Havenfall Harbor: Book One

by Albany Walker

  Quinn brings her finger up to her mouth, and her eyes widen a bit. I don’t think the harshness of Griffin’s tone delivered the news very easily.

  “I made the decision to give you my blood so it could heal you.” Griffin tips his head back a little, his hands curling into fists over his thighs as he waits for Quinn’s response.

  She blinks at him, almost owlishly. “You healed me?” Her voice comes out just above a whisper.

  Griff licks his lips. “I did, and I took a bit of blood from you in exchange.” Quinn’s brows drop, as does her gaze. I wait for a few moments for Griff to divulge more info. To explain to Quinn why he did it.

  “Aren’t you going to tell her why?” I finally prompt when he stays quiet.

  Griffin tilts his head as if he’s weighing the idea of what to say. “If I would have just given you my blood without an exchange, there’s a risk of you becoming a scion, addicted,” he explains.

  “Really?” Quinn’s voice is soft, questioning.

  “Yeah, once or twice usually isn’t a big deal, but it can get dangerous for a human after that,” I expound.

  “Dangerous how?” I leave that question to Griff.

  “Imagine a human craving blood as if they were a vampire, but they weren’t. It can become their sole focus, just like any other addict. They don’t eat or drink, their only goal is to get vampire blood, and frankly there aren’t many who are willing to share it without a price.”

  “What’s the price?” The quizzical way Quinn inquires tells me she’s not interested because she wants more, her motivation to know the answer is driven by the pursuit of knowledge.

  Griff settles back on the couch, relaxing now that he knows Quinn doesn’t seem like she’s going to freak out. “Well, money, power, lust to name a few,” he answers.

  “Not the exchange of blood though?” It’s a logical question. Vampires do need blood, and supernaturals aren’t always willing to be of service, especially because they know that blood comes with ties to the recipient.

  Quinn

  “No, vampires rarely exchange blood with humans,” Griffin responds slowly, not meeting my eyes.

  I get the feeling he’s uncomfortable. “Well, thank you,” I tell him sincerely. I’d been grateful the moment I knew he did something to help me, but my curiosity overruled the commonsense to tell him so. However, now I’m even more curious why vampires rarely exchange their blood with humans.

  Griffin taps his finger on the arm of the sofa. It’s not a big move for most, but for him it seems like more. I feel like the smallest of gestures can speak a thousand words for this guarded man, vampire…whatever. He doesn’t say you’re welcome, or even make a big deal about what he did for me. I have the urge to hug him, but I sink a little further into the couch instead.

  I’m not completely sure my idea of changing the topic from a relationship to finding out how they found me did much good. I think it’s possible I’d be even more willing to entertain the idea now.

  There’s a heavy tension in the room I’m not sure how to alleviate, but sitting here in just a shirt isn’t helping matters. “I need to go next door, take care of some things,” I finally say after several minutes of silence.

  Griffin turns his head slowly until he’s facing me, his head tilted down. “Like what?”

  I motion to my body. “Firstly, I need clothes, I have laundry to do. I have to prepare my plan for next week, and I’m hungry.” I cross my arms over my chest, giving him the same glib look he’s sending my way.

  “We can head over there now.” Evan stands and reaches out to help me up. I cast Griffin a glance, wondering how these two could be as different as night and day. Taking Evan’s offered hand, I rise. He doesn’t pull back to give me more room, so we end up being separated by only a few inches.

  A somewhat shy smile curls my lips. If we hadn’t just talked about the possibility of dating, or whatever they want to call it, I could play it off, but his nearness seems much more purposeful now, or maybe I’m still reading too much into their actions.

  I’m the first one to step away. Evan is right on my heels. When I reach for the door handle, a hand covers my own. I look over my shoulder to see Griffin near my side. “Is that really how you want to walk out into the hall?” He cocks one eyebrow at me.

  I thin my lips. He’s right, I really shouldn’t walk out there like this, but other than running into Letty the one time, I’ve never even seen anyone this side of the elevator. I almost want to go out there in just his shirt to prove a point, but I drag my hand out from under his, releasing the knob and motioning for him to lead the way in the process. “By all means, check to make sure the coast is clear, I wouldn’t want anyone seeing my legs. I’ll make a note, nearly topless is okay…thighs are a no-no.”

  I regret the words the moment they leave my lips, but the memory of Letty coming to his door with her tits barely covered is too fresh.

  Griffin leans down so his face is close to mine. There’s a distinct twinkle in his gorgeous blue eyes. “Topless is a no-no for you out there too. Feel free to indulge all you would like in here though.” He tugs the door open and steps outside without giving me time to form a witty retort.

  I do let out a growl though. Evan runs his palm from my shoulder to my lower back, giving the barest hint of pressure to get me to follow after Griffin. “It’s just because he’d be jealous,” he offers conspiratorially.

  The hall is empty except for Griffin’s oppressive presence when I peer around the alcove of his door. I raise my chin and strut past him as if walking around like this is an everyday occurrence for me. It’s not really that far of a stretch, you lose a little modesty sharing a home with three other girls for a few years.

  Our place was on the larger side. We rented a four bedroom duplex off of Main Street, so it was often the place all our friends would hang out at after leaving a bar or house parties. Early morning afters became the norm for most of us. I wasn’t about to wait until I was fully ready for the day before coming out of my room. T-shirts and panties were almost a uniform most weekends.

  Evan slides a key into the door and slowly pushes it ajar. I see and hear him take a few deep inhales, as if he’s tasting the air. He pushes the door all the way open and motions for me to enter. “All good,” he says, while I take a hesitant step inside.

  Chapter 25

  Griffin

  There’s a feeling in my stomach I’m not entirely unfamiliar with, but there’s a gnawing edge that doesn’t usually accompany it. If I didn’t know any better, I would think I was starving, but having had two bags of blood last night, I know that can’t be the case.

  Quinn is in her room—or her old room, if I have my way, she’ll never sleep anywhere but my bed again—gathering her clothes and any other shit she needs.

  I’m torn between telling her to just leave it or asking if she needs any help. I glance over at Evan where he’s leaning against the wall, his face a mask of calm. If I didn’t know him so well, I might not notice the way his eyes keep flicking to the hall where Quinn is, or the way his chest keeps expanding while he takes in all the scents around us.

  He’s probably just as on edge as I am, only he’s much better at hiding it. I huff, and of course that would be when Quinn emerges from the hall, towing two suitcases behind her. She changed into a pair of pants but left my shirt on. A shot of possessiveness rolls over me. ‘Mine’ is echoed in my head, and everyone that gets near her will know it.

  The unease in my gut lessens a bit. “I need to do some laundry.” She darts glances between Evan and me. I don’t do my own laundry, being the boss has its perks. I keep enough housekeeping and janitorial staff employed that I haven’t had to worry about that…ever really.

  “I have some stuff I could take care of too,” Evan states. Apparently, he does his own laundry. Who knew? “I even have an extra basket or two. Let’s go grab my stuff and we can do it together.” He jerks his head to the side.

  Quinn sends a grateful sm
ile in his direction. “Thanks, I’ve been avoiding it so I didn’t have to lug my dirty stuff around like this.” She tips her head back, meaning the luggage. “Which is why I have to do it today.”

  I push off the wall and head toward her. She releases the bags to me without a fight and I see it as a win. “Both of these?” I cock a brow. She really has been avoiding laundry. Her face flushes a pretty shade of pink. I can see the expanded blood vessels just under her skin. Fucking marvelous.

  “I had a couple clean things, but I had to shove it all together, so yeah, all of it now.”

  “Hopefully it won’t be too busy and we can do a bunch at once.” Evan tells her like he knows what he’s talking about. I, however, do not.

  Evan leads the way to the elevator, Quinn between us as I tote her bags. You’d think the menial task wouldn’t make me feel useful, but somehow it does.

  Evan’s room is on the first floor, far from the elevator, so I’m not all that surprised when we end up passing a few people in the hallway. Most of them skirt around us entirely, and that’s probably partly my fault. It’s not like I’m the most welcoming fella.

  Evan turns the doorknob to his room, and he gives Quinn a sheepish glance. He never locks it. It’s not like either of us have a reason to, other than to keep students out that is, but the front desk does a decent job at keeping them out of the staff wing. Or they did.

  Quinn follows him inside, and I’m right behind her. Evan is rushing around, picking up empty cups and stray pieces of clothing that he must have stripped off and dropped at some point. His room is set up much like Quinn’s, more like a studio with the kitchenette visible nearly the moment you walk in the door.

  I glance around. We don’t come here much, I think we both prefer the space of my room. Plus, before Quinn came, the room next to mine had been empty for a long time, so I had a bit more privacy from the rest of the staff.

  Evan’s TV is larger than mine, though, and it takes up most of one wall. I don’t often use mine. Although Quinn discovered one of the reasons I actually do use it. I bring my hand up to cover my mouth as a smile threatens to overtake me. I don’t think I’ve ever been more embarrassed, which is pretty fucking ridiculous considering my age, and it was just porn. Hell, my father used to pay humans with drops of vampire blood—never his own—so humans would fuck at his blood parties within these very walls. My smile drops, thinking about him disgusts me.

  “Have a seat, make yourself comfortable, I’ll only be a minute.” Evan heads down the short hall. Because he has always lived on his own, his room is one of the smaller ones, but he does have his own private bath, which not all the others do.

  Seconds later he comes out with a heavy bag over one shoulder and a large, empty black basket in his hands. “Here, you can use this.” He places the basket on the slightly worn couch. I reach to pick up one of Quinn’s bags, only to find her ready to take it from me.

  “I got it,” she says softly, and I only half release the weight to her. She tugs a little more and peers at me.

  “Are you just transferring it in?” I don’t understand why she’s not just letting me do this.

  “Yeah, but you don’t need to dig around in my dirty stuff.” She sounds aghast that I would offer.

  This woman has no clue I would coat myself in her scent if it meant I got to taste her with every inhale. It’s been a very long time since I’ve been around a human. We both have a little to learn about the other.

  “Let me just put it in,” I request.

  “No, I got it.” She plants a hand on one curvy hip, tightening my shirt over her body in doing so. Damn, even arguing with this female is fun.

  “Okay, you win,” I concede, allowing her to take the smaller of the bags from me. While she’s busy with that one, I grab the second and have it dumped into the basket before she can even unzip hers.

  Quinn lets out a little growl of frustration, and my dick gets hard when she glares at me, still bent over her bag.

  “What?” I try to look innocent, but that’s something I’ve never been, so I’m probably not very successful.

  Evan makes a throat clearing sound, and when Quinn looks over at him, the grin he was sporting is gone, vanishing as quickly as it came. “Ready?” he questions, overly somber.

  I have the urge to roll my eyes, a new experience for me too.

  “I suppose.” Quinn shoves her stuff on top of the clothes I already put in the basket, cramming them down with her hand.

  I reach for the basket, lifting it up to my chest. There’s a pair of pink polka dot cotton panties peeking out that she tried to hide. If I didn’t know how completely naïve she was to supernaturals, I would think she perfected the art of foreplay. It’s as if she’s teasing me.

  I lower the basket a bit, no need for everyone in the hall to see my hard-on. Hell, I’m putting off enough pheromones that the entire first floor probably knows I’m desperate to fuck her.

  Evan leads us to the basement laundry. It’s near several other utility and maintenance rooms. I don’t often come down here. We’re near the back of the building, close to where we found her this morning.

  Someone could have easily exited and entered through one of these hidden doors to get to her outside. I wrinkle my nose when we enter the laundry room. It’s bright and very much not empty. Schooling my features, I note the looks sent in my direction.

  I guess seeing me lugging around a basket of laundry is a strange sight, but do they need to fucking stare?

  “Headmaster!” Millie exclaims, rushing to my side. She stops just in front of me with a stricken look on her face. “I’m sorry, let me take care of this.” She reaches for Quinn’s clothes. I make one small move of rebuke, and that’s all it takes to have her jerking her arms back into her body and stepping away from me.

  Quinn is near a bank of washers, but her eyes keep darting to me every few seconds, even as she starts pretending to pay attention to Evan as he shoves his entire bag into one machine.

  I almost forget Millie is in front of me and take a step in Quinn’s direction. Having her eyes on me, like she needs to know where I am, is almost drugging. It makes me feel more powerful than the lineage bestowed upon me.

  She’s not giving me coy glances or trying to get my attention. Hell, it’s like she’s fighting not to look.

  “Headmaster?” I furrow my brow, bothered that Millie is keeping me from going over to Quinn. At my glower, she lifts her hands again like she wants to take what’s in my arms but knows not to. “Is there anything I can do for you?” she inquires in a pleading tone.

  “No.” I take a step forward, assuming that would be it, but Millie doesn’t let up, she turns her body to follow me.

  “But...” She bites the corner of her lip, and her eyes cut to Quinn and Evan.

  I pause for the barest second, giving her a chance to say whatever she thinks is so important, but when she doesn’t add anything, I walk past her, heading toward Quinn and Evan.

  I forget about her faster than I dismissed her. Quinn watches me walk over, her eyes flowing over me as if she’s assessing me. It makes me want to drop the basket and offer her a much closer inspection.

  “Here, I got those.” Her fingers brush over mine as she attempts to take the load from me. I cock my brow and she narrows her eyes. That really shouldn’t be so enticing, but fuck all, it is.

  “This one is empty.” Evan closes the door to his machine and opens the one next to it. Quinn shakes her head slowly and starts grabbing items out of the basket. I win this round.

  Quinn

  Now that our laundry is done and we’re fed, we’re heading back outside. I expect to feel nervous or a little frightened about returning to the place where I was attacked, but I don’t. That might have more to do with the two giant bodyguards I’ve inherited, though, and not my inner strength.

  “How is this going to help?” I gaze around. It’s early afternoon, and the sun has warmed up the walkway, making it feel like a completely differen
t place.

  “When we found you, we were focused on you. There might be something we missed.” Evan is staring at the ground as he makes a large circle around the area where I presume they found me.

  A peal of laugher catches my attention. Up ahead I see a group of kids coming our way, and they pause when they spot us. Evan doesn’t even look up, he and Griffin probably heard them well before I did.

  The kids backpedal, half of them turning around to head back in the direction they came from. Strange. Why would just seeing us have them retreating?

  Griffin tilts his head to the side. “Come here,” he orders, not even raising his voice.

  The entire group pauses before doing as Griffin asks, a few moving slower, ensuring that they’re herded to the back of the group.

  “What are you guys doing out here?” Evan’s eyes run over each kid. It’s mostly boys, I’d say anywhere from twelve to fifteen years old, but my estimate could be off.

  “Just hanging out,” a boy in the front answers.

  “I found some stuff over there.” Evan nods his head to a corner. “You guys hang out here a lot?”

  “Nah, not us,” the same kid replies.

  “Who?” Griffin demands. I place my tongue against my teeth in an effort not to say something about the way he’s talking to the kids. He’s not being outright mean, but he sure isn’t very approachable either. No wonder half the staff and students seem to be wary of him.

  “Dunno.” The kid looks around a little to see if anyone else is going to answer.

  One of the few girls in the group looks down at the ground and bites her bottom lip. I can’t tell if she knows something or if she’s just nervous. Without looking up, she gabs as if she might lose her nerve. “Minka and Alexis come out here sometimes.”

  Evan’s gaze narrows on the girl, but his face is relaxed, unlike Griffin’s. “Minka. Senior, right?”