Toni shook her head. It was almost as if the moment she’d left Chicago three years ago, someone had hit the pause button on Grey’s and hadn’t pushed play until she’d walked back in.
She looked back up at Jacob, but the “paused” feeling held strong because much like Clint – he hadn’t changed either. They made for such an odd couple, always sitting across from each other, as if to symbolize they would always be on opposite sides. And they couldn’t have been more different if they’d actually tried.
Clint’s short black hair was styled in a messy spike, while Jacob’s head was always bald and beautiful. Jacob’s eyes were a vibrant, almost electric blue, and Clint’s were a rich, dark green. Clint’s perpetual five o’clock shadow gave his face a rugged appearance because of the way it stood out against his swarthy skin, but Jacob was always clean shaven.
Even their clothing clashed. Dressed in a wrinkled white button down with only the three middle buttons fastened and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, Clint’s khaki cargo pants were slung so low on his hips that his tight abs showed between his waistband and the bottom of his open shirt. And at the other end of the spectrum there was Jacob, with his long sleeved black dress shirt buttoned almost all the way up to the collar, tucked into a pair of perfectly pressed and belted black slacks, he didn’t exactly give off the same college vibe that Clint did.
The only real commonalities between the two were their height, which was roughly six and a half feet, and the fact that they were both absolutely gorgeous – but for very different reasons.
Clint’s features were sexy and playful, but you knew he could be commanding if he wanted to be. And Jacob, well…Jacob had the face she was sure God had used as the final mold to create every male angel she’d ever seen depicted in a book. Plainly put, angelic was the only way she’d ever been able to describe him. And although his build was thinner than Clint’s, he had a dangerous edge that Clint just didn’t have.
She smiled as she stared between the two. She’d missed them both so much. She’d missed hearing them pick at each other. She’d even missed listening to them argue about subjects she didn’t even understand, like politics and science or business and government. And she really had to like someone to listen to them prattle on for hours about campaign strategies or atom colliders.
Toni’s thoughts scattered when Jacob gently pushed her towards Clint’s couch. “Why don’t you sit down with Clint while I go get you some coffee?”
She nodded in response to his suggestion then sat down next to Clint and pulled his arm around her shoulders.
Now she had almost everything she’d been missing.
When Martin returned to the counter with an evil grin draped across his face, Drake raised an arm and sniffed at his armpit. “What? Do I smell or something?”
“No,” Martin laughed. “That was Murdoch on the phone. Apparently he’s got some fascinating information and talked Lord Locke into calling an emergency meeting of the Elder Council. I was wondering what you did?”
Drake forced a smile. He knew Martin was only teasing, but to be honest – he hated it. Every time something went wrong while he was in the city, all eyes landed on him. He didn’t kill other supernatural creatures because he gained some sick satisfaction from it. He did it because that’s what he’d been born and bred to do.
“I didn’t do anything, I swear,” Drake said, attempting to make light of the situation. “Damn, you kill a few people here and there and suddenly everyone thinks you’re a trouble maker.”
Drake straightened, and noted Martin did the same when Jacob approached the counter.
“I need a special for Toni, please,” Jacob said.
Drake bit at the inside of his lips instead of laughing like he wanted to. A special coffee was one Martin blended with blood so that any vampire who hadn’t mastered the talent of drinking could still enjoy the finest coffee in the world.
If he remembered correctly, Clint and Martin had acquired the skill long ago, and so well that they could even eat real food. Of course, it wasn’t pretty later when they regurgitated whatever they’d consumed, since their immortal bodies couldn’t process anything but blood.
Drake was just happy he didn’t have those kinds of problems.
He stopped internally gloating when Martin started talking. “You go tell that girl that I’ll only make a drink for her if she brings her behind up to the counter and gives me a hug, too.”
Drake tipped his head back. “Oh, Toni…Martin’s refusing you service until you hug him!”
She jumped up, smiled at him as though she was surprised, and then ran around the counter into Martin’s waiting arms.
Drake tore his attention away from Toni when he felt Jacob tug on his coat. “You tugged?”
Jacob walked about halfway back to the couch before he turned around. “You know, you are allowed to sit over here. It’s far more comfortable than standing at the counter.”
Drake chuckled, picked up his espresso, and then followed Jacob to the couch. But he only managed to get a few steps away before he heard Toni’s voice again and turned to look at her.
“Will you make my drink now?” she asked Martin.
“You know I will.” He let her go as the chimes went off over the front door, signaling more customers. “I’ll have it out to you in a second.”
“Okay. Just yell and I’ll come get it.” She moved away from the counter as the new customers began ordering and worked her way back to the couch. But not before she grabbed Drake’s hand as she passed by and dragged him along with her.
Drake gave no resistance when she dropped down on the couch next to Clint then pulled him down to sit on the other side of her. And he couldn’t hide the shit-eating grin that he knew spread all the way across his face when it was his arm she draped behind her shoulders, and his chest she snuggled against.
He bit the inside of his cheek and forced himself not to glare when Clint rested a hand on Toni’s knee. He didn’t know Clint all that well, and had no real reason to hate him, but at that moment he wanted nothing more than to hold the Ancient out in the sun.
Deciding his attention was better focused on the woman beside him, Drake sat comfortably next to Toni as she joked and reminisced with her friends. At times, she seemed so happy just to be there that she could barely keep her eyes dry. And it was the way she laughed and cried with the people circled around her that finally made him realize exactly what it was about her that called to him. Toni was sweet, caring, and compassionate...
She was everything he wasn’t.
Chapter 10
Drake patiently waited on the sidewalk outside of Grey’s while Toni said her goodbyes to Clint and Jacob. He’d sensed as she caught up with her friends that her thoughts weren’t as scattered as they were before they’d arrived. He just wished his were as clear.
Looking up at the sky, he drew in a mouthful of cold night air. Grey’s was a great place but it was almost too comfortable. Twice he’d almost fallen asleep while listening to Toni’s soft voice as she recounted various stories with Clint, Jacob, and Martin. And twice she’d covertly pinched him to make sure he was still alive.
Alive he very much was, and he was also more than happy it was time to head downstairs to The Underground. The atmosphere in the club was a lot more lively and upbeat, and while the strong emotional undercurrent between Toni and Clint didn’t necessarily bother him, it did wreak a little havoc on his senses.
Drake turned to face Toni when she finally stepped through the doorway. She looked so happy. And the wide smile that swept across her face as she tucked an unruly strand of hair behind her ear sent a warm sensation swirling through him.
“Okay, Big Boy,” she sighed as she looped her arm inside his. “I’m ready to go downstairs now.”
“Well, I’m glad to see you’re in a better mood.”
“Yeah, I feel more…calm. Everything doesn’t seem so all over the place. I mean, I’m still worried about my meeting with Christian, but
knowing Clint isn’t mad at me helps a lot.”
He inclined his head to where their arms were joined. “I was talking about that.”
Her smile softened rather remarkably. “I forgot my coat, it’s cold out here…and you’re warm and toasty. Besides, I can’t think of any other man whose arm I’d rather be wrapped around.”
For the first time in his life, Drake really didn’t know what to say. Those few words might have been the nicest thing anyone had ever said to him. And the fact she hadn’t shot or stuck him with some kind of blade afterward made the simple sentiment that much better.
You’re so screwed. Drake smiled at the thought. He’d pretty much figured that out last night when she’d stood in front of him on the hotel bed, but now that instinct had apparently jumped on the bandwagon, the notion was damn near set in stone. He wouldn’t be able to stay away from Toni now or after the contract was over – and he knew it.
They quietly walked arm in arm down the sidewalk and around the back of Grey’s to the entrance of The Underground.
Drake shifted his arm and curled his fingers between Toni’s as he bypassed the line and headed straight for the large bouncer waiting near the doorway to the stairs. “What’s up, Jim?”
“Drake! How the hell’s it hangin’ man?
Drake nodded at him. “Not bad, not bad. A little to the left, but other than that I can’t complain. How ‘bout you?”
“I could always complain,” Jim said as he lifted the chain blocking the stairway, “but it wouldn’t do me any good. Ya know?”
Drake laughed as the crowd contested when he and Toni were let in without waiting in line. Of course, if any of them had fangs – they’d have gotten special V.I.P access, too. He snickered a little louder as they descended the staircase to the tune of Jim telling the crowd ‘if they didn’t settle down, he wouldn’t let any of them in’, but the rest trailed off under pounding bass.
Unfortunately, Drake’s gloating faded when Toni came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs. Her head moved from side to side as she looked out over the dark club, but since he was behind her he couldn’t see her face. He cast a quick glance around, but nothing appeared out of place.
Roughly half the size of a football field, the dance floor took up half the club on its own, while a small stage was situated at one end of the room and the bar at the other. Various booths were scattered around the bar area for patrons who either didn’t dance or needed a break, and the bathrooms were on the far wall directly across from where they stood on the stairs.
The only light in the club pulsed from the ten strobes strategically placed around the dance floor and the single line of eerie blue lights strung above the bar. The DJ was spinning “Smack My Bitch Up” by Prodigy while the whole room thundered and shook because three of the six gigantic bass speakers were pointed directly at the floor.
For humans, there were usually only two reasons to go to The Underground: to dance or to find someone to have sex with. For vampires, since the entire place was usually wall to wall with sweat slicked writhing bodies; it was the perfect place to pick up dinner.
Drake rested his hands on Toni’s hips then bent down next to her ear. “Is everything okay? Are you all right?”
She shook her head then nodded, as if pulling herself from some sort of odd trance. “Yeah, sorry. I just haven’t been here in a really, really long time.”
“Well, then welcome back,” he said as he nudged her forward.
“Thanks.” She flashed him a smile over her shoulder and set her hands on top of his as he steered them through the crowd.
When they finally made it to the bar, the bartender stuck a bottle of beer out in Drake’s direction. He happily snatched the beverage then took a long drink of his favorite liquid. “Give me another beer, a special please.”
He watched as the bartender grabbed a darker bottle and disappeared under the bar. A second later he popped back up and slid it over to Drake. He handed the bottle to Toni and smiled when she gave it an odd look before the smell hit her.
After taking a good swallow, she smiled up at him. “I take it you’re a regular?” she yelled over the music.
Drake pressed a finger to his ear and wiggled it. Damn the girl had some lungs. He nodded once he was sure his eardrum was still in one piece. “I come here whenever I have time. It’s a nice release.”
She’d just started to open her mouth when a nearly ear shattering squeal exploded from directly behind her. “Toni! Girl, I thought you moved for good. I can’t believe you’re back! Come on, you gotta come over to my table – everyone from the old crew is here.”
Drake squinted as the sound wrapped around his head and reverberated in his ears. But even through narrowed eyes he locked on the cute Spanish girl who threw herself into Toni’s arms and squeezed her tight. The warm yellow colors outlining her body relayed that she wasn’t anything more than a human, which meant she was absolutely no threat to him or Toni. Of course, he probably could’ve waited an extra second or two before sliding into discern mode, because it didn’t take Toni long to return the attack.
She grabbed the girl’s hand, an excited smile draped across her face from ear to ear. “Mary! Oh my God. I didn’t think you guys still came here.” She turned and squeezed his forearm even while Mary tugged at her shirt. “Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be right back.”
Drake nodded then watched as Mary pulled her away and into a booth in the back corner of room where she exchanged hugs with various people, all of whom jumped out of the booth the moment they saw her.
It must be nice to be so loved. He pushed the despicable green-eyed monster down at the thought, and then even further when the tip of an extremely sharp but very familiar blade pressed into the center of his back. He broke into a full out grin. Only one person would have the balls to do something like that to him in the middle of The Underground.
Drake chuckled as he spun around and grabbed the hand holding the blade. “Tober, you son of a bitch. How the hell are ya?”
“Not bad man, not bad at all,” Oktober said as he pulled free of Drake’s hold then flipped the blade away with expert ease. “Just doing a little grocery shopping. What about you? You finally get some time off?”
“Hell no, I’m working as always.” He swallowed another mouthful of beer. “What are you doing here? The Boss got you out on another job already?”
He shook his bald head. “Nope, I’m here for rest and relaxation.”
Drake couldn’t help but to laugh. He knew his best friend well, and he also knew that Oktober’s definition of ‘rest and relaxation’ included only one word. “So you’re here for pussy?”
A purely wicked smile spread across Oktober’s face. “Exactly.”
Toni was more than excited to see her old crew again, but after accepting their condolences about the death of her family, she’d ended up telling the girls at the table more about Drake than what she’d been doing the last few years. Mostly because she didn’t want the entire memory of her family’s death to surface again and focusing on Drake made its sting that much easier to bear, but partly because she really didn’t know what else to say.
No one at the table knew what she was. And she couldn’t very well tell them what she’d really been doing for the past three years. Even if she tried, chances were they wouldn’t believe her anyway. But the more she stayed quiet and listened to everyone else talk, the more she found herself drawing away from them. They were all vibrant and carefree as they prattled on about their families, bills, and other very human subjects.
Subjects she couldn’t relate to anymore.
Toni shifted in her seat when a tide of jealousy roiling with anger began rising inside her. She wished she still had little things to worry about like a mortgage or a dirty apartment – but she didn’t. She worried about things like where to sleep so she didn’t get burnt up by the sun, which human was healthy enough to have their blood stolen, and whether she could steal it without them knowing.
She slowly looked over the people she’d known for so long but could barely identify with as the beast unfurled in her stomach. Red tinged the room as the pounding of hundreds of heartbeats echoed in her ears, followed by the thick metallic scent that nearly overwhelmed her senses. But just when she felt the tips of her fangs graze the inside of her upper lip, Mary grabbed her hand.
“So exactly how did you meet Drake…and where can I get one?” she asked. “‘Cuz I swear just looking at him is givin’ me hot flashes.”
Toni’s fury quickly subsided as she contemplated how to answer the question. “We met at my hotel last night.”
“You met him last night and you’re out here with him already?” Mary cast a glance in Drake’s direction then back to her. “Way to reel in the Hottie! At least I know one of us is getting laid tonight.”
“Oh my God,” Toni groaned. “For your information, he’s the one who wanted to come down here and dance. I was perfectly happy sitting upstairs at Grey’s.”
“I’d rather be down here with him.”
Toni smiled at her friend. Truth be told, she’d rather be someplace quiet and alone with him. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s a really great guy...but you know The Underground was never my favorite place to be. It’s so dark…and loud.”
“I know you’d rather be somewhere else.” A wild smile raced across her face as she made exaggerated twisting motions with her hand. “You’d rather be on the hood of a car with him in a dirty garage somewhere, tightening his nuts.”
Toni blinked at her. “I can’t believe you just said that.”
“No, what you can’t believe is just how much you wanna do that!”
Eternal Hearts Page 14