by Nicole Rae
He couldn’t have been trying to say- There was no way something like that could be out there. Could it? It would sort of explain what had happened on the bus. The fear that radiated from those people was tangible, absolutely not her imagination. The couple that was weirdly too perfect and scarily intimidating, was highly unusual. The pallor of their skin looked, as though they had never seen a single day of sunlight. Their movements were so controlled and precise, as if they had been planned out. They were definitely attractive, but there was something very off about the couple.
As her mind raced on, she avoided the possible conclusion she had already come up with. There must be a better explanation than that, but nothing gelled. No idea became solid and nothing else made sense. Just as her mind was utterly defeated,it froze on the original theory. Her dad hadn’t been warning her about sex. He hadn’t even been talking about rapist or serial killers. He was trying to tell her that she, Emily Marie Jameson, was living amongst vampires.
CHAPTER 10 The next day at Blake’s was fairly uneventful, weekends usually were though. Emily wished Lucy was there. At least it would help pass the time. They could play cards or something. Lucy had these awesome playing cards that had Braille labels on them, but print for sighted people. Creepy Lucy had always wanted Braille Tarotcards. Emily didn’t think they even made such things but if so, stranger things had happened. Thinking of her friend made her smile. She really didn’t understand how someone as wonderful as Lucy could come from someone as terrible as George.
The perpetually cranky owner of Blake’s Books wasn’t always nasty, just most of the time as far as Emily could tell anyway. The only time there was an exception was when he was talking to Lucy or customers, of course. She didn’t think you could really count customers though, since most of the time he was trying to scam them for higher prices. Maybe something happened to him that made him so cranky. She guessed it was possible that maybe he didn’t get hugged enough when he was a kid or something. Emily used to think that she could crack his hard shell and get to the soft caramel inside, but so far she hasn’t had much luck. Anytime George even suspected she was getting too personal, he conjured up some reason to scold her.
Emily was starting to feel completely drained by boredom. She had already vacuumed, dusted, straightened up shelves and cleaned the windows. She reached down under the counter and grabbed a paperback she had in there in case she decided to ride the bus. After the last excursion however, that wouldn’t be happening any time soon. She really wasn’t supposed to read while on the clock but in her opinion it was just good advertising. It was a book store for crap’s sake. It wasn’t like she would ignore the customers or make them wait until she finished a chapter before she rang them up. George really needed to lighten up.
Emily really enjoyed authors that always gave a happy ending, or at least left the reader feeling good about the book. She reallywasn’t a Harlequin Romance kind of girl, though she did like love stories. Crime novels weren’t too bad, as long as it was solved and not a cold case. Unsolved mysteries creeped her out because they make her imagination run wild and that can sometimes be worse than reality. They imply that crimes happen and the bad guys don’t get caught. Although that was probably true,that didn’t mean she had to read about it. Currently, Emily was reading a book by Nicholas Sparks. His books are so easy to get lost in, for hours at a time without even noticing.
She was just starting to dig into a chapter, when the bell clanged against the door letting her know a customer was coming in. She quickly finished the paragraph she was on and tossed the book on the counter.
“Don’t stop reading on my account.” A liquid voice spoke from behind the shelves. The store had row after row of book shelves that stood about six foot high.
Emily craned her neck around but couldn’t see where the voice came from. They had to be behind one of the shelves. It almost sounded like Sebastian. He said he never came in Blake’s though. “That’s okay… I don’t mind,” Emily replied hesitantly.
Then, he was there. Standing at the end of the book case to her left was Sebastian. It should seriously be illegal to look that good. He wore blue jeans with a skin tight black T-shirt. His hair was short and spiked but preppy not punk. Light reflected off his watch and what little she could see of a silver chain that hung around his neck.
“Oh, I’m just browsing.” He stared at h er for a long appraising second.
Her face flushed at his words. Before speaking she cleared her throat nervously. “Well, if you change your mind let me know.” What an idiot she thought. There was no one else in the store. There would probably not be a better chance to talk to Sebastian and pick his brain. She was seriously blowing it. As she gave him an equally appraising look, she couldn’t see how something that looked so angelic could be as evil as a vampire. There was just no way blood had ever tainted the beauty of those lips.
Sebastian came back around the corner then with a paper back in his hand. He held it up by his chest, cover facing out, but she couldn’t look away from his eyes. Her heart was pounding in her chest. If he really was a vampire he could very easily kill her without anyone ever knowing. Vampires probably have ways of making a victim disappear. She squelched the thought as soon as it took form. That was just silly. There was no such thing as vampires and her dad was just crazy, which was no surprise whatsoever.
She let her eyes fall to the book Sebastian was holding. In the hands of the big muscled model slash possible vampire, was a novel by Danielle Steel. She couldn’t help the escape of hysterical giggles at the irony of the situation. She tried to stop but couldn’t help herself. Crap, she was being rude. He might like romance stories. It was wrong of her to pigeon hole him like that. She clamped her lips together halting the laughter. Well, at least sort of.
“Can I help you find something?” Emily asked
mechanically. She was supposed to say that after all. Granted, he had clearly already found something, but that was beside the point.
“Do you have this in a hardback?”
His voice was so serious Emily almost burst out laughing again. “Well, if it’s not by the paperback copy then we must be out.” As Emily spoke she had to choke back another escaping giggle.
Sebastian raised his eyebrows at her. “What’s so funny? You don’t like romance?” He gave her a look that pretended to be offended.
Despite her wariness of him, the innocence of the look made her dizzy. “No, romance is good. You just don’t strike me as the fairytale romance kinda guy,that’s all.” Emily said trying to back track.
This time she got only a single raised brow. “Oh? What type am I then?” He asked expectantly.
Emily blushed. “Oh, I just meant…”She felt like a total idiot.
He waved away her explanation. Her blundering seemed to amuse him. “The world would be a lot more peaceful if they used romance novels for a guide book ya know. Besides, didn’t you hear?All the fairy tales are true.”
Emily noticed that while he spoke his eye lashes fluttered like a butterfly’s wings. Stop it, she scolded herself. If her theory was true, the guy could seriously jump over the counter at any moment and suck the lifeblood right out of her. Even so, she couldn’t help but notice the overwhelming sense of calm that flowed over her entire body as he watched her. It was like she had known him her whole life. He didn’t seem like a monster and Emily wasn’t one of those girls, who flocked to the bad boy type. She was the annoying girl that no one wanted to watch scary movies with, constantly yelling for the actress to run. She knew herself, or at least she thought she did. She was normally a very good judge of character. Sebastian just didn’t seem like the Dracula type.
“Are you still there?” Sebastian asked, as he waved a hand in front of Emily’s face, trying to get her attention.
“Oh. Sorry,I guess I spaced. What did you say?” Emily’s face grew hot with embarrassment, again.
“I guess,I shouldn’t have said anything.” Sebastian said, averting his eyes from
hers.
“Why?” Emily asked curiously. What was that supposed to mean?
“Well…” Sebastian let out a long sigh. “I was admitting that while I’m not opposed to this author, it’s not what I came here for.” Sebastian’s head bowed, hiding his expression.
“So, why did you come? Were you really looking for a hunting magazine or something?” Emily asked sarcastically. It was a weak attempt at regaining some cool points. “If so, you should know George doesn’t carry magazines in here. He thinks they’re junk.”
Sebastian chuckled. “Nope, nothing like that, ironically.” His laughter seemed to be at an inside joke that apparently she wasn’t privy to.
Emily gave him a questioning look. He said nothing in response. The only sign that he saw the gesture was that his laughter stopped short. He cleared his throat awkwardly and turned mildly sheepish.
After a long pause he finally said, “Sorry, I guess you had to be there.”
“Maybe you’ll fill me in some day.”
Sebastian’s face grew immediately serious. “Something’s are better left unsaid. You know, secrets of the trade and all that?” He turned around and walked back to the other side of the shelves again, leaving Emily clueless.
What was that? Emily could respect a good inside joke as much as the next person. Usually there’s at least a hint of humor behind the words even to the unaware, letting them know a joke is in progress. When there’s not, it can leave you feeling like you’ve missed something. In Sebastian’s case, he sounded obtuse and sarcastic. What did he mean by the information might be necessary? She wished he would talk straight with her. He didn’t have to make cryptic remarks all the time.
Just then, he came back around this time with empty hands and a controlled smile. “Sorry about that. I figured I better put the book back,since I’m not going to be purchasing it today.” He stood in front of the counter now. His hands rested on it casually and he was watching her again.
Emily had never been around someone before that was this silent. Lucy was her best friend and all, but she never shut up most of the time. There was George, except he was only silent with her. He always chatted up the customers. Sam was always blathering on and on about something or another too.
What was he doing? Those blue eyes of his seemed to be scorching her under their powerful stare. Did he know what he was doing? It was like he was a car enthusiast sizing up a new purchase. Or, a hunter with his prey… Stop it, she scolded herself again. He wasn’t a monster. There was no such thing as monsters, not the kind Sam had implied anyway. There was just no possible way her father was right. He was rarely right about anything so why should this time be any different?
“So, anything else? You never said what you came for.” She asked, sheepishly.
Sebastian seemed to be thinking about his answer for a long while. “I came to see you of course.
Emily’s breath stopped and her heart began to pound rapidly. He came here to see her? Why? She wasn’t saying she wasn’t an attractive girl. She justwasn’t anywhere near his league.
As if he could read her mind and knew she was battling with herself doubt, his eyebrows rose ever so slightly. That was crazy though, it wasn’t possible for someone to hear another person’s thoughts. His eyes held a very well-defined question mark in them. Emily knew she should say something, anything. No matter how hard she tried,she couldn’t get her mouth to work properly.
“I can leave, though. If you are toobusy to talk…” He sounded unsure. There was a hint of hurt in his eyes, which he masked quickly.
Standing from her stool abruptlyshe blurted, “oh no!” Emily cleared her throat embarrassed by her eagerness. “I mean… you don’t have to go anywhere. Stay,” she continued frantically and then immediately regretted her enthusiasm.
He didn’t seem to mind though. Instead, it seemed to be the exact opposite. In fact, his answering smile lit up his whole face and in turn the entire room, making her a little breathless. Dizziness began to overtake her again. The butterfly’s that had been in her stomach before, took a vacation making room for the giant birds that now flew in there. She was also very aware that if she didn’t get a handle on her heart rate, it would be a good thing he was there. He would have the pleasure of calling the ambulance.
After she collected herself, Emily slid a stool around the counter to him so he could get more comfortable. He started to protest, but she did it anyway and he eventually sat. Time went by in a blur. They talked for the remainder of her shift. They talked about everything; books, movies, family, Lucy, school and God knew what else. Emily couldn’t believe it, but before she knew it, it was closing time. No one else had come in the shop, thank goodness.
The only problem was,she couldn’t seem to gather enough courage to ask him more about the night in the alley. She could mostly remember it all now. There were some blank spots but from what she could tell, that was fine by her. That night would be starring in her nightmares for the rest of her life.
After Emily locked up, they walked together down the block. She wondered if he would walk her home again. Before she could ask they were halted by a person storming out of one of the buildings. He seemed to come from one of the stairwells that led to the apartments above the shops. When he saw that they were in his path he stopped on a dime. Good thing he did, because he was moving as fast as a bowling ball. Unfortunately, that would have made Emily and Sebastian the pins in that equation. Ouch!
“Sorry,” the bowling ball said panting slightly. “I’m just in a hurry.”
“Hey! You’re that guy that came in the bookstore the other day.” Emily said,as recognition dawned. He didn’t respond, so she continued. “You know, you bought that book that didn’t have a tag… I’m the one that rang you up.” Her eyes widened as if to say, duh am I that forgettable jerk?
His expression morphed into one of understanding. “Oh yeah, that’s right. Sorry. I guess,I forgot.” He offered an apologetic smile that made his eyes crinkle.
“My name’s Emily,and this is Sebastian.” She gestured between the two of them. She had never really known the protocol for extending a hand or not. She decided against it.
Sebastian gave him no greeting except a manly nod. Emily wasn’t sure,but it looked as though Sebastian wasn’t pleased to have the interruption. He actually kind of looked like he wanted to bolt. Part of her wondered if maybe he had a jealous streak. The smarter more rational part knew that was stupid. He would have no reason or claim to be jealous and she really needed to stop jumping to conclusions.
“Yeah, I’m Tyler. Tyler Simms.”
Emily searched her memory banks,but couldn’t call up any recollection of that name. “Are you new to Lakeview? I’ve never seen you around here.” Of course she had seen him at Blake’s, though she didn’t think that counted.
Tyler nodded as he scuffed a foot impatiently on the sidewalk. “Yeah I’ve been here a few weeks. I live up there,” he gestured vaguely to the building he had burst out of. “Well it was nice to meet you, but I gotta go.” He gave Emily an awkward smile and a quick nod to Sebastian. Tyler didn’t wait for any goodbyes to be exchanged. He just set off behind them back at a sprint.
“He seemed…” Emily’s voice trailed off as she struggled with the right word.
“Interesting?” Sebastian supplied helpfully.
“Yeah. Interesting.” Emily gave Tyler another second glance. She could just barely make out his shape as he rounded a corner in the distance.
They continued talking the whole rest of the way to her house. She did manage to say goodbye to him before he could vanish this time though, so that was a plus. Emily only allowed him to walk her to the corner. It was possible that Sam could be home from the bar already. If he saw her with Sebastian there would be Hell to pay. She wished she didn’t have to say goodbye. She badly wanted to keep talking to him. It was like they had been friends forever. Actually, it was almost like talking to Lucy, only better because he was hot. There was an undeniable
connection between the two of them. If only she knew why that was, things would make so much more sense.
Of course, she never got the answers that she wanted. In his defense, she hadn’t really worked that hard to get them. Something told her deep in her gut that Sebastian wasn’t hiding things for the wrong reasons. There was some kind of method to his madness. Emily got the weird feeling he was trying to protect her.
She had asked him if she would see him again. All he said was that time would tell,but it probably wasn’t for the best. What on Earth did that mean? She toyed with a million different ideas in theories in her head for a long time. Unfortunately, nothing made more sense than the V word she couldn’t even bring herself to say. Just about anything could have been possible. In this case, they all just seemed crazy.
Emily wished she could talk to someone about it. All of the thoughts had built up so much pressure in her head that she felt like a shaken up soda bottle. The only person that would be willing to take her seriously was Lucy but Emily in no way wanted to get that ball rolling. Once her perky pixy like friend got a hold of the information, she would never let it go. Honestly, Lucy was kind of OCD when it came to that kind of stuff. Emily didn’t want to be under Lucy’s very relentless microscope even if that meant she could have helped Emily sort this out. Also, there wasn’t any point in freaking her out. She would just have to go at it alone. Just before Emily walked the rest of the way to her house by herself, Sebastian called out to her.
“Yeah?” She spun back around much too quickly. Man, she must really seem like an over eager little puppy. If she had a tail, it would probably be wagging profusely.
A sort of knowing grin slowly spread across his face. It quickly returned back to serious. “Try not to go out after dark anymore.” He stared at her intently. “Especially not alone.” Sebastian’s eyes flickered slightly as if he were trying to hide something. Not giving any chance for rebuttal he continued. “You take care of yourself and keep your head on straight ok?”