Havenfall Harbor: Book One

by Albany Walker

  I find Noah jogging up the hall, approaching the dining room. “Hey.” He’s slightly winded. “You already eat?” His eyes roam over me, but not in the same way Letty’s did.

  “I did. You’re up early.” I take a quick peek at my watch.

  “I was hoping to catch you.” Noah’s shoulders lift as he slides his hand into his front pocket.

  “You were?” I can’t keep the slight surprise from my voice. His dark eyes hold mine without an ounce of self-doubt. I’ve had dinner with him and Alice and her other friends a few times.

  “I was,” he confirms, and a small grin tugs at the corner of his mouth. “What time do you usually come down? That way I won’t miss my opportunity tomorrow.”

  I have to say, I’m liking his direct approach. Noah turns so he’s now by my side, and I resume walking with him next to me. I steal a glance at him again. His hair is a soft brown that my mother would call something fancy like sable or chestnut, but it looks really nice with his rich, brown eyes. “I usually come down around eight,” I answer.

  “Damn, that early?”

  “Changing your mind?” I press my keycard against the box to open up the middle wing, where my office is located.

  Noah rocks back on his heels slightly, still confident, and gives me a lazy, “Nah, I’ll be there.” His dips his chin as the lock disengages. I turn the knob and push my weight against it, I still haven’t gotten used to how heavy the doors in this place are.

  “Where will you be?” The voice startles me. I was watching Noah and not the other side of the door. Griffin is standing in the entryway.

  “Breakfast tomorrow,” Noah answers, before I even remember there was a question posed. I haven’t seen much of Griffin over the last several days. I’d assumed his job of keeping an eye on me had been abandoned.

  Griffin looks past me, his eyes firmly on Noah, who is still standing behind me. I take in Griffin’s loose linen shirt and pants. There’s a slight wrinkle in the fabric, but whether it’s by design or because he slept in them, I don’t know, but something tells me this man doesn’t sleep in clothes.

  “Breakfast?” Griffin says the word like it’s a foreign concept. His eyes finally dart down to me. “Together, is that where you were coming from?” He crosses his arms over his chest and the rings on his fingers twinkle when the light hits the metal.

  I’m still leaning against the heavy door to keep it propped open—Griffin on one side, Noah on the other, and me in the middle. I have the ridiculous urge to distance myself from Noah.

  “Yes, I was. I think Noah was going to join me tomorrow?” It comes out like a question. I turn so I can see Noah. But his eyes are looking past me to stare up at Griffin. I feel the weight of the door ease and glance back to see Griffin has moved closer, his palm above my head taking the weight of the door off me.

  Both men are staring at each other without a word being spoken. There are no glares or narrowed eyes, but I still feel like I’m missing some silent conversation. It’s all but confirmed when Noah jerks his chin at Griffin and focuses back on me, finally adding, “If I can wake up.” He gives a small chuckle, but all the confidence of a few short moments ago is gone.

  Is he embarrassed that Griffin found out he was going to eat breakfast with me? “Oh yeah, either way.” I shrug my shoulders. Without the need to hold the door anymore, I take a few steps past Griffin and wave. “I have a few things to take care of. See you.” I don’t bother to wait around for Noah’s reply, and I hear the door close rather quickly after. I use the excuse of turning toward the staircase to look back at the entryway. Griffin is no longer standing there, he’s gone. Just like him, appearing and disappearing without much of an explanation.

  If I stomp up the stairs with a little more effort, it’s only because I’m in a hurry, not because I was actually looking forward to breakfast with Noah. But then I remind myself that I don’t want to become friends with someone who is embarrassed to be seen with me.

  My steps slow then. As much as I’m telling myself that things are falling into place and I’m getting more comfortable here, it’s just not the complete truth.

  Most nights when I return to my rooms it’s with a sense of unease. I keep waiting for another incident like the first night. I knew being the only human here wouldn’t be easy, but I wasn’t expecting to feel so alone. “Not very smart, Quinn,” I mutter, as I unlock the door to my office.

  I leave the door open, as usual, unless I have an appointment, and glide over to my desk, hitting the button to turn my computer on before lifting the lanyard from around my neck to place it into my top drawer. A few of my pens are strewn about, and the small container of vibrant colored paperclips is tipped over, spilling the little metal pieces all over the bottom of the drawer.

  The pens I could chalk up to closing the drawer too hard, but the paperclips tell me someone was rooting through my drawers, and they didn’t even care to try and hide it.

  I plop myself into my chair and search through the other drawers. I find much the same—little things out of place—but I don’t keep anything of value in here, nor do I keep any important paperwork here either, that’s all on my computer. On the rare occasion I need to print something out, I file it away immediately. Not that anything I do is secret, or even in confidence as of yet.

  Which makes me think they were either letting me know they could get in here whenever they wanted, or they were looking for something personal. I snort at the thought. I don’t even have a personal life at this point.

  I take my time rearranging everything before I shake my computer mouse to log in. I notice the moment a shadow darkens my doorway. Griffin leans his shoulder against the frame and crosses his arms.

  “Good morning, again,” I say without looking away from my monitor. He takes that as an invitation and steps into my office, closing the door softly behind him. I do look up then.

  “Not again,” he clarifies, while lowering himself into one of my chairs. He makes a face as if he’s only now remembering that he’s a bit too large for the seat.

  “What do you mean, not again?” I tilt my head and examine him. I decide the wrinkle of the soft fabric is intentional and force my eyes to stay on his face, not that his good looks are any less arresting, but at least it’s more polite than ogling his chest.

  “There’s no need to say again, because that was the first time you greeted me.”

  “I suppose you’re right, I thought it was implied. What can I do for you this morning, Griffin?” I’m a little shaken, not only by his presence, but with the thought of someone being in my space again without my permission.

  “Do you want to do something for me, Quinn?” Griffin’s voice goes the slightest bit deeper with the question.

  “I’m just wondering what I did to get back on your radar. I figured I passed the security tests when you stopped showing up all the time.” I glance at the clock. I have another hour before my first meeting is scheduled. I kind of wish I had an excuse to get him out of here. I’m finding myself wanting to tell him that someone was in my office, and I just don’t know if that’s a good idea. For all I know, it could have been him snooping around. I narrow my eyes on him. That could explain why he’s back here now, still checking up on me.

  “Rest assured, Quinn, you haven’t left my radar, as you called it.” Griffin places his elbows on the arms of the chairs and steeples his fingers near his lips. “Do you always invite vampires to dine with you?”

  “What?” I’m taken aback by his abrupt change in topic and the question itself.

  “You invited me to lunch, Noah to breakfast…I’m just wondering if it’s a habit of yours.”

  Several thoughts are running through my head at the same time. The fact that he just told me he’s a vampire, and the disgruntled tone of his voice, are just the first two. I ignore those and ask, “Would that be a problem if I did?”

  Griffin’s brows rise. It doesn’t seem that he gets surprised often, and I think I just did that. “Wel
l, considering you are not a regular donor, it could become a problem.” His face shifts again, his lips slightly turned down as well as his eyes as if the thought is unpleasant.

  “Whoa, slow down. I’m not looking to become a donor…well, unless there was a shortage…is there a donor shortage? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I want to help, and if—”

  Griffin cuts off my ramble with a raised palm. “No, there is not a blood shortage.”

  Once my brain wraps around what he’s saying, my mouth catches up. “Are you implying because I asked you to lunch, I was offering my vein?” The last part of my question comes out as a whisper.

  Griffin’s eyes darken, but it must just be some trick of the light. My gaze is drawn to his mouth when the corner of his lip pulls in, as if he’s biting the inside of his lip. I get the barest flash of a sharp white tooth before his mouth presses into a firm line. “In some instances, yes, that is what is assumed.”

  I fall back into my seat, my hands slapping against my thighs in the process. “I didn’t invite Noah to breakfast, he asked to join me, or…” I try to think back on how exactly he worded it. I can’t even recall right now. That’s my first thought, to deny the fact that I invited Noah, not to assure Griffin that I had no idea he thought I was offering more than to share a table.

  Griffin raises his hand to his face and draws his palm over his mouth then down his chin. “You’re human,” he announces, as if it’s news to me. “The only human living amongst a group of supernaturals.”

  I swallow and nod, not quite sure where he’s going with this.

  “Some among us might take advantage of you and your situation.” Griffin tilts his head as if to emphasize his meaning.

  “What situation would you be referring to, other than the fact I’m human?”

  He clears his throat and mutters a dark, “Fuck,” under his breath. Let’s be honest, cursing isn’t something new to me, or anyone else, but I’m a little surprised to hear him say it while at work. Although, he may not be technically working yet. It’s still early. I check the clock again, only seven minutes has passed since the last time I checked.

  “If this is making you uncomfortable, I can ask someone else, talk to someone else,” I offer when Griffin doesn’t continue. His head snaps up again and he glares in my direction. “So, I’m going to take that as a no.”

  “I am not uncomfortable. You couldn’t make me uncomfortable.” Griffin sounds the tiniest bit offended.

  “Right. So, what situation do you mean?” I press, not sure I even want the answer at this point but feeling like I need to know.

  “I just don’t want there to be any misunderstandings.” Griffin’s chest expands as he takes a deep breath and peers at me down his nose. “That’s all we need, some human woman running to the authorities, telling them you got bit because of your own stupidity.”

  My mouth drops open at Griffin’s harsh words and tone. Holy hell, where did the open hostility come from?

  I can’t even form a response, I’m so caught off guard. I look away from him and train my gaze on my desk. “If there isn’t anything else, I have some things to take care of,” I retort, when my tongue comes unglued from the roof of my mouth.

  Griffin rises slowly, but I don’t allow myself to look in his direction, though I do see him out of my peripheral vision as he halts as if he has more to say. I pretend to be engrossed in my monitor instead of suffering from whiplash with his mood swing.

  “Leave the door open please,” I find myself asking softly, when he grabs the knob to close it behind him. Griffin pauses again, but then walks out.

  Griffin

  “Fucking hell!” The curse falls from my sneered lips the moment I’m out of her human hearing range.

  The door to my office, only steps from hers, springs open, with Millie poised at the entrance. She would have known exactly where I was, and exactly when I left Ms. Shaw’s office.

  Millie went through her blooding several months ago, and while most newly blooded vampires yearn for fresh blood, she is still surviving off the bagged stuff and what I provided to her to ease her crossover, so her connection to me is stronger than it should be.

  Her eyes fall to the floor the moment mine rise to meet hers. “Headmaster,” she breathes. I’ve known about her infatuation for a while, but she’s a good assistant and her advances have always been easy enough to avoid. Right now her submissive demeanor is making my skin crawl.

  I brush past her without speaking. My teeth are aching with the need for blood after my conversation with Ms. Shaw. If I spoke now, she would see the evidence of my need, not that she doesn’t already know. I’m sending out enough pheromones to call any unattached females for miles to my side. Yet, that fact seems to have little effect on Quinn.

  I slam the door to my inner office. Millie knows better than to follow me, thank fuck, because it’s more than just my teeth aching. My cock was hard the moment I woke up this morning with thoughts of Quinn teasing me. I tried avoiding her, sleeping for most of the day and awakening in the evenings, as if I really was cursed from the sun, but her fucking scent is everywhere. Or at least I’m imagining it is. There’s no way she’s been in my office, my bed, yet I feel her there. Maybe putting her so close to me was a bad idea?

  I knew bringing a human into Havenfall could be dangerous, but I never thought I would be the one that was having a hard time controlling themselves.

  “Fuck!” I shout loud enough to rattle the walls.

  I hear the scurry of Millie’s footsteps as she dashes to her desk. The only reason she would have to fear me would be if she was a male vampire challenging me, or if she was Quinn Shaw. She alone should fear me the most, but she doesn’t. Even after I just tried to warn her, she still doesn’t. I did succeed in hurting her, though, when I implied she was stupid and was going to get someone in trouble.

  I slam my fist down on my desk as I picture her face in my mind. Millie answers a call from her desk, her voice as soft as a whisper, but I still don’t want to hear her. Every one of my senses are heightened beyond my normal, I need to get myself under control before I do something that could hurt Havenfall.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Albert, but the headmaster isn’t available for appointments now…Yes, sir, I will.” The phone returning to the cradle is barely audible, but I hear it like a gunshot.

  I bring my hands up to my face to rub my temples, but I catch her scent. When she passed me at the entrance of the school, I touched the tips of my fingers to the side of her neck. I’m sure she didn’t even feel it, but I couldn’t fight the need to lay some claim on her, not when Noah was so close to what’s mine.

  That thought has all the air in my lungs fleeing. Quinn Shaw is not mine, and she never will be.

  The only reason that thought isn’t making me lose my shit right now is because I know a lie when I hear it, even if I’m lying to myself.

  Chapter 7

  Quinn

  I can’t seem to kick the sour mood I’ve been in since Griffin left my office this morning. It didn’t help that as soon as Millie saw me approach the lunch table she was sharing with Alice—Noah is noticeably absent—her face transformed into a scowl like she has a reason to be pissed at me.

  “Hey, guys.” I look around as I sit down, wondering if everyone is in a bad mood today.

  “Looking good, Quinny.” Alice grins as she gives me a once over.

  “Thanks, Ally.” Her compliment brings the first genuine smile to my lips in hours. Not to mention the relief I feel knowing she’s not suffering from some hot and cold temperament, like a few men I won’t mention.

  After claiming my seat, I pull open the tab on my yogurt and lean closer to Alice. “So, how did last night go?” I was so wrapped up in my own stuff, I forgot about her date last night with Wes.

  Alice lets out a breathy sigh, and her body just melts a little. She has a stupid cute smile on her face, and I smile right along with her.

  “That good, huh?” I take my first bite of
vanilla yogurt before dumping in a few pieces of granola.

  “It was. It really was.” Her cheeks are still high with a grin when she makes eye contact with me. She lets out a girlish giggle, and I almost ask if the date lasted all night, since she still seems a little bite drunk, but I don’t. My cluelessness prompts me to grow a little more serious. Alice would be the perfect person to talk to about whatever situation I have that Griffin alluded to. I lean even closer to her. Millie might be pretending I don’t exist, but she doesn’t need to know my business.

  “Hey, do you think we could hang out after dinner—”

  Alice cuts me off before I can finish. “I already made plans with Wes, but if it’s important…” Her face falls.

  I wave off her concern and tell her, “No, absolutely nothing that can’t wait, maybe later this week?” I add hopefully.

  “Definitely.” Alice nods quickly. “I’ll fill you in on the details of our date then.” She waggles her eyebrows, and just like that I decide not to let Griffin being a jerk this morning ruin the rest of my day.

  Just as I’m preparing to toss my trash away, I hear Millie’s voice. “I don’t think I’ll be around for dinner.” Her eyes cut to me. “The headmaster canceled all his appointments this morning, and I’m going to need to reschedule everything.” She glares at me, as if it’s somehow my fault.

  I ignore her ire and inquire, “What about the meeting I had scheduled with him, should I call to reschedule it?”

  Her head jerks back like she can’t believe I just asked that. “I really don’t think that’s necessary. If he wants a meeting with you, you’ll know.” With those parting words, she stands up and stomps out of the dining hall.