, Julia."
"Well done? Are you having a laugh? I thought this man was going to kill me because you hired a manager who didn’t know what he was doing! Rufus, seriously. I didn’t sign up for this."
Rufus was silent for a long while. "This isn’t a good time. We’ll discuss it in more detail when I come back to London next week. Carry on."
After I hung up, I went to Jennifer to see if she was all right. I slapped her gently on the cheek. She opened her eyes after a moment.
"Are we dead yet?" she asked, lifting her head and looking around.
"No, not yet. I just spoke to Rufus and we’ve got to carry on working," I told her. "By the wa
y, he won’t be hiring security any time soon."
Later on, at home, I had a light lunch, did my laundry and cleaned the house. By the time I finished with everything, it was time to get ready. I knew that Ella was going to look gorgeous as usual, so I went for a pair of killer heels. We were meeting at my favourite curry house at eight o’clock. At the same time, I felt a little guilty for wanting to enjoy myself tonight. Claudia was still out there, and Dad’s investigation didn’t seem to be going anywhere.
I hated that I couldn’t do anything for my cousin, but for a little while I considered disobeying my father and heading over to the club where one of my mates worked. His name was, Roger, and he knew plenty of scumbags around the city. Someone was bound to know something.
In the end, I decided to show up in the restaurant, then later on I could pop over and speak to Roger.
The Tube station was a ten-minute walk from my apartment, but it was still a struggle to walk in my high heels. I even managed to paint my nails. I just hoped that Jasper wouldn’t show up.
Raj’s Restaurant was in one of the posh areas of London. It was expensive, but I was able to afford a night out once a month. I was sure Ella had booked a table for us. A large Asian troll welcomed me when I walked in the door. The lighting was dim, and everything was decorated in purple and red colours.
“I have a reservation: Jenkins for two,” I said, not getting too close. He smelled of chicken tikka masala and vomit. That wasn’t a pleasant mix at all.
“Follow me, please." I loved my curry and the aromas of spices sharpened my appetite. Asian music flowed around the room. Nearly every table was full. We were lucky because Ella made the reservation when our favourite table was still available. I sat waiting and glanced at my watch. My best friend was never late. I checked my phone, but my inbox was empty. I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt.
“Good evening, Julia.”
When I looked up, I saw Nathaniel La Caz standing in front of my table. He winked at me, then sat in Ella’s chair. I looked around, not understanding what was going on and felt as if the air was suddenly trapped in my lungs.
“I’m afraid that your friend isn’t going to be joining you for dinner. You’ll have me instead,” he said, taking the menu from the waiter who’d just appeared by our table.
My heart skipped a beat and then raced triple time. Maybe I should have stayed home after all, this would have been so much easier.
“What are you doing here and why is Ella not coming? What did you do to her?”
“Not to worry. Your friend is fine. She just forgot that she had dinner plans with you tonight. She will call you tomorrow.” He scanned the menu like this was a completely normal thing to do.
I was more than pissed; I stared at him in complete shock. For some reason, my magic was alive, and energy was rushing down my spine.
He was unbelievable, but incredibly sexy at the same time. Damn my magic.
“How did you know where I was having dinner? What did you do to Ella? Have you been following me?”
I didn’t know how many more questions came out of my mouth, but anger knotted in the pit of my stomach. This wasn’t the plan, and now that Ella wasn’t coming I could head over to that club where Roger worked. I wasn’t planning to have dinner with La Caz.
My hands itched as if something was crawling under my skin. Tiny sparks started to arc through my fingertips, leaving traces of energy that erupted around my arms and cheeks. I was fuming, and my magic was growing. A glass the waiter carried blew up nearby; someone screamed, and I flinched. At that moment, Nathaniel realised what was going on with me because he touched my hand.
“Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you. I just want to talk.” He drew my hands into his, looking at me with those intense hazel eyes. My mind was spinning, and I tried to push my magic away. After a few seconds, I stopped sparkling and closed my eyes to pull myself together. A public restaurant wasn’t a good place for that kind of display. I wished that I could be human sometimes. At least then I wouldn’t have to worry about blowing things up and now, he knew about my flaw. He must have figured out that I had problems with my magic the first time we met.
I pulled my hand away and sank into my seat, taking deep pulls of air. I was still angry. He'd tricked me and used my best friend to come here tonight. I glanced at him. His sandy hair fell freely over his forehead. He was dressed casually in a knitted jumper in marled yarn and looked slightly flushed.
“So, you decided to stalk Ella, then glamoured her so you could find out where she was meeting me tonight?” I asked, finding my voice.
The waiter approached us, looking nervously at me, as if he knew that I blew up the glass. "Can I get you anything to drink?"
"Could we have a bottle of George Duboeuf Chiroubles to start with, please?"
"Right away, sir." The waiter smiled, then walked away. My eyes widened in amazement. He obviously knew what kind of wine would be suitable for this evening.
I was just about to protest when Nathaniel said, "Julia, we are both adults, and I’m only asking you to spend a few hours with me." He paused, relaxing. "Besides, your friend won’t remember anything at all, so no harm done."
"Your vampire tricks might leave a permanent mark on her health. She’s only a human and so far, I’ve been able to keep her away from the paranormal world. How did you know that we were going out together?" Anger laced my tone.
"Let’s just say that I have well-gifted friends, wizards who are able to gain valuable information for me." He chuckled. The waiter brought the wine to the table and asked us if we were ready to order. I hadn’t even had a chance to look at the menu yet.
“I’ll have spice crusted hake with Colombo curry sauce and for the lady, Tandoori spiced chicken, cashew nut korma, and pilau rice, please." The waiter nodded, then vanished as quickly as he’d appeared. My jaw was on the floor.
"I can’t believe that you’re actually doing this. We are not having dinner. I have plans for tonight, now that Ella isn’t coming.” I wondered how the hell he knew what I liked.
“What plans?”
“I have to be somewhere in Hackney. There is this guy there that I know, and he might be able to direct me to someone that he knows who needs fairies and elves blood.” I immediately wanted to bite my tongue. I’d said too much.
What the hell was wrong with me? He’d made me so angry earlier on and now, I wasn’t even controlling what I was saying.
He narrowed his eyes at me and inhaled sharply. Crap, I needed to disappear before he got too involved.
“That’s very bad idea. We will have dinner first, get to know each other a little better, and then I can help you with locating your cousin,” he said. “Besides, we could have avoided all this drama if you had just said yes when I asked you the first time."
“Help me, how?” I snapped. “She was kidnapped, and Roger knows every scumbag in the city.”
“Just trust me. I’m a Dhampir and I specialise in blood. We just have to speak to the right people,” he told me. “Your cousin is still alive, that much I can tell you. Whoever has her must realise how truly valuable she can be.”
Chapter nine
Another side of him.
I stared at him with shock, thinking that after all, I needed his help. He was indeed powerful, and I was so fed up sitting on my arse, waiting to hear back from my dad. If other vampires were involved in abducting Claudia, then I knew I had to stick with him, at least for now.
"Do you always get what you want?" I looked at him, taking a small sip of my wine. I knew that if I drank too much, my energy would flare up, so I needed to slow down. Nathaniel La Caz knew way too much about me already, and he made me nervous. My insecurities and secrets were much more complex than he ought to know.
"Yes, most of the time I get what I want." His eyes were focused on my lips. "May I just say that you look very beautiful this evening?"
I laughed. The wine gave me a little bit more courage, but awareness of him
being so close to me sent a wave of energy through my core. "You don’t look so bad yourself."
“Tell me about your magic. It seems that sometimes things around you explode, yes?” I was shocked by his sudden question and that he decided to be so forward. He was making me feel even more self-conscious now.
"Only when someone gets on my nerves," I replied, sounding nervous.
He gave me a lazy smile. "Then you can’t control it?"
"Sometimes I can; sometimes it just not up to me. Reading people’s thoughts can be useful, though.” I took another sip of wine, looking at him above the rim of my wine glass.
"Precisely."
"And if one vampire won’t leave me alone, I can just use my energy to kick him in the crotch." I chuckled. I thought that I needed to play hard to get, then later on, I could question him further about his Lucrative Shot guilt free.
He shifted in his chair. “I’m sure that won’t be necessary. I like your independence and smart mouth, so stop playing with me and tell me; how long have you been living in London?"
"Oh, no, Nathaniel, you forced your company upon me tonight, so I’ll be the one asking questions," I said and took a generous sip of wine, never taking my eyes off of him.
"So, you are curious about me, then?"
I rolled my eyes. "Just be honest with me. You never felt attracted to me—you just want to taste my blood. Everyone knows that vampires love fairies and elves blood." I knew that I’d scored because his eyes gleamed.
"Do you always get straight to the point?"
"Yet again, you answer with a question." I sighed. "Can you just tell me what you want from me?"
"We have all evening to talk about my desires. As I mentioned before, I want to get to know you. So, tell me a little about yourself."
“I’m twenty-two and, as you already know, I studied journalism in London. I’ve been working for Paranormal Personnel for over two years and I enjoy what I do. Happy now?" I raised my brow, irritated.
Love with Fangs (The Witching Hour Series Book 1) Page 6