Page 9 of Little Wing (Shades of Fairhaven #1)

W hen I signed on to teach night classes at the Fairhaven community college, I expected to have low attendance and students who were barely awake.

Well, I was wrong. And I could not wait to get out of teaching as a side gig.

Little Wing was always meant to be my priority.

But while we waited for things to fall into place, we still had bills to pay.

I planted myself on the couch in our living room and groaned loudly before opening my laptop to continue my work.

You’d think being an immortal would have some super energy benefits, but no such luck.

In between working on the real estate junk, teaching, and just trying to remain somewhat social for the sake of our business, I was spent.

The fatigue would be worth it , I continued to tell myself.

Little Wing was coming along nicely. The location was still a debacle, but we were holding out hope that something reasonable would turn up eventually.

But the dream, the vision—that was blossoming.

Nearly three hundred years ago, Mateo and I were living overseas under the protection of our maker, Elias, and his partner Camille.

We were in a nest with ten others. We were the eldest, so we had plenty of knowledge passed down to us on how to behave if we ever had to be around humans.

We had our bloodlust under control, something that didn’t come easily to young vampires.

When the treaties were signed, many nests broke apart. Makers left their spawn to fend for themselves, calling this freedom a “gift”.

Sure. Go and be free! Enjoy the gift of living among humans while you also have no experience navigating “life” as a vampire. It was a recipe for disaster.

I ran my hand through my hair at the memory flooding my consciousness. The names of our four siblings who lost their way echoed in my mind.

Eliza, Riley, Javi, Roselyn…

Our sibling’s existence now lived in our memory.

We cemented it into the foundation of what we wanted this community center to become.

Our youngest siblings didn’t stand a chance in this new world.

Young vampires, when given too much freedom at once, could not control their urges.

Not when their drive for self-preservation overpowered everything else.

If it wasn’t starvation that ended them, then it was other vampires who had no tolerance for younglings with no discipline. They didn’t want anyone jeopardizing the treaties that would force us back into hiding.

Mateo and I were matured. But we were forced to watch our family torn apart.

Had Elias extended the same care to them as he did us, then maybe things would be different.

Maybe we wouldn’t have the need for a place like Little Wing, but our siblings weren’t the only vampires who suffered.

Any time I felt my drive for this project begin to waver, I thought of them.

Their faces always flashed behind closed eyes.

Little Wing could become a nest for those who didn’t have one—a found family for those who needed guidance in their new life .

“Your dick broken or something?” Mateo asked. He was finishing buttoning up his shirt. Clearly, he had no intention of spending the night in with me.

I wheezed a laugh before lowering my laptop screen. “What?”

“Don’t tell me you’re going to stare at that screen all night?”

I watched as Mateo wandered to the other side of the couch before plopping down with a grunt.

“Maybe I’ll switch to the TV,” I said with a quick shrug.

“Friday night, brother. It’s okay to take a breather. Quinn and I are done with work, so you better be, too. Pretty sure no kid is going to be waiting for your comments on their essay tonight.”

“Right…” I closed my laptop and moved it off my lap and watched as Mateo straightened his tie. He was more dressed up than normal. “Where are you going?”

“Quinn.”

“Booty call?” I asked, waggling my brows.

Mateo rolled his eyes. “That’s my wife you’re talking about.” He paused before grinning. “But yes. We’re grabbing dinner and then just hanging out.”

“Hanging out,” I chuckled. “That’s what they all say.”

Before he could counter, I yanked my phone off the couch and shrugged once I pulled up the article I had saved on my phone earlier that week.

“Well, there is a bookstore in town that managed to make it onto some list highlighting popular events. Apparently, Sylvie Reverie has another book coming out and Fairhaven’s Black Cat Scribes is hosting a midnight release party. ”

At the sound of the vampire authors name, Mateo jumped off the couch and rushed to smack me on the arm with the back of his hand.

“Ow! The fuck? ”

“Reverie!” Mateo exclaimed. “Shit dude—Quinn loves those books! They’re supposed to be some romantic fantasy books with a bunch of sex.” He rubbed his hands excitedly. “You thinking of going?”

I shrugged. While Mateo spent time with Quinn regularly, I preferred to get my work done and relax.

Though on the nights when I did go out and meet someone, I always kept encounters unattached.

Mateo might have projected his emotions for Quinn, but I never felt an ounce of that for another person.

After glancing at my phone again, I rolled my shoulders and looked at my brother.

“Yeah, I think I’ll go check it out. Want me to pick you up a copy? ”

“Fuck yeah! That would be awesome.” He leaned forward to ruffle my hair.

In seconds, he was already down the hall, clearly eager to get out of the house.

Because the sooner he left, the sooner he’d be in the company of the woman he couldn’t get enough of.

I didn’t blame him, which fortunately urged me to get out of the house as well.

Friday night in Fairhaven was surprisingly busy for such a small town.

Whether it was the book event causing this movement tonight, or maybe I just didn’t pay enough attention any other day, I really couldn’t tell.

In this case it might have been the book event, because it wasn’t long before I began to blend into a crowd of people dressed in capes carrying fake swords.

At least they weren’t running around with fake fangs hanging out of their mouth, or claws that resembled the result of vampiric bloodlust. According to the blurb I read on the way to town, the main character in this new book was a vampire.

Still, it was strange seeing humans dressing up like us, as if vampires were some caricatures.

Halloween was already a spectacle for that reason alone. Thanks a lot, Dracula.

Regardless, the excited chatter from the crowd of people I followed mindlessly made finding Black Cat Scribes very easy.

For a moment I considered heading over to the nearest vampire bar for a drink.

Sure, Mateo would be disappointed that I didn’t get him and Quinn a book, but I’m sure it would pass.

As I teetered between going in and walking away, I stopped to take a quick look inside and—holy shit!

Past the crowd of young men and women waiting patiently for their copy of the new Reverie book was a woman whose hair shined like onyx in the light of the bookstore. The enigma from the human bar. I would have to thank whatever divine power existed for allowing my path to cross with hers again.

I just needed another look, another chance to peek at the woman whose face I wanted to memorize.

Without waiting a second longer, I slipped through the modest crowd to get closer to the excitement.

People dressed as their favorite characters were buzzing with conversation about plots, theories, and their favorite fan fictions involving odd character pairings.

Clearly this was their element. Offering polite smiles, I slithered deeper into the store until I finally settled against a concrete pillar in the middle of the room—my perfect vantage point to observe the elusive woman in her element.

“There you are…” I muttered under my breath. Tonight, finally became interesting.