Winds of Change (Delphine Rising Book 0.5) Read online

  “Round three, coming up!” I said.

  “Woah girl, slow down… You’re gonna puke and I’m not holding your hair back this time. I love this shirt, blue is my color and I’ve only worn it once,” Danielle shot back.

  “Light weight, bring it on.”

  “Hey, can you add two Rocklobsters to my tab?” I asked the bartender and he nodded, as he sat two more Hurricane’s in front of us.

  As the bartender slid our shots along the sticky bar top, I caught a glimpse of another dark shadow in the mirror in front of me. It flashed across the patio and into the main part of bar. I turned quickly to see where it went, but it was gone. I had a strange feeling someone or something was following us.

  I thought to tell Danielle about what I’d saw, but it disappeared so fast, I wasn’t quite sure what it was exactly. I’d just have to keep my eyes open for the both of us. Knowing my luck, it was another rogue vampire hunting me down for killing his buddies.

  “You can’t be serious. Rocklobsters? You’re such a girl.” Danielle smirked.

  We threw back our shots and took a few swigs of our final Hurricane for the night. I looked past the band to see Danny DuPont standing next to the rod iron railing in a fitted black t-shirt, and jeans that hugged all the right places – he was staring at me. I nudged Danielle to get her attention.

  “Look who’s here. You were right!” I shouted over the band.

  “I guarantee you won’t go up and talk to him. You’ll ignore him like you always do, then bitch about him staring at you later,” Danielle said, looking straight in my face. I took it as a challenge in my somewhat drunken state. I wouldn’t back down – not tonight. Liquid courage was a good thing, right?

  “Wanna bet? I haven’t left this stool all night and my butt’s numb. Maybe it’s time I get up and walk around,” I shot back, arching a brow.

  “On my terms. You don’t say a word – you walk right up to him, grab his shirt and plant one on him like you mean it or no deal,” she dared.

  I scoffed. “What? I said I’d talk to him, not walk up and kiss him... Oh, what the hell.”

  I sauntered my ass across the room, Danny watching my every move – inside I was praying I didn’t stumble over my six-inch, knee-high boots. He stood in the same spot without moving, with his hands tucked in his pockets, when I took hold of his shirt, pulled him toward me and kissed him like I’d been starved for my next meal.

  Surprisingly, Danny didn’t resist – no, he plunged right in, grabbing my head and pulling me even closer, placing his other hand along the small of my back. I was literally melting. No man had ever kissed me like that in my twenty-one years. I was reeling as the kiss continued to deepen and the minutes dragged on. We were in a full on make out session in the middle of a bar. At the time, I had no shits to give, my only thoughts were of the perfect man wrapping himself around me. That was until I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I jumped back, and glared. It was Danielle, grinning mischievously.

  “About done?” she asked, deadpan.

  “Um, hey Danielle. Good to see you,” Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck, and face turning a bright shade of red against his olive skin tone.

  “So, he speaks. I told you, Abby,” Danielle said, nudging me with her shoulder.

  I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me whole. I was mortified. Danielle was embarrassing me on purpose.

  Just wait until you go to sleep tonight, little witch.

  I knew I was a little hammered and could pass my behavior off as a drunken moment – that would be a good excuse to walk away… but Danielle had other plans.

  “Now that you two are finally acquainted, how about you escort us to the Cats Meow? I know Abby would love for you to join us. Wouldn’t you, Abbs?” she asked, with a huge grin splitting her face. I wanted to kick her.

  “Sure, yeah – that would be great, um… but I’m sure Danny has other plans,” I said, smiling sweetly, although my eyes said something else entirely when I looked at her. Paybacks were a comin’…

  “Actually, I don’t have any other plans. I was planning on going home until Abby decided to come say hello,” he said and winked at me.

  Those dimples! How had I not noticed them before?

  “Alright then, let’s get going. This band sucks and I wanna dance!” Danielle charged and took off walking toward the exit.

  “Oh, I closed out our tabs before I rudely interrupted you two,” she yelled over her shoulder, snickering.

  I looked at Danny and the smile he gave me made me weak in the knees – I knew I was in trouble. He took my hand and led me to the door, following Danielle. I didn’t know how I was going to make it through the night without kissing him again – it was like fireworks shooting throughout my entire body. That crap only happened in movies…

  What would normally be a two-minute walk to the Cats Meow, turned into ten as party goers and tourists crowded the sidewalks and street. It was always Mardi Gras around there with women flashing their boobs and men throwing beads from the balconies overhead. If I got asked to flash my boobs one more time, I was going to accidentally flip someone’s drink over their stupid head. As a local, it got old – quick. It seemed like Danny was just as irritated as I was; he was holding onto my hand like we were a couple, of course I wasn’t complaining in the least. Who wouldn’t want that gorgeous, hunk of a man on their arm?

  Women were staring as we walked by and I only smiled, knowing he belonged to me, at least for tonight. Danielle’s dare broke me out of my “Danny obsession” and damn could that man kiss. If we weren’t walking…

  We finally arrived at the Cats Meow and karaoke was going strong; someone with a voice was actually singing for a change. He was singing a country music song I’d never heard of, but his voice was deep and bluesy. I found myself swaying to the music before I realized what I was doing.

  Danielle went straight to bar and ordered our drinks – freakin’ tequila shots again; she was trying to kill me. Danny and I took our seats next to her and she began the count. I was already dying as I had nothing to chase that disgusting shot with. I only hoped that I didn’t gag or puke on Danny – how embarrassing would that be?

  “Bottoms up, ladies,” Danielle half yelled.

  I held it together, searching for the nearest lime on the bar to get that gawd-awful taste out of my mouth. Danny didn’t even flinch, but he seemed to get a laugh out of what must have been my ‘prune face’.

  “Crown and Coke, please,” I asked the bartender, my throat still burning from that tortuous brew. With all the mixing of alcohol, I was sure to be sick. But hey, it was girl’s night.

  After I took a few gulps of my drink to get rid of the tequila aftertaste, I felt better and was ready to dance to whatever – I didn’t care at that moment. Danielle was talking up a nice-looking guy with dark brown hair and green eyes. I yanked on Danny’s hand and moved him to the dance floor in front of the stage. Thankfully, karaoke was in intermission and they were playing something we could actually dance to.

  Danny looked at me and smiled, without saying a word, he turned me around and began dancing provocatively. I had my hands up above my head, moving with the rhythm of the music and slid them down into his hair, bringing his head down to rest on my neck and shoulder. When he started trailing kisses along the sensitive part of my neck, I no longer thought about dancing. I turned around and looked into his ocean blue eyes. I just knew my eyes were probably two glowing, green orbs, but I couldn’t help myself. I felt our magic intermingle and my body took over – I was out of control.

  He leaned toward me and clutched my face in his hands. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, Abby,” and there were no more words as he pressed his full lips against mine. I pulled him closer – he was my oxygen and I couldn’t get enough. I’d known Danny for years, but never had any kind of real conversation with him. If I’d known he felt that way, I wouldn’t have ignored him or whatever game I was playing at. He was everything I had ever wanted in a ma
n and then some.

  When we finally came up for air, I noticed we’d drawn a bit of a crowd – embarrassing. I looked to the corner of the bar and saw Crystal glaring at me. She must have followed us there. Stalk much? I quickly grabbed Danny’s hand and went to Danielle, interrupting her talk with Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome.

  “Sorry to interrupt, but we need to talk. Now.” I said urgently.

  “Hey handsome, it was nice meeting you, but my girl needs me. I’ve got your number – maybe I’ll call you,” Danielle said to her good-looking friend and winked as she pushed him away.

  “What’s up? Where’s the fire?” she asked.

  “Look toward the end of the bar. Who do you see looking like a murderous cow?” I asked her.

  “That bitch. What, is she stalking us now? Because of you and Danny? Isn’t it enough that she tries her damndest to mess with me every chance she gets? She needs to get a life,” Danielle said, fuming.

  “That’s exactly what I said. She had to have followed us here. Danielle, she’s always been jealous of you; that’s why she does whatever she can to get to you,” I said, getting angry, losing my buzz.

  “Danny, did you date her or something? Is that why she looks like she wants to strike me down where I stand?” I asked.

  “No, but the girl won’t take no for an answer. I’ve turned her down countless times. She thinks just because her dad is on the council, alongside my mom, we should be together. I never cared for witch politics, that’s why I’m so quiet at all the meetings. I think they’re bullshit,” he clarified.

  “Well, that explains the green monster sitting in the corner. Do you guys think she’ll be a problem?” I asked.

  “I don’t know. She’s been acting strange lately, hanging out with the wrong crowd and practicing black magic. She thinks I don’t know, but I do have friends who used to date her. Once she started playing around with that shit, they walked away. She has a mean streak, that I do know,” Danny said emphatically.

  “I’m sure her dad doesn’t know she’s messing around with that crap. I don’t want any part of it or her for that matter. She can shove her jealousy up her ass as far as I’m concerned,” I stated, glaring back at her, eyes glowing a dangerous shade of green.

  When my eyes started to glow, my magic was on standby, ready to come forth at my call. I’d be damned if I allowed a little twit like Crystal Davenport try to intimidate me, black magic or not. I was just as powerful, if not more powerful than she was. Little did she know, my family came from a much stronger lineage of witches, we just didn’t advertise it.

  My father died when I was six, but he was one of the most powerful witches in New Orleans, stronger than any of the witches alive today. We had a slight stain in our ancestry – Madame Marie Delphine LaLaurie, locked safely away in a talisman, as long as no one activated it. The coven’s council knew about her, but it wasn’t something we talked about outside the family unless it was necessary.

  Marie Delphine was blood witch who murdered and tortured innocents back in the 1830s. She might be my ancestor, but I sure as hell didn’t want to claim her – she was the devil incarnate. I shuddered when I thought of all the evil things she did when she was alive and walking the streets of New Orleans.

  Chapter 3

  We decided to stay at the Cats Meow for a few more drinks, ignoring our stalker, even though she moved three stools closer. Being the snarky bitch that I was, I took the opportunity to lip lock Danny as we shared a Rocklobster shot. She wanted to stalk me, well I was gonna give her a show. Danielle couldn’t stop laughing. For some reason, she found the entire situation comical – I was still seething a bit that Crystal had the nerve to show herself and try to intimidate us. Apparently, she didn’t know me very well.

  My cell phone vibrated in my pocket – I pulled it out to see it was my mom. Crap balls. I excused myself to the ladies room and told Mom to hang on for second until I could hear her. Unfortunately, Jaqueline Francis Blanque was not one to be told to wait, not by her daughters anyway.

  “Hey Mom, sorry about that. I couldn’t hear you. Is everything okay? Is Liz alright?” I asked, wondering why she was calling me.

  “Yes, Liz is fine. You didn’t call me before you left and I just wanted to make sure you were okay and staying at Danielle’s house. I called Helen and she had no idea. I expect more from you, Abby. You’re grown now and need to start acting like it. Elizabeth looks up to you and you need to set the right example. A phone call takes thirty seconds,” she chided.

  “Sorry Mom. You’re right, and yes we’re staying at Helen’s tonight. Are you sure everything’s okay?” I asked, concerned.

  “We’ll talk about it later. It’s nothing to concern yourself with, dear. Just coven business. Have yourself a good time and hug Danielle for me. Love you, Abby,” Mom said as she ended the call.

  “I will. Love you too, Mamma.”

  I felt like crap. I always called her before I went out, but I’d gotten so caught up in conversation and getting ready, I didn’t think; I simply forgot. My heart sank as I thought about how disappointed Mamma must have been with my irresponsible behavior. I knew she was worried and I should’ve remembered. If anything ever happened to one of us, Mom wouldn’t be able to handle it.

  If I was sober, I’d have probably felt even worse…

  I left the ladies room to find Crystal encroaching up on my man – that girl had balls of steel. Oh hell no! I straightened my shirt, flipped my hair and tried to do my best ‘sexy drunk walk’ as I strolled up to the bar. Danielle did not look happy and neither did Danny. He kept pushing Crystal’s grabby hands away from him, and telling her to go away.

  “Hey babe, is there a problem here?” I asked as I wrapped my arms around Danny’s neck and kissed him lightly on the mouth.

  “Well hello, Crystal. Great to see you again. I’m sure we just saw you at Razoo’s, but I could be mistaken. I was a little busy while I was there,” I said sarcastically and it was Danielle’s turn to spew her drink. By that time, I was sitting on Danny’s lap and had pushed Crystal out of the way.

  “He doesn’t belong to you, you know. He’ll chew you up and spit you out just like he did me,” Crystal seethed.

  “We never dated and I have no idea what you’re talking about. You dated Eric and Scott – at the same time, if I remember correctly. I don’t know what your problem is, but you need to back the hell off,” Danny interrupted.

  “You heard the man. Shoo… Wait – Danny, do I belong to you or do you belong to me?” I asked, with a lopsided grin.

  “Both Abby,” then he kissed me right in front of Crystal and not a small, chaste kiss either; it was a lightning storm come to life. My heart was pounding loudly in my chest and every nerve ending in my body was on fire. I had to break away, we were in public for goodness sake.

  “Well, that got rid of her,” Danielle sat laughing, watching as Crystal stormed out of the bar.

  “Another round of tequila –”

  “No! None for me, a Crown and Coke is fine. Tequila rots your brain – I’m done,” I said, cutting Danielle off.

  “This is our last drink, I can’t handle anymore. If Danny wasn’t holding me up, I’d probably fall. These boots are kickass and cute for show, but suck to walk in when you’re drunk,” I added.

  “Party pooper. Danny, what to do you think? Is it time to go?” she asked, winking.

  He looked from me to her then back to me again. “Um, I’m gonna have to go with Abby on this one. She’s a bit tipsy,” he responded.

  “Fine. You both suck. I’ll close out the tab and we can catch a cab,” Danielle finally relented.

  Danny whispered in my ear that he didn’t want to leave me and wanted me to stay with him for the night. I nearly fell out of his lap at the thought of being alone with him.

  I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been with a guy, let alone spent the night with one. Was my situation downstairs even in order? Oh hell… Why was I even thinking like that? I couldn’
t have sex with him. I wasn’t even sure if this counted as a first date.

  While I was battling with myself in my head, Danny decided to kiss my neck and collar bone. Dear God, I was becoming a puddle of goo. Could I even say no to him? Probably not, but I needed to make sure this wasn’t some kind of one-night stand. I had secretly pined over him for too long to give it all up in one night.

  “Before I answer you – stop that – before I answer you, I need to know something first. Stop kissing me, I can’t think. Intoxicated over here – stop,” I said trying not to burst into a fit of giggles.

  “What is it, Abby?” he asked, way too close to my ear. I could barely concentrate.

  “I need to know that this isn’t just some kind of hookup or one-time deal. I don’t play games and I don’t need a hookup. Like you, I’ve waited for you talk to me for as long as I can remember. I don’t want to screw this up,” I said.

  “Abby, you could never be just a hookup. I’ve wanted you for years, but I thought you hated me – the looks you gave me. Thinking back, it’s kind of funny. I’m glad you made the first move. You’re all I’ve ever wanted. Why do you think I don’t date? It’s always been you,” he kissed me again with more passion than I could’ve ever dreamed of. Good grief we were in public. I pulled away and took a breath.

  “Good answer… Now, we have to stop with the PDA. People are starting to stare,” I whispered and smiled back at him.

  “So, is that a yes or no?” he asked, smiling at me with those sexy dimples I just wanted to lick.

  “Huh? Oh. You mean… yeah, that. Go to your place, right. Where do you live again?” I was stalling.

  “I’ve only lived four blocks from you for the past fifteen years. My parents are out of town right now, so it works out perfectly. I’m moving into an apartment next weekend, then we’ll have more privacy,” he answered quickly and I felt like a moron. Of course I knew he lived down the road. Face palm.