Nightshade: Kiss of Death (Book #1)

Chapter Two: Dark Dreams

The rest of the day is a blur of curious tourists and some towns people wandering in and out of the door. My mind some how made it's way back to earlier when I saw those eyes- those bright jade eyes- watching me as if analyzing the very way that my muscles moved. Who was it? I know for a fact that I've never seen anyone with that intense of a stare. The bell to the door chimed, knocking me out of my daydream and regaining my focus on the new customer. Time seemed to speed up as my shift hours passed and soon I'm being picked up by Mads in his navy blue Chevy Camaro. 

"Where we headed to now, the library or my house?"

I chucked my skateboard to the backseat with my bag and huffed, "Your place definitely. I know your parents miss their other child."

Mads' bright smile lights up the space between us as he laughs at my small tease. The Whites have been more of a parent role to me than my aunt has, and for it I'm grateful. Hell, they practically treated me as their long lost daughter. They welcomed me with open arms as soon as Mads and I became friends, now I even feel more at home with them than in my actual house. 

"Yeah my mom was asking where her daughter went when you stopped coming over all of the time. She hasn't been off my back since then. 'Mathias, you're home! O-oh, no Vivian today? Where has my girl disappeared to?'" He fake mocked his mom in a not-so-girly attempt of sounding like a lady. 

"Whoa buddy, might want to work on your falsetto a bit."

He glanced over at me and gave me a look, "Oh please I could totally pass for a girl. Shave my legs, put me in a dress and wig, and give me boobs- I'll be set! Wouldn't even be able to tell it's me."

I made fake gagging sounds, "That was not an image that I wanted in my mind."

We laughed together for the rest of the short ride and within minutes he pulled into the driveway of a beautiful two story house. No it wasn't one of those Martha Stewart, white picket fence, cookie cutter homes that you see in magazines. The house was painted baby blue with a darker blue trimming, while the door was pure mahogany. I smiled as I stepped out of his car and made my way to the front steps, but before I could even knock the door swung open revealing a beautiful woman. Her face was all sharp features that were framed with light silky blond hair that fell in waves. From a distance she would seem hard and maybe even a little cold, but I knew her better than that.  A bright, familiar smile beamed at me as her soft blue eyes looked me over. 

"Vivian, sweetheart we missed you so much! Where. Have. You. Been?" Mrs. White, or Aideen as she likes to be called, demanded in a light hearted tone as I was engulfed in a hug.

"Yes, where have you been? We thought you had finally gotten fed up with Mathias and his pranks," another voice says from behind Aideen and I almost burst from the amount of happiness in my chest. As soon as she let go I moved to the right to see into the house. My smile grew as I saw a tall, lean man standing in the hallway with pitch black hair and pale, almost silver, gray eyes. I  had actually thought that he was Mads' older brother when I had first met him. His face was, well still kind of is, young which made it seem like he held the secrets to the fountain of youth behind those grey orbs. Mr. white was always a mystery to me, of course that was then and this is now. His face has aged some, but those eyes still hold secrets that I have yet to unravel.