Claiming the Night

by Kathryn Vegas

  Claiming the Night

  Episode 2

  In the Sweet Nightfall Series

  By Kathryn Vegas

  All rights reserved.

  Copyright © 2020

  This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction, electronic sharing, or other unauthorized use of this book is prohibited without the express written permission of the author.

  Edited by Joseph Zuko and Pam Anderson

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Dear Reader,

  I hope you enjoy this novella. Book two was supposed to be a full-size novel. Due to the global pandemic that turned everyone’s life upside down, I was unable to complete the last half. The worry was all-encompassing and with the changing dynamics of our family, I found myself a new homeschool mom. Like most of you, I became engrossed in the news of the virus. It was increasingly difficult to focus on a happily ever after love story. I did not want to cancel the release. Lots of novellas or episodes are published all the time. I thought, well let’s make this a mini-series. I changed gears, polished and completed the first half of the book and got it ready for publication as an episode. I will continue to work on what would be the second half of book two over the next few months.

  Stay safe and healthy,

  Kathryn Vegas

  Last night Sara found out her boyfriend is a vampire.

  Chapter One

  The day had felt a million hours long to Adam. He’d tossed and turned, catching only moments of true sleep. No contact with Sara. No idea how the events of the previous night had settled in her mind.

  “Why’d I throw my damn phone?” He muttered for the thousandth time.

  Thank goodness that sunset was at 4:34 pm. The shortened days of winter were a blessing. He would have died waiting during the summer for night to fall.

  Adam impatiently tapped on the counter at his local Verizon store, making the cashier stumble through the data imputing.

  “I just hit the wrong key. Sorry, I need to get my manager to unlock the screen. So sorry.” The flustered girl stuttered.

  She couldn’t maintain eye contact with Adam, further fueling his frustration. He didn’t mean to be so abrupt, but he’d been dealing with this new employee for an hour and all he wanted was a damn phone. He needed to text Sara and put his worries to rest.

  Adam sighed loudly which prompted the girl to repeat how sorry she was with her eyes downcast.

  “It’s okay. I’ve been without a phone all day and need to contact someone.” Adam tried to calm the frazzled girl.

  He knew the more she screwed up his information the longer he would be here. It was easy to forget how intimidating he could be at his height and size. He pulled himself away from the counter to give her space.

  Twenty minutes later, with the manager’s help, he was able to leave the store. Before exiting the door, he started his text. Mindlessly walking, phone to face, through the parking lot. He didn’t need to look around. His heightened senses easily confirmed the safety of his surroundings. Without looking he entered his car and sat down heavily. He’d erased and started a new text four times since leaving the store.

  His mind was blank. What do you say? ‘Hey, you still cool?’ Or maybe, ‘How’s the neck?’

  Ugh! He sat the phone down in the seat beside him.

  “I should just go by her place and take her to work.”

  Adam’s wild eyes flashed back at him in the rearview mirror. He looked a little keyed up. He took a deep breath to settle his nerves.

  “Everything is fine,” He said attempting to convince himself.

  After a couple of breaths, he started the car and headed toward Sara’s house. He wouldn’t be able to stop the run around in his head until he could see her. Were they still on the same page? Did she still want him?

  He wouldn’t blame her if she’d changed her mind during the light of day. They had survived a harrowing event, but today she could have come to any conclusion about the future of their relationship. If anyone had reasons to break it off with someone, it was Sara.

  He whispered in an impersonation of a woman’s voice. “I broke up with my boyfriend because he took a bite out of me last night and sucked down a few pints.”

  “Pretty solid reason to break it off with the monster.” He replied.

  It had been a day of full-blown insecurities and it had not been pretty. Adam hated this side of himself. He hadn’t known much insecurity in his life. He was six foot four and built throughout high school. He’d been on the football team, wrestled and worked hard in the gym. Girls constantly walked by the open weight lifting room doors to drool at the boys inside and he was never without a girlfriend. He may have had a few gangly years in middle school but he came from a nice family and was a confident kid with charisma. The hand life dealt was loaded with aces.

  Adam was experiencing a small taste of what it felt like to question yourself and your worth. It fucking sucked. The quicker he got to Sara’s and ended this feeling, either way, the better. If she dumped him it was going to break his heart but at least that would end this limbo. It would be painful, but he could move forward with knowledge of the life he wanted to create for himself.

  He’d tortured himself all day with scenarios of her leaving. He brought a deadly element into her life and that bitch almost succeeded in killing them last night.

  Adam almost convinced himself she should break up with him. That she was insane not to. He’d even come up with a scenario featuring him as the holy martyr leaving her, to spare her any further danger. To keep her safe. That scenario, self-aggrandizing and satisfying to the ego in its own right, he knew was not happening.

  He wasn’t that good a person. He selfishly wanted her. He crossed his fingers and hoped he was strong enough to keep her safe. Another ego-fueled decision.

  Adam pulled into her driveway and surveyed the neighborhood. It was all clear, nothing out of the ordinary. He scanned the house and concentrated. A soft and steady heartbeat came from her bedroom.

  Sara avoided looking at her neck all day, but she needed to survey the damage. How was she going to cover it up at work tonight? She looked into her bathroom mirror, turned her neck to the side, exposing the bandage Adam applied the night before.

  What’s under there?

  She cringed at the thought.

  Sara carefully picked at the tape and got a large enough piece unstuck to pull. She took a deep breath and applied pressure to slowly remove the bandage from her delicate skin. At the last second she closed her eyes, not wanting to see, in case the wound was disgusting.

  What if it’s infected?

  What would I tell a doctor?

  She’d removed the Band-Aid, but her eyes remained scrunched closed.

  Open your eyes dummy!

  Sara reluctantly peeked through one eye.

  Hmmm. What the...? Okay…?

  She opened both eyes and zoomed in closer to the mirror. The mark on her skin looked like the gnarliest hickey the law allowed, but her flesh was intact. She poked at the bruised site gingerly. It was sore, but no sign of punctures. She rubbed the skin gently, turned and examined herself from all angles.

  “Well, I’ll be damned. So much for scarring me for life, I guess.” Sara muttered to herself. “I can work with this. A hickey from my twenty-four-year-old boyfriend is a badge of cougar honor.”

  Sara stuck out her bottom lip, her eyes twinkling back at her.

  “You’re not a cougar after all, are you?”

&nbs
p; Sara did a little dance and moonwalked away from the mirror.

  She’d spent most of the day bored out of her mind. Not being able to text Adam was frustrating. Every little funny thing she thought of, she wanted to message him and couldn’t. She thought it might be funny if she sent him like fifty today while he didn’t have a phone. She enjoyed imagining the look on his face when the flood of texts bombarded his new phone. It made her giggle a few times, but she didn’t follow through with her practical joke.

  Luckily, her midday nap was a success or this night shift would be a nightmare.

  Kelly was totally going to laugh at her high school, amateur, make out session hickey. Sara hoped randomly wearing a scarf around her neck would seem like a normal thing to do, but knew it was going to look ridiculous with her scrubs. Maybe going with, ‘I’m super chilly and I need to keep on my hoodie and scarf indoors for a whole shift,’ would work.

  I could act like I’m getting sick and have chills.

  She tied the thin scarf around her neck and checked herself in the closet mirror. She spread it enough to keep the entirety of the bruising covered.

  Maybe I should call in sick?

  She had the next two days off for New Year’s. By the time she went back the mark would be faded. Sara didn’t like calling in sick, she was an awful liar.

  I should have iced this damn thing today.

  Why didn’t I think of that?

  I’m so dumb.

  The doorbell rang and caught her by surprise. The sound brought back a flood of memories from the night before. The waif-like vampire looked so innocent, but she turned out to be an evil bitch who almost killed them.

  What if she’s back?

  Sara’s heart pounded in her chest and she contemplated hiding.

  Panic took her breath away.

  Hearing Sara’s heart suddenly race and her panicked breathing caused Adam to jump to conclusions.

  Is she in danger?

  What frightened her?

  Does she need me?

  He banged on the door.

  “Sara, are you okay?!”

  He heard her sigh of relief and footsteps toward him. She opened the door with her hand over her heart.

  “What’s wrong?” Adam demanded.

  “Thank God. It’s just that the last time the doorbell rang it was her.” She rushed to explain as she moved out of the way to let him enter.

  He felt a wave of guilt. Now, because of him, would she have a lifelong fear of doorbells?

  “I’m so sorry,” He said shutting the door behind him.

  He kept his distance not knowing if he should hug her. His automatic inclination was to lift her into his arms the moment he entered.

  Sara gave him a speculative look.

  “What’s wrong with you?” She countered.

  “Nothing,” Adam replied. He heard the complete and utter bullshit lie that little word was. He laughed to himself and decided honesty was the best course of action. “I’ve worried all day… Without a way to contact you… I thought maybe you would have changed your mind about us?”

  “You worried all day?” Sara gave him a smile and with a devilish twinkle in her eye she added, “Worried all day about little ole me and what I was thinking?”

  “Yes,” Adam answered.

  He could see in her expression, she was about to roast him.

  “Who knew…” She rolled her eyes while exaggerating her facial expressions, “Not only am I not a cougar. I’m also dating a total emo vampire.”

  “You little brat!” He lifted her and pulled her in tight against his chest. She continued to laugh at his expense.

  Relief flooded his veins. She was making fun of him. That meant only one thing. She hadn’t changed her mind.

  “It’s not funny. My guts have been in knots all day.”

  “Poor baby,” she crooned and placed her hands on the sides of his face. Her smile was sweet and warm.

  Adam shook his head and placed her back onto the ground. He noticed the scarf she had tied around her neck and a flood of shame cascaded through his body.

  “How bad is it?” He asked indicating toward her neck.

  “Well it smelled like almonds this morning. Do you think that means there’s a problem?” The glint in her eye betraying the seriousness in her tone.

  “Sara,” Adam’s voice was stern. “Let me see it.”

  “You’re no fun today. Since you’ve never bitten anyone, I guess this little bit of information didn’t get passed to you but…” She untied the scarf and tilted her chin. “…There’s nothing there.”

  Adam’s eyes widened. He dragged her into the light and examined her skin. He lightly traced his fingers over the spot. He knew his teeth had punctured her vein. Last night there were two ragged holes.

  “What the fuck?” He whispered.

  “Your guess would be better than mine.” Sara countered.

  Adam continued to inspect the discolored spot. The idea of ‘no consequences’ if he fed on Sara, flashed like an electrical current through his body straight to his cock.

  Whoa boy!

  Cancel.

  That’s fucked up.

  He changed the course of his freight train of thought. It took some concentration.

  “I don’t know, other than not telling new vampires on purpose… Maybe to keep us from trying it? Why give someone info that could motivate them to create a harem of willing humans.”

  “Harem?” Sara smirked.

  “Interesting idea, right?” Adam teased.

  He ran his fingers through her hair pushing the locks over her shoulder.

  Adam heard a car pull into the driveway. He tensed, listening intently he could hear Hazel singing at the top of her lungs, Ain’t Going Down Until the Sun Comes Up by Garth Brooks. He’d given her the CD for Christmas. He relaxed.

  “Hazel’s home. Cover up that hickey, you harlot.” Adam joked.

  Sara hurriedly wrapped the thin scarf around her neck.

  “Is it covered?”

  Adam tugged the fabric upward and nodded.

  Hazel stomped onto the porch, swung the door open and with an ‘I caught you’ look in her eye said, “Hello. Hello.”

  “Shut the door you nut,” Sara cried out as the frigid breeze lifted her hair around her face.

  Hazel flicked the door closed behind her.

  “So...?” Hazel said awkwardly. Her eyes stopping at Sara’s scarf with a puzzled look but she said nothing more.

  “So?” Sara returned. “Can I get a proper greeting?”

  Hazel shrugged her shoulders and reached out to hug her mom. “Hey, Mom. Hey, Adam. Nice to see you.”

  “Nice to hear you’re getting into Garth,” Adam said with a knowing smile.

  Sara side-eyed him.

  “You could hear that?” Asked a mortified Hazel.

  “Don’t be embarrassed. The man is a legend.” Adam replied.

  “Whatever.” Hazel gave him a good-natured eye roll.

  “Hazel is going to take me to work in a few minutes,” Sara told Adam.

  He cleared his throat in response and asked, “If you don’t mind Hazel, I’ll take her and you can go about your business.”

  Hazel looked to her Mom for approval and got a nod.

  “Okay,” She hugged her Mom again and said, “Bye.”

  Adam and Sara watched Hazel bounce down the hall.

  “Are you ready?” Adam asked.

  “Yep, let me grab my stuff,” Sara said spinning on her heels. She put a little extra sway in her hips as she walked away.

  Sara ran back to her room and stuffed her phone in her purse and grabbed an already packed gym bag for tomorrow morning.

  She felt nervous to be around him again. His masculine presence caused her insides to crackle with electricity. It felt so good to be so alive. If she didn’t have a mortgage and responsibilities, she would call in sick. Drive back to his place for the night and fuck his brains out. Sara sighed in disappointment at her adult l
ife, where running off to sex up your boyfriend instead of going to work would be frowned upon.

  Sara skipped back to the foyer where she’d left Adam.

  “I’m ready.” She chirped.

  Adam opened the front door and motioned for her to go first.

  “Will you need a pick up in the morning?” Adam asked.

  “Nope, a co-worker is going to drop me off at the gym and Hazel’s picking me up after,” Sara responded.

  He followed her to the Durango and opened her door for her. She climbed into the seat with a little help from his hand on her butt. She turned around and smiled at him.

  “I thought you needed a little assistance,” Adam said innocently before shutting the door.

  Sara watched him walk around the front of the car. The frosty breeze plastered his shirt against his broad chest. His hair, a tad long on the sides, lifted behind him as he took lengthy strides.

  Damn.

  How often do I call in sick anyway?

  It’s too short of notice. I would have known I was sick hours ago.

  Flat tire. Hazel’s sick. Family emergency. My grandma died and I’m devastated.

  Nope. Nope. Nope. You know you can’t lie worth a shit and come on, she died 10 years ago.

  Adam started the car while Sara continued her inner debate on the merits of quitting her job.

  Who needs a job anyway?

  Sara smirked to herself. She accidentally added an animated hand gesture to her silent conversation.

  Adam raised an eyebrow at her in question.

  “I was just debating quitting my job and you taking me back to your place for the night,” Sara said. “But I really like my job and I’m responsible for bills, food, electricity and prom dresses. You know, adult bullshit.”

  Adam reversed out of the driveway and began the journey to Sara’s workplace.

  “It’s quite an enticing thought, isn’t it?” Adam glanced at her with a suggestive look.

  “Stop it. I barely talked myself out it. You give me those eyes for another second and I’ll throw my life away.” Sara said dramatically.