Bloodspell (The Cruentus Curse, #1)(34)

For a Monday, the place was packed. Students from both Windsor and Harland frequented the Black Dog, and it wasn't a surprise that there weren't many free seats in the place. She waved to Charla, Angie, and several of their friends as she walked to the bar. The time passed quickly and the bar was still pumping at midnight with no signs of slowing down. A familiar face drew her attention and she smiled.

"Hi Gabriel, what can I get you?" she said.

"Sara's twenty-one! What's her drink?" Gabriel said, grinning.

It had become an in-house Black Dog tradition during the last few weeks to have Victoria Warrick, bartender extraordinaire, pick out the special birthday drink for anyone celebrating a birthday at the Black Dog. The trick was to predict their choice of drink, and given her abilities, she was unfailingly perfect at it. She rationalized her brief intrusion in their minds with the excuse that they were going to order the drink anyway, so she wasn't really prying, and it was just a harmless game.

Victoria didn't hesitate to place a Sex-on-the-Beach cocktail on the bar, and everyone dissolved into laughter, including Gabriel. It wouldn't have been so funny if Sara didn't run the "Abstinence Until Marriage" coalition at Harland. Out of the corner of her eye, Victoria caught Angie's knowing smile but she ignored it despite her immediate unease. Sara accepted both the drink and the jibes with good humor.

"If I'm going to wait, I may as well enjoy the drink, right?" Sara said with a laugh. "Thanks, Tori!"

Personally Victoria didn't think that Sara was as crazy as most of the other girls seemed to think she was—she hadn't done "the deed" either. Ever since Brett, she had a healthy fear of losing control, and frankly, sex wasn't something that interested her. A fleeting vision of Christian came to her, and she felt her ears grow hot. Well, maybe it interested her a little. Or not! She banished the traitorous thought with a fierce frown. Not with him anyway, Christian Devereux meant nothing to her.

"Whatever it is, I don't think it has much time to live," said a dry voice.

"What?" Victoria said.

"Whatever you're glowering at like it's the devil," Gabriel said.

"No, I'm fine, just distracted about something silly, not even worth worrying about." She smiled brightly at him.

"Well, let me know if I can help. I'm a good listener."

"Thanks Gabe, I will."

"So, can I ask you something?" he asked. "How do you do it, Tori? The drink thing? How do you get it right every time? Is it like ESP?"

"I wish," she said. "I'm only right half of the time really. It's just a logical guessing game based on what they've had in the past." She avoided his eyes and pasted a vacuous expression on her face. He frowned.

"You've been right every time I've been here."

"I'm sure I get it wrong a lot actually, but I think people just play along for fun."

At that moment, Charla and Angie came over to say hello, and Gabriel left after shooting a nasty look at Angie. Victoria was grateful for the interruption. Lying always made her nervous.

The girls ordered two sodas, which Victoria gave them on the house despite a dark look from Tony. Charla was her talkative self as usual, going on and on about her weekend in Boston, and Angie spoke in monosyllables, giving no indication that they'd had more than a civil conversation just a few days before.

In the midst of listening to Charla's breakdown of a guy she had met in Boston at a baseball game, Victoria felt him come in even before she saw him. She kept her face calm—a fair feat, given the fact that her body felt like it was on fire. She was already red-faced from the heat of the bar and hoped that Angie wasn't using her "second sight." She refused to acknowledge him and busied herself serving a round of drinks to the people at the far end of the bar.

Christian Devereux means nothing to me.

Victoria saw him nod to a few people he knew, waiting and watching her openly. She tried to ignore him but his heavy-lidded stare made her feel cornered like she was in some cat-and-mouse game she didn't really understand. He tore his gaze from her lips when she glared rudely at him and stomped down toward his end of the bar. As she approached, she heard his attempt at casual conversation. "I hear there's a birthday special here." She instantly tried to turn around and duck out the back, but it was too late as the chanting began, sung by the overzealous bar patrons.

"Birthday! Birthday! BIRTHDAY!"

"Okay, fine," Victoria said. "Last one tonight though, okay?" She looked at Christian, and fought an involuntary urge to flee. In that single glance, she could see his remorse, but instinct together with the amulet scorching her skin, warned her not to give in. Victoria knew she could not fall prey to whatever lay behind those compelling eyes.

"Stop looking at me like that," she hissed under her breath.

"Like what?"

"You know exactly well like what! Like ... like I'm ... something to eat!" His smile deepened, transforming the austere planes of his face and catching her by surprise.

"Is that so bad?"

"Is it really even your birthday?" she countered, ignoring the question that had started a slow burn in her chest.

"Tori, what happened a few weeks ago, it's not what you think." His voice was quiet, for her ears only. She resisted its velvet undertones.