Chapter One

Jake Wills thumbed through the local newspaper, scanning the headlines. When he reached the classifieds, his eyes widened. He lifted the flimsy paper closer to his face as he re-read the advertisement in the middle of the page for the third time.

The ad was reasonably small, but the bold font of the word WANTED in capital letters above the few lines of text was too catchy. Was this some kind of joke? Had someone seriously called and placed an ad in hopes of contacting a real vampire? It seemed like a pretty feeble attempt to him. A suspicious hook that used money as bait would be temptation enough for the vampires in Sydney.

The person responsible for this ad was either an idiot or totally insane. Maybe even both.

He stifled a laugh, didn’t want to draw the attention of the other patrons inside the small coffee shop. Jake couldn’t get over this.

The frail waitress behind the counter offered him a small smile when she met his gaze. The dark circles under her eyes and the dark strands of hair falling out of her ponytail gave away how long she’d been on her feet today.

Jake felt a twinge of pity for the poor soul, and a tug in his gut when a smile spread along his own lips. He kept the smile on his face, but disregarded everything else. The undeniable pull of attraction toward this waitress was getting harder to ignore.

“Thanks for the coffee,” Jake said, pressing his feet to the linoleum floor. He left a twenty dollar bill beside the untouched cup and offered her a wink. He motioned toward the newspaper still in his hands. “Don’t mind if I take this, do you?” Jake turned to leave when she gave him a disinterested shrug.

“What about your change?” she called after him. Mary—her name tag was pinned to her uniform collar—always asked him the same question. No matter how many times he popped in here.

Jake made it a habit to leave behind large tips for her. It was a shame that he couldn’t force himself to make their acquaintance a little more than just that. She was cute, certainly his type.

He sighed. Maybe one day...

“It’s not change. It’s a tip.”

“Ah...thanks.” The smile on her pale face deepened. This time, it looked real, even if it didn’t quite reach those dark eyes as she headed toward the cash register against the back wall.

“Thank you for the newspaper.” Jake removed the whole classifieds page, folded it twice and slipped it into his jacket pocket. There was either a desperate loony in Sydney, or someone dumb enough to place a vast call out for danger.

His boots tapped against the linoleum floor as he headed toward the door. He pushed it open and wrapped his coat tight around his body as he stepped out into the cool night. A chilly winter breeze played through his hair. For someone who’d been undead for so many decades, Jake still occasionally forgot how cold winters could be. He was thankful that at least it didn’t snow in Sydney, though with the constant changing weather patterns, who knew?

And if that ever happened, he’d move to a tropical island.

Hell, he should’ve done that a long time ago. Why did he stick around here anyway? Okay, maybe because a tropical island wasn’t the most ideal location for a vampire to set up home.

Jake sighed as the cold air slapped his cheeks with a vengeance.

He stuck around Sydney because it was easier to punish himself this way. To visit her gravesite at least once a week and place new flowers near the headstone. Apologize again, like he had every other time he visited throughout the last thirty years. Or he could try to fool himself into believing that his work was what kept him in Sydney. Taking care of scum was a fulltime job.

Jake breathed in the cold night air into his lungs as he crossed the narrow road. The streets were narrow in The Rocks. This historic inner-city suburb was also a popular tourist precinct, and looked as if time had forgotten it in most places. It was why he enjoyed the time spent inside Cuppa, the out-of-the-way coffee shop that attracted so many customers.

He stopped for a second and craned his neck to stare at the tall buildings that towered into the sky not too far in the distance.

One way or another, he would find the idiot who placed the ad for a vampire. He’d contact his boss and take it from there.

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