Double Take - A.J. Cole (classic fiction txt) 📗

met in Murphy’s?”

“Finn.”

“Yeah! That’s the one! And Blaine.”

“That’s a rather odd list, Arissa. What are you curious about?”

She closed her notebook, smirking, as she said, “Well, Reg is obvious. The guy tried to – he’s a creep. I hurt him and hope I get a chance to do more damage one day. But he’ll probably want to kill me now, so what should I do about it?”

“Stay away from him, mostly. We’ll take care of the rest.”

She wasn’t at all sure what he meant by that, but decided not to ask. “My mom is another one. Now that I’ve told her what happened to me and what I’ve become, is there anything else I should do?”

“Not yet, but one day, perhaps.”

“Okay. I can respect that. What about Leander?”

“What about him?”

Arissa, feeling uncomfortable for the first time, looked at the floor. “I really like him, Vlad. But I know it wouldn’t be wise for us to, well, you know. And I like Blaine, too, although not as much. Trouble is, they both seem to like me. And then this Finn shows up and really throws a wrench into the machine.”

“Why not date Finn, keep Blaine as a good friend, and explore the possibilities with Leander?” He stood up. “I find you attractive as well, you know. But even though I could probably compel you to sleep with me, it wouldn’t be fair or right. Not to mention the fact that while the sex would be real, the feelings wouldn’t be. So I’ll leave you alone on that score. In the meantime, you should talk to Leander, see if you two can work this out together.”

Well! she thought. That was surprising! Good advice, but unexpected, especially the part about him liking her. She nodded, agreeing, and thanked him.

“Good.” He put out a hand. “We’re done for today, then. Let me walk you to the door.”

She took his hand, grinning, and got to her feet. “That was some class!”

He chuckled. “You handled it better than most, I must say.” They were at the other side of the huge room now, and he pressed the button for the elevator. “You’re a good student, Arissa.”

She started to thank him, but then couldn’t. He had taken her suddenly by the shoulders and kissed her. He kept kissing her until the elevator door opened, then released her with a casual smile. “Thank you, my dear – I’ve wanted to do that for a long time. I wondered how it would feel and now I know. I promise it won’t happen again.”

She was speechless.

He gestured toward the open elevator, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh.” She stumbled in, unable to stop staring at him, unable to function, until the elevator opened again and she was downstairs.

As she got into her car, she gave herself a mental shake, blinked, and said, “I’m going to hurt him.” With that, she straightened her shoulders, started the engine, and drove home.

 

*******

 

Finn Murphy. Vlad had recommended she try dating him. At the moment, she wasn’t talking to Vlad. In fact, she was avoiding the enigmatic vampire with a vengeance. That didn’t mean she couldn’t take his advice.

Two days had passed since her “lesson” and she’d endured some pretty bizarre dreams as a result, the worst of which involved her mother walking in on her and Vlad in the midst of a steamy tryst in her bed. Like that wasn’t nightmarish enough, the dream continued with the woman suddenly turning into a bright yellow parakeet that fluttered over them, threatening to bite Vlad on the butt with her razor-sharp little beak. As Arissa screamed for the crazy werekeet to leave them alone, the undead bird hovered over them and started scolding her in a disturbing Tweety-Bird voice.

Arissa had awoken in a cold sweat.

But now it was Saturday, she had somehow survived the dreams, and wanted nothing more than to go relax somewhere, maybe try something new. Like a Sidhe. Hmm. And why not? He’d certainly come across as highly interested in her, if memory served. Or not. After all, she’d been more than a touch inebriated at the time. Still.

That afternoon she called Maya and asked if the girl wanted to go with her to Murphy’s. “I know they won’t serve you because you look so young, but – ”

“No, they will. The bartender knows me, and knows how old I really am.”

“Oh! Well, okay, then. Want to go?” She’d already picked out her outfit.

“Er, is there any particular reason for choosing Murphy’s?” asked Maya.

The girl was far too observant… “Yeah. Heh. I think you know why.”

Maya giggled. “He is awfully attractive. I wish he’d been checking me out instead, but I get why he wasn’t.”

“Why?”

“Oh, come on, Riss. You’re beautiful, hot, the right age… I know I’m cute and all, but let’s face it – I’m fourteen in appearance and won’t look older for a long time to come. I’m okay with it, though.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. What time will you pick me up?”

They agreed to head out at about nine o’clock. Nothing too bizarre happened during the earlier hours to put a damper on Arissa’s good mood, not even the very odd phone call from her mother who had said, “So how’s death treating you, dear? Is everything all right?” To which Arissa had replied that yes, things were great. Her mother had answered, “That’s nice,” and hung up. Weird.

She’d chosen one of the outfits that would have sent her family into horrified hysterics – black skinny-jeans, and a dark red top that clung to her curves. It had a sheer yoke and sleeves of fine netting, to which she added the ruby pendant necklace and matching dangly earrings. She put on some rings, a few bracelets, subtle makeup, wound her hair into a messy bun, tucked her feet into strappy black stilettos, and posed in front of her mirror. Satisfied with the overall effect, she grinned and went out.

When she and Maya (who looked lovely in champagne-colored satin slacks and a cream, low-cut top) walked into the bar, more than one head turned in their direction. She ignored the leers and looked around for Finn. At first, all she could see were a bunch of fangs and brooding eyes, a suggestive grin or two, but no one familiar. She was about to give up and try to find an empty booth, when someone at the far end of the bar looked up from a conversation he was having with a woman who was practically glowing with vamp-aura.

Finn.

And every bit as attractive as she remembered him to be. She gave him a quirky smile, shrugged, and headed away for the booths. Hoping that had been enough of an invitation, she and Maya – after navigating past the gauntlet of hot stares – found a seat and got comfortable.

“So what’ll we do if he comes over here?” the younger-looking girl asked.

“I’m not exactly sure. Guess it depends on what he says.”

A waitress appeared beside the table. “Know what you want? Well-drinks are half price for the next twenty minutes, and all beers except those on tap are a dollar tonight.”

“I’d like a sombrero, please,” said Maya. “And before you ask, I’ve been around for over twenty-one years.”

The waitress leaned down and sniffed. “Huh. What are you?”

“What are you?” asked Arissa, surprised by the young woman’s behavior.

“She’s a Sidhe,” Maya supplied.

“Well, I can see she’s a sh… oh. You mean a Sidhe.”

“Like Finn.”

“And you,” said the waitress, “are a… werepire? Really?”

“Yup. Both of us.”

“Ah. And you know Finn?”

“Only for a few minutes,” said Arissa. “We met him the other night, but I only talked to him for maybe a minute or so.”

“More like five before you passed out,” said Finn, sliding in beside Maya.

Arissa felt a blush, shocking herself. “Thanks for the reminder.”

The waitress laughed. “It’s okay. We get that a lot in here. So what’re you having?”

Maya repeated her request; Arissa ordered a gin on the rocks – no chaser this time – and Finn asked if he could get a Harp.

“You’re going to play music?” Arissa gave him a crazy look.

He laughed. “No, princess, it’s a kind of lager beer.”

The waitress scribbled the orders and turned to leave, but turned back and addressed Arissa. “Don’t bite him.”

“What? Oh, right. No worries – I can’t. Not tonight, anyway.” She gave an exaggerated smile that showed her obvious lack of fangs of any kind.

“Interesting species,” murmured the waitress, and left.

“So. Rissa, is it?” asked Finn, leaning a little closer across the table.

“No, Riss, but I like that. My full name is Arissa, so it works.”

“Good. And… Maya?” He said this one more slowly, hesitant.

“Yes!” The girl’s mocha complexion got a teensy bit rosier.

“Well!” Finn sat back. “Looks like I get to spend time with the two most beautiful women in the bar!”

Ah, the glib tongue of the Irish! thought Arissa, who had been around that kind of silly flattery all her life. “And we get to spend time with the hottest Irishman for miles!”

He nodded. “That’s right – you’re Irish, too. So tell me, what brings you two here again so soon?”

“Well, since I didn’t get to fully enjoy myself the last time, I thought I’d start fresh tonight.” She shrugged.

“Glad you did.” He was holding her with his eyes, and she allowed it.

Maya cleared her throat. “Be right back,” she murmured and got up.

By the time the waitress returned with their drinks, Finn had made it clear he was highly interested in getting to know Arissa better. Much, much better. He said he’d been deeply impressed with her sense of humor, intelligence, and, yes, her physical charms that other evening. All this despite her obvious state of incandescence at the time. He was also curious to know what a relationship with a werepire would be like.

“Are you asking me out?” She raised an eyebrow, her eyes never leaving his. She was more attracted to him at that moment than she’d even been to Leander.

“I am.”

“Do you think it’s safe?”

“Can’t imagine why it wouldn’t be.”

He must be right, she reasoned. After all, even Vlad had suggested she date him. “Nor can I.”

He reached across the table and took one of her hands, brought it to his lips, and brushed her palm with a gentle kiss.

Arissa didn’t know if it was his Sidhe nature, or if the chemistry between them had simply been right, but when his sensuous mouth touched her skin, something inside of her caught fire and melted. Suddenly, she didn’t care if Maya had another way home or not. Everything in her yearned to be as close to this Irishman as she could get, as soon as possible, for as long as possible…

A shapely brown arm passed between them and picked up the glass that had been left next to Finn. A sweet young voice said, “Uh, I’ll call one of my friends for a ride home.”

Footsteps were heard walking away from the booth. Music blared from the jukebox on the far side of the room. Loud laughter exploded in a nearby booth. A voice said, “Would you like anything else?”

A moment later, they were both standing, and somehow they were in Arissa’s car. Then, somehow, they were in her apartment and he kissed her again, but this time on the mouth, and her reaction was a million times more intense than it had been at his first touch…

And then it was morning, and Arissa found herself snuggled happily in the embrace of the most amazing man she’d ever known, his deep blue eyes closed in slumber. She kissed his throat, lowered her head and licked gently at the closest nipple.

Finn opened one eye. He smiled and slid his hand down her side…

That afternoon, they finally got out of bed and took a shower. She had not a single question left about what it would be like to date Finn Murphy, the Sidhe who was more a “he” than Arissa had ever imagined.

Nope. Not a single one.