I stopped and looked at the sign in front of the Java Jackal Coffee Shop. It looked like a little two-foot-tall Count Dracula holding his cape open like bat wings. Today’s coffee specials were written on the inside of the cape. I chuckled, wondering what Daddy Drac would think about being used to sell coffee. He probably wouldn’t mind. It was very good coffee, which is why we got it for our guests at the Inn.
“A fan of coffee or a fan of Dracula?”
I turned towards the voice behind me and sucked in a quick breath. The man standing before me filled out his long-sleeve shirt and blue jeans in all the right places. Sandy blond hair framed a handsome and tan face. Eyes as deep and blue as the ocean studied me as intently as I was studying him. I smiled. “Oh, I’m a huge fan of Dracula but you can’t go wrong with a cup of good coffee.”
He nodded, stepping closer. “I agree.” He extended his hand. “I’m Alec.”
I took the offered hand and felt an undeniable tingle shoot through me when he lifted my hand to his lips and softly kissed it. Still hovering over my hand, he looked up at me with those incredible eyes. It would be so very easy for a girl to get lost in those eyes. He straightened back up, never breaking eye contact. I licked my lips, my throat suddenly very dry.
“And you are?” he asked.
I blinked. Who was I? Dammit, brain. Now wasn’t the time to sleep on the job. I smiled as it finally came to me. “Penny.”
He smiled back, nodding towards Java Jackal. “Want to grab a cup of really good coffee, Penny?”
I chuckled. This one was smooth. That could be dangerous. I arched an eyebrow, deciding to see where things might go. “I don’t know. Is their coffee really good?”
He shrugged, flashing a mischievous grin that hinted at all kinds of fun. “I don’t know honestly. I just moved here a couple of days ago and haven’t tried the place yet.”
Oh. He was a local. With the Dracula lead-in, I thought I had a tourist flirting with me. I watched the way his eyes wandered up and down my body when he thought I wouldn’t notice. I smiled. This could definitely be fun. I hadn’t dated in forever. “Well, I guess now is a good a time as any to find out.”
His phone rang as he reached for the door. He opened it and held it open for me as he answered. “Hello?” He sighed, glancing at me. “Yes, sir. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” He hung up and slid the phone back in his pocket, frowning. “Guess you’ll have to let me know about the coffee. My boss wants to see me.”
“Oh. I hope everything is okay.”
He nodded. “It’s fine. He’s retiring. Today’s his last day and he wants to go over a few things before he goes.” He leaned towards the door, and closer to me, inhaling deeply, a smile appearing on his face. “Smells great.” He looked at me. “Raincheck on the coffee?”
I resisted the urge to fan myself, suddenly feeling very warm. “Sure. The coffee does smell good.” That was an understatement. It smelled like Heaven on the other side of the door, or maybe that was his cologne I smelled. Either way, I wanted more… but good things were worth waiting for… and I wasn’t just talking about the coffee.
“Great,” he said, letting the door close. “Tomorrow morning at ten?”
“Sounds good.”
He stepped back a couple of steps and flashed a wicked grin that made me weak in the knees. “By the way, I wasn’t talking about the coffee smelling good. I was talking about your perfume.” He winked, spun around on his heel, and walked off.
I watched his denim-covered butt until he rounded the corner at the end of the block.
Damn.
Chapter 3
Paige knew something was up as soon as I walked into the living room after dropping the groceries off in the kitchen. “Well, look who’s grinning like the cat that ate the canary.”
I ignored her, looking through the guest register. Most of the rooms were filled, and the empty ones were reserved for guests arriving later in the day and tomorrow. I had already known what the schedule was like but flipping the pages, looking like I was doing something important, kept my mind off tomorrow, and it kept my sisters at bay.
“Pita!” Paige yelled. “Come in here.”
Crap. So much for keeping the sisters at bay.
Pita came out of the kitchen, spots of flour on her cheeks, forehead, and even in her short, black hair. Considering our unique dietary needs, you wouldn’t think a vampire could cook but Pita was a pro when it came to anything kitchen-related.
“What?” she asked, trying to wipe the flour off her face, which had the opposite effect of smearing it more.
Paige nodded towards me. Pita looked, and then giggled. “Someone’s in love.”
“Shut up.” I glared at both of them. “It’s nothing.”
“It doesn’t look like nothing,” Pita said, grinning from ear to ear.
“I agree,” Paige said, studying me with a critical eye. “It looks like love… or maybe lust.”
“Don’t get us wrong,” Pita said quickly. “That’s not a bad thing. You’ve been out of the dating pool for a while. It’s about time you dove back in.”
“I’m not diving in anywhere,” I said. Alec’s devilish smile flashed through my mind and I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face. “Okay, maybe I’m dipping my toe into the dating pool… but there is definitely no diving going on.”
They glanced at each other, then back to me. “Who’s the lucky guy?” they asked in unison.
“Just a guy. No big deal.” Like I’d tell either of them about the charge he sent rocketing through me.
Anthony went walking by with an armload of folded sheets. He glanced at me, grinned, and then quickened his pace towards the stairs.
Pita noticed. “See? Even Anthony could see the love all over you. Admit it. You’re crushing on someone.”
I sighed. “I’m not crushing on anyone. We’re just having coffee in the morning?”
Paige grinned. “Here or at his place?”
I slapped Paige on the arm. “At the Java Jackal.”
Pita nudged Paige and fake whispered very loudly. “She’s been out of it for a while. Gotta take things slow or she might strain something.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m going to go help Anthony get the beds ready in the reserved rooms.” I headed for the stairs, and then stopped, looking over my shoulder at my sisters. “Someone needs to do something around here besides gossip.”
Their laughter followed me to the second floor. It was going to be a long day and I was determined to bury myself in work to keep time from dragging any more than it had to, and to avoid any further question-and-answer sessions with my nosy sisters.
Chapter 4
I glanced at the clock as I dried my hands after helping Paige wash and dry the breakfast dishes. I had enough time before my coffee date to grab a cup of coffee. Like I needed extra caffeine to go along with the nervous butterflies that were already fluttering around in my stomach.
Paige and Pita were already sitting at the little table in the kitchen with their cups. It was like a little tradition for us. Breakfast for the guests, and then relaxing cups of coffee for us. The person who said vampires only needed blood to survive had obviously never met the Dreadful sisters.
I poured a cup, added cream and sugar, and closed my eyes as I took that first sip, enjoying that little bite that happens when that hot liquid first touches your tongue. A couple of sips later, I realized Paige and Pita didn’t look happy. “What’s up?”
Paige frowned. “We have an early arrival coming in. They’ll be in this morning instead of the regular afternoon check-in.”
I shrugged, taking another sip of coffee. “So? We’ve had early check-ins before. As long as the room’s ready, there’s no problem.”
Paige’s frown deepened. “Anthony went to the library early and he’s not back yet.”
“Oh.” That explained the sour mood. Anthony was an insatiable book-hound, making frequent trips to the library to either pick up or return books, b
ut he had never let his passion for books interfere with his job before. He knew that when he wasn’t around, front desk duty usually fell to Paige, and that wasn’t really a good thing because she always got super-nervous around humans.
I glanced at Pita. “You don’t mind helping her, do you?”
Now it was her turn to frown. “It’s not like it’s a big deal. It’s just people.”
“Normal people,” Paige said. “I’m not used to dealing with normal people. Not when I have to act normal, too. I have to be all…,” she waved her hand in the air, exasperated, “smiley and friendly.”
Pita chuckled. “Yeah. Friendly. I guess that is a little different for you.”
Paige glared at her. “Bite me.”
I gave Pita my best puppy dog eyes. “Please, Pita?” I begged. “I’d really prefer that none of the guests get eaten.”
Paige had always had the hardest time interacting with humans. How hard? Let’s just say a lot of the violence in the old days that was attributed to ol’ Daddy Drac was actually done by a certain blonde, which is why Paige usually handled things like paperwork and keeping Granny too busy to eat or torture the guests.
Pita sighed, rolling her eyes, and then glared at Paige. “You are a big baby.”
Paige hugged her. “Thank you.”
The hug earned her a few bonus points because Pita dialed the glare down a notch or two.
“Look on the bright side,” I said. “Maybe the early arrival will look like Reginald.”
Both Pita and Paige smiled, a look that looked a lot like hunger shining in their eyes.
“Talk about the right way to start the day,” Pita sighed.
Paige’s smile grew bigger, her cheeks turning red as her thoughts turned to – well, I probably didn’t want to know.
Reginald Robertson had arrived last week, with his thick dark hair, steel-gray eyes, and devilish smile turning all three of us to instant mush. And he was a writer – a romance writer – taking a break from the big city to find some inspiration for his next novel. Paige, usually not the wild child of the bunch, had expressed a very strong desire to inspire our guest in many different ways. Reginald had politely ignored her flirting but she kept trying.
“Another breakfast without the handsome Mr. Robertson,” Pita said. “Why stay at a bed and breakfast if you’re not going to eat breakfast?”
I shrugged. “He’s always making trips into town, to soak up some local color, I guess.”
“I could provide local color,” Paige said.
Peter Vincent laughed from his perch over the kitchen door. “Is that what the kids are calling it these days?”
“Shush,” I said, holding back a laugh.
Paige glanced at the little fruit bat. “What did he say?”
“Nothing. He sneezed.”
She narrowed her eyes, clearly not believing me.
The bell over the front door chimed. Paige flinched like it signaled the beginning of a fight. The early arrival had arrived.
Taking a couple of deep breaths, she stood and headed to the front of the house. Pita and I exchanged a quick glance and followed her. I could’ve been nice and done the check-in myself, but that wouldn’t help Paige get better with handling people. All three of us slapped on our professional smiles as a couple with two children approached the front desk.
“Welcome to the Dreadful Inn,” Paige said. Her smile couldn’t have possibly looked any faker.
“The B&B where guests are simply dying to stay,” Pita added.
The boy – probably fourteen or fifteen – rolled his eyes. “Dad, when you said we were going to Transylvania, this isn’t what I had in mind.”
The father grinned sheepishly at us, giving an embarrassed shrug. “My son, Toby. He’s at that special age where he has no problem speaking his mind.” He looked at Paige. “Davis family. We have a reservation.”
“Of course, sir,” Paige said as she entered the information into the computer, the smile never leaving her face, never changing, seeming to be creepily frozen into place. “And don’t worry about the boy. I’m sure he’ll be impressed with the town before he leaves.”
“Doubt it,” Toby said. He glanced at his sister. “Told you this place would be lame.”
Pita stepped around the desk and knelt down in front of Toby. “So how do you know you don’t like it here? You just got here.”
He just stared at her.
“Is it because it’s not the real Transylvania, where the vampires are?”
After a few seconds of more staring, Toby slowly nodded.
Pita leaned closer to him. “Then you’re in luck because that place is super boring now because all the really cool vampires are here.” She smiled at him, showing her fangs. Toby gasped and quickly stepped back, bumping into his mom.
I reached down, grabbed Pita’s arm, and lifted her up to her feet. I glared at her for a second and then laughed, looking at the boy. “Fake fangs. Gotta love them. She’s been waiting all week to try that stunt so thanks for pretending to be scared.”
Toby shrugged, his eyes wide and his skin pale. “I knew they were fake.”
The girl standing next to him looked at him. “Did not.”
Toby’s cheeks flushed red. “Did too.”
“Scaredy-cat,” the girl said.
“Diana,” the children’s mother gasped, her voice filled with shock.
Paige slid a key across the desk, that same unchanging creepy smile still locked firmly in place, except now her cheeks had a slightly strained look, quivering as if rarely-used muscles were getting ready to give out after having too much demand placed on them.
“Here you go, Mr. Davis,” Paige said. “Please let us know if we can do anything to make your stay more comfortable.” She glanced at Pita leaning nonchalantly against the front desk, her eyes narrowing slightly.
Pita noticed. “Hey,” she said, quickly grabbing the Davis’ luggage. “Let me help with your bags and show you to your rooms.” She glanced at Toby. “Any problem with that?”
Toby shook his head quickly.
“Nice,” Pita said, obviously pleased. “I love a brave man I can sink my teeth into.”
Toby gasped, but before anyone could say anything, Pita was at the stairs. “Come on, slow-pokes. Time to get your fangtastic vacation started.” She winked at Toby and headed for the second floor, the Davis family right behind her, with Toby, surprisingly, in the lead.
As the family followed Pita upstairs, the smile fell from Paige’s face as she finally relaxed. “Pita’s going to cause problems.”
I laughed. “She is gifted in that way, but the only problem she’s causing now is possibly kicking that kid’s journey through puberty into high gear.”
Paige’s lips quirked into a tiny smile, a real one this time. “Did you see him staring at her butt as they went up the stairs?”
I nodded. “Yeah. She’s probably ruined him for life.”
I reached across the desk and took her hand. “Not to change the subject but I also noticed something else… and I only say this because I’m your sister and I love you.”
Paige’s eyebrow arched up.
“The smiling,” I said. “Dial it down a notch. It looks painful.”
“It is painful. I’m not used to interacting with humans like I’m one of them. I’m nervous.”
I patted her hand. “You did great. It’s easier than you think. Just don’t think of them as snacks.”
Paige glanced upstairs, a look of longing on her face. “But they smell so good.”
I nodded sympathetically, glancing towards the door, as if that would make our usually reliable assistant miraculously walk through it. “I’ll stop by the library on my way through town and tell Anthony to get his butt up here.”
“I don’t know why you didn’t get the flowers and vegetables yesterday when you were in town. Then you could help with the front desk.”
“I should’ve gotten the flowers yesterday,” I admitted… but I wouldn’t
admit that my encounter with Alec had turned my brain into mush. Flowers? What flowers? Sheesh! Like a giddy schoolgirl.
“And the vegetables?”
I groaned. She knew the answer to that. I shrugged. “I hate going to that place.”
She patted my shoulder. She had gone there once so she knew why I felt that way. Her eyes cut to the stairwell as Pita appeared, trailing her fingers along the handrail as she walked down.
“Tired of terrorizing the boy?” Paige asked.
“Terrorizing?” Pita looked shocked. “Me? I’m the friendly one, remember?”
A crash, followed by a loud scream, echoed through the house and the three of us ran up to the second floor, already having an idea of what to expect. Toby was sticking his head out the door of his room, staring wide-eyed towards the other end of the hall. I flashed him an encouraging smile. “Everything’s fine. Probably just a bothersome poltergeist having a temper tantrum.”
The kid smirked, and then his eyes fell on Pita. His cheeks turned fire engine red and he disappeared back into his room. Luckily, he didn’t realize I was telling the truth. We walked towards the room at the end of the hall. “Pita, you were supposed to take care of this.”
“I thought I did.”
Another crash came from the room ahead. The door flew open and Jasper, one of our guests who had arrived earlier in the week, ran out, a flower vase sailing by his head and shattering against the wall.
I glared at Pita. “Fix it.”
She nodded and ran into the room, slamming the door behind her.
I looked at Jasper leaning against the wall and felt a twinge of guilt. He was a short, slightly chubby guy with wild curly red hair that no comb could tame. He seemed like a nice enough guy. He really enjoyed his cologne, basically bathing in it, which wasn’t great when you had a vampire’s keen sense of smell, but aside from that, he was okay.
“Are you okay, Jasper” I asked.
He flashed a tired grin. “I don’t remember asking for the haunted room special.”
I chuckled. “We don’t actually have one of those. It’s just one of the things to deal with when you’re next door to a haunted cemetery.”
The Vampire and the Ink of Doom (Dreadful Vampire Mysteries Book 1) Page 2
