Bad Blood (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 3) (9 page)

I felt like I needed to pinch myself. As if this wasn’t real.

Dante barely had time to walk in and check it out before I dashed back into the hall.

“Let’s start unloading!”

We were quick to load and unload boxes. Driving across town to the storage unit and back took the most time. When Dante brought up hunger pains and lunch, I told him not a bite until every last box had been moved.

With some Tetris-style loading, we were able to get everything over in three trips. On the third and final run, we returned to find a silver convertible with its top down in the driveway.

Guess my roommate was home.

Dante pulled in behind the convertible. I leaned forward, getting a better look at it.

“My roommate is obviously from out of state.”

Dante smirked. “Give it one winter. She’ll be trading the Beverly Hills-Mobile in for a 4-wheel drive.”

“Or walking to school.”

That was what I planned on doing. Campus was right across the nearest intersection. This location was fantastic and preferable to living in a dorm. My roommate could drive with the top down wearing a bikini in the dead of winter for all I cared. I loved what she’d done to the place.

Dante and I brought in the first of the boxes, setting them in the entry.

“Hello?” I called out.

When no one answered, I shrugged.

“Maybe she went jogging,” Dante said. “I’ll bring in the last of it.”

“Thanks.”

While Dante returned to the Jeep, I looked around the first floor. A big white purse with brown straps and a dangling crown charm had appeared on the kitchen counter during our absence. But there weren’t any signs of a person downstairs.

“Hello?” I called up the stairs.

What happened to the welcome wagon? She had to have seen the boxes stacked by the stairs from the first loads Dante and I brought in.

I grabbed a box and headed up. Once I reached the landing, I set it down and looked around.

“Hello? I’m Aurora, your new roommate.”

I heard movement from the second bedroom. The door was now open, so I walked over and stood in the frame. The walls were painted in a cheerful canary yellow, covered with mixed-media wall art. A slender, petite girl stood at her armoire, her back to me. She had silky auburn hair accented by gold and copper highlights. She wore a jean jacket over a floral skirt… or dress. I couldn’t tell from behind.

“Hi,” I said.

I could tell even before she turned around that she’d be pretty.

I was beginning to wonder if she would turn around. Great, Melcher had stuck me with a sorority snob.

“Hello!” I repeated.

The girl gave a start, reached for her head, and pulled out a pair of ear buds.

That made me start to chuckle with relief until she turned around.

And there she stood. Noel Harper. She might not have black hair or a hoodie, but it was her all right. The friend who had betrayed me.

I hadn’t recognized Noel from behind with the new hair and getup. Even up front she looked different with her smooth, glowing skin tone, soft makeup, and layered hair. She looked like she could be valedictorian or prom queen.

What happened to the corset, tights, arm warmers, and netted skirts she used to wear? Maybe she had a new undercover assignment or maybe—and this was something I did not want to consider—she and Fane were together and love had made her blossom like a god damn flower.

This had to be a mistake.

“Aurora…” she said hesitantly. “You made it.”

Her voice hadn’t changed.

I narrowed my eyes. “Disappointed Marcus didn’t succeed in killing me?”

Assuming Melcher told her about Marcus. He was bound to. The palace was Noel’s territory.

Noel reached behind her back and set her iPod on top of the armoire without breaking eye contact.

“I was shocked when I heard Marcus was responsible for killing Mike… and that he tried to kill you. Aurora, I’m so sorry. I feel responsible for putting you in that situation.”

“Yo
u
ar
e
responsible for putting me in that situation.”

Noel’s lips formed a pout right before she rushed in to plead her case. There wasn’t nearly enough pleading in her voice—more of a matter-of-fact explanation.

A set of bangle bracelets jangled on Noel’s wrist when she moved her arm.

“I want you to know that was a onetime thing and hardly that. I don’t like Fane that way. Never have. He’s a nice guy, but I liked Gavin and when I went to the palace that night, I overheard him taunting Fane, giving him a hard time for getting dumped by you and Valerie, so I stepped in.”

Great, so now I was the bad guy and Noel the champion with a heart of gold.

“All I wanted to do was make it appear like Fane and I were going off together so Gavin would let up and leave him alone.” Noel took a breath that sounded more like a sigh. “For appearance’s sake we went upstairs to the October room. I never meant for anything to happen, but I started thinking about Gavin and I felt so hurt and angry. I don’t know. I guess I was hoping he’d be jealous if Fane bit me.”

In other words, it was worth it to stab me in the back to try and make another vampire jealous. It was only slightly less terrible than hooking up.

I jammed my hand on my hip.

“You could have gone up with any other vampire, but you chose Fane.”

Noel frowned. “I told you, I was helping him.”

“So I saw,” I said. “Your neck was a big help to him.”

Noel had the audacity to look pissed by what I’d said. Her lips curled back. Oh, it was on. I’d waited six long months to have it out with the little bitch.

Before Noel could launch anything back, the front door opened with a bang, closing with slightly less force. The stairs creaked and echoed into the hallway.

“Oh, Aurora, where are you?”

In my agitation at discovering the identity of my new roommate, I’d nearly forgotten about Dante.

“Is it time to break in your new bed?”

Noel craned her head toward the door.

I followed her gaze to Dante when he appeared behind me. He smiled when he saw me, glanced over my shoulder and saw Noel, did a double-take, and smiled wider.

“Harper, is that you?” Dante pushed past me. “Look at you!” Dante walked up to Noel and picked her up. “Long time no see, Minnie Mouse!”

Noel laughed when Dante squeezed her against his chest before putting her down.

That’s right. I’d nearly forgotten that Melcher had paired them up twice. Not only that, but Dante told me he’d bitten Noel on their last mission in Fairbanks as part of a ruse they’d concocted that he was Noel’s vampire boyfriend. Dante had told me it had been Noel’s idea. Of course it had. She had a thing for biting. It hadn’t bothered me at the time, but that was before I’d walked in on her and Fane.

I ground my teeth together as Noel and Dante made pleasantries.

“Dang, looking good, girl,” Dante said, giving Noel the once over. “You undercover?”

No, I’m just a vampire-stealing strumpet wannab
e
, I thought to myself bitterly.

Noel flipped her hair over one shoulder. It had grown back since I last saw her. “I’m trying a new look for senior year. Do you like it?”

“I love it. That’s right. Graduation year. Soon you’ll be joining Aurora and me at the U of A.” He looked around Noel’s bedroom. “You’ve already got a place near campus. Head start. Nice.”

I folded my arms across my chest. “Isn’t this a bit far from West High?”

“It’s not too out of the way,” Noel said. “Besides, I like living near campus.” She smiled deviously. “College boys are yummy.”

Did Noel get a complete personality makeover in addition to her looks?

The saucy grin she shared with Dante brought out the rage in my heart.

“You know what? That’s fine, Noel. Play your little games. Just stay out of my sight.”

I pivoted and stormed out of her room, backtracking toward the kitchen. I needed my purse, my phone, and Melcher on the line pronto because there was no way in hell I’d room with Noel. Great flippin’ way to start my first semester of college
.
Thank you very much, Melcher!

Dante followed me outside, looking utterly baffled.

“What’s up with you and Harper?”

Sure, like I could explain that one. If Fane weren’t a vampire, I could try. Dante was pretty open-minded, but when it came to vampires, there were no gray areas. We were vampire hunters. We killed blood suckers. End of story.

I waved his question off. “We had a fight before I left. It’s not worth repeating.”

Dante leaned in. “It must have been some fight to hold a grudge for six months.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

Dante looked from me to the house. “What do you want to do? You’re going to have to make up sooner or later. You live together now. Maybe this is the perfect opportunity to work out your differences.”

“Not right now,” I said. Not ever. “I’m not in the mood. Can we go to your place?”

Dante nodded. “Of course. My roommate’s home, though. Don’t want him starting in on the noise complaints again.” Dante winked.

He’d picked the wrong time to joke around.

My voice turned to stone. “You know what? Take me home.”

Dante’s face dropped in confusion. He looked past my shoulder.

“To my grandma’s condo,” I specified. I stormed past him and got inside the Jeep, slamming the door behind me.

Dante hurried around the car to the driver’s seat.

“What did I do?” he asked as soon as he’d sat down beside me.

His mopey expression reminded me of a wounded puppy.

I turned in my seat. “You’ve been with a lot of women. I get it. You don’t have to throw it in my face every chance you get.”

I turned away, throwing my back roughly against the passenger’s seat.

I kept expecting to hear the rev of the engine. I didn’t care if Dante gunned it to Gran’s. The sooner the better. I didn’t know why I ever thought this could work. Dante wasn’t boyfriend material. I’d done the hookup thing one time before, and I was never doing it again.