Free Surrender by Rue Volley Page A

left off, when Lia passed out in the detective’s arms. I slid my feet from the bed and looked at Gemma.
    “I am so sorry,” I said to her and she dropped her head on the pillow and pulled her leopard print mask down.
    “Damn Fay, you sounded like someone was eating you.”
    I reached up and fingered at my neck, almost expecting to feel two puncture wounds left behind by Keegan, but there was nothing. It was really all just a dream. I mean, Keegan was real - my Keegan, I mean vampire Keegan in my book was not . I needed to keep this in perspective or fucking quit writing this book immediately.
    I walked to my laptop and grinned at it, shaking my head and closing it as I stared at the words. I have to stop living in this book, or it needs to stop trying to live in me. I walked to the bathroom and flipped the light on only to see myself all sweaty, as I had been in my dream. I turned the water on and splashed it over my face a few times and then grabbed the towel, wiped my face off and peeked in the mirror. I laughed under my breath as I saw nothing, I don’t know why I even thought that I would. Keegan was not a vampire, he was not the mysterious man in my book, I was not in my book…I was right here and right now. Real and in the flesh.
    I turned to place the towel on the bar and there was a bite mark on the back of my shoulder that I did not see; the quick glimpse of it only seen by the mirror.
    ***
    I walked to the café with the sun still barely streaking the sky. I had my arms tucked into my jacket and the chill just would not leave me. The dream had woken me up at 4:30 AM and the sun would arrive at 6:00 AM on the dot, as usual. I stepped up to the door and reached for it, but a hand beat me to it. I looked up and saw Keegan as he opened it up and I grinned at him. He looked awake, probably much more so than I did. I had taken a shower and everything, but I was still tired. I would have to assume that it was the dreaming. It has to stop; I have so much to focus on this year that this whole thing with the book was starting to weigh on my mind.
    I stepped up to the counter and ordered my usual. Keegan ordered a water and I smiled. There was no reason for him to be here, none at all, except maybe me. I was not sure, but the timing was odd. I walked to the booth and slid in, I laid my head down on the black table top and stared at my feet. I had placed my tennis shoes on and not even bothered to lace them up, but none of it mattered. I needed to drink my pick-me-up and just as I said it, the drink arrived, as well as Keegan who stood behind the girl. She set my drink down and winked at me as Keegan stared at the empty seat across from me. I leaned back and took a drink, waving my hand at it and he sat down as the girl walked away and glanced back at his butt. It was perfect, as was the rest of him.
    He removed his black jacket and laid it on the seat next to him and he had on a black t-shirt. I stared at his arms, they looked as if he worked out and honestly I had not noticed before. I could also see a tattoo peeking out of the bottom of the sleeve on his right upper arm. It looked like hands and I got caught staring a little too long at it. He grinned and pushed it up and I could see the entire thing, which was not small at all. It was a winged girl with her head hanging low. She sat on her knees with her hands before her. The work was impeccable and the drawing itself seemed to pop off of his skin, as if she was real.
    “That is amazing.” I said as I leaned up and he turned a tiny bit in the booth so I could see it better. I narrowed my eyes and studied the detail on the large wings looming above her.
    “It is my fallen angel,” he said to me as my eyes lifted from the tattoo and up into his blue eyes.
    “She is beautiful, where did you get it?” I asked him as I leaned back and he lowered his sleeve and adjusted in the booth.
    “A friend.”
    “Some friend, whoever it was has a lot of talent.”
    “She