Nox led me to the bar with an easy grace, ordering us a couple of drinks with a familiarity that suggested he'd done this many times over his long life. The bartender slid two glasses towards us, the liquid inside catching the dim light and casting amber reflections on the polished surface.
“Thanks,” I murmured, wrapping my fingers around the cool glass, feeling the condensation kiss my skin.
I took a sip of my drink, the liquid fire tracing a path down my throat.
“And thanks for getting me out of the house. I appreciate it,” I added, the words barely louder than the hum of conversation around us.
“I wish I would’ve got that on camera,” he jested, and I slapped his arm before taking down the rest of my drink. He chuckled. “Would you like to dance?” he asked, shifting the mood.
A small laugh escaped me before I could catch it.
“Me? Dance?” I shook my head, a self-deprecating smile pulling at my lips. “You haven't witnessed the full extent of my two left feet.”
“I have been alive for over a century,” Nox quipped, a playful edge to his voice. "I've picked up a thing or two about two left feet." He stood and offered his hand, his posture confident yet inviting.
“Is that so?” I raised an eyebrow, the challenge clear. But there was a warmth spreading through my chest.
“Trust me,” he said simply, and something in his tone tugged at me.
With a resigned sigh that was more theatric than genuine, I placed my hand in his. "Lead the way," I teased, allowing a sliver of excitement to seep through the cracks of my carefully constructed walls.
The rhythm of the music echoed around us in a mesmerizing symphony. I swayed awkwardly at first, hyper-aware of Nox's hand at my waist, guiding me with gentle pressure close to where my stake was holstered. His smile was infectious, and despite myself, I found the corners of my lips tilting upwards.
“See? Not so bad,” he murmured, his voice barely audible over the melody that filled the dimly lit pub.
I rolled my eyes at him, a playful gesture that belied the fluttering in my stomach. “Don't get cocky. It's the song doing all the work.” But as we moved together, something inside me softened, the rigid tension in my limbs unwinding.
His cologne lingered in the air between us, a rich blend of sweet primrose, mint, and bourbon. It was intoxicating, drawing me closer until I could feel the solidity of his body against mine. The contact should have been alarming. A Vampire too close—too intimate—but instead, it felt grounding, as if his strength could anchor the storm inside me.
For a moment, I allowed my head to rest against his chest, listening to the steady thrum of his heart.
My thoughts tumbled over one another, each one laced with a pang of longing for things I couldn't quite name.Contentment? Peace? Love?
The song came to an end all too soon, and the last note hung in the air. We broke apart, stepping off the dance floor amid applause and the chatter of patrons lost in their own worlds.
“Another drink?” Nox asked, a knowing twinkle in his eye.
“Always,” I replied, trying to shake off the vulnerability that clung to me like a second skin. The truth was, in that brief moment, I had tasted something sweet and terribly dangerous: hope.
He led me back to the bar, ordering another round of drinks. Briefly, I watched him interact with the bartender, his charm effortless and disarming. It was easy to forget, in those mundane interactions, the depth of his true nature—what he was capable of.
“Be right back,” he said, slipping away toward the restroom, leaving me with the warmth of his touch still lingering on my skin. It was strange just how quickly the human heart could become entangled, as fragile as spider silk.
I leaned against the bar, cradling the fresh drink he had provided. My eyes drifted across the room, taking in the sea of faces.
The pub's warmth faded into a dull background noise as my gaze sharpened, homing in on figures that didn't quite match the humans around them. There was something about their posture, the way they held themselves apart from the pulse of life in the room. Three, maybe four Vampires were mingling among the crowd, their eyes too keen, their smiles a shade too predatory.
A flicker of excitement, a thrill I hadn't felt since my last hunt, shivered through me. It was the kind of feeling that reminded me of who I was.
And then it happened: One of them detached himself from the group, slinking toward the exit with the stealth of a shadow melting into darkness.
“Need anything else?” It was the bartender, looking at me expectantly, probably wondering why I hadn't touched the drink Nox had ordered for me. I flashed him an absent smile, murmuring something about just waiting for someone, but my focus was already slipping out the back door along with the Vampire.
Without a second glance at the place where Nox would return to find me gone, I slid off the stool and followed the trail.
The alley was dimly lit, the perfect setting for what I intended. As the Vampire paused to light a cigarette, his back to me, I seized the moment. My steps were silent, my movements precise—moves I knew all too well.
In one fluid motion, I slammed him against the brick wall, the stake in my hand pressing sharply against his chest. I shoved it in, millimeters from his heart. His cigarette dropped, the ember dying out on the wet pavement as his shocked eyes found mine.
