Page 2
Chapter 1
Stone Haven, Pennsylvania
Weddings sucked.
Scratch that.
Attending a wedding solo sucked. Toni actually liked them otherwise, mostly because they were an excuse to dance. And in the itty-bitty town of Stone Haven, Pennsylvania, the only place to dance was the Jazz Hall, but good dance music was not regularly on their schedule. Although her kitchen made a perfect dance floor, it lacked a certain something in the ambiance department.
As she waited for the best man to finish his toast, which had turned into a rambling story about his drunken escapades with the groom, Toni spun her wine glass around and around by its stem. Finally, someone had the sense to take the microphone away from him, and the emcee announced the couple’s first dance. Toni snuck a glance across the table at Birdie and Uncle Jim, who were watching the bride make her way to the stage with a good deal more interest than she felt. Birdie’s smile was so genuine, Toni vowed to at least pretend to enjoy herself. The mother of the bride, an old friend of her aunt’s, cried as the couple began swaying to a top ten pop song.
A cute couple. And a fine venue for a wedding. The Lakehouse was a highly rated restaurant along the second-largest man-made lake in the state. Decked out in white fairy lights, inside and out, the restaurant looked especially charming that evening. How much must it have cost to rent the place for a night?
Likely more than she made at the shop in a year. But whose fault was it that, even working two jobs, she likely couldn’t afford a wedding here?
No one’s but hers.
“I’m grabbing a drink,” she whispered to her aunt. “Want anything?”
Birdie shook her head, still enthralled by the dance. Her uncle’s drink, a soda, sat full in front of him. Might as well make use of the designated driver. Toni stood, pulling down the black and gold lace dress that had ridden up her legs, and downed the last of her wine.
The indoor bar was closer, but she found herself walking toward the pop-up one on the deck. Toni pushed open the door and breathed in the fresh mountain air. She really should get away from town more often. While The Lakehouse was only twenty minutes away, it was nestled between the State Game Lands on one side and residences on the other, providing an ideal view. During the day. The same mountain range that graced the outskirts of Main Street back home rose high into the night sky, though only shadows were visible in the dark.
“Pinot Noir, please.”
While the bartender refilled her glass, Toni looked down to the docks below and watched the pontoons and speeders sway each time a wave made its way toward shore. Despite the hour, boats continued to roam the lake. During the summer months, Stone Haven and the surrounding areas were popular with tourists, something townspeople bemoaned but were secretly proud of.
“Thank you,” she said, taking her newly filled glass.
“You work at Ye Old Curiosities,” said a woman next to her.
Toni tried to place her.
Nothing.
Remembering people was not one of her finest qualities.
“I do,” she said, her tone polite. “I’m assuming you’ve been there before?”
“Once. It’s a cute shop.”
“Thanks,” she said, accepting the compliment on behalf of her aunt and uncle. Although she’d worked at the shop for years, she was only an employee. Birdie and Uncle Jim were the ones who’d made it their life’s work, selling everything from antiquities to novelties, the more eccentric the better.
“You can practically believe vampires are real when you go in there,” the woman added with a smile.
Toni couldn’t help but smile back. Part of her wanted to shock the woman by revealing the truth—vampires were real, and two of the originals had just moved to Stone Haven.
“Nice wedding,” she commented instead.
“Extremely,” the woman said as she waited for her companion to get his drink. “Do you know the bride or groom?”
Neither, actually.
“My aunt is good friends with the bride’s mom.”
Toni knew the mother well enough, but the daughter had been sent away to boarding school as a young girl. She’d only come home for holidays and summer vacations, so their paths hadn’t crossed often.
An odd thing, sending your kid away. Her parents had both been career-driven and ambitious, but they never would have considered such a thing. Shaking away the thought, she smiled at the quirky woman and stepped away.
