Page 4 of Every Bite You Take
Her eyes, a striking blue-gray, watched me with curiosity. Interest.
And then—a thunderous, resounding heartbeat in my chest.
It left me stunned. Stupefied.
That hadn’t happened to me since I’d been human. My heart no longer beat in the same quick rhythm as it had back then. I grew strangely aware of it in my body.
I forced myself to break eye contact, and then everything slammed back together again. The roar of the guitar, sound of the crowd, the scents of supernaturals. I almost forgot the next chord, but fortunately, my fingers found their way over the strings. Had I even been playing? I didn’t have a clue. But considering the audience wasn’t stirring with discomfort, I must have performed on autopilot.
What the hell was that about? I’d never had such a strange reaction to anyone like that before. Why was I getting so riled up by a pretty face with a racing pulse?
Time to get my shit together and focus. While I continued to play, I fought every urge to look at the woman again. Was she some kind of supernatural I hadn’t encountered before—someone with powerful abilities who could affect others?
Once they received their drinks, they moved along the edge of the crowd to snag a couple of available seats near the back. I tried to avoid looking at her but couldn’t keep from glancing in her direction, noting how she nodded along to the music.
Somehow, I made it through the end of the set without doing anything embarrassing, like sputtering something incoherent into the microphone. The audience clapped and several praised me, but I was only interested in one person. I searched the bar area for signs of her. Where did she go?
When I didn’t spot her striking purple hair, I sagged with disappointment. But then through a break in the bodies filtering out of the lounge, I spotted Piper’s pink tresses. I held my breath, although I didn’t need to breathe, while I waited with expectation.
There she was.
Heading my way with Piper.
I straightened, trying to get it together, before I bungled an introduction.
“Hey, Damien, great set tonight.”
“Thanks, Piper.” I nodded in appreciation.
“Meet my new friend, Kylie.” Then she followed up with, “Kylie, Damien.”
Keep it cool.I turned in her direction and caught her disarming eyes once more. “Hi, Kylie. Thanks for coming tonight.” Somehow the words came out in the correct order.
“I loved it,” she said, her voice caressing me like a soft melody.
“Are you working with Piper in the auctions?” I asked.
“No.” She brushed off my suggestion with a small smile. “I’m not staff. Just a first-time cruiser. Piper was kind enough to show me around tonight.”
I’ll show you around, Kylie. My room is right downstairs…
What in the cuckoo coconuts had gotten into me? Or maybe it was something about her.
Curiosity gnawed at me. I inhaled to catch her scent.
M-I-S-T-A-K-E.
She smelled like lilacs. Fresh rain. A hint of something I couldn’t place. And something wild, something unfamiliar. Like everything good in the world wrapped in this delectable package. My fangs ached, immediately itching to bite her smooth neck. If she smelled so alluring, god, how would she taste?
Kylie was watching me. Piper gave me an odd look. What was I doing—just gaping there like a goon, going gaga over this woman’s scent?
In my decade as a vampire, I’d never experienced a sudden thirst like this. It wasn’t just blood hunger—no, it was something different. It called to both the predator and man in me. Awakening something, like I’d just heard the most amazing song…
Whoever this woman was—whatever she was—was trouble.
And I better stay far from her before I did something reckless.
“I gotta go,” I said and bolted toward the exit, knocking down a chair in my haste to escape.
