Page 5

Chapter 5

Nova

“ M y name’s Dex.”

Nova kept her hands still despite the urge to do anything else. She glanced up into the shadows again, eyes catching on the man’s white teeth that almost glittered when the light caught on them.

He had sharp canines and wasn’t afraid to show them off.

Vampire?

It was hard to tell with all the smells and noises of the bar. Nova had never come across a vampire before even on hunting trips with her family, and they didn’t have them at the university. It was only witches and hunters there.

Shifters always had a smell, her professors had said. It was a wildness that was difficult to mistake, and once she became familiar with it, she was able to pick out exactly which shifter by the nuances.

Then there were the obvious ways to recognize them. The wolves’ eyes glowed silver, and the large cats glowed gold. Bears were copper, and ravens were a ruby red. But they rarely showed that side of themselves among the humans. Exposing themselves was a death sentence if they were caught.

She dropped her gaze when she sensed his attention, studying his gloved hand instead.

The leather was so tight she could see the lines of his knuckles and fingers as if they were naked. For some reason, the sight of it stretching across his massive hand felt almost obscene.

Nova licked her lips and picked up her drink.

Definitely not a witch. After five years of training alongside them, she knew what they all smelled like, what they all felt like.

So, what the hell was he?

She tried to go through every paranormal she knew that had some kind of fangs, but shifters liked to display them sometimes too. Based on his inclination to hide in the shadows, she wanted to say he was a vampire, but somehow that didn’t feel right.

He still hadn’t asked her for her name, and she honestly had no idea why he even wanted her to sit down. Was this some kind of dominance game that the shifters liked to do, or was he trying to intimidate her?

“So, is Dex short for anything?” she asked, taking a sip of her drink.

Oh, this was good. Most bartenders fucked it up, but the vodka was well balanced with the blackberry liqueur, mixing perfectly with the cranberry juice.

“No.”

She glanced up again out of reflex, and Nova felt her stomach flip.

The shadows were kind to him. They caressed his face, hid his eyes, lingered in his hair and along his shoulders. Darkness looked good on him.

Shit.

She looked down into the purple drink and suddenly felt ridiculous.

A stupid girl with purple hair, her purple drink, and…

Nova shoved down the urge to touch her hair and make sure her eye was hidden.

“And you are?”

“Didn’t think you cared.” She couldn’t help her smirk, even if she wouldn’t look up into his face again.

The shocked silence made her stomach flip again and Nova braced herself for the possibility of a fight. This guy clearly wasn’t used to backtalk.

“I don’t, I’m just being polite.”

For some reason his honesty made her smile wider.

The bar felt warm despite the cold Seattle winter. She reached for her zipper, moving slowly to ensure he didn’t see her as a threat. “I’m Nova.”

She could feel him watching her as she peeled off the leather and settled it on her lap. That attention zeroed in on everything she’d revealed, but the corner of her mouth lifted in a half-smile, knowing he still couldn’t see anything at all thanks to her turtleneck.

Except maybe her mouth.

“So, is Nova short for anything?” he asked, repeating her own words.

It was instinct to look up when that deep voice wrapped around her like a snake—smooth and silky.

That was a mistake.

The darkness slid back ever so slightly so she could see the color of his eyes even though the details were still hidden by shadows. They were a golden brown that looked like molten gold, but they didn’t glow. Those eyes were one hundred percent gorgeous human.

Her heart actually stuttered.

What the fuck was going on?

This was ridiculous.

Nova wasn’t even supposed to be engaging with anyone. She’d been hungry and thirsty from walking through the city and this place had seemed inviting with its arcade and alcohol. A simple meal and she was going to be on her way.

She shouldn’t have sat down, but she’d been curious who the dark figure in the corner had been.

“It’s, um, short for Novalie,” she admitted, feeling embarrassed for some reason. “But everyone calls me Nova.”

He didn’t move, but it felt like he leaned forward. “Which do you prefer?”

Resisting the urge to tuck her hair behind her ear, she reached for her drink instead, letting her eyes rest on his boot.

He sat like a bad boy with no regard for the rules, dirtying the booth bench with his shoes like he knew no one would dare say shit to him. The way the witch’s eyes had widened when he’d told her the drink was on the house – she knew Dex either owned the place, or the witch was terrified of him.

Maybe both.

She shrugged, not really knowing how to answer his question. “I don’t have a preference.”

No one had ever bothered to ask before.

Her sister had called her by her given name, or Lee. Nova loved that nickname, but after Gianna died, she hadn’t let anyone call her that. It just hurt too much.

The silence between them grew until it was thick, but it wasn’t uncomfortable.

She liked how dark the bar was, how it was lit with bright colors instead of normal lights. The glow allowed the patrons to see, but not in too much detail. The darkness was almost warm in here, curling around her feet like puppies.

Nova took another sip of her drink, closing her eyes.

The music pulsed through the bar, something grungy – a rock mix with a beat that teased her to dance. Something about this place hit different than everywhere else she’d been tonight.

It was the first place she felt comfortable, the first place she hadn’t seen a single sign of the paranormal.

Well, until Dex.

She opened her eyes to see him staring at her, the leather straining across his knuckles as he tightened his grip on the vodka bottle. The muscles in his jaw were tight too and she realized then just how sharp it was.

Sharp enough to cut.

He was definitely not human.

Nova almost asked him to play a game of pool with her, but there was an intensity in those golden-brown eyes that told her he wasn’t really one to relax while other people watched.

She held his gaze instead and sipped her drink through the straw until it was gone.

A straw was annoying as hell, but this way she didn’t have to tip the glass back and risk her hair falling away from her face, exposing her eye.

“I should go,” she said, licking the taste of blackberries from her lips. “Thank you for the drink, Dex.”

Nova left the glass on the table and stood, clenching her keys in her left hand. She slid her jacket on as she walked toward the door – not surprised when he didn’t ask her to stay.

But she was surprised when she felt her stomach drop with disappointment as the door closed behind her.

Freezing cold wind whipped off the Sound and she tightened her jacket around her.

She felt ridiculous standing outside the bar as if she were waiting for him to come after her.

Nova knew she was running away. She couldn’t eat wings knowing that dangerous pretty boy was staring at her.

Maybe she could find someplace else to grab a slice of pizza or something.

Then she wrapped the darkness around her like a cloak, fingers sliding through her silver knuckles just in case. She started walking without really bothering to think about where. It was Friday night, she’d find something.

The bar with the arcade would have to wait for another day.