Fractured (Vampire Awakenings, Book 6)

by Brenda K. Davies

  “I’ll take you shopping tomorrow,” he said as he closed the door.

  She pretended not to hear him as she gazed at a Cape Cod-style house behind Emma and Ethan’s, and beyond that to a double-story cottage set up near the ocean. The cottage was incredibly cute with its white paint and blue shutters. Beside it sat a matching building that was a smaller version of the cottage.

  “Who lives there?” she asked when David came to stand by her side.

  “Isabelle and Stefan live there with their daughter, Hope, and their son, Bodhi, or as we all call him, Bo.”

  “What about the cottage?”

  “Ian and Paige. Before the birth of their second son, Colton, they added the second story to it. The building beside it is Paige’s art studio.”

  “It’s really cute,” she said.

  “It is, and Paige is very talented. Come.”

  He didn’t touch her but nodded toward the old farmhouse with gray siding and weathered blue shutters. “It’s not as cute, I know,” he said as they walked toward the house, “but we are a bunch of bachelors. Or we were, anyway.”

  She swallowed heavily when his gaze raked over her. “I’m probably going to have to thank Issy for coming to clean, then,” she said. “I can only imagine how neat you guys kept the place.”

  “We weren’t complete slobs, but I’m sure Issy has greatly improved the look and smell.”

  The layer of salt coating the blue gray cobblestones leading to the front door crunched beneath her feet as she walked. Mia huddled deeper into the thin coat she’d taken from the compound as a chilly wind blew off the ocean and howled across the open land around them. She’d left behind the heavier winter coat she’d been borrowing in case someone else came along who would need it.

  The wind caught the top coating of snow and swirled it around them. The small flakes fell against her already frozen cheeks and melted there. She’d been born in the Northeast, but this was colder than she was used to.

  “Definitely getting you warmer clothes tomorrow,” David muttered as they climbed the small porch to the front door.

  Grabbing the door handle, he twisted it and pushed it open. Mia almost leapt into the heat emanating out of the front foyer. She hurried inside to stand before the staircase leading up to the second floor. The shadows encompassing the top of the stairs, obscured the hallway beyond.

  Not only did the warmth of the house assail her, but also the fragrant aroma of lavender. Beneath the lavender, the musty smell of old wood tickling her nostrils reminded her of the home she’d shared with her parents. She’d sometimes thought that the old wood of her home held the memories of all those who had lived there before her, and those memories had scented the wood with age. It had seemed like such a fanciful notion then. It was one she’d forgotten about until now, and now it didn’t seem so fanciful.

  From somewhere in the house, she heard a series of shouted curses. Mia took a small step back, her gaze darting toward the door David had closed behind him. What was going on?

  The accelerated beat of Mia’s heart pulsed in David’s ears as she gazed at the door like she was contemplating bolting through it. “They must be in the game room. It can get rowdy in there, but everyone is fine. I can take you upstairs to my room so you can rest before meeting anyone,” he offered.

  Mia gazed at him, then the door, and then the stairs before looking to him again. All she wanted was to run as far from there as possible, but she’d been running since she was eighteen. She’d vowed to stop doing that when she’d moved back to Connecticut, and she planned to uphold that vow. She’d asked David to bring her so she could learn more about him, his life, his friends, and because she was tired of living in fear all the time.

  It was time she regained control of her life, and hiding now was not the way to do that.

  Throwing her shoulders back, she tilted her chin up. “I’m ready,” she declared.

  David stared at her as he tried to decide how to proceed. Despite the resolute expression on her face, her distress beat against him. “Mia—”

  “I will not run anymore. I am going to meet your friends and family.”

  The need in her eyes tore at his heart.

  “Please, David.”

  “They’re going to love you,” he said, placing the suitcase and bag on the floor near the front door. He gestured toward the doorway next to the front foyer. She stepped through the door before him and into the living room.

  Mia’s gaze traveled over the indigo blue sectional couch positioned to face the massive TV hanging on the wall. No one would miss anything that happened on that TV. Dark wood beams ran across the ceiling above her, a ceiling only a couple inches over David’s head.

  “How old is this house?” she inquired.

  “This was the first house on the property. It was built in the late 1800s. Sera and Liam’s farmhouse was built in the 1970s, and the other houses are all more recent.”

  “I love old houses,” she said honestly. “The house I lived in with my parents was from the 1800s. I always wondered about all of the people who had lived there before us. Can you imagine all the laughter and tears these walls have experienced?”

  David tilted his head to study her as she gave him another glimpse into herself. “I can. You will love this house, then. Come.”

  He led her through the tiny kitchen with its red brick fireplace. The stove had to be at least twenty years old and was missing three of the four knobs on the front of it. The green fridge had seen better days in the 80s. Those appliances were both things that didn’t matter much to vampires though, and she doubted anyone spent much time in the room. She also had a feeling the small orchid in the windowsill had been an Issy touch, and it would be dead by the end of the month if left to the care of the men living here.

  “You’re cheating!” someone shouted from the back of the house, and she recognized the angry voice as Jack’s.

  “How am I cheating?” someone else demanded.

  “I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out, and then I’ll kick your ass all the way back to your own house,” Jack threatened.

  “I’d like to see you try,” the man speaking with Jack retorted.

  “Don’t tempt me,” Jack said.

  A harsh bark of laughter followed the declaration. Mia’s step faltered as David led her out of the kitchen and down a dimly lit hall. The door at the end was cracked open enough to allow a glow to spill around its edges. The rest of the doors lining the hall were all closed, hiding whatever was behind them.

  It became increasingly difficult to breathe with every step toward the door at the end, but she forced herself to continue.

  One, two, three…. There was nothing nearby for her to rhyme with, and staring at the floor while being introduced to David’s friends would be an awful first impression. You can do this. You will do this! She took another deep breath and forced herself to continue putting one foot in front of another.

  “We added this back room two years ago,” David said when they were a few feet away from the door.

  The sound of his voice helped to ease some of the anxiety clawing at her chest.

  “We all wanted a place that was off-limits to anyone under eighteen,” he continued.

  “The kids must hate that,” she muttered.

  “Of course they do, but they have their own game room, and as you can hear, this isn’t exactly a place they should be.”

  “No, it doesn’t sound like it.”

  “Easy, guys,” a woman said. “No reason to beat each other up over poker.”

  “Your husband is a cheater,” Jack replied.

  “I resent the fact you’d accuse me of cheating my wife out of money,” the man said.

  “It will be both of your money once you leave here!” Jack shouted and laughter followed.

  At the end of the hall, David rested his hand against the door. He stared expectantly at Mia, waiting for her to tell him she’d changed her mind and would meet everyone later. She certainly l
ooked as if she were contemplating it, as her skin had paled, her lips were compressed into a flat line, and her hands fidgeted nervously with the edge of her sweater. Her head turned toward him and her shadowed eyes met his.

  “We can go back,” he offered.

  Her lips flattened even more, and she gave a sharp shake of her head. He hesitated, but her shoulders remained resolutely thrust back.

  “It will be okay,” he promised. “They really are all kidding with each other. Jack’s just a sore loser.”

  “So am I,” she murmured, bracing herself as he pushed the door the rest of the way open.

  She hadn’t known what to expect, but her eyebrows shot into her hairline when the room beyond was revealed. Looking at the front of the house, she never would have guessed something such as this existed inside. Not even in an arcade had she ever seen so many video games. They lined the back wall of a room easily the size of the entire first floor of the house.

  On the right wall, pinball machines, a mini basketball hoop, air hockey tables, ping pong tables, and other assorted games were set up and ready for someone to play with them. The left wall had a large mahogany bar with a mirror behind it. The bar sported five taps and enough liquor bottles to stock a nightclub on the shelves lining the mirror.

  A man with sandy blond hair, broad cheekbones, and the build of a football player stood behind the bar, staring at the bottle in his hands. He placed it on one of the shelves before grabbing a bottle of tequila. Lifting his head, his blue eyes met hers in the mirror behind the bottles.

  He stared at her for a minute before a grin split his handsome face. Mia almost clutched David’s arm for support, but she kept her hands by her sides. She had to learn to stand on her own two feet before she could allow herself to lean so heavily on another. And she refused to be a clingy, needy mess in front of his friends.

  The man behind the bar turned to face them as a loud groan came from her left. A poker table was set up there. Four vampires were gathered around the table. One chair was pushed back from an empty spot that she assumed had been vacated by the man behind the bar.

  A grinning man leaned over the table to scoop an armful of chips toward his already large pile. The motion caused the man’s black hair to fall across his forehead in waves. His emerald eyes sparkled in amusement as the other two men, and the woman sitting at the table, glowered at him.

  The man laughed as he stacked his chips neatly before him. “You three have no poker face whatsoever,” he told them.

  “Oh, fuck off,” Jack said.

  She didn’t know what to make of Jack yet, but Mia found herself smiling as he flipped his friend the finger before running a hand through his short, light brown hair. From where she stood, she could see the hazel of his eyes, and that, like David, his nose had once been broken and crooked a little to the side. A small bump had formed in the middle of it.

  In between the two men the most beautiful woman Mia had ever seen sat facing her, while another vamp sat with his back to them. The woman finished dealing out more cards and lifted her head. Her violet-blue eyes widened when she spotted David and Mia in the doorway. The vamp who was winning leaned forward to grab his cards, but the woman grasped his wrist before he could pick them up.

  Mia felt like a lab specimen when the woman gestured toward them, and all their heads turned in her direction. The one who had been sitting with his back to them twisted all the way around in his chair. Mia’s fingers curled into her palms when the vampire who had turned in his seat rose to his feet and came toward them.

  The man’s ocean blue eyes sparkled with warmth when he grasped David’s hand and clapped him on the back as they briefly embraced. When the man stepped back, Mia got a good view of his dark blond hair and round, friendly face that could only be described as cute. He was shorter than David, but his stocky frame spoke of strength.

  The man turned to her and extended his hand. “I’m Doug,” he greeted.

  David grabbed Doug’s wrist, halting him before he could touch her. Doug’s eyes flew to David as he lifted his other hand in a pacifying gesture. All smiles vanished as all eyes became riveted on David and Doug. Mia held her breath, uncertain of what was going on, or what to say as David’s body vibrated with tension beside her.

  Then the chair Jack had been leaning back in thudded to the floor, breaking the silence.

  “Don’t tell me you’re going to go all batshit crazy like Liam did,” Jack said, jabbing a finger at the man with most of the poker chips.

  Liam scowled at him as he rose to his feet and positioned himself in front of the woman who Mia now realized must be Sera, Liam’s mate. The unease in the room ratcheted up. The man behind the bar set the bottle down and walked out from behind the bar.

  “No, I’m not,” David said.

  At least I hope I’m not. David kept those words to himself as he released Doug’s wrist and stepped closer to Mia. He didn’t know what to make of what had just happened. He didn’t want any of his friends to upset Mia by touching her when she wouldn’t welcome it, but it had been more than that. For a second, the idea of Doug touching her had sent a flood of possessiveness through him and caused a red haze to blur his vision.

  David trusted Doug with his life, but he couldn’t stand the idea of him anywhere near Mia. He ran a hand through his hair, tugging at the ends of it. Taking a deep breath, he composed himself once more. Liam had warned him that he’d be able to better deal with an uncompleted bond if he took it slow with Mia, but he hadn’t expected his instability to control himself to start so soon after their relationship had progressed further.

  I will control it.

  “I’m fine,” David assured everyone in the room.

  Despite his words, Doug kept his hands in the air as he backed away from him.

  “He is fine,” Mia said, though she wasn’t so certain. David had always been so confident around her, but there was a baffled look on his face that she’d never seen before. “I just… I don’t like being touched.”

  Pride filled David when Mia admitted this to them and gazed defiantly around the room. The others in the room stared at her before glancing at him.

  “Completely understandable after what you’ve been through,” Sera said and stepped out from behind Liam.

  Mia winced at the reminder that they all knew what she’d endured while in captivity. Even if David hadn’t told them about what had happened in the warehouse, they would have learned it from Vicky or from the other family members who had been there when Mia was rescued.

  Sera’s golden hair swayed with her steps as she strode across the floor toward them. Liam stayed close to her side, his gaze focused on David as Sera stopped before Mia. Sera’s eyes were kind, and the aura of warmth she exuded made it impossible for Mia not to like her instantly.

  A radiant smile lit Sera’s face when she spoke. “We’re so happy you came. We’ve all been looking forward to meeting you.”

  Mia’s shoulders sagged in relief as the others nodded their agreement. She’d had no idea what to expect from David’s friends, but she believed Sera truly meant what she said.

  “Thank you,” Mia replied.

  Sera turned to David, but when she went to step toward him, Liam moved to block her way and gave a subtle shake of his head. Mia’s father had been exceptionally protective of her mother, but she’d never seen him do something like that.

  “Liam,” Sera protested.

  Liam glanced at David before focusing on his mate again. “Not until their bond is complete,” he said. “Don’t argue with me on this.”

  Sera glanced at David and gave him a sad smile. “I’m glad you’re home,” she told him before retreating back to the table.

  Mia almost slapped her forehead as she realized that no matter how fine David told everyone he was, they could all sense that the bond between them hadn’t been completed. She could smell Liam and Sera’s intermingled blood flowing through them. A vampire recognized when one belonged to another.

&nbs
p; “We really are happy you’re here,” Liam said to her before taking David’s hand and embracing him as Doug had. Liam smiled at her when they stepped apart, but he didn’t make a move to touch her before her walked over to stand beside his wife.

  “I hate this mate shit,” Jack muttered, then walked over to embrace David next.

  “This Mr. Sunshine is Jack,” David said to her over Jack’s shoulder.

  “I figured that out already,” Mia said with a laugh.

  Jack stepped away from David. He may act like a bit of an ass, but his hazel eyes were kind when he focused on her. “Welcome,” he greeted.

  “Thank you,” Mia replied.

  “And this is Mike,” David introduced as the man who had been standing behind the bar walked over to them.

  “I’m the best of the bunch,” Mike said to her before embracing David.

  “Hardly.” Jack snorted as he walked back to the poker table.

  When all the greetings had been exchanged, Mia stood beside David, unsure of what to say or do next. Thankfully, she was saved from feeling completely awkward by Sera.

  “How are our children doing?” Sera demanded.

  Mia relaxed as David led her over to one of the barstools. She perched on it as talk turned to Vicky, Abby, and Aiden.

  CHAPTER 13

  The next day they drove over two hours to go shopping at the mall in Bangor. Mia had repeatedly told David she would be fine purchasing some things from the closest store, but he had insisted she have a better selection. He hadn’t been willing to listen when she’d offered to buy her clothes online either.

  “I have no money,” she protested, and not for the first time, as she watched the woods and snow covered fields flash by.

  “You don’t have to worry about that,” he assured her again. “I have money.”

  “I don’t like having to rely on you for everything. I have a place to stay because of you, I have—”