London Moon (The Kloe & Gavin Adventures Book 2)

by Sondra Hicks

  “Gavin I didn’t know you were so important here,” Kloe told him.

  “Not important hun. Just well-liked. Kindness goes a long way.” Gavin told her.

  They made their way back to their room and collected their bags. There was a knock on the door. Gavin opened it to Jack standing there.

  “I figured I would save you the taxi fare and drive you myself.” Jack offered them.

  “That’s very kind of you Jack. Thank you!” Kloe accepted happily.

  Jack took the bags from Kloe and he carried them to the car waiting outside. Gavin grabbed his own luggage and they followed Jack. They set the baggage in the car and climbed inside. Kloe took the backseat allowing Gavin and Jack to talk in the front. She knew Jack was going to miss his best friend and, just as they were on the verge of pulling out, Zoey came running and hopped in the back seat.

  “What? Did you think I was going to miss your send off?” Zoey laughed.

  “Well you almost got run over.” Jack laughed.

  “You would never do that. You love me too much,” Zoey chuckled.

  “This is true!” Jack admitted with a smile.

  Now it seemed everything was right. Gavin had his best friend and she had hers to send them off.

  They pulled up to the airport. They piled out and took out their baggage. They hugged each other and Zoey shed a few tears. Kloe hugged her.

  “Don’t cry we won’t be gone long,” Kloe told her.

  “I know but I will still miss you. I am used to having meals with you and hanging out. Remember to bring me back something,” Zoey said wiping her tears away.

  The guys gave each other a quick hug and Gavin grabbed his luggage. Kloe grabbed hers. They walked into the airport, got in line to pick up their tickets and put their bags on the plane. Pretty soon they were breezing through security and at their gate waiting to board. Kloe didn’t bother getting first class, being it was such a short trip. They waited and soon they called for them to board. They queued in line, showed their id and tickets. And finally, they were on the plane. They stowed their bags, sat down, buckling themselves into their seats and waited for take-off. They went through a safety presentation as they taxied through the runway and, as soon as that was over, they were in the air. Kloe felt butterflies in her stomach. She was thrilled to visit London. It was new and exciting. The half hour flight seemed to take less time to get there. They were soon landing and disembarking in London.

  Kloe was excited. They flagged a taxi down and asked to go to Park Grand Paddington Hotel. The driver navigated the streets and dropped them off in front of the hotel. They carried their bags inside and went to the front desk. Kloe gave her name and they pulled up her reservation. She showed them her credit card and was given her key. They went to the elevator and went to their room which had a nice king size bed with a TV. It came with a nice sized bar. The bathroom was nicely sized with dual shower heads.

  “So what do you want to do now?” Gavin asked.

  “Well we can rest tonight. I assume you’re hungry. We can order room service.” Kloe suggested.

  “That sounds good, but why rest its only 7pm” Gavin asked her .

  “It’s not too late. We could also explore the local pubs?” Gavin asked.

  “Let’s eat and go from there. Okay?” Kloe told him.

  They ordered down to room service.

  “Hi! Could we get a couple of hamburgers and fries?” Kloe asked.

  “Sure no problem. It will be about 20-30 minutes,” the woman told them.

  “Thank you.” Kloe told her, hanging up.

  They waited for their food. It arrived as expected. Kloe tipped the bell man, turning to find Gavin already digging into his food. She joined him.

  “Mmm. These are so good,” Gavin mumbled through a full mouth, little pieces falling out as he spoke. He took a long, noisy drink of his soda and thrust some fries into his mouth.

  “You know you eat like a pig. Just shoveling the food inside you like that, right?” Kloe asked him, feeling a little ill at the sight.

  “I haven’t eaten since breakfast. It’s good food and it’s in the privacy of our room.” Gavin pointed out.

  “I would hope you don’t act this way in public,” Kloe laughed, wiping ketchup from his face.

  “Come on. Don’t be a hater. Join in.” Gavin told her between bites.

  Kloe picked up her burger, taking a huge bite and giggling as the savory taste filled her mouth and sauce dripped down her own chin. She lost some of the hamburger as she laughed. She swallowed down what she had, thrusting a few fries into her mouth. This was animal- like but it was fun to be crazy with Gavin. It was crazy in a bigger sense. He was a wolf and she was a vampire. They were devouring their food. When they finished their meal, Kloe went into the bathroom to freshen up.

  After she emerged, Gavin got up and went to the bathroom, shutting the door. He emerged later, taking his shirt off, revealing his muscles and his firm core six pack. Kloe loved to watch him half naked or naked. Whatever she could get but he was shy around others. He hadn’t even gotten in a pool since they met. When they had sex the lights were out and it was under the sheets. She barely even got to be on top. She wanted him to be confident in his body but she didn’t know how to convince him it was ok.

  “You want to go check out a local pub?” Gavin asked as he put a t-shirt on, snapping Kloe out of her trance.

  “Yeah that sounds good,” she said grabbing her purse and her room key.

  “Well let's go and see what we can find by wandering the streets,” Gavin smiled.

  Kloe smiled back. She loved his smile.

  As they went down to exit the hotel the clerk at the front desk stopped her.

  “Mrs. Rice you have a message,” the clerk told her.

  “Thank you.” Kloe said, taking the message and putting it in her purse assuming it was from Zoey making sure they had arrived and no doubt wanting her to call like a child to check in.

  “Aren’t you going to read it?” Gavin asked.

  “Why ruin our night before it begins? I’m sure it can wait,” Kloe told him.

  “Okay if you say so,” Gavin told her with a sigh.

  They walked a few blocks and came across a small pub which looked pleasant and cheerful. They went in and were immediately wrapped up in singing, smoke and booze. Yes they had found a nice place after all. But as they moved through the pub, the merriment stopped and everyone looked at them. They walked up to the bar, ordered two of whatever was on tap and sat down. The music piped back up and everyone began to chatter again.

  “You both don’t smell like you’re from around here and I smell wolf and vampire. You normally don’t see the two together sharing drinks. So I will make a guess. You two are in love. Am I close?” The ageing old man to their right asked them.

  “Actually you have it right. We have been together for quite a while. She has saved my life many times and I her. She is my everything!” Gavin told him.

  “Yes and he is my everything. My question is how did you know what we were?” Kloe asked.

  “Because wolves have a smell kind of like a wet dog. If you stay clean, it’s small. Vampires stink of copper. It comes from the blood they drink. I am a wolf myself. A fairly old one but I still have my senses. What brings you two around here?” The old wolf asked.

  “Well we are just visiting London for a week, on holiday. Our home is in Paris. What is your name?” Gavin asked

  “My name is Heinmot. It means Thunder in Indian. It is one of the many names I have been given in my days. But this one just stuck.” He turned to the bar, “Bartender, another round for my friends,” Heinmot said to the female bartender.

  The bartender poured more beers, placing them in front of Gavin and Kloe, taking the empties away.

  “So, we heard there are a lot of wolves around here and were warned to be careful.” Kloe told Heinmot, deciding for the moment to trust the older man.

  “Yes there are but they tend to keep to th
emselves. Unless something draws them out,” Heinmot told her.

  “Are there many vampires around?” Kloe asked.

  “Now that is a good question my dear. I haven’t seen any, lately. This is mainly a wolf area,” Heinmot explained.

  “Oh I see. So I will probably stick out like a sore thumb,” Kloe said warily.

  “You got it,” Heinmot said drinking his beer.

  “If you run into any trouble, try to tell them you’re only visiting. If that doesn’t work mention my name. That might make them back off.” Heinmot offered.

  Heinmot bought another round and Kloe bought shots to go with it.

  “You know what? Vampire or not, I like you lady!” Heinmot said. Throwing back his shot and chasing it with his beer.

  “Well you’re not so bad yourself, Heinmot.” Kloe told him, throwing back her own. Gavin followed suit. “Well I think we should be getting back to the hotel. It’s late and we are a bit drunk. It was a pleasure talking with you and until we meet again, I wish you the best.” Kloe told him with a smile.

  Kloe paid their tab and they left to walk back to the hotel. They got a little turned around but eventually made it to their destination. They went to the elevator and made it to their room. Both crashed on the bed. Not pulling the covers back or changing clothes. They just slept on the bed. Somewhere during the night though they got under the covers and slept peacefully in each other’s arms.

  CHAPTER 7

  They woke up the next day. Kloe found she had a headache. She had never had one as a vampire and found this new and strange. She searched through Gavin’s things until she found the Tylenol and she took a couple. She went off to the bathroom, taking her clothing off, turning on the shower. The shower was a double shower headed special, on opposite sides each had a shower head, it was incased with glass doors. Beautiful tiny blue tiles inside and it was just beautiful. It was a good fifteen minutes into her shower when Gavin came in behind her and turned the other shower head on. She turned around facing him taking in his naked body. Gavin turned to face her, wetting his hair.

  “Must you always stare when I am naked?” Gavin asked.

  “I can’t help it, you are a work of art and I love how you look,” Kloe told him.

  “Yeah okay,” Gavin smirked.

  They both finished up and dried off. Kloe was the first to get dressed and then Gavin.

  “So what are we doing today?” Gavin asked.

  “I thought we would go to see Big Ben and maybe the Globe Theatre.” Kloe told him.

  “Sounds like fun. Don’t forget I want to see their Zoo out here,” Gavin said eagerly.

  “No, I haven’t forgotten,” Kloe told him. “Personally, I think that once you see one zoo you've seen them all but okay.”

  “They have a new exhibit called Land of the Lions. It just opened. They also have a daily thing called penguin beach. There are a lot of cool things there I want to see. So you had better cheer up because I want to make at least a half day of it. A full day if you will let me.” Gavin said grinning at her.

  Kloe loved that grin. She hated to tell him no. Would it hurt to let him have a day at the zoo? After all they had a week, they could see Big Ben tomorrow.

  “Fine, we will do the zoo today but we are going to Big Ben tomorrow understand?” Kloe said, with a serious look.

  “Okay okay, now let’s get out of here and grab a taxi,” Gavin told her.

  They flagged a taxi in front of the hotel and told the driver they were going to the Frabic Zoo. The roads were a little bumpy here and there. They drove through a roundabout that was huge. The driver seemed skilled and only blared his horn a few times. What really got Kloe was they drove on the other side of the road. She had almost corrected the driver before she realized what was going on. They arrived at the Zoo. Kloe paid the driver and thanked him. He smiled and took off.

  Kloe and Gavin walked to the ticket booth.

  “How much for tickets for admission?” Kloe asked.

  “24.25 gbp each,” the woman told them.

  Kloe counted the money and handed it to her. She smiled, handing her back her change and tickets.

  “Enjoy your day,” the lady said smiling suggestively and winking at Gavin.

  Kloe couldn’t believe the nerve of the woman. Flirting with Gavin while she was standing there. She took a deep breath and handed Gavin a ticket. They walked through security and handed over their tickets which were torn off and handed back.

  “So where do you want to start?” Kloe asked.

  “Let’s grab a bite to eat at the Terrace Restaurant. It is in Barclay Court by the Zoo shop.” Gavin told her.

  “How do you know all this?” Kloe asked.

  “I stalked the website when you mentioned you wanted to go to London. I put it on my to-do list.” Gavin laughed. He grinned as he took her hand and led her to the restaurant.

  Kloe felt so free and happy being able to walk around and not worry about anything. It was like for a the time being they were just ordinary humans not a wolf and a vampire on vacation.

  They walked to the restaurant and went inside, placed their order and waited. They took their sandwiches out to the terrace. They could look over the Zoo and have fresh air away from the chatter inside.

  “So what do you want to see first?” Kloe asked.

  “I would like to see the lions and the wolves for starters. Maybe some tigers and other animals after that. I really want to see penguin beach; that looks fun,” Gavin told her.

  “You want to see the primal beasts of power first basically. That is what I’m getting?” Kloe asked.

  “Well yeah! Why not? I want to see if they sense the beast within me and how they react.” Gavin smirked.

  “Well, just remember there are families here with children. Let’s not get too mad scientist on this okay?” Kloe told him.

  “I understand. What I am curious about, is how they will respond to you.” Gavin said pointedly.

  “What do you mean?” Kloe asked.

  “Before I noticed animals avoided you like you didn’t exist. However, you underwent a change in that spring and yes I have noticed. So let’s see what happens when you see these primal animals. Will they walk away or what?” Gavin asked her.

  “Gavin you have some crazy ideas. Is this why you wanted to come to the Zoo? So you could test your theories?” Kloe asked.

  “Partly. I also wanted to see the animals. I never got to see a Zoo when I was a kid.” Gavin told her with a sheepish, shy smile.

  “Sorry. I didn’t realize you had such an interest in animals. Well let's go find lions I guess,” Kloe tried to smile, picking up her trash and throwing it away. Gavin did the same and they were off to find the exhibit.

  They found it easily. Each walked in and strangely no one was inside. A lion faced the enclosure’s window. Kloe got closer. As she approached the lion looked up and moved to the window. Soon they stood with just a thick pane of glass separating them. She put her hand on the glass. The lion sat and put his paw on the glass in response. The lion backed away, roared and bowed down his head. Kloe knew in that moment, that the lion knew something had indeed changed within her and it was big.

  “I so got that all on video Kloe,” Gavin said, breaking the moment. Kloe looked away and the lion stood up. It walked back to the others.

  “That was intense,” Kloe muttered surprised by the lions behavior .

  “Yeah told you that spring did something to you. Do you believe me now?” Gavin asked.

  “Well that’s just a lion. Who’s to say others will do the same?” Kloe asked.

  “Well I got a camera and I say we check it out. This Zoo trip just got more interesting,” Gavin smirked.

  They left the lion exhibit and walked to the wolves’ exhibit. They went where there were not a lot of people. Gavin waited for a wolf to wander their way and they didn’t have to wait long. A wolf smelled the air and locked eyes with Kloe. It slowly prowled over. He came and sat down close to the fence.
He let out a howl. He eyed Gavin who was recording their encounter. His attention went back to Kloe. Kloe touched the fence and the wolf tried to lick her hand.

  “Hey hands off the fence are you crazy!” A Zoo employee shouted.

  “Oh sorry! He is so friendly,” Kloe apologized.

  “Friendly? These are wild animals. They will bite your hand off,” the employee told her.

  “Oh well. He licked my hand. We were just leaving,” Kloe quickly reassured him.

  Gavin and Kloe hastily left the exhibit and went down to penguin beach in time for the show.

  “That employee was a jerk,” Gavin told her.

  “Yeah but he was just doing his job. He didn’t know I was different,” Kloe said, diplomatically.

  When the show was over they visited the other animals and then they left. They had proof something was different about Kloe but they didn’t know what.

  CHAPTER 8

  When they got to the hotel Kloe grabbed a phone book and began looking up blood banks. She was feeling in the need of a drink – a real drink. It was important to set this up for their trip here. She found one locally and called. She got their hours and the exact location. She grabbed her purse and told Gavin she would be back. She walked the short distance and entered the building. She was welcomed by the receptionist.

  “May I help you?” The receptionist asked.

  “Yes I am here to see the director,” Kloe told her.

  “Do you have an appointment?” She asked.

  “No but it’s rather an urgent matter,” Kloe said.

  “What’s your name?” She asked.

  “Kloe Rice.” Kloe told her.

  The receptionist went back to the phone and called the director. She told him Kloe Rice was here to see him.

  The receptionist listened to the voice on the line and turned apologetically to Kloe, “I’m sorry Mrs. Rice but he is rather busy. Could I make you an appointment?” She asked.

  Kloe looked straight in the receptionist eyes waiting for the woman eyes to latch onto thralls power and told her,