Page 2 of Frost and Fate
The clerk looked up at her, confused. “Yes, ma’am. You’re in Mountain’s End.” Geez, she must have driven farther than she thought, and up a damn mountain.
Nova headed up to her room and flopped down on the bed. Sleep was all she wanted to do right now. She blinked and looked up. A flashing neon light was shining in through her window. “Great,” she muttered, and moseyed over to close the blinds. She stopped to take in the sight of the bar behind her hotel.Luna + Lupine.
It didn’t look like much from the outside. A warehouse-style building leaving limited ideas of what the inside could be like. To Nova’s surprise there was a steady stream of clubgoers piling through the front door and waiting in line outside. Familiar intuitive curiosity welled within her along with a desire to know more. Something was waiting for her inside that club.
The magnetic feeling pulled at her, urging her to investigate. “Not one of these again.” Nova sighed. She knew she had to go check it out. Those feelings never go away on their own, like an itch that had to be scratched. She had already made the mistake of ignoring her intuition in the past.
She could at least tell it was a bar or club of some kind. Bars meant waitressing jobs. Who knew, maybe she would spend some time in Mountain’s End. It seemed like a pretty chill town so far.
Nova donned a lacy lower-cut black top with sheer sleeves, a pair of very well-fitting jeans, and her favorite black boots. After putting on makeup, and working her silver-brown hair into a semi-decent updo—this could be a new job opportunity after all—she headed out into the night and toward the color-changing lights of Luna + Lupine.
* * *
Luna + Lupine was far from your ordinary middle-of-nowhere club. The entire building dripped in black chandeliers and vibrant violet curtains. A glassy black and chrome bar reflected flashing lights shining down upon the various go-go cages. Luna + Lupine’s waitresses wore thigh-high boots, leather skirts, and tightly laced lavender corsets. Not bad for backwoods Georgia. The outfits were definitely more risqué than she was used to, but she could get used to them.
She headed toward the bar, and was so distracted taking in the scenery that she ran straight into a very firm, very tall figure. “Oh, so sorry!” she mumbled. “I’m never looking where I’m supposed to—”
Nova froze. The eyes gazing down at her were so gold, they didn’t even seem real. The shaggy, jet-black hair only made their honey-fire color pop even more. The handsome stranger was even taller than she had initially realized. He towered over her tall frame. She wasn’t used to that, either.
“Don’t worry about it,” a deep, swoonworthy voice responded. Nova found herself completely speechless—yet another first. The man was unnaturally good looking. It was like being in the presence of some sort of dark angel. She stared back at that chiseled face in awe until a knowing smile from his curved lips snapped her back to her senses.
“Sorry,” she said again, and hurried away toward the bar.How embarrassing,Nova inwardly chastised herself. Her heart was fluttering and her cheeks—among other places—felt heated. How could he have such an effect on her? Maybe it had just been way too long since she’d been with someone.
Taking a seat on one of the lavish purple bar stools, she barked out a quick, “Vodka soda.” Then added, “Double shot.”
She was happy to finally be alone with her drink and forget all about the sexy stranger. Forget about him...his broad body, delicious smell, and not to mention how tall he…ugh. Forget about him. Yeah, right. No matter how much vodka she downed, she couldn’t stop thinking about those honey-fire eyes. They had burned right into her. Not to mention that face, his perfect mouth, and the strong jawline. And who knew what was hidden under that fitted black t-shirt.
Get a hold of yourself. She shook her head in an attempt to clear it.
Nova tried her best not to think of him again. As she ordered up another drink, she couldn’t help but feel a pair of steely eyes burning into her back. Chancing a glance, she turned toward the other side of the club. Nova immediately wished she hadn’t. He was staring all right. Even from this distance it caused her face to flush. He was hanging out with a group of people who were sitting behind a velvet rope. The eight or so friends lounged on plush violet couches and loveseats, clearly in some kind of VIP section. She should look away, break eye contact, but…
“Is this seat taken?” A man’s voice startled her back to the present.
“Um no,” Nova responded as he took his place. She looked up at the man seated next to her. He was handsome in that classic way, with dark, closely cropped hair, and even darker eyes. Under usual circumstances she would be attracted to him, but she felt something else instead. A tingle crept up her spine.
“I haven’t seen you around here before,” he mused.
“Oh yeah, I just got to town.” She looked away and nursed her cocktail. The spine-tingle was turning into cold chills now, and they were beginning to spread.
He spoke again. “I know.” His voice was low and menacing this time. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
Nova stilled mid sip and looked up to meet his dark gaze. She felt only one sudden instinct, one overwhelming urge and command from the trusted voice within. ‘RUN!’
She stood so fast she nearly knocked over the bar stool. A cold hand grasped her upper arm. The man’s eyes now glowed with a milky sheen. It seemed to have swallowed up his pupils and once-dark irises until the entirety of his eyes belonged to that vacant, swirling white. The glossy orbs bore into her.
“The Chosen will not be lost this time. The Chosen will not escape.” The man holding her looked nothing like before. It was as if a veil had been lifted from her vision, allowing her to see clearly. His handsome face was now a pale grey with patches of rotting flesh peeking out around his sleeves and collar.
She wrenched her arm from his grasp and made a beeline for the door. Before she could reach it, a group of figures emerged from all around. Swirling white eyes gazed back at her from all directions. Suddenly, a frigid arm wrapped around her waist. A large hand covered her mouth as he dragged her down a dark hallway. She tried to scream but the man’s large hand prevented any sound from escaping. Nova’s muffled cries were drowned out even further by the club’s electronic music. She kicked out with all her might, but a deep laugh was the last thing she heard before everything went black.
ChapterThree
Darren had been quite surprised to be staring down at such a unique creature. It wasn’t the silver and brown hair that caught his attention, but the eyes. They were grey-green, seeming to change in the ever-shifting club lighting. “Sorry,” she had mumbled before hurrying away from him. Who was this girl? Something inside him began to scratch its way out. His wolf had always been forward with its feelings, and it was certainly having a reaction to the grey-green-eyed girl.
“Relax,” he muttered, hoping to calm his animal within. It whined again, but then quieted. For the moment.
Darren rejoined the rest of the group but he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Those eyes were like the misty, swirling sea. He looked back to the bar where she was seated. She sipped at her drink before turning to meet his gaze. They locked eyes and it sent a wave of heat burning through him. She glanced away as a man took a seat next to her. Darren’s wolf growled. She and the man began to talk, but Darren could sense something was off. Her back stiffened, and she pulled her body away from him. Then suddenly, the mysterious woman stood up. Darren’s teeth set on edge when the man’s hand grasped her small upper arm.
Darren was standing now, poised to intervene. As he moved closer, a group of tall, white-eyed figures descended upon her. She struggled to pull herself free as they dragged her out of the room and down a dark, nearby hallway. Darren immediately moved. Powerful instincts drove him forward.
