Page 30 of First Bite
Chapter Eleven
Iknew I should’ve been wanting to crash after being up most of the night, but I was feeling oddly energized. Part of it must’ve been my nerves still firing with excitement about Cole and me finally getting somewhere, and the other part must’ve been that I was relieved at having all my vampires safe and under one roof again.
I couldn’t dare let the idea of my dad possibly being a vampire consume me. The guys didn’t know for sure, and hell, at this point, I didn’t even know why I’d be surprised by another far-fetched revelation. All I knew was that I was Cole, Logan, Braden, and Zac’s girl—not just their Life Blood—but their girl. I smiled, feeling a wave of energy wash over me. I was damn proud of myself for not letting this get to me.
I found Cole, Logan, and Zac huddled on the porch that led down to the beach. I inhaled the salty air deeply as I slid the door open to get the guys. The wind was blowing wildly, and it was rejuvenating.
I tamed my hair with a clench of my hand and saw my vampires silently staring at me. Cole had his hands tucked into the pockets of his boardshorts, his eyes scrutinizing me. He was probably still pissed about the cat interrupting us last night. Logan had a shit-eating grin on his face, and Zac stood there with tightened lips and folded arms.
“What the hell is wrong with you three?” I asked, still fighting the wind as it whipped my hair around.
Logan placed both hands on his hips as Cole stepped past me and into the house without a word. I followed him with a swivel of my head, he seemed to be back in his asshole business mood again. I brushed it off and turned back to the others. “Seriously, what’s wrong?”
“As much as I’d like to take you out looking like that,” Logan’s eyes roamed over my body, “I don’t think it’s such a great idea.”
I glanced down and couldn’t help but laugh at the fact I was still wearing only a t-shirt. “Whoops,” I said, “I think I was so excited to have you all home, I sort of forgot to get dressed.”
I smirked at the two sexy vampires and turned to go inside the house.
“Get your sexy ass moving,” Logan said with humor. “We have reservations for brunch.”
I walked past the office that I’d found Cole in the night before and saw him sitting there again, intently focused on his laptop.
“Bad news again?” I asked as I peeked my head inside the room.
“No,” he answered, eyes not leaving what he was intently reading.
“What’s wrong with you?” I asked, walking toward him and sitting at the head of the long table.
“I have a lot of shit to go through.” He glanced over at me, “Logan and Zac are waiting to get you out of here.”
“I know,” I snapped in the same tone he used with me. “Do you mind telling me what your problem is?”
“Elle, I really have some things I need to sort out.”
“You keep saying that to me. Are you pissed about the guys showing up?”
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No.” I could see him force a smile. “Have fun with Logan and Zac.”
I wasn’t about to let him ruin my day. Maybe this was the whole sharing issue he was struggling with again. Braden had said Cole was in the best mood he’d ever seen, so I wasn’t going to obsess over it.
I put on a halter sundress that the guys had brought me, pulled my hair back into a ponytail, put my sandals on, and hopped into the four-door Jeep that was parked to the side of the beach house with Logan and Zac.
We drove down a two-lane highway that snaked along the oceanside for a while before Zac turned down the music and looked over at me.
“Listen, once we’re done eating, we’re getting some clothes—for all of us,” Zac said as he shifted gears. “I’d suggest buying some swimsuits because we’re heading to the beach when we’re done. Maybe we’ll hit up some locals and go snorkeling. The day is all about you having fun, cool?”
“Cool with me,” I said.
Brunch was delicious. The guys ordered us seafood omelets, and they paired perfectly with our bottomless mimosas. Both men had the eyes of every female in the oceanfront restaurant on them. It was nice being the center of their attention when young women who should have been Hawaiian Tropic models were practically screaming to get their attention. Zac finally smiled over at them, and all it did was make the girls louder and more obnoxious.
“You guys get this a lot?” I asked, knowing the answer to my dumb question.
Zac sat across from Logan and me, arm draped over the empty chair to his left. He nodded in a flirty way to the dark-haired girl with a bronze, sun-kissed glow I could only dream of having, and looked back at me. “What can I say, human chicks love a sexy vampire. Too bad they don’t appeal to us,” he eyed my cleavage, “anymore.”
“Before I came around, would either of you…” I widened my eyes hoping he knew what I was going to ask.
“Fuck them?” Zac glanced back over at the four girls that kept trying to get his attention. “No. Not anymore.” He turned back and winked at me. “Sorry, Ellie baby, but you’re the only sweet ass that’s on our radar now.”
