She gave him a small smile before focusing on the crowd again. Dante pushed out the door and stepped into the fresh spring air. The chatter of people strolling the sidewalks and the noise of the establishments lining the street were usually calming to him. He grew up in this city, it was a part of him, and he thrived on the noise and chaos that sometimes provided a distraction from his troubles.
Tonight, he found no respite from them as he walked toward his apartment. He’d just left her, and he didn’t want her going to any of the vamp clubs with him, but he couldn’t wait to see her again.
Chapter Eight
Cassidy felt like a nervous kid on their first day of school as she maneuvered through the crowded Boston streets. The coffee shop wasn’t far away, and every step filled her with dread and excitement.
What if he isn’t there? What if he is?
The questions played on an endless loop in her head as the coffee shop came into view. She’d been to it a couple of times with Aida before her friend became Julian’s mate. Although, Aida sometimes occasionally still bought herself a cup.
What if he was there and left already?
This was another possibility as it had taken her more time than she anticipated to get out of her apartment. Kyle and Julian had parked themselves on the couch to play video games. Except, instead of ignoring her like they usually did, they paused the game to interrogate her. Most of the time, she loved her overbearing brothers; tonight, she’d contemplated choking them.
It hadn’t helped that it took her two hours to figure out what to wear. When she wasn’t working, her wardrobe usually consisted of jeans and whatever band T-shirt or sweater she happened to toss on, but suddenly casual wasn’t right, and she wanted to be a little sexier—something she had never wanted to be before.
She had nicer button-up shirts and black pants for work, but her work clothes weren’t sexy, and she’d prefer not to wear them outside of work. She didn’t feel like wearing her faded, old T-shirts either.
This level of uncertainty wasn’t something she was used to, and she hated it. However, she couldn’t stop herself from pawing through her drawers over and over again, even as they repeatedly yielded the same results. In the end, she settled on a formfitting, black, long-sleeved shirt and her favorite pair of jeans.
The shirt wasn’t exactly thrilling, but at least the jeans hugged her ass and legs in all the right ways. She vowed to do some shopping one of these days, but as she was thinking it, she knew it was a lie.
She far preferred to spend her money on more frivolous things like rent, utilities, and the blood they bought from the hospital every month. The man who supplied them was a vamp who worked in the hospital and had a side hustle going, but he charged a fortune. She could feed on humans to save herself money, Kyle did, but the couple of times she did, it felt weird, so she stuck to blood bags as much as possible.
Before leaving her room, Cassidy pulled her hair into a ponytail, tugged on her boots, and laced them up over her jeans. Tugging on her olive anorak jacket, she tucked a couple of stakes into the inside pockets. She never left home without them.
When she inspected herself in the mirror, Cassidy didn’t know if she looked like the vamps who hung out in the underground clubs or not, but she didn’t think she’d stand out like a sore thumb. She debated makeup but decided against it in the end, mainly because she didn’t have the time.
It was ten minutes to six, and she was already cutting it close when she finally left her room to encounter her brothers. She almost groaned when they paused the game and turned their attention to her. They only had a couple of nights a week off from Addy’s, and she usually spent them whipping their asses at whatever game they picked out.
“Where are you going?” Julian asked.
“For a walk.”
Kyle glanced at the clock on the cable box. “At this time of night?”
“Why not? It’s beautiful out.”
She didn’t worry they would offer to come with her; they wouldn’t pry themselves from the couch until Aida was almost finished with work, and then Julian would go to meet her.
“I’ll see you guys later.” She opened the door and rushed out of the apartment before they could question her further. She wasn’t lying to them; she was going for a walk, but if they kept questioning her, she might have to lie or tell the truth, and she wasn’t sure which would be worse.
Cassidy had fled her building but kept herself restrained from running to the coffee shop. She was already feeling out of sorts enough without arriving sweaty and a little breathless.
Still, her hand shook as she reached for the door of the coffee shop. Is he here? Did he leave? He didn’t ask for my help, but would he stand me up? Was it considered being stood up if he never agreed to meet?
She hated the rapid-fire questions rolling through her mind and the fear making her mouth feel like she’d been chewing on cotton balls. Self-doubt wasn’t often her companion; she had to have a fair amount of confidence to sing in front of people, but her confidence had taken a hiatus at the worst possible time.
No, she would not allow this neurotic mess to become her normal. If he was here, then great, but if he wasn’t, she would deal with it. It wouldn’t be the end of the world, it wouldn’t break her, and she would stop second-guessing everything, including her clothes.
With that resolve firmly in
