Laila nodded toward Craig. “It was nice of you to accept our invitation.”
Nora let her wolf rise to the surface of her eyes. “I warned Jared not to mess with my friends. Influencing Craig to ask me out counts as messing with them.”
“Because only you are allowed to manipulate humans, of course.”
Nora slipped the sgian dubh from its sheath and casually set it on the bar, hiding the fact that Laila’s little comment had sunk its barbs into her skin. That had always been an issue, how easy it was to make humans do what she wanted. She had to actively try not to exert her will around them. It was exhausting, and when she was agitated, she tended to forget to rein in her dominance.
Nora placed a finger on the sgian dubh’s hilt and slowly spun it in a circle. “You know, I originally thought he posted you here to give you a second chance. But I was wrong. He posted you here to die.”
Laila met her stare, leaned over the bar, and said, “Go for it.”
Nora smiled, picked up the dagger, then drew it across her palm. Laila’s pupils dilated. Her body gave a little jerk.
Nora clenched her fist, and blood dripped to the bar. The cut healed quickly, though. Only a few drops fell.
“Your date is returning.” Laila pronounced each word distinctly.
Well, well. Laila didn’t pounce. She must have drunk from a powerful vampire recently. Jared? She didn’t quite smell like him. Plus, she didn’t feel overdosed on power either.
“You and Craig know each other well,” Nora said.
Laila’s expression smoothed to nothing. “He’s stopped by a few times. Nice guy.”
Nora didn’t smell Craig’s scent on Laila, but the bar was crowded, and she’d just spent half an hour in a car with the human. His scent could be obscured by the environment. If Laila had bitten him, though, Nora could justify killing the vampire for encroaching on her territory. On the other hand, Craig could barely be called hers. They were more acquaintances than friends.
Laila wiped away Nora’s blood from the bar top with a white cloth napkin. “I’ll let Jared know you were here.”
She made it sound like he wasn’t going to show up. If he didn’t, why go through the trouble of luring her out there? Was it some kind of power play?
Craig reached her side. “I found us a table. Ready to sit?”
Nora gritted her teeth, clamping down on her wolf’s demand for violence. Whoever Laila had drunk from was strong enough to keep her sated, and Nora had enough self-control not to attack the vampire in public. There would be no bloodshed tonight.
Nora sat through the whole damn date, and the only vampire in Swirl was Laila, who remained behind the bar. Craig was talking to the female now, had been for over five minutes, and it was clear Laila was flaunting her vampire charm out of spite by demonstrating that her allure was stronger than Nora’s.
It was stronger because Nora wasn’t trying. The date had already lasted an hour, and she was bored.
She grabbed her purse and stood. Closing time was two hours away, but she didn’t want to spend that time with Craig, nor did she want to spend it watching him flirt with the vampire.
She strolled out the door, then took a deep breath of the cool air. She should have brought a coat. She drew too much notice in her dress, and she wasn’t in the mood for attention. She was tired of the looks, the thoughts, the desire in people’s eyes. She needed to get away from this place.
She stood on the curb and watched the passing cars. Normally she would call a pack mate for a ride, but she didn’t want the questions. Using an app to call a car didn’t appeal to her either—it would require her to wait in the cold for who knew how long. No, what she really wanted was to shift and to run. Run until her sides hurt and her wolf tired. She would make it out of the city, disappear into the foothills, then when she was exhausted, she would contact Blake. He wouldn’t ask questions. He’d sense she didn’t want conversation.
She crossed the street. A thin line of trees and a creek ran behind the parking lot. She’d shift there. Her human possessions would vanish. She didn’t mind losing the dress, but she was tired of stopping by the pack-owned store to get a new phone. It was annoying and out of her way. She’d have to hide her phone, then return—
“Have I wounded your pride, Snowflake?”
She held back a snarl as she spun toward Jared. He seemed to unfold from the dark. Now she smelled him. His scent mingled with the night air and invaded her lungs.
“You must have a death wish,” she said.
“Oh?”
“Never creep up on a werewolf.”
He clasped his hands behind his back and stepped closer. “I thought your senses more superior than they apparently are. And I do not creep.”
She made a show of studying him. “I can’t tell if you’re trying to be funny or insulting.”
