Chapter 1
He was waiting for her when she breezed through the door of the coffee shop. It had taken weeks to figure out the pattern of her normal routine. Night after night, he staked out the little coffee shop at the end of the street and hoped for a glimpse of her.
She was older than the women that normally attracted him. Young college-aged women were so much easier to deal with. But something about her intrigued him, which, with his past, was unusual.
He knew he should just file his curiosity about her away and let her pass through his world, safe and unharmed. Yet every night since he’d first laid eyes on her, he sought her out.
“Hey Bastion.” Her greeting to the server was delivered with a cheerful smile.
“Hey Emmy. How was class?” The young blond man behind the counter grabbed a paper cup to start her drink. She never had to place an order. The two of them had a routine.
“Pretty good. My little dancers are coming along.”
“And are they ready for the recital?”
She laughed in answer. The sound carried across the room and struck him squarely in the chest. He took a breath and let its warmth spread through his limbs.
When he first saw her, he’d suspected her cheerful demeanor was artificial. A phony smile and a carefree laugh to hide a deep sadness that she was carrying around. After a few nights of watching her from behind the safety of his long brown hair, he realized it was genuine. It was just as real as the melancholy he sensed within her.
He’d moved into the top floor of the apartment building she lived in two days before he overheard her weeping through the vent in his bedroom. It had barely been perceptible, but he caught the soft sounds in the darkness. It had pulled him away from the piece he’d been working on. The same piece he’d been ignoring while he spent his time studying her.
The immense sorrow in those quiet sobs drew him to want to comfort her. It had been years since he’d felt that way about anyone. Something that he couldn’t seem to reason with drove him to find out what had broken her heart so badly that it seemed to swallow her up at night.
While it was a nice thought, he had given in to his desire to slip into her apartment to find her, wrap his arms around her, and tell her everything would be alright. That she was safe from whatever was causing her so much pain. He might have ended up in jail or, at the very least, evicted from the building. Being thrown out would have put a big wrench into his current plans of lying low for a while.
So, he took the only other viable option and stalked her.
Bastion jerked his head toward the lone customer in the shop. “You haven’t noticed?”
“You’re being silly,” she said through her teeth, then snapped the lid onto her drink. “It’s just a coincidence.”
“Come on, Em.” Bastion winked at her reddening cheeks. “Go say hi.”
“Good night Bastion.” She picked up the bag he had set on the counter in front of her. “I’ll see you Thursday.” As she turned away, her smile dimmed down several watts. Her neighbor had packed up his laptop while she was chatting with Bastion and was walking towards the door. Her steps slowed as she got nearer to him. He got to the door first and chose that exact moment to pull out his phone to check for messages. It didn’t look like he was going to move, so she had no choice but to walk right up to him. “Excuse me.”
His gaze flicked up from the screen and his sexy lips curved into an enticing smile. “Sorry. Oh, hey—” His smile deepened. “You live in my building.” She nodded while trying to keep the fact that she was entranced by his uncommonly deep green eyes. “Were you headed home too?”
“Ya.” Her reply came out way more breathlessly than she had expected. “It’s been a long day.”
“Do you mind if I walk with you?” He pushed the door open with one hand and stood aside to give her room to pass through.
“I don’t mind,” she murmured. There was a tiny, excited squeal behind her. Clearly Bastion had overhead the brief exchange.
“Good night Sebastion.” He didn’t turn to look at the server, just followed her out into the humid air of the evening.
They walked to the corner without exchanging another word. Once they’d turned onto their street, she couldn’t take the silence anymore.
“So, how do you like the building? You’ve been there for about a month?”
He smiled down at her. “It’s been good so far. The people across the hall, the Walls, have been very friendly. And you’ve been pretty quiet.”
“Has Mrs. Wall brought you cookies yet? I swear she spends all her free time baking. The kids in the neighborhood love her.”
“She did. Chocolate chip, my favorite. And I’ll deny it if you tell anyone, but they were better than my mom used to make.”
She laughed. “Your secrets safe with me.”
“I heard Sebastion ask about your dancers. Are you a teacher?”
She nodded. “A couple nights a week at a studio a few blocks away. I have a serving job on the weekends. I love my tiny dancers, but I still need to pay my bills, you know?” She breathed a relieved sigh as they approached the steps of their building. “What do you do?”
“Graphic design.”
“Sounds interesting.”
“It’s convenient. I work from home so I can do it almost anywhere.”
“That would be nice. Are you working on anything in particular right now?”
“Actually, I’ve been stymied lately. I have an idea for something, but I haven’t been able to find a good picture to work off of.” He frowned. “I might need to take some new ones.”
“You’re a photographer too?”
“I’ve picked up a few skills over the years,” he said with a shrug. “So, if I can’t find what I need, I do it myself. When I can find the right model, of course.” He stopped with his hand on the door leading into the building. “Have you ever done any modeling?”
“Me?” she asked with a laugh. “Ah no.”
“Really? I think you’d be a very interesting subject, with those cheekbones, those eyes,” he said as he pulled the door open and stepped back to let her go inside. “And you’re a dancer.”
She was still smiling as she walked through the doorway. “No one’s ever asked. Maybe I missed my calling?”
“Maybe.” They climbed the stairs quietly, then came to a stop on the landing of her floor. “Would you consider it?”
“I guess it depends on what I’m being asked to do.”
“If you’d like, I can send you an outline of what I’m looking for. Can I have your number?” He held out his phone with one hand while offering to hold her drink with the other. He smiled as she tapped her digits into his contacts.
Finally, he had the opening he needed to get to know her better.
***
Much to her surprise, he wasn’t at the coffee shop the following Tuesday. She’d become used to seeing him there in the corner and getting a glimpse of his exotic good looks that the sight of the empty table caused a stab of disappointment.
“Hey pretty lady.” Bastion greeted her with his usual thousand-watt smile.
“Hey Bastion. Has he been in tonight?”
His shaggy blond locks swayed as he shook his head. “No. Did something happen the other night?”
“No, nothing. He walked me home and left me at my door.” Her fingers tapped the counter. “He was a perfect gentleman.” Bastion’s eyebrows rose. “I was surprised too. I thought for sure he’d try something. Guys like that always do, right?”
“Yes and thank god for that.” She laughed. “Hey, it lets us introverted types off the hook when they’re forward like that.”
“Introverted my ass.” She snapped the lid on her cup and reached into her pocket to pull out a few bills.
“What are you trying to say?” he asked with a feigned look of hurt on his face.
“That you, my friend, are no introvert.” She took the bag he was holding out to her. “Thanks.”
“Ya, I guess you’re right. Not all of us have your newly developed restraint.” He leaned his hip against the counter. “Sweetheart, if you ever get the opportunity, promise me you’ll take it.”
“With him?” He smiled, then wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “You have lost your beautiful little mind. That guy has entitled pretty boy stamped all over him. There’s no way I’m getting mixed up with that.”
“Who said anything about dating him?” he asked with a quick, dismissive wave. “Aren’t you dying to see what’s under those impeccable jeans?”
“I’m reformed, remember,” she said with a chuckle as she turned to head to the door. “Hey.” She spun around to face him. “Are you working at the other place on Saturday?”
“Just like every other week.” He frowned. “Has Same convinced you to dance yet?”
“I’m still thinking about it.” She pushed the door open. “I’ll see you Saturday.” His little goodbye salute was accompanied by a wink.
The walk home from the coffee shop wasn’t long, but that night it felt much shorter than usual, as an odd hopeful anxiety lodged in her chest. When she got to the building, she looked up at the windows lining the top floor but didn’t see any lights shining through the ones she estimated to be Balthazar’s. The anxiety dissipated with her disappointed sigh. She marched up the stairs, then continued her journey to the fourth floor.
The door to her apartment closed behind her, shutting the world, and all its chaos, out at last. She went to the tiny kitchen first, dropped her keys on the counter next to the fridge, then opened the fridge and set the bag inside. Dinner could wait until after she’d soaked the day away in a hot bath.
Bastion had guessed right; Sam had asked her to take a turn on his sin draped stage. The inquiry wasn’t unusual, he’d been asking every so often since she’d started working as a server at the club over a year prior. At first, she had considered it. The money was too good to dismiss the suggestion without giving it thought, but in the end, her dignity had won out. In her past, she’d had no problem with using her body to get things she needed. But she was getting older and the cost to her pride was getting harder to ignore.
She left the kitchen to go into the washroom and flip in the water for the tub. She left the water running while she went to the bedroom and stripped off her practice clothes. The small bundle was tossed in the hamper on her way back to the washroom. She leaned against the vanity counter, carefully avoiding the end with the cracked tile, and sipped her latte while she waited for the tub to fill.
It didn’t take long for the tub to fill, not that she would have noticed, anyway. She was busy thinking. First about Balthazar, then about her classes, Sam’s suggestion that she dance on his stage, back to Balthazar, and then the children. She glanced at the tub. It was over half full.
Her breath escaped with a soft hiss as she stepped into the water. One of the great things, of which there weren’t many, in the old building was the abundance of hot water. She never had to worry about being able to slip into a steaming hot bath at the end of the day, even if it was during the usual bath time of the few children that lived in the building.
She sat back and let her head rest against the sloped edge of the tub and sighed as the heat eased the tension that had built up over the course of the day. Within a few minutes, she’d relaxed enough to stop thinking about the stressed-out parents that had peppered her with questions and concerns at the end of class. While she looked forward to the end of the year performance, the level of seriousness the parents put on the event sometimes cast a cloud over it. The excitement of her tiny dancers was worth it in the end, though. She just needed to remind herself of that a little more as the big day got closer.
The tears held off until she had been in the tub for longer than she’d intended. It was inevitable. They always seemed to catch her when she left her day behind. She sniffed softly, a meager attempt to keep the sadness at bay. She stood and wiped them away with the back of her hands, smearing the mascara that had melted down under her eyes with the wet heat of the bath.
She snatched the towel from the dingy chrome towel rack, wrapped it around herself, and stepped out of the tub. The water she hadn’t bothered to dry from her skin dripped onto the plush mat, very much like the tears that continued to fall from her eyes despite her efforts to ignore the pain that was threatening to swallow her up. After another swipe at her face, she reached into the tub and yanked the plug free. The chain rattled against the tiled wall behind the tub before it bounced back and landed between the wall and the old claw-foot tub.
“You can just stay there,” she muttered and turned to the door.
She gripped the towel with one hand and wiped at her face with the other as she padded towards the bedroom. A shadow moved in front of the window next to her bed. She froze just inside the doorway.
“Hello?” she asked in a quiet voice that shook along the edges, not expecting anything to answer but fully prepared to faint if something did.
The shadow straightened from bending over the nightstand. “Emmeline.” It greeted her.
“Balthazar!” She pulled the towel tightly to her chest. “What are you doing in my bedroom?”
“I was on my way down to give you some print and I thought I heard a bang.” He shrugged. “I thought something might have happened to you.”
“How did you even get in here?”
“The door was unlocked.”
“And you thought it was okay to just waltz in and hang out in my bedroom?”
“I’m sorry,” he answered with a sheepish smile. “I didn’t see you in the living room or kitchen, so I checked in here.”
“I guess it’s okay. Now please go so I can get dressed?”
He stepped towards the doorway. “Emmeline.” She scooted back to let him pass. “I’m sorry I intruded on your privacy. But I hadn’t heard from you, and I thought you might have been offended when I asked you to pose for me. I wanted to show you I’m above board and when I heard that noise I didn’t think, I just came in.”
“It was probably the Johnson twins across the hall.” She ducked her head as he got closer.
He stopped in front of her. “Are you alright?” She nodded but didn’t look up. After a second. He reached up and tucked a stray tendril of hair behind her ear. She flinched. “If you need someone to talk to, I’m a good listener. At least, I’d like to think I am.” When she didn’t smile at his attempt at humor, he frowned.
“I’m fine but thank you for the offer.”
“Okay.” His fingers brushed her neck, then trailed down the curve of her shoulder. “I left the prints on the nightstand for you.” She nodded. “I hope you’ll be convinced.”
“I’ll let you know after I’ve had a look.”
“Deal,” he said softly.
Ask me to stay. The words were spoken inside his head. Then he waited, giving her a chance to say the words.
“Good night,” she whispered.
“Good night Em.”
It was an hour later when he caught the faint echo of her sobs. That time, he didn’t resist temptation. He closed his laptop, set it on his nightstand, and left his apartment to creep down to her door. After unlocking her door, he carefully slipped inside, and followed the soft sounds of grief coming from her bedroom.
She was curled up in bed, hugging a sheet to herself, though it was overly warm in the room. A floorboard creaked under his foot. Her head snapped up at the sound.
“Balthazar?” She sat up and wiped at her face with the sheet. “Did I leave the door unlocked again?” She wiggled backwards till her back thumped against the headboard.
“I heard—” He stopped, suddenly certain that there wasn’t anything he could make up that wouldn’t make her reach for the cell on the nightstand and dial 911.
“Heard what?” She pulled the sheet higher. “There was no loud noise.”
“No, there wasn’t.” He stepped closer.
“Then what did you hear this time?”
“You.” He sat on the edge of the bed next to her. “I heard you.”
“I didn’t realize I was being so loud.” She looked down at the drab grey sheet across her legs. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment under the dim glow of the streetlamp shining through the window.
“You weren’t loud—”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because, for the last month, I’ve been listening to someone crying. It comes up through one of my vents. After I saw you earlier, now I know who it is.”
“I had no idea anyone could hear me.” She sighed. “I’m sorry I’ve been disturbing you. Thank you for checking on me again, but I’m fine and I’d appreciate it if you left now.”
He turned to look at her. “You’re not fine,” he said softly.
“Sure I am,” she said with a catch in her voice.
“Alright, you win. You’re fine.” He smiled as he leaned closer to her shoulder. “Will you at least tell me what upsets you so badly that you curl up here crying night after night?”
“It’s not every night,” she whispered.
“Okay, not every night, but often.” His fingers reached for a thick lock of hair that had fallen over her face and brushed it away gently. “Let me guess, some idiot man has broken your heart.” She nodded once. “Who would do such a stupid thing?”
She drew in a breath and held it. After a moment she let it go and murmured, “my brother.”
“Did you have a fight or something?” She shook her head. “How did he hurt you?”
“He died.” Her voice wavered with new tears.
“Jesus.” He slid his arm across the back of her neck, his hand cupped her shoulder, and pulled her into his side. “Em, I’m so sorry.”
She shook her head, then leaned into him a bit. “I couldn’t help him.”
He wrapped his other arm around her. “Was he ill?” he asked softly.
“Mental issues,” she said.
“Had he been sick for long?”
“Since his teens.” Her breath hiccupped. “He was such a sweet kid and then the delusions started. Last year it got to where he couldn’t take it anymore.” She shook her head again.
“Your parents are gone too?” His hand on her shoulder tightened a little.
“Ya,” she murmured as she turned her face away from him. “A car accident 6 years ago.”
“Well, you can’t blame yourself. There’s only so much a person can do, especially when they’re dealing with it all on their own.”
“I’m not entirely alone. I have a cousin, but she’s been dealing with her own problems.” Her head fell forward as she sniffled. “But I should have called him back sooner. I could have talked to him. I could have reminded him that the vision would go away like all the other times. Maybe I could have stopped him.”
“Visions?”
“Vampires.” She whispered the word. “He started seeing them in his first year of junior high. He swore they were feeding on him, but he could never find any evidence of it. The things his mind made up scared him so badly that he wouldn’t sleep for days. It was so hard to watch him go through that, we felt so helpless.”
“I’m sure you did everything you could.” His fingers squeezed again.
“We tried,” she whispered, then looked up at him with a frown. “Why are you being so nice to me?” Her breath caught as he leaned his head a little closer. His lips hovered millimeters from hers. It would be so easy to move closer and taste him.
“I thought we were friends,” he said with a gentle, teasing smile. “Maybe I was wrong?”
“No.” Her gaze fixed on his. “We’re friends.”
“Good.” He tilted his head to brush her forehead with his lips. “You should get some sleep.” She frowned as his hands fell away from her shoulders and pulled back the sheet so she could get out of bed and follow him to the door.
After the lock had clicked into place, he leaned against the wood. If her brother had been mixed up with vampires, the situation was much more tenuous than he’d first thought. He moved to the stairs, ran his hands through his long hair with a frustrated sigh.
“You should leave her alone,” he murmured.
He looked back at the door through a gaze that had started to glow. With a quick shake of his head, the glow faded. As he started up the stairs, he gave up the argument before it really started. He knew no amount of fighting would alter his path.
He wanted her.
