Seth didnotknow. He gaped at her. “What?”
But Violet was already moving on. “And Mr. Evans. He teaches PE and coaches, like, football or something stupid at the high school. I have dirt on him.”
“You havedirt?” Seth asked, unable to help the shrill edge to his voice. “Should—should I be concerned?”
“Not for me,” Violet said ominously. She arched her brows. “You know who I mean, right? Big, gruff, has a beard.”
Seth’s lumberjack regular, she meant. Hewasgruff. Seth wouldn’t necessarily classify him as rude, but he definitely wasn’t chatty, and he’d never officially introduced himself.
“Okay, yeah, I know who you mean. Who else?” Seth asked eagerly. Against his better judgment, he was kind of getting into it now. Who wouldn’t be fascinated by the mysterious connections of this teenager?
Violet turned sharply to their customer. “Hey. You.” The guy froze in the act of quietly perusing the pastries, his sleepy brown eyes going wide and alert. Violet scanned him up and down. “Wanna join our book club?”
Seth had apparently forgotten to go over some of the basics during training—mainly that no one should be addressing any customers asHey You.
But the guy didn’t act offended, although he stayed frozen for another long moment before answering, “Um…okay?”
“Perfect.” Violet gave him a sharp nod. “We’ll put up a sign on the board. Look for it or I’ll find you where you live.”
“Oh my God,” Seth muttered. He hastily put three of the giant cookies the guy had been eyeing into a bag. “On the house. I promise it’ll be fun.”
Violet’s shell-shocked victim took the bag and left without another word. Seth probably should have asked for his name, if only to find out to whom he needed to address his apology letter.
He sighed heavily, casting a sidelong look at his new protégé. “You didn’t have to resort to blackmail with that one?”
His sarcasm was completely lost on Violet. Or maybe she just didn’t care. She only shrugged, downing the rest of her coffee in one gulp. “He’s too new. Only moved here a couple months before you.”
Seth thought of other newcomers in town, the man in the suit coming to mind. “Hey, what do you know about this research institute?” he asked. “Any news there?”
“No. But they’ve made their way into my fanfiction.” A savage light entered Violet’s eyes. “Hannibal has them over for dinner.”
The restof the day passed as quickly as it could with a certain vampire’s noticeable absence. Luke and Colby showed up later in the morning, and Violet immediately pounced on Luke.
Seth was quickly learning that once she set her sights on recruiting for something, she was merciless.
Luke had seemed hesitant about the book club until Violet had told him she’d get her mom to babysit Colby, and then he was all for it.
“Anything for a night with grown-ups.” He had given Seth a hopeful look. “Am I allowed to bring beer?”
Seth had shrugged. “As long as I’m not selling it, it’s cool under event rules. I may need to get a permit, but I’ll check.”
A little booze probably wasn’t the worst idea anyway. They were going to be a motley crew, and a little social lubricant never hurt.
As Seth closed down his bakery, the first twinges of real excitement ran through him. He was getting into this idea, not just for Riley, but for himself.
Seth was a social creature by nature, and with all his focus on Riley, he’d been letting his well run a bit dry. Interactions with his customers were great, but they weren’t enough on their own. And, to be honest, it had been so long since he’d had to work for this kind of community that the challenge was a bit of a thrill. He wasn’t guaranteed friends and companions here due to a lifetime spent in the same town—he had toearnthem. And that was nothing if not a worthwhile endeavor.
By the time he got home, Seth was still riding high off the anticipation, even though he hadn’t heard from Riley yet. Maybehis new vampire boyfriend was still sulking at being made to leave this morning.
Seth eyed his running shoes, waiting so hopefully by his front door. It wouldn’t be the worst idea to get a little run in. He was getting woefully out of the habit, and the longer he delayed, the harder it would be to get back into it.
The sky was gray, and the air was cold, but there was no sign of rain, so Seth suited up in as many layers as he could tolerate, stuck his wireless headphones in his ears, and went out the door.
On the other side of his house from his one neighbor, there was what looked to be a game trail leading into the woods. Seth had no idea where it ended—it was possible it was going to dead-end and leave him short a decent run—but now seemed as good a time as any to find out.
He’d been trudging along for about ten minutes, trying not to be disheartened by how heavy his breathing had already gotten, when he felt it. A…presence, maybe. The sense that someone was watching him, raising the hairs on the back of his neck.
Seth had a good idea who it might be.
