Page 63 of Little Wing (Shades of Fairhaven #1)

Five years later.

“Thank you for visiting, Books & Bats! We hope to see you again real soon!” I grinned happily, handing over a bag of bookish goodies to a young woman with bright white fangs.

She took the bag from me and hurried over to the cozy seats we had set up closer to the café, where Kait was already concocting another delicious, caffeinated creation.

Once there were no other customers left to check out, I unpinned my name tag and dropped it into the basket we kept on a shelf behind the checkout counter.

My shift was up for the evening, yet as I looked around our bookstore, I could hardly believe that we made it.

Even after three years of being in business, it felt surreal to be part of something that Reina, Kait, and I once only dreamed about.

Everything that happened with Luca made us realize that there was no reason to put our dreams on hold any longer.

After many loan applications, assistance from Silas’s realtor, and many sleepless days and nights, we finally had our little slice of bookish paradise in Books & Bats.

“Hey, bestie!” Reina stretched her arms over her head as she approached me. Five years had come and gone, but the infectious energy that beamed off Reina didn’t fade one bit. Her trademark lavender curls were pulled into tight buns that sat neatly on top of her head. “Heading out to meet Silas?”

“Yeah, I just wanted to say goodbye to you two. I’ll be off for a few days, so I won’t be back until Sylvie Reverie’s book signing next week.”

“Pfft!” Reina scoffed. “We have everything ready, so if I didn’t know better, I’d say you were stalling.”

“Or maybe I wanted another opinion on my outfit?” I joked, giving my friend a quick spin in my green plaid skirt that reached my knees and the plain black short-sleeved shirt I kept slightly tucked in. “Do I pass the test?” I asked, pointing my black Doc Martens in her direction.

“Well, it’s an improvement from the preschool art teacher vibes you had. So, you’re getting there," Reina said with a wink.

Hearing us chatting, Kait peeked over the espresso machine and called us. “Maybe one day Lotus will come in wearing a super grunge band shirt.”

“Like what? A Beethoven world tour shirt?” Reina responded.

I gasped. “How old do you think I actually am?”

“Old enough to know better than to keep your man waiting for you!” Reina shot back before she pulled out her phone from her pocket.

Yes, years had passed, and Silas’s affection for me didn’t fade.

Not even a little. Now, we lived together and existed just like every other couple.

We had our arguments and misunderstandings, but we certainly had our passion.

And that? Oh, that passion showed no signs of cooling off.

For creatures who had all the time in the world, Silas still made me feel like each day was brand new and worth celebrating.

It was just the way we experienced each other, like the hours that we shared together would never be enough.

I loved him .

Before Reina could scold me again, Kait approached us, quickly wiping her forehead with her tattooed forearm.

Since the store opened, I saw Kait shine more and more now that she had the opportunity to oversee the entire café menu.

Maybe this truly was what we all needed.

A place for our passions to shine where no one could dull our creativity with rules and expectations.

“Got any fun plans for your weekend, Lo?” Kait asked, pulling Reina in close to her.

“You mean besides hot vampire sex and vampire dinner that leads to more great sex?” Reina declared even while keeping her attention on the device in her hands.

She groaned and waved her phone in front of us.

“I swear, what I wouldn’t do for a good fuck.

I mean, even Kait is getting some and here I am, still swiping left.

Maybe it’s time for a new app, because this is garbage! ”

“Perhaps a new app is the answer,” I giggled, covering my mouth with my hand. “But regarding our trip. It’ll be nothing fancy. We’ll likely grab some drinks and head to Seattle for the weekend. Silas was scouting a second location for Little Wing, so we decided to make a short trip out of it.”

Once our plans were laid out for the few days that I would be off, I left Books & Bats in the more than capable hands of my chosen sisters.

My life in Fairhaven didn’t start with much color.

For so long I kept to myself, blind to the unity between humans and vampires on proud display wherever I turned.

Then, little by little, I found small nuggets of courage that had me shedding my facade.

Until one day, I found a reason to stand bare-faced and unafraid.

I reveled in the feel of the moon’s glow on my skin. There was no reason to drown myself in envy over missing of bright summers and the warmth of the sun’s rays, not when I felt the same warmth in the gentle tether that tied my existence to the man standing just outside Little Wing.

He was beautiful and gentle, and he was mine as I was his.

As Silas came into focus, I still admired him at a distance.

His sun-kissed skin reminded me of the warmth I felt whenever he kissed me.

His shaggy curls danced across his brows as the fall breeze caressed him, reminding me how much I loved tangling my fingers in them as he worked to unwind me with his talented tongue.

Pushing the sultry thoughts away, I smiled at the sight of the same blue blazer that he wore when I first laid my eyes on him.

“Lo!” Silas raised his hand and met me halfway, wasting little time pulling me into a deep kiss. As if he hadn’t kissed me the same way earlier that night before we went to work. “Hello, gorgeous.”

“Hello, handsome. I hope I’m not too late?” I asked, running my hand down to his, lacing our fingers together swiftly.

“Right on time. I figured you’d chat with the girls. Assuming they’re all good for us to take our trip?” he asked as we began our walk down the street.

“Oh, they’ll be perfectly fine unless Reina finally swipes right on someone and leaves us. Speaking of Reina, she reminded me to ask you if you had any single vampire friends who could sweep her off her feet?” I glanced at him and smirked playfully. “Her words, not mine.”

“I’ll keep her in mind,” he laughed. “But with that being said, you’re all mine this evening?”

“And all weekend, and every day after that, my love.”

“Excellent,” Silas exhaled softly, pressing a kiss to the top of my head as we walked further away from Little Wing, and toward the heart of a little town that saved me. “I know just the place where we can listen to some music and have a drink…”

The memory of our beginning at The Royal Nomad sparked warmth in my heart. “And if we’re lucky, we might even see the performers cry,” I added with fanged grin.