Crave (3 page)

I turned to meet his lips, pressing my mouth against his. My arms wrapped around his strong back, as his muscles flexed under my fingers, responding to my touch. Pushing the length of my body against him.

“So, I guess this is what you meant by not being alone. Perfect,” Grayson’s voice called from behind us. I turned, seeing his face filled with sadness before he threw his hands in the air and turned to leave again. I pushed back from Elijah, but his grip tightened on my waist.              

“I should go after him.”

His hold on me didn’t relax.

“Don’t. He’ll be okay,” he said searching my eyes with his. “Live a little.” His eyebrow rose, challenging me.

Chasing Grayson would only lead him on further. The goal was to get him to stay away, not hurt him.

Staring into my eyes, he tucked a strand of my long brown hair behind my ear. I could feel the electricity pulse between us in time with the thumping of my heart.

“And I thought I would hate it here,” He said with a mischievous grin that made my stomach flutter. 

“Come home with me,” I whispered nervously, still emboldened by the liquor. He fought a smile as he swung me up into his arms causing me to giggle loudly in the empty parking lot. My laughter echoing down the street.

“You don’t have to ask me twice. Where to?” he asked, holding me as if I was weightless. And for once, I felt it too, like my burdens had been lifted from my chest and I could finally breathe easy.

“Church Street, the brick house with the big porch.”

***

After climbing up two stories worth of steps, Elijah paused, “We don’t have to do this.”

I smiled up at him, uncertain if he was sincere. “Just come in. Hang out for a bit.”

He turned the knob and pushed through as he kissed me passionately. He walked down the hallway and sat me gently on the couch in the living room.

“You missed the door to the bedroom,” I joked, my face feeling like it was on fire with humiliation.

“I thought we were going to hang out.”

I sighed heavily as I sank back against the cushions. “Just my luck. I bring home the one guy in town who doesn’t want to hook up. How embarrassing.” I pressed my palms against my face hoping when I pulled them away I’d be alone, awaken from a nightmare.

“Eva, I didn’t say I didn’t want to. Trust me, there is nothing I want more right now but not while you’ve been drinking.” He pulled my hands from my face as his eyebrow rose as his lips curved into a smile, deep dimples settling into his cheeks.
Just great. A killer with a conscious.

I woke around three in the morning from the steady thumping in my head. I rubbed my face with my hands and looked beside me at Elijah. His eyes were open and he had a smile on his face. Our limbs were tangled together on the couch as he held me against his bare, muscular chest.

“Hello, beautiful,” he whispered as he pressed his lips to my forehead.

“You didn’t sleep?”

“A little but I work nights. Hazard of the job.”

I pushed myself up on the couch, rubbing my face again as my head pulsed beneath my temples.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, sitting up beside me and tucking my hair behind my ear.

“Hangover,” I replied with a guilty smile, my tongue feeling thick in my dry mouth.

“I’ll get you something.” He slid his body from beneath mine.

“It’s in the bathroom, above the sink,” I called after him and pulled a pillow under my head. He returned quickly with aspirin and a glass of water.

“Thanks.” I sat up, popping the aspirin into my mouth and took a sip of the water as he pulled on his white T-shirt, obscuring my view of his well-toned body.

“Leaving?” I asked trying not to sound disappointed. He smiled and bent over to kiss me on the cheek.

“I have to get back to my cousin. I work with him when I’m in town, earn my keep. Third shift over at Sensations. He’s going to be pissed I didn’t show last night.”

“Wait. What? You’re… a
stripper
?”

He let out a loud, deep laugh as he shook his head. “No, I’m a bouncer. My cousin owns the place.” My eyes roamed over his body.  He definitely could be a stripper. He looked chiseled out of stone. Greek gods would have been jealous.

“Oh,” I mumbled feeling a little embarrassed. He bent down again kissing me on the lips with such passion my headache faded to a dull ache.

“I’ll come back to see you… if you want.” he whispered in my ear.

“I want…” I nodded and he turned and left the room. A few seconds later I heard the apartment door close quietly. I fell backward onto my pillow with a sigh. My headache crept back in as soon as the euphoria faded. I took a pillow and put it over my face hoping to sleep away the remnants of my hangover.

***

I awoke around seven in the morning for the day and stumbled down the hallway to the bathroom, flicking on the light. The brightness was overwhelming and I turned it back off with a moan. The sunshine from the window would be sufficient. I grabbed the bottle of aspirin from the medicine cabinet above the sink, fumbling with the child proof lid until it popped off, sending pills scattering.

“Shit,” I muttered to myself as I gathered two pills that had landed in the sink and tossed them in my mouth. Turning on the water, I cupped my hands to catch it to wash them down. I stood for a moment examining myself in the mirror as water dripped from my lip. My hair was disheveled and mascara had left faint trails of black under my blue eyes. I splashed water on my face to help wake me up, grabbed a hair tie and wandered back into the hallway toward the kitchen, pulling my hair up into a ponytail as I went. Flashes of Elijah crossed my mind and I smiled to myself.

Despite the hangover, I felt better than I had in months. I grabbed a box of cereal off of the fridge and made my way into the living room. Hitting the ON button as I passed the TV, I settled in on the couch. The news channel was still on, and they were discussing equal rights. The sound trailed off as my mind wandered to yesterday. I couldn’t get Elijah out of my thoughts. I wasn’t sure if he’d actually return and had no idea what I would do if he did. I grabbed the remote and flicked through the channels. Nothing was on this time of day, but talk shows, so I sat the remote down and picked up my cell phone. I had three voicemails and about twenty text messages. I sighed loudly and read through them as I ate the marshmallows out of the cereal box. All were from Grayson.
All
of them were full of hate.

I tossed the phone back to the coffee table and went to the kitchen. I made myself as cappuccino from a powder mix I found at the store. Almost as good as the real thing, without having to interact with other people. I took a big sip, burning my lip from my lack of patience. I slammed the cup onto the counter and grabbed an ice cube out of the freezer for the burn. I held it against my lip before I tossed the cube into my glass and watched it swirl as it melted into my frothy beverage.

Walking into my bedroom, I picked out something to wear for the day while my drink cooled off. I grabbed a pair of jeans from my dresser and a faded gray, fitted t-shirt from my closet, my standard wardrobe. Pulling a pair of panties from my top drawer, I headed toward the bathroom.

Turning on the shower, I waited for the temperature to adjust as I got undressed, then jumped in and scrubbed myself quickly under the warm spray, washing away the scent of stale beer and smoke. I was in and out in less than ten minutes. Brushing my hair, I paused in front of the mirror to apply mascara. I was ready for the day.

I grabbed my drink from the kitchen counter and headed out the door just after eight, sliding into my little bright orange Rio, which belonged to my brother before he was murdered. The radio blared to life, causing me to squint from the sharp pain in my head.

I manually searched through the stations to find a song I could sing along to. The presets were all still set to my brother’s favorite stations, which were mostly hard rock. I didn’t feel right about changing them. Settling on a nineties love ballad, I pulled out onto the street, ready to start the day.

I headed towards York New Salem through the winding country road, stopping at a local Hammons gas station and filled the car, which had been showing empty for two days now.  I ran inside to buy a pack of cigarettes and a scratch-off ticket before continuing my trip. 

Cranking the radio, I sang off key, glaring at the car next to me as we stopped at a red light and they laughed at the impromptu concert.  I didn’t care. I swung around a Shafers’ drive through in Spring Grove to get some food before heading to my parent’s restaurant. I loved the drive to work. I was all alone and no one could bother me except for my own doubts and insecurities. The singing helped me keep my mind blank.                 

I arrived a little late and hustled into the restaurant, tying my apron as I made my way across the dining room floor to the kitchen. I ignored my fathers’ shocked expression as I clocked in and immediately went to work on setting up tables. Lately, I haven’t made it to work very often. I knew I laid a heavy burden on my parents and their struggling business, but I had convinced myself they were better off without an angry, bitter waitress swearing at customers. But deep down I knew, any help was better than no help. After Toby had gone missing a few weeks ago, they needed me more than ever.

As I was filling the salt shakers, an old couple came in and sat in my section. I rushed back to the kitchen and started a fresh pot of coffee and grabbed them a basket full of fresh biscuits. It was rare to see an elderly person, let alone a couple. They became easy targets for the Vamps because of their inability to fight them off.

The husband ordered for his wife and they laughed and talked for nearly two hours, before leaving. The rest of my shift was a blur. Couples and families came and went. My feet ached by the time my shift was over and I had, at least, two pots of coffee to myself. I was wired and exhausted at the same time.

The sun was beginning to set as I drove home and I decided to swing by the local pool hall where all of my friends from high school still hung out. I parked by the Paper Mill and made my way into the tiny rundown building on a back alley in Spring Grove. A few familiar faces noticed me and smiled in acknowledgment. I smiled back shyly and made my way to the back room where a heated pool game was in full swing.

Men yelled over the music and accused each other of cheating. Someone threw a pool stick and I ducked as it hit the wall beside me.

“Ezra’s hustling again?” I asked Madelyn, who shot me a wry grin as she tucked her fire red hair behind her ear. “I got next,” I yelled over the commotion. I grabbed a twenty out of my purse and threw it on the table. “I got next!” This time, the guys looked up and nodded, acknowledging my existence. I smiled back and leaned against the wall, watching the game unfold as I tried not to think of the handsome stranger from last night. 

Ezra won, of course, and came over to receive a victory kiss from Madelyn. After a minute or so he looked over at me with a cocky grin.

“Let’s go,” he said, inclining his head toward the table. Ezra could have gone pro. He was the best pool shark I had ever seen, but his love for drugs had been greater than for the game. His once muscular physique was now thin and pale, dark purple marring the skin under his sunken eyes.

I racked the balls and waited for him to break. He did and balls scattered across the table with lightning speed, sinking three. His talent was incredible and such a waste. The bell
above
the door rang as people flooded into the pool hall for the evening rush.

During the day, this place looked abandoned, but at
night,
it came alive. The main room became hushed, and we quickly took notice of a commotion in the back. Everyone grabbed a pool cue and waited to see what was coming our way. Three men walked through the doorway, glaring at everyone in sight. The leader, a tall man, built like a farm hand with dirty blonde hair spoke first.

“I’ve got next,” he said with a slight Irish accent. His lips curled up into a smile, revealing his pointed fangs. Vampires could go undetected if they chose. This act was a sign of aggression. He wanted us to run. No one spoke as they made their way across the room to our table. I shot them a look of utter disgust and bent over to take my shot, sinking a ball.

I had pure hatred for vampires. Ever since their existence came to light, they preached equality while torturing and killing anyone who didn’t bow down and worship at their feet.

I walked around the table, shoving past them to take my next shot. I bent over, taking aim as a hand grabbed my ass from behind. I spun around shoving my cue stick under the vamp’s neck, my chest heaving in fear but I refused to back down. He raised his hands up in mock surrender as he and his friends laughed.

“Don’t fucking touch me, zombie,” I seethed as I turned back around to take my shot, hating that my hands shook.

“Actually, we’re not zombies, friend.” Grabbing the back end of my cue stick, the smile returned to his face.

“Dead is dead and I’m not your friend.” Throwing my cue onto the table, I walking out. I refused to show them any fear, they thrived on it.

I couldn’t take being here anymore. I stomped out toward my car, grabbing a cigarette from my purse, inhaling deeply as I lit it. My gaze found a shiny black muscle car parked several spaces from mine with a driver in the seat. It was exactly the kind of car my father used to drool over when I was little. I narrowed my gaze as I took in the dark haired man in the driver seat, his face obscured by the reflection of the street light on the glass.

“Eva,” Grayson called out as he got out of the car and walked over to greet me.

“Shit,” I mumbled under my breath. I jumped at the unexpected sound of his voice.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you. I thought maybe we could talk.”

“I was just leaving.” Glancing back over my shoulder at the dilapidated building, I took another drag from my cigarette. He finally broke the silence as I opened my car door.

“Want some company?” He asked with forced enthusiasm.

“I think I’m just gonna go home and take a bath. It’s been a long day at work.” I was trying my best to look tired so he wouldn’t press the issue. It wasn’t hard after the day I had.

“Sure, no problem.” He placed his hand on my car door as I slid inside. “Have a safe trip. Call me.” He stared at me as the engine roared to life and an old rock ballad blared over the speakers.

“Sure thing,” I called back over the noise and shifted into drive as he pushed the door closed. I pulled out looking at Grayson through my rearview mirror. I had always thought he was the one. It was disappointing to learn that such things didn’t exist.  Only in fairytales. Then I remembering that things such as vampires were all too real. Life was cruel.