Page 68 of Loving A Vampire Is Total Chaos

I stifle the moan that wants to come out when I bite into my burger and flavors burst on my tongue. The meat is perfectly cooked to my liking and not too greasy. All of the toppings flow together seamlessly, and the fries are delicious too.

“This was a great idea.” I point a fry at Ava, and she nods in agreement.

We finish our meal in relative silence, both enjoying our food. A certain someone is mysteriously gone but I still feel his eyes on me. I don’t think I could miss the heat of their gaze if I tried.

Ava’s phone rings as we’re winding down and she holds the screen up to her face with a sigh. She hesitates answering, but rolls her neck and scoots out of the booth. Flashing the screen to me I see Spencer’s name and understand. I nod at her, and she walks away to chat with him.

While she’s gone, I take the chance to clean up our table a bit. Stacking our plates and wiping up crumbs I neatly place them on the corner. Customer service jobs in any capacity can be tough, and I try to help the workers as much as possible when I can.

I’m shocked when Ava slides back into the booth minutes after her phone rang.

“That was a short conversation,” I marvel, and look up, only to find someone who is very much not Ava sitting in front of me.Unless Ava grew a few feet, dyed her hair red, and sported a set of fangs.

“I can’t leave a lovely lady like yourself unattended.” Zavier picks up my water and strategically places his lips on my lip gloss prints on the edge of the glass. His green eyes bore into mine and I fight the shiver that comes over me.

This man.

“Are you trying to move out of my apartment already?” he remarks, and I internally sigh. Of course he overheard that. “I know what you’re thinking, and I promise I try to tune out your conversations to give you privacy, but I’m a vampire and we hear extremely well. Ava’s loud so it was hard to miss.”

Free of his apron I see Zavier’s full outfit of a black tee under a gray flannel. The contrast really brings out the color of his hair and eyes.

“I just feel bad I’m all up in your space, and don’t want to intrude that’s all.”

Zav’s eyebrows wrinkle at my statement and he reaches across the table to grab my hands which I’m wringing in front of me.

“Celine. I promise you are not a burden in the slightest. I’ve been alone for hundreds of years and now I have you.” His eyes soften and I melt a little. “I love waking up to you in my apartment. I love hearing your soft snores through the door. I love learning what I do that makes you roll your eyes. I love seeing how wild your hair looks when you walk out of the bedroom in the morning.” That one earns a flick on the hand from me and a chuckle from him. “Please don’t think you’re a burden. You’re a light in my life.” A small stroke on the top of my hand. “Well, Midnight comes first and then you.” He winks and I purse my lips.

Zav pulls the check out from under the table and sets it in front of me. When I open it, it says it’s already been paid for.

“On the house.” He disappears in the next breath before I can look up.

Freaking stalker vampire.

CHAPTER 31

CELINE

Ava came back not long after Zavier pulled his disappearing act, so did the waiter he “relieved of his job”. She seemed somber and her eyes were ringed red, but she smiled and waved me off when I asked if she was okay. Her and Spencer finally talked about her feelings on the matter and were going back and forth on what to do. They love each other but Spencer sees his life in California with his promotion, and Ava sees hers here. While I think Spencer is a great guy, I fully support my best friend and any decision she makes on the matter.

Heading to Detective Waters office, the one who’s been handling the case where the girl went missing after being at Vex, I raise my fist and rap my knuckles on the door frame.

She looks up at me with a soft smile.

Pin straight blonde hair falls around a heart shaped face. Fairly new on the team, Detective Stephanie Waters has so far shown that she’s a kind and caring person. I can tell there’s something off about her today, though.

“Hey, Brennan.” She waves me inside, and I have a seat in the vacant chair in front of her desk.

“Was there confirmation of disappearance?” I reach for the file folder she extends. “Thanks for keeping me in the loop on this one.”

“Of course.” Her vanilla lotion scents the air. “Yes, unfortunately we found her.” She sighs and I know what that means. “She wasn’t alive when we did.”

Flipping through the crime scene photos I take it all in. A body fully intact, unlike my serial killer, but with cuts and bruises all over her body. Her legs, arms, chest, neck, no spot was left untouched, and I cringe at what the girl had to do endure.

“Poor thing. What did they do to her?” Squinting I see grass around the body. “Where did you find her? It wasn’t near Vex?”

Detective Waters leans back in her chair and spins slightly. “Oddly enough we found her because of an anonymous call very early in the morning. She was found in Millenium Park. Thank goodness we got to her before the general public to keep down on the panic.” She shakes her head in disbelief and I’m sure my face reflects a similar expression. “Nothing tied her explicitly back to Vex like her friend said. We double checked the businesses surrounding the club after you did and talked to Vex employees themselves. Nobody saw anything, but a bouncer did say they saw her with her friend out front, not that that’s much to go off of.”

“Anything on the cameras to prove a kidnapping?” I ask glancing up at her.

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