Page 2 of Happily Undead in Dark River

I rolled my eyes in his direction, even though he couldn’t see it, but his words sent heat to my belly. That he’d sense. Life was so unfair sometimes.

We walked across the town square toward Brody’s car. It was a 1967 Chevy Impala. Yep, like the one on Supernatural. Brody was a massive Supernatural fan. I watched it for the storyline. Yeah, that’s it. The storyline.

“I hear you are going on a date tonight with Sheriff Tight-Pants,” Tex said as he slid into the passenger seat and pulled me onto his lap. Not exactly legal, but hey, I was dating all the cops in Dark River.

I shook my head and let out an exasperated huff. “Does everyone know my every move?”

Brody laughed, shifting the car into gear and pulling out onto the near-empty streets. Dark River was a town filled with Vampires who could move around at the speed of light. There wasn’t a lot of call for vehicles when you could run eighty miles faster than a bullet train. Except for Brody’s Impala and Walker’s squad car, there were never any cars on the roads.

Brody turned off the radio and shrugged. “Well, yeah. Welcome to small town life, Rainey. But the Sheriff told us in our group chat.”

I turned to Tex, because let’s face it, if anyone was going to convince them to start a group chat, it was the technologically proficient one in the group. “You guys started a group chat without me?” I stuck out my lip and pouted.

Tex rolled his eyes. “Please. The only thing we talk about is you. It makes it easier to ensure we all get a bit of one-on-one time and other stuff. Besides, you don’t even use your phone.”

I mean, he was right. I hadn’t used my cellphone at all since Walker had given it to me a couple of months ago. Who did I have to call? Everyone who knew I was alive resided in this town, and when Brody went back to Pack lands, he had no cell reception. “Even Judge?”

Tex laughed, and it was echoed by Brody. “Even Judge. It was hard to get him to buy one and let’s just say he is still adapting to the touch screen technology, but he is on board.”

I patted at Tex’s pockets, looking for his phone. “I wanna see.”

“You keep moving around like that, you’re gonna see something else,” he grumbled.

“Oh, haha,” I said, but then my hand skimmed across his hardening dick and he sucked in a breath. Or maybe I sucked in a breath. I squeezed my hand around his cock through his jeans. “Well, this doesn’t feel like your phone.”

Tex looked pained. “I don’t know. Maybe you should put your mouth near it and see if it makes a call.”

Brody was giggling hysterically now, and Tex was saved by our arrival at my cottage. The red door beckoned me home, and every time I saw its black little walls and white trim, I felt so loved. The guys had bought the cottage for me and Tex, I still wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but it had been the nicest thing anyone has done for me. I was slowly decorating the inside, painting the walls and finding pieces of furniture from the surrounding towns.

Brody came around and opened my door, and I slid out from my spot on Tex’s lap, making him groan.

He hopped out, unfolding his cane in front of him. Once he was through my door, he had the floor plan memorized enough that he didn’t need the cane. He propped it on the other side of the door and slid off his shoes.

“Home sweet home,” he whispered. My heart stuttered. We hadn’t spoken about it, but eventually, Tex was going to have to make contact with home and talk to his parents before they thought he’d been swallowed by the Canadian wilderness too. Maybe he needed to go back and visit. The thought of Tex going home made my heart restrict in my chest. What if he never came back? Mate or not, I was asking him to leave behind everything he’d ever known for a life of uncertainty.

Tex was suddenly behind me, pressing my back into his chest and wrapping his arms around my hips. “What are you worrying about, Mika– I mean Raine?”

He was still adjusting to the fact that I was now a totally different person. In all honesty, I was still adjusting, so I could forgive a few name slips now and then.

I spun in his arms and kissed him softly. “Nothing. I better go get ready for my date. Can’t keep the good Sheriff waiting.”

He tilted his head toward me. He knew I was fobbing him off, but he let me. “I think the Sheriff has waited long enough. I wonder if vampires can get blue balls?”

I punched him in the arm, then kissed him hard. “I’ll let you know later?”

Tex was the only one of my lovers that I didn’t have to worry about jealousy becoming an issue, even though he was my Mate. No, that wasn’t true. They all had the capacity to get jealous, probably why they started a group chat, but Tex didn’t mind sharing me inside the bedroom and out.

“Want me to do your makeup?” he asked and I laughed as I headed toward the bedroom. There was an old saying where I came from. Never let a blind man do your makeup.

Chapter Two

When I emerged from the shower, Tex was gone, but Brody was sitting on the kitchen counter with a beer in his hand. He handed me a glass of wine and followed me into my bedroom. He laid on my bed and watched as I went through my wardrobe, probably waiting for my towel to fall and expose my naked ass.

“How did it go with your Pack? Are they preparing for an influx of Vampires not restricted by the Concord in the area?”

He nodded and swigged his beer. “Yes. Some of the old ones remember the time before the Concord. They took the town's warning seriously. We’ll fortify our boundaries, have evacuation guidelines in place. But we trust Miranda’s wards.”

I pulled out lingerie and a little black body-con dress. I hadn’t gone to Ella’s boutique all month, not since Alice’s trial. It felt weird, like I was somehow responsible for Angeline’s world imploding. Angeline needed Cresta and Ella more than I did right now, and she’d known them longer. It was just better this way. I could lean on my guys. Angeline had no one to lean on. Plus, I was a chickenshit and wanted to avoid the inevitable awkwardness.

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