I may be the best reporter the network had, but I knew as well as they did that I wasn’t management material. I liked what I did. Practically my own boss. I came and went on my own terms. As long as the stories flowed steadily from me, they never complained.
I left my car in the usual spot, halfway between the bar and the café. The short walk to the diner soon became a jog when the clouds that had been threatening earlier finally opened up, dumping rain down in buckets, soaking me to the bone. I tugged on the collar of my jacket, but there was really no point. The small, already soaked material wasn’t going to save me.
Rain was just water. It wasn’t going to kill me to get wet. Besides, the walk to the diner cleared my head. Except this time, thoughts of the woman at the bar continued to invade my mind. I didn’t mind, though. She was certainly much better to think about than the hideous monsters that usually lived there.
Chapter Three
Chelle
I materialized onto the roof of a building, realizing I hadn’t ingested any blood from that prick and my head felt a bit light. “Fuck.” I sank down on the roof, shook off the bad vibes from the biker jerk at the beach, and sighed. Some birthday this was turning out to be. I rubbed my jaw where the asshole had slugged me. That was probably going to bruise. Hopefully, I’d heal before Lane saw me. If I had still been a mortal human, the asshat would have knocked me out cold and probably broken my jaw.
I sat perched on my butt, hugging my knees to my chest, sucking in the damp night air as I focused on the apartment building across the street.
If someone had told me a year ago I’d be sitting on a roof, reduced to a peeping Tom, I’d have laughed in their face and then told them to go to hell.
But there was something I’d longed to do since I’d been turned. See Brandon. The guy I’d been with the night Lane had turned me. I wanted so badly to go inside and let him know I still existed. But I couldn’t. He’d never understand. I’d seen him at the club a few times, but was never able to approach him. Lane had taken care of that by compelling him to forget he knew me. That was the worst part.
I’d missed my funeral—if there had been one. But then, I supposed that’s the way it usually went unless we attended them as ghosts. I had no idea. I could only assume that there was one. Or maybe I was still just “missing.” Most likely the latter, since there was no body to be found. I still needed it, even though I was technically dead.
When my birthday had rolled around last year, Brandon had insisted that I not spend it alone so he’d ordered a pizza with the works and brought home an ice cream cake he’d gotten at Baskin Robbins. It was mint chocolate chip with chocolate cake—my favorite. We’d gotten drunk on cheap champagne and played dominoes into the wee hours of the night. He was a good friend. Not a “boyfriend,” though I think he would have liked that, but he wasn’t my type. He was cute and all, just not someone I saw myself with in that way.
I wanted to materialize inside Brandon’s room so badly and let him know what had happened. I had found out too late that night, that Club Royal was not only infested with vampires but also owned by two of them, Lane and Cian DeMarco.
A drop of moisture settled on my left hand. Then, within a few seconds, the cloud burst open and rain pelted down on me.
“Fuck.” I dematerialized and teleported behind a little café set beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. The view was spectacular and I thought this would be a spot I’d like to frequent often. Well, as often as Lane would allow me to venture out on my own. Now that I was free to roam around and not kept tied up like a prisoner anymore, anyway. Since he’d insisted that I only stay out for two hours tonight or he’d put me on restriction as though I were a teenager and he was my fucking father or something, I had to make good use of my time, and this rain was not helping. Though I’m sure if I ran late, he’d let me know. Lane could transmit his thoughts to me anytime he wanted to because he had my blood in him and I had his in me, which created a powerful bond between us that would never die.
I tried to get a little closer and materialized just outside the small café, my feet landing right in the middle of a giant mud puddle that completely covered my new shoes. Dammit, what a fucked up birthday this was turning out to be. Twenty-one was supposed to be exciting. All I’d wanted to do was go into a bar where I’d get asked for my I.D., suck a little blood, then spend a few minutes looking at my old friend, maybe even reminisce a little before going to the club. But now, I was soaked to the bone, my hair wet and probably plastered to my head, and now my shoes were covered in mud and my skirt dripped with rain. I wanted to cry. I began to dematerialize again, to go home and get the hell out of the downpour, but as I rounded the corner, I detected movement coming from the bushes not too far away. I stepped back so I wouldn’t be seen and watched as another vampire materialized there. He was tall with short, dark, cropped hair. I’d never seen another vampire besides the guys in the band. I didn’t like the feeling it gave me in my chest.
Something about him seemed familiar, but seeing him, another vampire that I didn’t know, frightened me. I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. At least, I didn’t think so, but I wanted to get far away from him regardless. I turned to leave and collided with another man.
“Sorry,” I said. It was a good thing I hadn’t just dematerialized into thin air. I’d had no idea he was there.
As he righted me, I recognized the translucent blue eyes. Oh, no. This night just kept getting worse and worse by the minute. It was the same gorgeous guy I’d seen at the bar playing pool with Trump.
Chapter Four
Chelle
“No problem. Are you okay?” he asked. Both of his hands held on to the sleeves of my soaking wet jacket to steady me. I looked up at him. He was still attractive, even out here in the dark, and I found myself admiring his strong jawline covered with a slight growth of stubble. I should have gone with this guy instead of the biker, but Trump had just seemed easier. Until he’d slugged me. I was still hungry, and this guy might just be able to satisfy me in more ways than one for the next few hours, though opening my mouth was going to be difficult as my jaw ached like it had been struck by a meathead’s big ass fist. Oh wait, it had. This sweet morsel in front of me might need to wait for another time. What a fucked up birthday. I was upset about getting hit, and on top of that, my night’s plan to check on Brandon had been ruined by the rain. I squeezed my eyes closed for a second, hoping the guy’s gorgeous blue eyes would look differently when I opened mine. No such luck.
“I’m sorry,” I said again. “I didn’t realize you were behind me.”
“Hey, you’re the girl from the bar. It’s your birthday, right?”
I nodded, wishing I could just get the hell away. “Yeah.”
“What happened to the biker?”
I shrugged. “Turned out not be my type, after all.”
He nodded and turned to go inside, then pivoted back toward me. “Are you going in?”
“Uh, no. I just like to stand around out here in the rain and admire the bridge.”
He laughed. When I didn’t return the amusement, he stopped laughing and realized I wasn’t joking.
“Is that really a safe thing to do? I mean, a woman out here on her own; there are any number of things that could happen.”
“Um…maybe.” That was probably not the best thing to say. He had no idea what my super vampire strength was capable of, so naturally, being a man, he decided this would be his move. Every girl loves a hero, right? Or so he probably thought.
He studied me for a moment and frowned. He stood just under the awning out of the rain, but I still stood in the deluge, water dripping down my head and my face.
“Come inside out of the rain before you catch pneumonia. I’ll buy you a sandwich or something.” I looked down at myself. I must be a sight. I reached up to feel my hair, and yeah, plastered to my head and dripping wet. My sexy new outfit was ruined, and I realized that maybe he thought I was a hooker or homeless and needed a good meal. I ne
eded a good meal all right, but not one I’d find inside the café.
“No. That’s okay. Thank you, though.”
“No, seriously, come on in. I love to buy beautiful, wet women dinner.” He smiled. “Besides, it’s your birthday. Can’t go hungry on your big day. That is if you’re hungry. If not, at least come in out of the cold and have a cup of coffee.”
He thinks I’m beautiful? Well, wet and beautiful.
I smiled then thought of Lane. He had given me two hours, and I was fairly certain I’d only been out for about forty-five minutes so far. I shrugged my shoulders. A cup of coffee sounded all right. “Okay. I could use a cup of coffee. Maybe a small bite to eat.” I chuckled to myself. Maybe this birthday would turn out nice, after all. I licked my lips, still so very hungry for human blood. I could hang with this guy for a while, dry off, and take a taste of his blood after he’d had his dinner. Human blood was always so much richer right after they ate. We’d need to eat quickly, though; my time was running out. The last thing I needed or wanted was Lane getting on my case and never letting me out alone again. I followed Mr. Gorgeous Eyes to the door.
“My name is Josh,” he said as he held the door open for me and I slipped in under his arm. It was warm and toasty inside the small diner. I glanced around. Not many people, that was a plus, except for the vampire over toward the back that I’d seen walk in right before I’d collided with Josh. He sat, looking down at his cell phone, completely oblivious to us. At least, I hoped. Just in case, I headed toward the opposite end of the café and sank into a booth, keeping one eye on the other vamp.
“So, you like the view of the bridge from underneath?” He picked up two menus from the stack propped up against the wall at the end of the table and held one out for me.
“Yeah, it’s amazing.” Not quite as amazing as it was from the top of the towers, but still pretty nice, I wanted to add, but there was no way a human would understand how I could possibly get up to the top of the tower of the bridge.
I took the menu he handed me and opened it. It had been a while since I’d eaten in a restaurant.
“Order anything you want. It’s on me.”
I gazed at the menu, peering over it occasionally to check out Josh. His dark hair was messy as if he’d just tousled it with his hands after a shower and left it that way, but the lazy style gave him a sort of sexiness that I’d missed when we were at the bar. His blue, translucent eyes were striking, and for several minutes, I lost myself in the tranquility they promised. Impossibly dark lashes feathered his cheeks as he studied the menu. They were so thick; it looked like he was wearing mascara. He was quite handsome in a rugged sort of way. I should have ignored the biker dude at the bar and snuggled up to Josh instead. My jaw would have faired better, that’s for sure.
Josh reached across the table, gently tipping my chin up with his finger. “Ouch. That looks fairly new.”
I shrugged. I didn’t want to think about it, let alone talk about it. Not that I could tell him what had happened anyway.
Josh shut his menu and placed it down on the table in front of him. “What’s your name?” he asked.
“Chelle.”
“Nice to meet you, Chelle,” he said, watching me, then fell silent. His staring made me a bit uncomfortable so I closed my menu and placed it down in front of me to return the stare.
He grinned. “So, do you come to Chrissy Fields often to enjoy the view?”
I couldn’t help myself and smiled back. “Yeah. Do you come here to eat often?”
“More often than I should. I like looking up at the bridge from down here. Sort of helps my perspective of things when life’s little complexities get the best of me. Makes me remember just how uncomplicated things really are when compared to the intricate structure of the bridge.”
“That’s a weird way of looking at things.”
“Why?”
“Comparing your life to a bridge?”
“Not my life, per say, just the situations sometimes. Things get complex, people go missing without a trace, murders happen, and there’s no clue why or who’s to blame. Things like that. Life can take some nasty turns.”
My eyes shot to his when he mentioned people missing. I was technically a missing person.
“What do you do? I mean, for a living?” I asked.
“I’m a reporter.”
“Oh. Oh!” I said, drawing out that second oh because it suddenly dawned on me who he was. “You’re Josh Barrett. The news reporter?” Oh no, he was the one who’d worked with Magdalena before she was turned into a vampire.
“Guilty.”
“That explains a lot,” I admitted. “I mean about things getting complex.” I had a fleeting thought that I should leave. Sitting with a reporter was not the best idea. What if he recognized me from one of those posters floating around the city?
“I guess it does.” He laughed.
His laughter was infectious, and I found myself grinning with him. I tried to relax but remained cautious. “Do you like it? The job?”
“It pays the rent.”
I nodded and wondered if he remembered Magdalena. She’d been a reporter before she met Cian; before he’d turned her into a vampire in order to save her life after his master, the evil Jewels, had slit her throat. The jealous bitch. Magdalena was now also among the missing without a trace.
A waitress came over to the table and Josh ordered a double bacon cheeseburger, medium cooked, with a side of onion rings and a cup of coffee. Then he looked expectantly at me.
“I’ll have the same, but make the cheeseburger rare and I’ll have a chocolate shake. Oh, and no bun,” I added, the pain in my jaw sending bolts of agony to the back of my neck. I didn’t need to eat solids. I could survive on just blood, but I still enjoyed the flavor of food, especially cheeseburgers and chocolate shakes.
Josh smiled at me after I’d ordered, and the waitress walked away, still jotting something down on her little pad.
He continued to stare at me, and I was afraid that maybe he recognized me. “Are there a lot?” I asked.
“A lot of what?”
“Missing people and murders?”
“Oh. More than you might think. Kids mostly, but then every now and again a picture of an older woman comes across my desk.”
“Missing without a trace?” I asked, playing on his words from earlier.
“Yeah. Without a trace,” he repeated as he stared into my eyes.
“So you’ve never found any of them?” I prodded. I wanted to know what exactly they did to find missing people because if someone was looking for me, then I might have a problem.
“Nope. Why so many questions about the missing?”
“No reason. Just curious.”
Just then, the other vampire in the café walked up to the register. Josh caught me staring at him and twisted his head around to see what had captured my attention. The vampire glanced our way and frowned. He knew I was a vampire, just as I’d sensed that he was one. We knew our kind. I bet he wondered what I was doing with a human. But then, for all he knew, I was just out prepping my evening nourishment. Besides, who said vampires couldn’t be friends with humans? Or witches. Maggie and Vanessa are friends, and Maggie’s a vampire and Vanessa’s a witch. Ari’s human and he’s a friend to everyone at the mansion. The unknown vampire paid his bill and left. What had he been doing in here anyway? I supposed it could have been a number of different things. Who was I to judge? But why did he look so familiar to me?
Chapter Five
Josh
Chelle was young, most definitely young. I knew she was at least twenty-one, since Clint had served her after checking her I.D. The way she’d averted her eyes when that guy’d been paying his bill made me think there was another reason she’d been outside. He’d been huge and not very friendly looking. But then I knew she was a risk taker, considering she’d been at the bar alone. What had happened with that biker? I watched the big man walk by the window and glance in as he passed by. Che
lle quickly looked down at her hands.
“Do you know that guy?”
The way she shook her head, quickly, I could almost see the lie in it.
“I saw him enter the cafe right before you rammed into me,” she answered.
“Was he bothering you?”
“No. I…no. He wasn’t.”
“You mind if I ask you a question?
“No. I guess.”
“How old are you?”
Her eyes shot to mine. “That’s kind of personal, don’t you think?”
“What? Men aren’t supposed to ask a woman’s age, right? It’s the reporter in me.” I smiled.
“Well, if you must know, I turned twenty-one today.”
“Really? So today’s not just your birthday, but the big one. Your twenty-first birthday? That’s a big deal.”
“Yeah.”
“What the hell are you doing lurking outside a café covered in mud on your birthday?”
This girl intrigued me, and I couldn’t help wanting to know more about her. Even wet, her beauty was captivating. It wasn’t just about helping someone in need, though that had been my original intent. I had penance to pay, and well, helping out a beautiful woman once in a while couldn’t hurt. But now it was more of a ‘hey, you’re someone I’d like to get to know.’
The waitress came back with the food and drinks and we both picked up an onion ring at the same time and bit into it. Chelle made a slight “Mmmmm” sound as she chewed. It must have been a while since she’d last eaten good diner food.
“In answer to your question, things didn’t turn out the way I’d planned,” she said after the waitress had left. “I’m supposed to be dancing at a nightclub with friends right now, but I wanted to see an old friend first. Then I got caught in the rain…” She glanced at her feet, her red, strappy sandals covered in mud. She’d been dressed rather nicely before the rain. “…and the mud. I think my night’s been ruined.”
Captivated by a Vampire: Billionaire, Rock Stars, Vampires in San Francisco (Immortal Hearts of San Francisco Book 2) Page 3