Damien and I stayed at the bottom of the steps while Rico walked Jenna up to the door.
Once they were upstairs, Damien pulled me to him. “I thought we’d never get a moment alone. We should have separated after dinner.”
“I agree. I thought about it, and then realized we would have ended up in the same club anyway.” I wrapped my arms around his neck.
“Hmm, next time it’s just us, no one else.” He leaned in and kissed me before I could nod my agreement.
A kiss from Damien was electrifying. All of my senses were tuned into him, while bolts of electricity hummed through my nerves.
When his kiss ended, it felt like something was missing. I wanted to keep kissing him all night long. Sadly, it wasn’t going to happen tonight.
He put his forehead against mine. “I’ll see you tomorrow night at the club. Sleep tight.”
Damien kissed my temple and walked away.
I sighed and made my way upstairs, trying to ignore Rico and Jenna’s kiss. I wasn’t sure if it was their first. I would have bet good money, it wasn’t. They quickly parted when I reached the top of the steps.
“Sorry, don’t mind me. I’m heading inside. Goodnight, Rico.” I opened the door without looking at them and went inside.
As I readied for bed I thought about the night. Other than our meeting with Lola, it was a totally normal date night. It really was a perfect night.
When I finally feel asleep, it was with a smile on my face.
19
Kat
“Excuse me, pardon me.” Tonight was my turn to get the drinks during our gig.
The girls were setting up our equipment, and I was charged with grabbing water. The place was jam-packed. I couldn’t walk one step without touching at least five people. A few pinched my cheeks, and I don’t mean the ones on my face.
I’m just glad Damien and the rest of the guys are strategically placed around the club. I don’t need a big Neanderthal getting upset over some stupid guy’s ill-placed hands. It’s something I have to deal with a lot. If I ever find the hands, they learn the hard way not to touch again.
Another hand made contact, and I grabbed the offender’s hand before he could pull away. “Watch it mister. You don’t touch me or my sisters. Got it?”
I learned a trick with handsy guys a long time ago. You grab the thumb and pull it back behind them, and it causes them to be in a submissive position as well as hurts like heck. No guy likes it when a girl gets the upper hand.
Sometimes I pull so hard they end up with a strained shoulder or wrist. Hopefully, they learn their lesson. This guy on the other hand, I knew he wouldn’t.
He was really strong. His hand left mine very easily. When he turned around to look at me his smile caused the hair on my arms to stand on end. I quickly turned a charm on one of my bracelets. It didn’t matter which one as long as it worked against a vampire.
His pointy teeth were showing, and I could tell he was dreaming of biting my neck. He couldn’t take his gaze away from it.
“You don’t want to drink my blood. I’m a shifter. So move along.” I really hoped he left me alone.
“No, I don’t think so. If you were, I wouldn’t have been able to get out of your grip so easily. Shifters are much stronger than a young woman.” He brought his hand up to grab my neck and was electrocuted for his efforts.
Score!
I smirked and tried to walk past him but he got in my way.
“Nice trick. Those cheap spells wear off in less than a minute. I can wait.” He returned my smirk.
“Dude, I’m protected by the local wolf pack. You better leave me alone.”
“I don’t see anyone next to you. If you are protected, why aren’t they saving you from me right now?” He smirked, and I about busted a gasket. These dingle-berry vamps seriously needed to get a clue.
I knew my charm would last longer than a minute. Let him try again. It would wear off, but not before my knight in shining armor showed up.
“Damien! Help!” I screamed as loudly as I could. With his hearing, he could pick up on my distress, even with the crowds and loud music. If he wasn’t close enough to hear, one of the pack members would be.
“Sorry, love. No one can hear you in here.” The vampire inched closer to me, and I stood my ground.
Behind the stupid paranormal creature was my savior. I had to rely on the pack to protect me here. All of the girls wore our charms, and we had a few of the spells with us, too. However, if we used anything against the vampires, or any bad guy, it could harm the innocents near us.
The charms might wear off, but the pack had serious strength. Strength enough to toss a stupid vamp around. Now I wished I would have let Damien shadow me through the club.
I narrowed my eyes and waited for Damien to pounce on the guy. When he was two steps away the vampire turned. “Oh look, a lost mutt. Where’s your master? Did he lose your leash?”
Three more of Damien’s brothers flanked us. The humans around us must have sensed a fight because they backed up and gave the men plenty of room.
“Why don’t we take this outside? Let the humans, and the rest of our communities, enjoy the music,” Luke said from behind me.
He spoke it softly into my ear. Since the shifters and vamps had preternatural hearing, I knew they all heard him.
“Damien, this vamp grabbed my butt and then tried to bite my neck. Even after I told him I was a shifter. He didn’t seem to believe me. So I also told him I was protected by you guys.” I smirked at the vampire as he realized he was way outnumbered. I didn’t even see a single vampire coming near to offer him assistance.
“You dared to touch my woman?” Damien stood taller and stalked closer so he was right in the guy’s face.
“She’s human. So she’s fair game. It’s not my fault if you lose your toys.” The vampire was really stupid.
Damien said nothing. One second his eyes narrowed, and the next the vampire was on the ground with a bloody nose. I didn’t even see the punch coming from Damien, he was so fast.
“I told you not to touch me or my sisters. We are all part of the pack, no matter what we smell like. You know the rules.” I stepped over the fool and hugged Damien.
The crowd burst into cheers and laughter.
“All right, show’s over. Get back to drinking and dancing.” Luke tried to get everyone’s attention off of us. He pulled the vampire to his feet and walked him outside.
“What was up with him? I thought the vamps all knew not to mess with us? Is he new to town or something?” I pulled Damien with me to the bar. Just because there was a small scuffle didn’t mean I could be late for my own set.
“He’s a known troublemaker. He probably went after you because you smelled like me. I wouldn’t doubt if he came here looking for a fight. Don’t worry about him. Just get your water and get on stage. I’ll keep a look out for you.” Damien winked and kissed my cheek.
I got the water from the bartender and headed back to the stage. We never drank alcohol when performing and only drank water out of a sealed water bottle. We learned how important is was to keep control of our drinks the same night we learned about paranormals. Some idiot tried to kill Jenna with a death curse inside of a drink, it backfired on him.
“What was the scuffle about? We saw you in the middle of a circle with some dude and a bunch of the pack members circling like wolves.” Jenna laughed at her own joke.
“It was a vamp who wanted to cause trouble. Nothing to worry about. Here, take your waters, and let’s get started.” I passed out a bottle to each of the girls, and we all took our spots on stage.
“What an exhilarating gig! Did you hear them screaming our names? Our actual names! This crowd knows us. What a great night!” Even the idiotic vamp from earlier couldn’t keep me from enjoying this night.
Since this wasn’t our normal crowd, and we had only performed here once before, Jenna chose Rico to be the focus when we did “The Voodoo That Do” song.
; Normally, Jenna would choose a cute guy close to the stage and sing her heart out to him. Tonight, she focused on Rico, and the emotion in her voice as she sang the words was unbelievable. Or, maybe I should say believable. I really did think she was singing just to him. The entire audience must have agreed with me because when the song ended the applause was like nothing else we’d ever experienced.
The saying “bring the roof down” totally applied to us tonight. Several of the women around Rico had tears in their eyes. They totally fell for the magic of the song and the love demonstrated between the two.
Rico, he was mesmerized. It was as though Jenna had real magic and ensnared him in her trap. His face radiated love and happiness.
After the gig, I knew we would have a slew of new followers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even Pinterest. Our CD’s would most likely sell out again. This place was magic for our career.
When Indie closed us out with her drum beats, the house was jumpin’. People rushed the stage and were screaming, “Encore, encore!”
I yelled out to my sisters, “We’ve never had a request for encores before. At least, not like this. What do you say? One more?”
Indie stood up and pumped her hand in the air and yelled, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!” One of our favorite covers. It wasn’t in our line-up for tonight. Which made it perfect.
Jenna’s smile covered her face, and when she looked out into the audience, she said, “This one’s for you, ladies!”
When Jenna began nodding her head, Indie picked up the beat with her drums. Sam and I joined in with our guitars, and we began the song women all over the world sang in their cars and their houses when they were in the mood to have fun!
Just like tonight. The women in the audience joined in on the chorus, and Jenna belted out the tunes as though there was nothing else in the world as important as the moment we were all in.
Once the song was over we all bowed and blew kisses to the audience.
“Thank you, Blue Bayou! You are all fabulous! Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to find out when our next gig will be! Have a great night, and please use a designated driver or call Uber if you’ve been drinking,” Jenna announced before the curtains closed for the final time.
When I looked out into the throng of people, I was surprised by how many had their phones out and typing. I hoped they were sharing our performance all over social media and following our fan pages or texting for a ride if they’d been drinking.
Damien and Rico both jumped up on stage once the curtain closed. Damien came over and kissed me on the lips. It was more of a quick peck than a kiss, and it made me wish we were alone so I could get a steamy liplock from my man.
“You Dolls were so hot tonight! I’m surprised the house didn’t burn down!” Damien could be cheesy, but I loved it.
“Hey, let us help you break down and pack up your equipment.” Rico was helping Indie take down her drum set.
Most of the equipment belonged to the club. We had our own instruments, and Jenna always used her own mic. The rest of it belonged to the club, even the cords and mic stand. Not that we didn’t have all of those pieces back home, we just didn’t need them here tonight. It was just one more reason to love playing here, less equipment for us to tear down.
“Sure thing. When we’re done here, we should head back to our place and celebrate.” It was too late to go anywhere other than a club.
We never wanted to go partying once we were done with a gig. Sometimes, we did like to go home and bring out the ice cream, if it was an extra special night like tonight.
“Kat, don’t be mad, but I hope you don’t play here again.” Damien took two steps back and shrugged.
Damien and Rico didn’t like us performing here; they said it was too dangerous. Other than a stupid vamp, we weren’t in any danger. The customers loved us. I hoped the club manager saw the reactions and booked us into their regular rotation instead of just using us as fill-ins.
“What? Because of the stupid vamps? I only called out for your help because I didn’t want to let a spell loose in front of so many mundanes. If you hadn’t been here, I would have let that vamp have it. We can take care of ourselves you know.” I couldn’t believe he was being such a jerk.
So what if a vampire, or two, bothered us? We were used to stupid fans, or haters in some cases.
“I know you can take care of yourselves. I just hate it when you have to. Can’t a guy worry about his girlfriend?” Damien stepped closer when he realized I wasn’t going to hit him and wrapped his arms around my waist.
I sighed. Even when he was being pigheaded, he was still cute. “Of course, you can worry. Just please don’t do anything to hinder our career or stop us from getting gigs, alright?”
“Alright. I will, however, tell you if I think something is too dangerous. It’s my job as your boyfriend to look out for you.” He let me go and took a step back when I narrowed my eyes at him.
He threw his hand up in front of him. “Even though I know you can take care of yourself. It’s ingrained in our DNA to worry over our women. We are part animal, you know.” Damien shrugged like there was nothing I could do about it.
Maybe I couldn’t stop him from worrying, but I could make sure he didn’t interfere in my career.
“If you want to hover when we have a gig, I’m good. Just don’t do anything to cause us to lose out on contracts, got it?” I narrowed my eyes and poked him in the chest. Not hard, just enough so he felt it. I learned my lesson last time I tried hitting him. His chest was rock hard and I end up hurt before they do.
“Deal, let’s get your equipment packed up in your van so we can all get some ice cream.” Rico stepped forward before Damien could say a word.
Hmm, I wondered how many times Rico and Jenna had this same conversation. I know he worried about her and about the rest of us. So how many times did he try to stop her from performing here tonight? Obviously, she didn’t listen. I chuckled as I picked up my guitar case and took it to the van.
When I went back inside, Damien and Rico were joking with Indie about all of her drums. “You’re like Imelda Marcos but with drums instead of shoes. How many drums does it take to perform?”
“Ha, ha.” Indie smacked her gums and looked at the guys.
“Come on, Jenna. Let’s grab another bag and get moving.” I walked out with one of the pieces of Indie’s drum kit, and Jenna picked up another one. Everyone else was inside still packing things up.
“Tonight was epic! I’m so glad the other band cancelled. Wait, I’m not glad they had a death in the family. You know what I mean.” Jenna sounded flustered. I understood what she meant.
I chuckled, “I feel the same. Don’t worry, no one’s going to begrudge us this gig.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” Some strange guy said as he walked up close to us.
He stood inside my personal space and whispered, “I have an important message. Don’t worry, I’m not here to hurt you. The rogue’s are planning on moving up the timetable of their attack. They’re ticked off with you and your friends, and they just want to tear the city apart.” He looked back over his shoulder.
“As soon as my friends show up, you need to hit me or something, so they think I’m harassing you.” He pointed to his face before putting a hand on my shoulder.
“Who are you?” I didn’t recognize him, although I did know he was a vampire. His pointy teeth gave it away.
“Doesn’t matter who I am, just pass on the info to Rico. He’ll know what to do. I would bet by the next full moon they plan to attack.” The vamp winced before I heard anything.
“You know, if you really want to have a good time, you should dump the mutts and join me. I’ll give you best time you could ever want. If you’re lucky, you’ll even get to spend all of eternity with me.” He licked his lips, and his eyes roamed by body before the hand on my shoulder began to move along my arm.
I smacked him across his face. Probably too hard. The sound ec
hoed through the alley where our van was parked.
“You do know who we are, don’t you? If Rico finds you here, there’s a good chance you won’t live to see the next moon rise.” Jenna put her hands on her hips and gave him her best stink eye. We were both playing it up good.
Three guys, most likely vamps, walked around the corner before Jenna finished. “Ohhh, we’re so afraid of a pack of dogs.” The lead guy waved his hands in front of his face, and the others laughed.
“Don’t hurt me! I promise I won’t mess with you again.” The guy in the purple polo shirt sure did have sarcasm down.
I couldn’t help but laugh. Damien came from the back door, and I saw him before the vampires noticed. He walked up to me and put his arm around my waist.
“Are these filthy demon spawn giving you trouble, babe?” Damien looked at the four vamps who looked smug, as if they knew something was coming, and we didn’t.
“Nope, they were just heading out. Weren’t you boys?” I really didn’t have time for a fight. So far, they hadn’t done anything to deserve a beheading, and I wanted to keep it that way. If we got into a fight, I doubted I’d get my mint chocolate chip ice cream tonight.
“Remember what I said, dollface. Anytime you want a real man, come see me. I’ll make you feel so good, you’ll wonder why you never had a vamp before.” The guy who was in front of me winked and walked back to his friends.
They all took off laughing and whispering to each other. I couldn’t hear them but I knew Damien could. Rico walked out, just as they were leaving, so he probably heard as well.
“Did they hurt you?” Damien looked me up and down and ran his hands along my arms. Which caused goosebumps all along my spine.
“No, they were just being stupid. No need to worry. Let’s get the rest of the equipment loaded up.” I took a look at the vamps before they turned the corner, and our informant looked back with a serious expression. He nodded once and turned out of sight.
As soon as we were back inside the club, I whispered to Damien, “One of them gave me a message for Rico. As soon as we’re somewhere safe, I’ll let you know. So, let’s hurry up and get home.”
Council of Magic Page 12