I began to feel nervous. What if I walked in and he was there with another woman? What if he didn’t want to speak with me? I was rethinking the whole idea when the car pulled up to the curb, but by that time it was too late. There outside, leaning against the wall in a pair of faded Levi’s and his signature cowboy hat, was William. It seemed likely he had picked up on my thoughts and knew I was coming when I got within a few blocks of the club. I sighed, realizing there would be no sneaking up on him.
As I paid the driver and stepped onto the curb, my nervousness returned. I’d never really chased a man before, and now I felt my whole life depended on what I would find when I looked into William’s eyes. I glanced up slowly, and was relieved to see he had a wide grin on his face. “Well, now,” he said emphasizing his accent. “What do we have here? Have you gone AWOL from your barracks?”
“No, sir,” I said. “I gave myself a pass for the evening.”
“Allow me to escort you in,” he said.
William took my hand in his and gave it a slight squeeze. He was wearing a plaid flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. The red of the shirt accentuated his tattoos and made his hair seem to shimmer in the club’s subdued lighting. I thought that after we got inside the club he would let go of my hand, but he didn’t. He continued to hold it as he led me through the nightclub and beyond a door marked with a sign that said, “STAFF AND BAND MEMBERS ONLY.”
William greeted a security guard sitting on the other side of the doorway and then guided me along a short hallway to another door. He continued to hold my hand as he led us into a small dressing room. Inside I found his band mates lounging on a couch. They were both smoking; a bottle of Jack Daniel’s with three glasses stacked next to it sat on the table in front of them.
“Cat and Jack, this is Olivia,” William said, pouring whisky into a glass. His band mates both nodded and said hello as if they had been expecting me to show up at anytime. In fact, I could tell from their emotions that they were not the least bit surprised to see me. I was flattered, but unsure if their feelings meant he wanted to see or me, or knew eventually I’d come looking for him. William passed the bottle to Cat and then took a sip from the glass in his hand. I must have looked surprised, because William turned to me and said, “I can drink alcohol and have been known to eat lightly from time to time.”
I nodded, taking the glass from him when he offered. I took a sip of the bourbon and immediately began to cough. I don’t usually drink hard alcohol without something mixed in. William laughed.
“A tenderfoot, I see. We’ll go find you a girl drink at the bar.” He grabbed my hand again and we retraced our steps through the same set of hallways and doors. When we arrived at the bar, William was greeted by name and I soon had a rum and diet coke with lime in my hand. We were standing side-by-side at the bar. He’d ordered another shot of Jack and was slowly sipping his drink while gazing out at the stage.
“I have to go on in a few minutes,” he said. “Will you stay until I’m finished?”
I turned and laughed. “I think the better question is, will you? You have a habit of disappearing.”
William took my hand and focused his dark green eyes on mine. “I don’t plan on disappearing again.” And with that, he bowed slightly at the waist, and turned to walk onto the stage. Not long after, Cat and Jack joined him and, gracefully, they launched into a set similar to the one I had heard in the park. This time, though, I really listened to the lyrics.
I was born more than 100 years ago.
I am one of the oldest souls you’ll ever come to know.
It turned out that William was also a songwriter. Who knew vampires had so many talents? It was one of the few details I knew about him. He, on the other hand, knew a great deal more about me. I guessed that