Cursed (The Brookehaven Vampires #4) (22 page)

Miss B. Haven

“Are we going to the bar downstairs again?” I asked as I snacked on a bag of kettle corn that Oliver had gotten me while we were in Old Sac. By “bar,” I was referring to the lounge or whatever it was we had gone to with Levi the previous night. I thought I might get to wear my dress again. Okay, I was hoping to wear it again. And maybe end the night the right way this time.

Oliver plopped down beside me on the loveseat in our hotel room. He had his laptop with him. “Nope. We’re going to a different bar,” he said as he booted up his laptop.

“Did you forget that your girlfriend is only nineteen?” I questioned.

“It’s a vampire bar. You can come because you’re with me. There’s no age restriction on bonding,” he said with a little smirk forming.

“Are you saying I can go because we’re bonded
, or because I’m your guest.”

“What do you think?”

I raised an eyebrow at him; I really didn’t know.

“It
wouldn’t matter either way because the bar is owned by Brookehaven. I can take whomever I please,” he said, flashing me a crooked little grin.

I huffed and shook my head at him. “Letting the power go to your head, are you?”

He chuckled for a moment as he scanned the screen on his laptop. “Good news!” he said with some excitement. “Blood test came back fine.”

Hearing these words was an unbelievable relief. I actually exhaled happily.

Oliver peered at the screen for another minute. Then he informed me that although his blood work stated all was fine, it did not look right. He told me the numbers were way off from usual, and that a few “things” (I couldn’t remember the words if I had to) were elevated.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“No beer for me tonight.” He grinned crookedly. He closed his laptop and set it on the coffee table. He then pulled me next to him, his strong arms holding me tight.

“Are you lying to me?” I quietly questioned.

He took a minute before he responded. “No, Laney, I’m not. However, I am concerned about my results. I’ll forward them to Felix and see what he has to say.”

Looking up at him, I said, “You’re scaring me.”

“It’s fine, Laney. Really. The numbers are different than usual, that’s all. Maybe it has something to do with bonding, or maybe it’s your blood. I don’t know.” He gave me a reassuring smile. “I’m sure it’s fine or they would have flagged it and let me know. Okay?”

I nodded as I thought about all the crap I had eaten during the day. It was probably me. The blood Oliver had been drinking for the past seventeen years
was nearly pure and free of crap. Now that he was feeding from me, regularly, it had to be me. How could it not be? I consumed so much garbage food.

On the other hand…this didn’t make sense since my blood had been what
cured him from the Avery curse.
Yuck!
Her name tasted bad even in my thoughts.

I set the bag of sugarcoated popcorn on the table, then I cuddled next to Oliver once more. I reminded myself that it was time to start eating better.

*****

Later that evening, we got ready to go out with Levi and Nikki. Oliver
let me know the bar we were going to was nothing formal, so we both wore jeans and T-shirts.

I was still rather bummed that our previous evening
hadn’t ended on the note we had both hoped for. However, Oliver’s bout with whatever it was seemed to have put a stop to our teasing. That was a relief.

Maybe tonight would end better, if you know what I mean.

Levi tapped on our door as I was sitting on the couch, tying my shoes. Levi was eager to see Nikki, and as always, he was a remarkable sight. He was wearing a form fitting, black tee that accented his lean, muscular physique, dark jeans that looked like they’d been made especially for him, and a pair of nice shoes that were perfectly worn—not too much and not too little, just right. He had forgone any hair product on this particular evening, and his hair fell in a careless way, which made him that much more appealing.

“I can feel that
she’s close,” Levi said as we headed to the elevator. He looked excited and slightly irritable. “It’s as if there is some sort of pull that keeps bringing me back to her, like I am tethered to her,” he said.

It was almost
like he was confused by his feelings and by his need to be with Nikki.

I held Oliver’s hand a little tighter and hugged his arm. I felt a pull, like a magnet
, toward Oliver now that we were bonded. He’d told me that he felt it too. I wondered if he would feel the same way as Levi if he were separated from me, and if the pull got stronger the farther we were from each other. I also wondered if it would affect me too. Then I wondered if Nikki felt anything at all for Levi. She had to if she was willing to meet with him, right? Or was she just avoiding him showing up at her house? Did she live with her fiancé? Did he know she’d cheated on him?

The sun was setting as we walked the streets of Sacramento. Even the last of the sun’s rays seemed to have an effect on Levi. He grew even more irritable, and I was curious if it was the sun, his pull to the girl he loved, or a combination of the two.

Or maybe it was the fact we had to walk a few blocks to get to where we were going. Because I too was feeling a little irritated, but that was due to the air being cold, and I forgot to bring a sweatshirt. Oh, and I was so over walking after having done so all day.

We were in Old Sacramento again. The buildings were crammed together into solid blocks, or so it
appeared…

After walking for a ways, crossing in front of several shops and restaurants that faced the river, and making a couple of turns, we walked down a short flight of stairs that led under one of the historic buildings. The steps led us to a large man that I assumed was a bouncer. He just had that bodyguard/bouncer look to him.

He sat, or rather leaned with his hip, on a stool, his large arms crossed. He gave Oliver a “what’s-up” nod as we approached.

“ID,” the bouncer said. Oliver pulled out his wallet and handed over his ID. “Guests tonight?” the guy asked as he looked up from Oliver’s ID.

“Three,” Oliver responded.

The guy looked around Oliver and me to the incessantly complaining Levi. “I only see two,” he said, looking back to Oliver.

“My third will be arriving shortly. I will meet her out front.”

“Very well,” the bodyguard replied, nodding. He pulled his phone from his pocket and attached some sort of, well, device I guess you’d call it, to the top. Then he swiped Oliver’s ID and handed it back to him. After staring at his screen for a moment, he gestured for us to proceed.

I held tight to Oliver as he led me down a dingy, poorly lit, white hallway. Levi was still grumbling as he followed behind us.

Near
the end of the long and dreary hall, we reached another bouncer. This guy glanced at his phone, then nodded for us to proceed.

Two grimy, once white
, solid doors stood before us. Just over the doors were the words Miss B. Haven, painted in fancy black script. It took me a second, but then I realized the connection. I got a pretty good inner laugh, but I was too anxious to voice anything. I did not know what to expect behind those dirty double doors.

Oliver opened one of the doors and guided me inside. I was slightly amazed. Those doors and that dirty hallway had not given me high hopes, but it would appear they were only a cover hiding a very clean and nice bar.

Once we were inside, I found that there was a more comfortable atmosphere at Miss B. Haven than the bar/lounge back at the hotel.

For starters, it was definitely more casual. There was no formalwear involved, it was jeans and tees for most patrons. The music was at a decent volume, unlike most bars, and the lights were low, but not dark. There was a low
murmur of voices on the air that accompanied the people. I assumed most of them were vampires. They mingled about, but not at all in a stuffy way.

However, there was a pretty active dance floor not far from the entrance. We had to make our way past it and the people (vampires) lingering about its outer border.

Pushing our way through groups of chatterers, the bar came into view.

“Finally,” Levi grumbled. He moved around us and headed straight for the bar.

Catching a view of the bar, I realized that the servers were dressed in old-time western attire, as were the bartenders. I assumed their costumes were themed to fit the location, being it was smack dab in the heart of Old Sacramento.

Oliver led me through the crowd, his hand gripping mine while we followed Levi.

As we moved through the bodies, a short, voluptuous woman with very long, light-blond hair stepped in our path, stopping Oliver and me. Levi continued on.

“So, is this the lucky girl who
stole my little man’s heart?” the woman asked, a wide smile spreading across her face.

She hugged Oliver, wrapping her arms around his waist. He hugged her back, but only with one arm. I’m pretty sure he had no intentions of letting go of my hand.

After their quick embrace, Oliver introduced me to his friend. “Laney, this is Sharon.” She smiled big, her light blue eyes crinkling at the sides. “Sharon, this is my Delaney,” he said.

She reached out to shake my hand. I responded in kind. “It sure is nice to finally meet you, Delaney. Oliver has told me so much about you.” She patted the back of my hand with her other hand before letting go. I think she might have been attempting to stay in character with the western theme as she spoke.

I wasn’t sure how to respond. Oliver had never spoken of anyone named Sharon, so I just smiled at her, realizing once again, Oliver had a huge life outside of me.

“Sharon runs the bar,” Oliver said, raising his voice to be heard over the music and the crowd. We were right near the dance floor, and the speakers seemed to be centered over it.

“Guilty,” Sharon said, adding a nod and a curtsy. She was wearing some sort of laced corset top and a long skirt that hid her feet. “And run I must,” she said. “I’ve got things to do, my dear.” She gave Oliver’s arm a pat. “It was nice to see you as always, Oliver, and very nice to finally meet you, Delaney. You two have a good time.” She smiled up at us, then she scurried off.

Watching her
go, I saw her greeting and talking to several patrons as she made her way across the floor. Then it occurred to me, Sharon would have to be a vampire in order to run a vampire bar, especially a bar owned by Brookehaven, right? She looked like she was probably pushing forty, if she wasn’t already there, and I wondered, if she was in fact a vamp, how long had she been forty…? Maybe she was actually from the old west, maybe she hadn’t been playing a part, but only being herself…

Resuming our mission to catch up with Levi, who was currently at the bar, I said, “She seems nice.”

“She is,” Oliver responded. “I’ve spent many nights in this bar, waiting for Felix or Levi to finish…well, you get what I’m saying.” He flashed me a grin. Yeah, I got what he was saying. “Sharon’s always here and she’s always been nice enough to keep me company on those nights I’ve had to…wait.” He looked slightly uneasy talking about Felix and Levi’s escapades, and having to be a part of them. I did not blame him.

By the time we made it to the bar, Levi was already finishing his first drink. Oliver asked if I wanted anything. I didn’t. He ordered himself something. They had blood on tap
, served in pint glasses. I just stared at Oliver as he took a drink.

“What?” he asked, setting his “drink” down on the bar. He leaned his back against the bar and pulled me closer.

I raised an eyebrow. “The smell of blood doesn’t bother anyone here?” I asked.

He shook his head and took another drink. “Not unless they’re starving,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s only fresh blood that draws our attention.” He trailed a finger along my neck and gave me a crooked smile. I quivered at his touch,
and his smile widened.

“What is taking her so long?” Levi interrupted. “Why is she not here?” He was growing grumpier with each passing moment.

“She’ll call me when she gets here, Levi. Be patient,” Oliver told the very impatient, bonded pureblood.

Levi gave Oliver a look that clearly stated he thought Oliver was insane, then he said, “Be patient? I
am
being patient. If I were not, I would have stolen her already, removed her from her life here, and taken my love back home with me.” He turned back to the bar and downed his second drink.

Oliver smirked and shook his head, but his expression soon faded. He pulled me a little closer to his side as a woman, very provocatively dressed, sauntered up to us. Even with me attached to his side, she hugged Oliver, in more than a “greeting a friend” way. She
even went so far as to plant a big kiss on his cheek, a kiss that not only left a smear of lipstick, it also pissed me off.

I stood a little taller as she took a step back. I was quick to grab a napkin from the bar and wipe the lipstick free of my mate’s face.

“Oh!” She paused, her eyes darting from Oliver’s to mine. “You’ve bonded,” she said in surprise.