Obsidian (Mystic Stones Series #1) (35 page)

Dorin

I stood in line at the upscale hotel while two busy front desk clerks tried to check in impatient guests. I stood fourth in line and the woman second in line caught my eye. She was a healthy thin with long blond hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. She had bright blue eyes and held her head high in confidence as she patiently took in the aesthetic of the lobby. Meanwhile, I enjoyed the aesthetic of her long legs.

I judged from her black skirt and blouse that she was a business woman. I’d never found a business woman sexy before, but something about her drew me in.

Finally, the man in front of me doing a funny little dance lost his patience and walked toward the bathrooms.

That’s when I first caught the intoxicating scent of the woman in black. I closed my eyes and let the urge to attack her then and there pass. Not now, Dorin.

Now third in line, I had a limited amount of time to make conversation. As I stepped forward, I hit a wall.

She wore only one piece of jewelry--a ring that would make things difficult--not a wedding ring, but something much more ominous. I felt the force inside pushing me away. She acted as if she was unaware of its power over me. Of course the first woman to pique my interest would be wearing a protective ring. My luck was nothing if not bad.

“That’s quite a unique ring you’re wearing,” I stated. I had to test the limits.

She looked up at me with her big blue eyes and smiled.

“Thank you, my grandmother gave it to me. She carved it herself from a seashell,” the woman replied.

The force was even stronger after I made my presence known--it strengthened the wall between us. Not because she was afraid, but because I wanted to taste her blood and the vampire spirit inside the ring knew it. The spirit warned my subconscious mind to stay away, therefore physically pushing me away from her. The fact that I couldn’t harm her because of my curse was the only reason I’d gotten so close to her to begin with. If I wanted to have my way, the ring would have to come off.

The curse was only a small problem. Once she kissed me, she would be mine to take.

The woman finished checking in and it was my turn. I watched as she went out to her car to grab her luggage and I timed it right so that we ended up taking the elevator together. I was careful to stand at the other side of the elevator so the ring would not noticeably affect me. I made small talk--even though such trivial conversation annoyed me to know end--and it turned out we were going to the same floor.

“So, where are you from?” I asked her.

“New York City. I drove down here for a meeting today. I’ll probably stay the weekend and then I’m headed to Miami on Monday.”

“That’s funny. That’s where I was planning on ending up. Well, Miami and the Palm Beach area. I’m taking my time. I don’t want to get there before spring break is over,” he replied.

“That’s exactly why I’m staying the weekend. I want to give the spring break crowd a chance to clear out.”

The elevator opened on the third floor and we stepped out. I let her go first. We walked down the south hall together. Our rooms turned out to be across the hall from each other.

“Looks like we’re neighbors,” I said as I fiddled with the door key--I couldn’t stand plastic cards in place of a real key, but the world changed and I had to do the same.

“Have a good night,” I called.

“You too!” she replied.

Once inside my room, I decided to try out a talent that I had recently developed. X-ray vision wasn’t as simple as peering through a wall. It was more like a bat’s sonar. It took incredible concentration which is something that would end up making me thirstier than I already was.

The ability consisted of simply hearing the sounds in another room and using the reverberations of those sounds as they bounce off objects to get a picture of what was in the room. It worked better if there were a constant noise--like a television. Luckily, that was the first thing she turned on. The channel she selected was a news station.

Aila

When I closed the door to my room, I little butterflies fluttered in my stomach. My ‘neighbor’ was good looking and had a sexy accent to boot. It was an accent I couldn’t quite place, something out of Europe, most likely South Eastern Europe. Refocusing myself, I turned on the television to CSNBC and began to unpack. I filled the drawers and hung my important blouses and skirts.

“Now to make adjustments,” I said to myself as I walked to the alarm clock and set it for seven. Then I turned my attention to the thermostat. It was a touchy touch screen, but eventually I found my nails did the trick. I liked the temperature to be precisely seventy degrees.

I took out my laptop and set it up on the desk. It waited for the moment I needed to do reports. Work on the weekend wasn’t required, but I had work to do before my vacation started the following week. My cell phone charger hung from my suitcase. I plucked it out and set it on the end stand table.

I grabbed my toiletries and headed for the bathroom. The contents of my make-up bag fit perfectly on the counter. Next, I removed my hair brush from the bag and placed it on the counter for easy access in the morning.

The ice bucket was ready to be filled, so I grabbed it and headed to the hallway. Once I opened my door, I was surprised to see the good-looking man was also emerging from his room.

“Well, hello,” he said, “I wonder if you could possibly help me. I was just on my way to the desk. The thermostat in my room seems to be erratic or perhaps it’s even broken. I know you don’t work here, but personally, I think it’s me. Perhaps someone with a better grip on American technology can help.”

“Oh, yes. I think I could help you with that. I was adjusting mine and I found that fingernails make the perfect tool,” I replied.

He chuckled and glanced down at his well-groomed nails, “That would explain it. I have none to speak of,” he said waving his fingers. “Would you mind setting it for me?”

I hesitated. I wasn’t sure about going into a strange man’s room, but the pocket knife in my jacket reminded me I could take care of herself. I smiled and agreed to help him. He opened his door wider to let me in. His room was a mirror image of mine. I found the thermostat and started toying with it.

“What would you like it set on?” I asked.

“Oh, about seventy, I’d say,” he replied.

“That’s funny,” I said as the thermostat beeped at me, “That’s exactly how I set mine.”

He chuckled again. “What a coincidence.”

“Well, I should get going. I was headed to the ice machine,” I said with a smile.

“Of course, don’t let me keep you. I’ll walk you out,” he replied.

I walked into the hallway and glanced back at him. He smiled at me and said, “By the way, my name is Dorin.”

“I’m Aila.”

“Thank you for your help, Aila. Would like to join me for dinner at the steakhouse across the street--as a thank you for helping me out with my troubles?” he asked with a charming smile and hope in his eyes.

My confidence broke and I averted my gaze. I thought I might melt if I kept looking at him. I took a second to think it through.

“That would be nice. I was planning on going there anyway. What time would you like to go?”

“Around seven?” he asked.

“Great, I’ll see you at seven.”

“I’ll pick you up,” he joked.

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2016.

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About the Author

Kayla Curry’s creative mind never sleeps. Literally.

At night, her active imagination produces dreams all night long. It’s those dreams that provide much of the inspiration for her stories which have a little Victorian charm mixed with a fairy tale flair.

Her works include
Where the Carnies Are, Obsidian (Mystic Stones Series #1)
, and many short stories.

She lives in North Platte, Nebraska with her husband and two sons and she plans to keep writing and creating for the rest of her life.