Supernatural Dating Agency - The Complete Collection (Books 1-6)

by Andie M. Long

  “I’ve fed her one of your expressed bottles.”

  “You didn’t need to do that. It's not like I need much sleep.”

  “So what were you doing in bed? Couldn’t resist me?”

  “It’s been a wearing day with visitors.”

  “I’m sorry you’re left to deal with this alone. Why not get the visitors to come at night so I can help you?”

  “Yeah, I might sometimes, but right now, I’m glad it’s just us.”

  “And Ebony, and my mother, and possibly Henry if he’s still here.”

  I shook my head. “Ebony and Henry are on a date at her house. Your mother is on a date at her new boyfriend’s. She said for us to not wait up.”

  Theo’s eyes widened. “She was able to leave the house?”

  Daughter or not, Charlie was back in that crib by the time I uttered the word, “Yes.”

  “We have the house to ourselves. Oh thank the Lord. It’s time to make my good wife scream the house down.”

  “Well not too loudly cos we might wake the baby.” I said, but Theo’s hearing was already muffled by his head being halfway down the bedsheets.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Henry

  Well, my mind might be confused but my body seemed to be handling things.

  I’d thought Ebony was gorgeous the first time I’d set eyes on her in my sister’s coffee shop a couple of years ago. However just as I’d been introduced to her, her face had gone grey and her eyeballs had rolled showing the whites. I’d quickly lifted up my mobile phone, only for Jax to hold my arm, telling me that Ebony did this quite often and said it was due to visions.

  When she’d come to a few minutes later, Ebony had mumbled something about seeing a vision of a vampire wanting a date. Well, that was that. The woman was beautiful but entirely cuckoo.

  I’d been dating Callie. Lust had turned into comfortableness. I’d said I loved her because I thought I did, and also she said it to me and sulked if I didn’t say it back. Things had been good, until they weren’t. Now I knew why. Once she’d dumped me I’d decided I’d have a bit of time ‘single and ready to mingle’ and ‘playing the field’. Any number of clichés about getting my dick wet, I would embrace them all.

  But the gorgeous but bloody barmy Ebony was in my life again. I’d tried, and now obviously failed, to resist her. A date was good. A date at her house meant getting to know her and checking out what she was getting at, telling me to open my eyes. While I spent more time with her alone, I’d be able to assess just how bonkers she was and whether it was worth a little madness in my life to have that fine body riding me for hours. I got hard just thinking about it.

  Calling in at the supermarket on my way to her house, I bought a bottle of an expensive wine as I doubted Ebony would be impressed by a bottle from the bargain bucket. Then I drove the short ten-minute drive from my house to hers.

  She opened the door looking so damn hot in a tight red dress.

  “Come in, the food’s almost ready. I just need to do your steak.”

  “Thank you.” As she walked ahead, I checked out my appearance in her hallway mirror before following her.

  “You look gorgeous.” I said, bending down and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

  “Thank you. You scrub up well too.”

  I handed the bottle of wine over. “It’s a good one. I think.”

  That earned me a look. “Henry. You will get to know hopefully over the course of the evening that I am a normal human being, well, apart from my visions. I do enjoy a glass of champagne, but I can also appreciate a half of cider. I’ve lived in Withernsea a long time now.”

  Over dinner she spoke about her family back in London. I knew from Jax that Ebony had lost her mum in a house fire. I told her about growing up as the older brother of a tiny tearaway called Jax. Conversation flowed easily until before I knew it she was offering me a coffee, the meal was over and it was a quarter to eleven at night. She’d not had a vision at all. Maybe they were an attention seeking kind of thing and because she had my attention, she’d not felt the need to ‘perform’?

  We sat on the sofa and clutching my coffee I tried to bring the conversation around to us ending up shagging in her bathroom.

  “What was all that about earlier, right, with that short guy? What was he doing at the house anyway? If you don’t mind me pointing out, Shelley lets some strange people in the house. That last one didn’t have a shirt on and looked like he’d poofed out of the 1970’s!”

  Ebony sighed and bit on her bottom lip. “Henry. I’m going to tell you something and I want you to hear me out. Not go off about me being crazy, just listen. Then we’ll say no more about what I’ve told you and you can do your own research into it.”

  Oh dear, was Ebony about to come out with something cuckoo and ruin the good vibe we had going on?

  “I can already see by your face that you still think I’m a sandwich short of a picnic. I can’t blame you. If it were the other way around, I’d already be out of the door.” She grabbed hold of my hand. “Just hear me out, okay? Then if you want, you can leave.”

  As her hand held mine the strangest sensation traveled over my wrist, up my arm, and across my shoulder, my neck, until an electrical style jolt hit my brain. My vision went black and then pictures flashed over my mind. Theo with fangs. Shelley with blue threads coming out of her fingers holding what looked like Satan up in the air, Darius as a werewolf. I dropped her hand and leaped back away from her.

  “What was that? What the fuck just happened?”

  Ebony sat there staring at her hand. “What did happen? I, I felt a spark come from my hand and then your eyes rolled and you went pale. Did you-, did you see things?”

  “Is it some kind of virus? One that gives hallucinations? I saw Theo with fangs. Other weird shit.” I sprang off the sofa and moved towards the door. “Did you drug me? Did you put something in my food?”

  “You experienced what I do.” Ebony now had tears falling down her face. “You had some kind of vision. Please, please, let me tell you everything and then you can think I’m crazy, drugged you, and you never have to see me again. I’ll tell Shelley I can’t help her any more, but please, just hear me out, Henry.”

  Her gaze was so pleading and she looked so desperate that I found myself walking back to the sofa.

  She asked me to wait and came back with another bottle, this time vodka. “You might need something stronger than the coffee.”

  “I already had my limit this evening. I’m driving.”

  She looked up at me. “You can stay. I have a spare room if you prefer. Or, I can phone for a taxi to take you home.”

  I sighed. “Go on then, pour me a drink.”

  Ebony swallowed. “I’ve been having visions since I was young. They got stronger after my mother passed. She was also a Seer like myself. I get warning visions but sometimes they aren’t much use to people, only a snippet. I predicted that Shelley would end up with Theo; that Kim would marry Darius.

  “Theo is a vampire. He’s 127 years old. Shelley was turned just before Charlie’s birth. She’s also part witch and part wyvern. Frankie Love, who you probably know, has an app you can sign up to that teaches you all about the supernaturals of Withernsea. There are a lot of us. Your sister, Jax, has no idea of what we are at this moment in time, although things change.”

  I took a drink of my vodka. “You realise this sounds absolutely cray-cray, right, and by all accounts I should be running the hell out of here and phoning you a psychiatrist?”

  “Tristan who you fought today is the leader of the Pixies of Withernsea. Darius visited as the Leader of the Hogsthorpe Pack. Kai with the nice bottom is the leader of the mermen.”

  I snorted.

  “Charlene will rule all of Withernsea when she’s older. The prophecy states she’ll save Withernsea from destruction and no one will have ever seen anyone like her. That’s why they are all visiting. They are offering their servitude. I’m staying because if I get a vision
warning of Charlie being in danger from any of them, I can pass it straight on and warn Shelley and Theo. I can help keep her safe.”

  Just as I was about to tell her I was out of here, her words from earlier whispered into my mind. Open your eyes.

  I thought about the fact that Theo slept in the daytime and came out at night. That he talked about poor circulation if you touched him because he was cold.

  Shelley telling me that I could help myself to anything in the fridge, except her tomato juice, because it was a rare variety and expensive.

  The weird Mary who was always here one minute and not the next.

  I looked across at Ebony. “Who’s Mary, Ebony?”

  She swallowed. “Mary is Theo’s mother. She’s a ghost who up until today was tethered to the house. Theo drained her when he was first turned into a vampire. That’s why you only see her occasionally. She runs out of energy and goes translucent or disappears completely.”

  “Right.”

  “I know it’s a lot to take in and seems crazy. Right now you think you’re dreaming right, or you need a psychiatrist? I know because at one time I was you.”

  This statement made me focus on her, take note of her words.

  “Once I didn’t have visions and then I did, and my mum told me this was all real and I wasn’t going insane. Then the visions showed me mystical beings that had only ever been in story books and I said ‘No, Mama. You need to get me to a doctor because I’m ill. The children at school are calling me crazy'. But you know,” a tear slid down her face. “You get used to pretending people’s hurtful talk doesn’t harm you after a while. You get used to the name calling and the fact everyone thinks you should be out of the community and into an asylum.”

  I wiped the tears from her eyes.

  “Why haven’t you run yet, Henry?”

  “I don’t know.” I said honestly, and then I leaned over and kissed her because if I was going mad I might as well enjoy the ride.

  The next morning I awoke in Ebony’s bed. I turned towards her. She was still asleep, looking peaceful and angelic, her dark hair splayed out across the pillow.

  The memories of everything she’d told me and what I’d seen in that weird hallucination rushed back. I couldn’t make sense of any of it, but I owed it to Ebony to go back to the farm with her this morning and find out the truth.

  I got out of bed, deciding for once I’d make Ebony a hot drink. As I left the room, I found I was shaking my head. Was I really believing this was real? Maybe I was going cray cray too?

  Chapter Fifteen

  Ebony

  I woke up, the ache between my legs reminding me of the glorious early hours of the morning where we’d not been able to get enough of each other. Then I turned over and saw the space next to me. I sat up and noted there were none of his clothes around my bedroom. A huge thumping sadness beat against my chest as I registered the fact he’d gone. Then I heard a noise downstairs. The clattering was followed by an ‘oh shit’ from a familiar voice and I let out a large exhale as both relief and joy flooded my body that he was still here. Footsteps padded up the stairs and Henry walked in holding two steaming mugs.

  “One coffee for the lady,” he said putting my mug at the side of my bed.

  He walked back around to ‘his’ side and placed his mug on the bedside table there before flopping back onto the bed. “And a nice cuppa for me.”

  “I thought you’d left.” I told him honestly. “When I saw the clothes gone.”

  His mouth dropped open slightly as he looked around the room. “Oh, God, I’m sorry. I just wanted to be dressed as I didn’t know if you had a maid coming in or anything. I didn’t want you to be sued or to cause heart failure to anyone.”

  “A maid! Oh my God, Henry, what are you going to come out with next? Do you want to have sex against a tree and call me Lady Chatterley?”

  “Not only posh folks have maids. My mum hates cleaning, she has a maid service come round once a week.”

  “Fair enough. It’s a shame you’re dressed though.” I bit my lip.

  “You are aware clothes come off right? Let me show you.”

  And he did.

  Henry said he’d drive us both across to the farmhouse.

  After showering and dressing, I heard him honking the van horn and realised it was almost 9am. Locking the door behind me, I ran down the path and jumped into the passenger seat of the van. The front foot-well was full of discarded crisp packets and chocolate wrappers, plus empty pop bottles.

  “Sorry about the mess.”

  “You’re a filthy pig.” I told him.

  “You weren’t complaining last night… or this morning.” He chuckled.

  My phone rang and I answered it. Kim started speaking.

  “Ebs, babe. I got you another date, and yes I am here before 9am. Can you have a vision to see what I’m coming down with because it’s not normal. I actually thought I’d better be here to open up as Lucy can’t get here until 10am. I’m sick, Ebs. Sick.”

  “You’re not sick. Well, I’ve not had any such visions about you anyway. Perhaps you are either growing up, or scared of what Shelley would say if she found out the place wasn’t open on time.”

  “I suppose. Shelley really is bloody terrifying when she gets a mood on. Anyway, you owe me big time. I have got you a date with…” she made a drumroll noise, “Dmitri Rosario from Withernsea AFC. You’re welcome.”

  “Actually, Kim, I was going to ring to tell you.” I looked across at Henry, who was glaring out of the front windscreen. His knuckles were clenched around the steering wheel so tightly I was surprised it hadn’t come off in his hand. “I’m seeing someone. It’s early days, but you know me. I don’t want to see anyone else at the same time. Can you cancel my membership?”

  Henry looked at me and grinned, his shoulders coming back down from around his ears.

  “But it’s Dmitri Rosario.”

  “I don’t care if it's Henry Cavill.” I thought about it. “No, actually, scratch that. If you get Henry Cavill I’ll go.” A hand came over and nipped my arm several times lightly.

  “Ouch.”

  “No Henry’s other than me.” He said.

  The phone went silent on the other end. “Ebs, are you getting it on with Henry Marston? As in Jax’s brother?”

  “You breathe a word and I will see if I can deliberately invoke a vision where you no longer orgasm.”

  “But, but.”

  “No one. Not right now. He needs to tell Jax himself, not have it blurted out from you.”

  “Shit. I never thought of that.” Henry mumbled at the side of me.

  “Oh, okay. But feed me some gossip to keep me going. Anything. Is he good in bed?”

  I giggled. “Kim, Henry has the most divine cock.” Then I ended the call.

  The van swerved on the word cock. “Jesus, woman. Are you trying to kill us? You can’t dirty talk the word cock at the side of me like that when I’m driving.”

  I arched a brow at him. “Your magnificent dick needs to rub against my core. To enter my pussy and have me begging for you to ride me hard. Oh… so… hard.”

  Henry veered the van off down the next country lane. “We’re going to be late for work now, but hopefully not arrested for public sex. Get in the back of my van. Thank God I always carry plenty of bedsheets.”

  I called Shelley to apologise for being late, saying Henry had suffered a flat tyre. Shelley told me I was a hopeless liar and that it was okay because she was happy for me.

  As we walked through the door Theo was there.

  “Morning.” He said yawning.

  “Theo. Shouldn’t you be in bed?” I queried.

  “Yes, I absolutely should, and I’m off in a minute but I’ve developed the start of your new fashion website and I was too excited to show you, to go to sleep.”

  “Oh my God and this is the morning I choose to be late. I’m so sorry, Theo.” Turning, I touched Henry’s arm. “I’ll see you later. Let’s go, Theo. I ca
n’t wait.”

  “Just a second.” Henry said. “Shelley. Do you have a minute?”

  Shelley came out into the hallway. “Yeah?”

  “Ebony was pointing some things out to me last night. Things that mean either she’s crazy or there’s more to Withernsea than I’ve been aware of.”

  Her eyes met mine. “You told him what we are?”

  “I did. I hope that was okay?”

  Shelley shrugged. “It’s fine and we could have put him under a compulsion and wiped his mind anyway if we didn’t want him to know.”

  “You could do what?” Henry spluttered. “It’s real then? You’re a witch and… other things.”

  Shelley spun blue threads from her hands and let her eyes turn blue, then she lifted up a vase from the hallway, got the door to bang open and threw it out so it exploded on the path.

  Then she returned to normal. Looking all angelic like she’d not done anything strange at all. She shrugged her shoulders.

  Theo rubbed at his head. “What are you doing?” His voice went higher and higher. “That’s been in my family for generations.”

  Shelley went back to her blue-eyed state and using the blue webs commanded all the pieces back together and it appeared back in the hallway like it had never left.

  “Oh yeah, I forgot you could do that. Sorry, darling.”

  Henry looked back at the doorway. “Oh yeah. I guess I should close it.” Shelley said. “Could you do it, Theo?”

  Theo whizzed there and back in a one-second blink of an eye. Henry looked back at the door. “How did you..?”

  “Vampire speed.”

  “Oooh does Henry know what we are?” Mary came waltzing back in. “Did you miss me? Gosh I’ve been gaining so much sexual experience. Such a pity that now Henry knows what I am a) I have someone and b) Henry’s not dead which apparently makes us not compatible.”

  “You’re too late anyway. Henry and Ebony are seeing each other, Mary.” Shelley pointed out.

  Mary smiled at me. “You lucky lady. I had a good look at him when he was changing into a fresh pair of overalls. I was almost invisible so he never even knew I was there. Not everything about being dead sucks. Some things are positively delightful.” She winked while pointing in the direction of Henry’s groin.