Untitled
Dani
The recessional music played and I smiled, throwing one more “Congratulations” comment into the livestream chat before I locked my phone and set it aside.
Luckily, the time difference meant that I’d finished the busy dinner rush in time to catch the wedding. It had taken some convincing for James to let me manage the bar in his absence.
I wouldn’t have said that Liz’s was crowded that night, but there were enough people that I needed to pay attention. And when a jarring presence startled me, I began to pay close attention.
Though I didn’t need to breathe anymore, I took a deep breath through my nose, and I knew.
Vampire.
I’d never scented this one before, which was ominous. I thought I knew all the vampires in Salem.
Before the front door had even opened, my head was already facing that direction.
A woman walked in. She appeared to be no more than twenty, but years of working behind a bar—and with the supernatural—had taught me that looks could be deceiving. And damn was this a case of that.
Everything about the woman screamed “high-class,” reminding me of Luke when I’d first met him.
Loose brown waves fell over her shoulders in a silky waterfall.
She smiled in the doorway, gazing around at the pictures over the walls and the customers sitting at the tables like she’d never seen a bar before.
When her eyes landed on me, her smile widened. She shoved her hands into the pocket of her burgundy cashmere coat that fit to her slim waist and flared across her hips. It swayed as she walked, her expensive leather boots thunking against the floor with each step.
To my newly trained eyes, she even moved like a vampire. It amazed me that mortals couldn’t identify them—us—on sight.
Finally, she landed in front of the bar. Her brown eyes sparkled, and if I didn’t know firsthand what vampires were capable of, I might have been bewitched by her Hollywood-level good looks.
“What can I get you?” I asked, plastering on my best smile.
“I’m looking for the owner, actually.” Her voice was gentle, with a soft London accent. “Is he here?”
“The owner?” I couldn’t say I was surprised. She was a vampire, after all. But what did she want with him?
She nodded. “James Campbell?”
That couldn’t be good. The only people who asked for James by name were vendors and contractors, and none of them looked to have her pedigree. Oh, and they were mortal.
It couldn’t hurt to tell her the truth, though, could it? “He’s away for his wedding right now.”
To my surprise, the woman practically squealed, her entire face lighting up like she was the one walking down the aisle. “He’s getting married? That’s amazing! Um…”
She brushed her hair behind her ears, revealing diamond earrings the size of a doorknob. I couldn’t help the way my eyes widened. Who was this woman? Was her sudden appearance important enough to interrupt his wedding?
“I’ll stop in another time. Thank you…”
“Dani.”
“Dani,” she echoed. “It was wonderful to meet you.”
With that, she spun on her heel and started for the door.
“Wait!” I called. She paused and turned over her shoulder. “I didn’t get your name. I can tell him you stopped by.”
“Only if you promise not to interrupt his honeymoon.”
Uh, okay. I nodded.
“I’m Liz.”