A Vampire's Muse

Chapter 9

I tapped my foot impatiently on the ground, leaning against the wall with my arms crossed, as I waited for my assigned partner to come. The sun was slowly setting onto the horizon, bathing the cobblestoned streets with an orange hue. The children playing tag just a while ago were gradually and begrudgingly retreating into their homes, walking hand in hand with their guardian.

Ordinarily, I would’ve ditched my partner by now and went ahead on my own. However, there was a nagging voice at the back of my head telling me that this assignment was unlike all the others I’ve had before. I wasn’t so stupidly confident that I’d march into unknown territory alone.

“Oh, thank goodness, you’re still here.” I looked up to a familiar voice, and my eyes widened upon seeing Kyle jogging up to me. Beads of sweat trickled down the sides of his face and his breaths came labored as he paused to rest a few steps away from where I stood. “I thought you’d be gone by now.”

No way.

“You’re my partner?”

He grinned. It was his signature smile that never failed to make me swoon inwardly. “I am. Can you believe this is our first assignment together since we graduated from Academy?”

I fished out a handkerchief from my pocket and handed it to him. “You’re acting a little too giddy about this.”

“Thanks,” he took it and began wiping his forehead. Kyle recovered from his run unsurprisingly quick, his breathing now returning to normal. He was even subtly switching his weight from one foot to another, seemingly ready yet again to spring into action. “I apologize. I just like spending time with you, no matter what we were doing.”

I felt warmth creeping up to my cheeks and the tips of my ears. With a playful punch to his shoulder, I attempted to play it cool by chuckling and saying, “You better. I’m your bestfriend, after all.”

“Of course!” He pocketed the handkerchief, his smile dropping. “Anyway, we better get to work.”

“Right.”

“Mr. Morgan told me to come to you for briefing.”

Craning my head side to side, I scanned our surroundings. The sun had fully set and the streets were almost deserted, but it wouldn’t hurt to still exercise caution. So, I held him by the wrist and pulled him along with me in search for a more private space to converse. “Let’s talk where no one can eavesdrop.”

I was hyperaware of our skin touching and how Kyle was still a little bit warmer than usual from his run. I could feel his pulse faintly thumping against my palm, and it disappointed me how the fact that I was holding him had no effect on him at all.

We were instantly swallowed by the shadows once we turned away from the main street and into a narrow alley that housed multiple sacks of garbage and stray animals and abandoned belongings.

“The job is to investigate a certain drug ring operating in the city.”

Kyle’s features shifted, confused. “Investigation? That’s an unusual assignment.”

“I said the same thing.” I let go of his wrist to pinch the bridge of my nose. “Apparently, the monarchy itself ordered the guild to do it.” I wanted to tell him about my suspicions with the assignment, that there might be more to it than the guild was letting on, but I held back my tongue. “Apparently, they’re currently circulating a drug called the Devil’s Breath. It is said to have hypnotic properties.”

“What do we know about this drug ring so far?”

“Mr. Morgan gave me a file, but there was barely anything in it,” I began to explain. “I put in a request for extra funds so we could buy off intel from a broker I know. With the amount the guild provided, perhaps we can bribe him into selling information about the drug ring to us exclusively.”

“Great. We should be heading out now, then.”

We turned to leave, but almost immediately, we heard a door nearby creaking open. Yellow light spilled into the otherwise dark alley before a woman of petite build emerged from the doorway.

Kyle acted much faster than I did—he placed a hand on the small of my waist and the other on the back of my head, stepping in closer to trap me between the brick wall and his body. Then, he leaned in close, tilting his head to make it seem like he was kissing me from the woman’s point of view.

My voice quivered when I whispered to him, “I’m sorry. The restaurant next door had been closed for more than an hour now, I didn’t think people were still in there.”

“It’s fine.”

His warm breath tickled my cheek when he replied, sending my heart to a frenzy in a split-second. We were so close to each other that I could smell hints of his cologne, feel his hard muscles through the fabric of his shirt, and find out that our heartbeats were in sync. Although, mine was more so because I was enveloped by his warmth and his was from the adrenaline. After all, anybody caught chatting away in hushed tones in a suspicious alley was bound to seem…well…suspicious.

“Oh my,” the woman mumbled under her breath after noticing us. Then, we heard her drag what sounded like yet another heavy sack of trash, grunting and panting in effort, before stepping back into the kitchen door. Shortly after, the light was gone and everything around us seemed to fall into stillness.

My heart still pounded dangerously loud against my ribcage, and I grew ashamed at the realization that Kyle must be hearing it as much as I was also well aware of his own heartbeat. The seconds seemed to drag on to eternity. None of us moved. I could barely breathe.

Then, I felt him relax against me with his hands still all over me.

“That was close.”

“Y-Yeah…”

With a slight turn of my head, our lips would touch.

I had clench my hands into tight fists to stop myself from caving into the temptation, and my nails dug painfully into my skin.

“Coast is clear,” he told me.

I blushed and placed my hands on his chest to push him away—or at least that was what I had intended to do. Instead, my hands stayed there, unmoving and loving the feel of the sturdiness of his chest. “Coast is clear…”

He chuckled before sliding his hand to my back, pulling me closer to him. “I keep forgetting you’re a woman now.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“I guess, all this time, I’ve been picturing you as the same meek kid from Academy,” he answered, amusement etched in his voice. The memory made me smile, and I fully melted into his tight embrace. “Now that I’m holding you like this, I’m reminded that you’ve grown up, too. Of course, you did. But I guess it never dawned on me until now. Your body feels…different.”

I didn’t know how to react, so I instinctively craned my neck in an attempt to peek at his face. Kyle did the same thing at the same time, and our lips were a breath apart.

He smiled wider. “Looking at you up close, I realize your face is different now too.”

My gaze remained locked with his as I continued raking my brain for a reply. Just when I was about to muster the courage to swoop in and kiss him, he broke the hug and took a step back. The sudden absence of his touch almost made me feel cold.

“I’m sorry,” Kyle apologized while rubbing the nape of his neck. “Regardless of how close we are, I still shouldn’t be doing things like that. Your aristocrat lover might misunderstand if he sees us.”

I blinked, puzzled for a second before realizing.

Even when he’s not around, Calum Reed was still a thorn on my side.