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Jay missed that.

“Stop being such a baby,” he told himself, rising from the couch and kneeling in front of his chest (his treasure chest, he liked to call it in his head). “It’s been over ten years.”

He just wished he was better at being alone. He wished he was braver. Bolder. Like Soren. Jay’s old friend had left the toxic den of vampires they’d both been raised in, and he’d had a full, exciting life before finding his mate. Soren hadn’t minded being alone, had he?

But then neither had Jay, when he’d first come to Hyde Park. The novelty of it all—the humans all around, his very first job out of the house, friends to spend time with—had kept him happy and occupied. But lately a familiar melancholy had started creeping and crawling its way back in. An uninvited guest.

But oh well. Jay forced a smile—even if there was no one else there to see it, it didn’t hurt to put on a happy face—and chose an activity. No crying over eternal solitude, right?

He’d draw tonight, he decided. Charcoal. He wasn’t in the mood for bright colors. And he’d watch one of his favorite shows,Gilmore Girls. He’d seen it before, more than once, but that was okay. He liked how fast they talked and and all the references they made—he would look them up after each episode and always find something new to watch or read to pass the time.

All Jay had was time.

So much time.

Except…as he set up his supplies, as if summoned by his moment of weakness, Jay’s phone dinged.

Have you tired of your experiment yet?

Jay sighed softly, scowling down at his phone. How did he alwaysknowlike that? Jay debated ignoring it, but he didn’t want to deal with the consequences.

Not yet! Four months left.

Jay left it at that and tucked his phone under the couch cushion, deciding out of sight was out of mind, and laid out his art supplies.

He already knew what he was going to draw. He couldn’t help it. A familiar face, etched permanently into his mind from centuries of companionship. A beautiful older woman, with cold eyes and a stern jaw.

Veronique. Vee.

Three episodes in and Jay heard his phone buzz through the cushions. He reached for it before he could stop himself, laughing in delight when he saw the message was from Danny.

Book club Saturday. You still in?

Of course Jay was still in! He’d even gotten to choose the book this month. He’d gone for one of his old favorites:Jane Eyre. It was dark and broody and mysterious, so it felt appropriate for winter. And he was pretty sure no one would make fun of it the same way they would one of his Highlander romances—the ones with the big, shirtless men on the covers he liked to keep secret on his phone.

Just like that, Jay felt his melancholy lift.

He had friends here, people who wanted him around. And come Friday, he was going to open at the café for the first time. He’d learn new skills and provide humans with the caffeine they needed to start their days.

Everything was just fine.

And he had four more months of it.

two

Alexei

DeathbyCoffee.Whata fitting name. Maybe Alexei would find a bullet waiting for him in the small brick building. Not that he’d really expect his brother’s men to be waiting to ambush him in a place like this. Still, he couldn’t count it out entirely. Expecting the unexpected might be the only way to stay alive.

He hasn’t found you, he scolded himself, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, annoyed at his own thoughts. Stop being so paranoid.

Alexei pulled the beater he’d bought outside the Denver International Airport to a rolling stop halfway down the block from the café he’d spotted. He’d been in Hyde Park for weeks and hadn’t explored any more than the seven-hundred-ish square feet of his apartment. Theoretically, that was because he was lying low—no matter how unlikely it was that he’d been tracked to the little mountain town already—but in reality he just couldn’t be bothered. What was even the point of getting out of bed these days? There was nothing and nobody waiting for him. He could sleep twenty-four hours of every day and not a soul would be bothered.

That sounded pretty nice, actually.

But he’d woken up at four that morning and hadn’t been able to go back to sleep this time, so after two hours of staring at the same amoeba-like water stain on his bedroom wall, he’d decided to get out of his apartment and gosomewhere. Anywhere. And not much else was open, so why not start with coffee?

Alexei opened his car door and began the painful process of unfolding himself from the front seat. The little compact, clearly not designed for someone of his height in mind, was light-years away from the town cars he’d been used to all his life, the comfort of which he allowed himself to briefly miss before knocking the spoiled sentiment out of his head.

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