One last stepping stone for Claire before she leaves her family for good. Thank you, Council, for making our girl choose, even though some of her gifts were thoughtful. Would you have accepted their gifts? Whose do you think gave the best gift to Claire?
The golden rays peaked through the leaves of the trees, the breeze causing the light to flicker through the branches. The clouds overhead were a beautiful mix of deep purple, lavender, and fuchsia.Claire sat on the deck with a cup of coffee in her hands, trying to take in as much of this beautiful, calm scene as she could. Everyone was still asleep in the house. Quinn stayed the night, so they could leave somewhat early. They loaded the cars with the essentials and filled them with gas, ready for the long journey to Chicago. They were hoping to get to the condo at a decent hour, so they could get settled in and try to explore the city before classes started in the fall. Muscular arms surrounded her, pulling her from her thoughts. “You ready for this?” Zach plopped into the seat beside her. She nodded, “yeah. Time for me to spread my wings and all that shit.” They both chuckled while watching the sun’s rays poke through the clouds. He nudged her shoulder, gaining her attention.
Logging out of her computer, Claire turned off her desk light, grabbed her clutch and keys, and shouted, “I’m heading out for the night, Robyn. I’ll see you on Monday!” Robyn, the only other person in the office and her boss, poked her head out of the doorway and giggled. “OOOO. That’s right! You have your blind date tonight. Have fun! And don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” she yelled back. Claire shook her head and mumbled to herself, “there’s nothing that you wouldn’t do.”Robyn stretched her neck to look out her office door. “What was that?”“Nothing! Have a good night!” Claire swiftly headed out the door and checked out her reflection in the glass door. You’ve got this! It’s just a first date. She pumped herself up.Her hair was shorter, about shoulder length, and her black pleather leggings clung to her figure, accentuating every curve. She wore a black leather corset over an off the shoulder white ruffle-sleeved top, simple black heels and, as always, her opal pendant and simp
Lavender and vanilla. The faint scent caused his head to whip around, scanning the room for the source. He knew that smell, even though it had been years since he had been in its presence.From the darkened back corner, his eyes focused on a small group along the wall about 50 feet in front of him. The tall blonde had her back to him, but he could see the two guys she was with: Sean, the werewolf pup, and an unknown brunette, who looked like a pipsqueak next to the wolf.The blonde spun around and waved towards the entrance with a huge smile on her face. His eyes followed the trajectory and his breath caught in his chest.Claire. She waved back to Quinn, completely oblivious to everyone in the room. She made her way to the bar, leaning over to talk to the bartender. His eyes wandered over her form. She had more curves to her body. The leather pants only hinted at that fact. The corset emphasized her hourglass figure and the white off the shoulder top revealed her slender neck, sho
It had been a long time since Claire’s mind wandered to thoughts of Malachy. Sure every once in a while her thoughts drifted to him. The same questions repeated: What was he doing? Was he happy? Did he think of her? Miss her? She waved those thoughts away as they made it to the table. Brady whirled around with a shot glass for Claire when he splash one against the hard chest of Lex. “Oh shit. I’m so sorr…” Brady’s mouth dropped, looking at Lex. “Hhhhii... I’m Brady and you are absolutely gorgeous…” Lex chuckled as everyone else burst into laughter. “Well, thank you. You are exquisite as well. I’m Alexander.” His eyes flashed red for a second before Claire slapped his arm, giving him a warning glare as she mouthed, “watch it.” No one else seemed to notice their exchange. Brady’s face flushed at Lex’s comment and he had to take a drink to cover it up. Having never seen Brady this flustered around anyone before, Claire thought it was adorable. She kept watching them from the corner
Knowing one of them wasn’t going to leave the alley, Claire took a defensive stance as she calmly spoke. “Just leave me alone and go somewhere else. I won’t say anything to anyone. Just leave and hunt somewhere else.” She wasn’t pleading, but giving him a chance to leave on his own accord.“Of course you won’t say anything, human. You won’t be saying anythi... AAARRRGGGGGHHHH!!”Claire ducked as the rogue vampire’s body swiftly slammed into the wall, then slumped to the ground. Another bigger black figure raised his fists and started landing blow after blow into the face of her attacker. Claire couldn’t believe what was happening: another vampire came to her rescue. The mysterious rescuer slowly stood up with his back to her as he straightened his black jacket and ran a bloodied knuckled hand through his hair.She knew that hand...“Malachy?!! What in the actual fuck are you doing here?!” She rushed to his side, grabbed his elbow, forcing him to face her. “Answer my fucking question.
Fresh coffee wafted into her bedroom, awakening her through her nostrils. Rolling over, Claire glanced at her alarm clock: 8am. It was later than she usually slept in, but after last night, she thought she deserved some rest. She padded barefoot into the kitchen to see a shirtless Lex cooking some eggs with Brady watching from the living room. Lex motioned behind him to the coffeepot, not diverting his eyes from the skillet. “Coffee is fresh. Now get a cup and sit in the living room. I’m cooking this morning and I don’t want to hear anything about it.”“Yes sir. No objections from me.” Claire made her cup and sat cross-legged next to Brady on the couch. “I could get used to someone else cooking around here.” The half naked man in the kitchen captivated Brady. Claire waved a hand in front of his face. “Earth to Brady. Come in Brady.”“Oh, sorry. I just can’t believe…”Knowing all too well what Brady was thinking, Claire nodded her head. “Did we have fun last night?” She loved teasing
Blue and red lights flashed. Broken glass scattered across the road, sparkling in the beams of light from the police vehicles. The rain finally stopped pouring as the wrecker came to take the mangled car away. Jack, the police captain, stood looking at the scene before him. The silver mini van looked as if a herd of bears mauled it. Scratches covered every surface of the vehicle. They left nothing but shards of glass to the windows. Dents pummeled down the passenger side. Something had also caved the roof in. The car was a crushed tuna can. His hands caressed the claw marks left on the side of the vehicle, tracing over the tears in the metal. The passengers, a man and a woman, were found yards away and looked as if a cougar had attacked them. Poor souls, thought Jack as he made his way to the victims.He had seen his fair share of death and despair through the years on the force, but this... This was an otherworldly, violent attack. This was…. Bloodshed. “Sir, what kind of animal
“Come on! Kick harder! Watch your left! Your other left!!!” Jack rubbed a hand over his face, his frustration coming to the surface. Claire ducked just in time as Zach threw a punch towards her face. “Two hours of sparring and you are just now coaching me?!” Claire huffed and pushed the flaming red locks out of her sweaty face. “If only you could move as fast as your mouth.” Jack chuckled. He loved seeing how stubborn his daughter could be when she was angry. Watching her train with her “big brother”, Jack knew she was special. After only two years of combat training and weightlifting, she could hold her own in a fight. Claire dodged another kick, grabbed Zach’s leg, and tripped him. She ended her move by sitting on top of his chest and punching him perfectly in the middle of his face. “Fuck sis. That shit hurts!!” Zach griped. Even after 15 years, Jack’s adopted daughter surprised him. Who knew a simple human could get the best of a vampire? Zach was a full foot taller than C