Dust kicked up behind the tires, sending a flurry of sandy debris into the air that blocked the view of the rear of the truck. Lucien remained to the side with the cover of the trees keeping him hidden. He followed her all the way into town, taking a more subtle and mundane approach as he followed her to a bar.
“Saddleback,” Lucien read aloud with vampiric amusement. “Such a mundane name fitting of a southern town bar.”
His eyes surveyed the town square, finding three elderly women who kept looking in his direction. Deciding to fuel their curiosity and his own, he sauntered up to the women with a welcoming smile. They straightened as he grew closer and fixed their dresses to become more approachable. He could hear their hearts increasing in pace while their cheeks tinted crimson with the blood rushing under them. It took everything in him not to lick his lips at the thought of tasting them. Blood was like wine. It always tasted better the longer it aged.
“You look like a fresh face," the one in blue commented, as soon as he stopped beside their table.
“Seems to be a lot of new faces since Agatha’s passing," the one in brown added.
“Did you know her?” Lucien inquired with his best attempt at mimicking their mundane accent. It felt foreign on his tongue, but he ignored it as he continued. “Agatha?”
“Not personally, but she was always a quiet lady. She kept to herself. She ran an apothecary here, but now it might go up for sale since she passed.”
Lucien took note of the one in purple as she kept her eyes trained on him, cold and calculating. From her thoughts he plucked a name. Lisa Bailey. There was something about her that had his blood singing in her presence.
Another Shadowhaven escapee?
Lucien held back his amusement as he turned back to the other two women that sat at the table. Irene Taylor. Primrose Stevens. Their thoughts were all too easy to access except for the Shadowhaven escapee, but she was most likely blocking him on purpose.
“What do you know about her?” He pressed the two, his head gesturing to the mundane he had been following. Melinda was exiting her truck with gray eyes glancing over her shoulder on her way into the bar. Irene and Primrose giggled together as they understood the meaning behind his question. The one in blue, Primrose, spoke first.
“That would be Melinda Hardgrave. Born and raised here by her father.”
“Well,” the one in brown, Irene, interjected with a cautious tone. “It’s not something that’s spoken of anymore, but there was talk that she was adopted. I remember when that pregnant woman showed up on Gene’s doorstep. They didn’t seem like they knew each other prior to her visit.”
“Gene was quite a catch back in the day, Irene. She probably fell victim to those dashing looks and came to raise their child together,” Primrose said with a dreamy far off look. Lucien gathered she didn’t get a chance to fall victim to Melinda’s dad like Melinda’s mom had. She shook the dream away with a dismissive wave. “Back to Melinda. She is a sweet girl. Always helping where she can and we’ve all got ourselvesbetting on who will finally catch her eye. My money has been sitting in the Bryon jar since she started frequenting his family’s bar. She used to be seen with the Strickland kid, but he left for the city when they graduated.”
Lucien felt a pang of jealousy at the mention of another suitor's name. Another suitor? Lucien’s confusion never showed on his face as he internalized his confusion over mentally referring to himself as a suitor in the first place. That human would not gain his affection in such a way where he would be considered a suitor. He knew love was something he couldn’t fall prey to when the history of his leaders reflected why it was such a bad idea.
“Although, if you’re interested in her,” Irene chuckled with bitter delight. “I might have to shift my bet to you. Honestly, a tall drink of fresh water might be exactly what our Melinda needs. It’s obvious she doesn’t care for the catalog of men produced here in Burrow Hills.”
“Perhaps, but some people prefer what they’ve grown accustomed to. If I feel you might win, I’ll let you know,” he teased the ladies with a wink paired with a flirty smile. “Well, it’s time I shoot my shot.”
The ladies, minus Lisa Bailey, all giggled in response. Lucien left them to head inside, aware of the quiet one’s eyes on his back as he made his way to the bar where Melinda was. She may have been an escapee from their home, but she was of no concern to him currently.
***PAGE BREAK***
Lucien sat at the bar with a glass in hand. Swirling the liquid around, he felt the heat of someone’s eyes on him. His eyes slowly peeked out of their corners to see Melinda had been staring at him over her book she was trying to read. Lucienprodded her mind, picking up on the thoughts within before something drove him out.
They said he was danger. Danger in dark jeans and golden eyes, both of which I could see myself inside of... He looks—no I can’t think that way. Think of something else…Bryon is acting normal. Almost like we didn’t sleep together a few nights ago.
Lucien couldn’t help but chuckle at her thoughts of him. The latter part left him disturbed enough in his chest that he had to reel in his unwarranted jealousy. If she came to him, she would be nothing more than a good night spent and nothing more.
Deciding to let her make the first move, he remained at the bar and continued to move the amber liquid in his cup. He had danced this dance before, always ending up on top with the woman under him.
Melinda, however, had no intention of approaching the handsome man she had been eyeing since he swaggered into the bar. It didn’t take much to realize who and what he was.
She knew that he was the infamous Lucien Dumas that Isadora feared. She had to admit that he had a magnetic aura around him, but she fought against her impulses and remained at her table. She felt the need to warn Isadora of his whereabouts as her sense of danger increased. Pulling out her phone, she typed in the land line number for Agatha’s house, but stopped before pressing the call button.
They were vampires.
No doubt Lucien would be able to hear her warn Isadora. Lucien remained at the bar, not looking her way or even acknowledging her since he entered. Maybe she was reading into things. Maybe he didn’t even know she knew or even was aware of her menial presence.
“Mel,” Bryon greeted her with his usual warm, sunny disposition that seemed only fit for him to have. Bryon had always been in her life, but regretfully she could not see him as anything more than a friend. Even after the night they had spent together.
She decided to act like nothing happened as well, adopting her usual demeanor. “Bryon, what are you doing here on your day off? Your brother might call you to help with the bar," Mel joked, but they both knew it was a real possibility.
John was the kind to show up late,, but when it came to actually working, John definitely wasn’t the personable type. John had just started working here, so he still had a lot to learn about working at a bar, but he didn’t really want to remain in the family business. Just about everyone felt the same about him, but went light on him due to his simplicity. Out of the tool box, he wasn’t the sharpest.
