© Vampires Love Garlic 2026 by Ashley Chapman. All rights reserved.

40

The Road Leads Back to You

McKenzie

I was amazed by her ability to take over my kitchen for the vampire meeting at my house.

Floored when I saw what she did to my basement.

But this… this…

Speechless.

No words.

The iron gate at the very beginning of the drive up to the mansion is functioning properly. The gravel road, a good mile starting from the gate and going up to the roundabout in front of the house, is white gravel, brilliant and shining in the moonlight. Massive trees line both sides of the path, all the other brush trimmed away, making for a truly spectacular view.

The house itself, as it comes into view, is glowing with porch lights, shining across a massive porch that will be perfect for gathering and removing coats and jackets. Ferns hang from the blue porch ceiling. Heather told me haint blue is an important color in Savannah. It’s said to keep evil spirits away. Maybe it’ll do something to vampires, too. Fat chance, but here’s to hoping.

Heather opens the elaborate front doors, and I step into a complete transformation.

The floors. Heart pine. Leading into what was once a massive ballroom with small, broken rooms alongside. Now, it’s still one massive room, but she’s taken out several of the small side rooms. She explains that there’s a bathroom and sitting room on either side of the ballroom, but she wanted the walls as open as possible, giving complete access to the ceiling-to-floor windows that stretch across both sides of the room.

There are pillars, shining as they reach from the first floor to the second, and I can see their matches rising from the second floor to the third. She’s made this room almost into an atrium, with railings encircling it from the second and third floors. The ceiling isn’t disgustingly high, because this house is from hundreds of years ago, but the glass panels in the ceiling, showing off the night sky, accompanied by the crystal chandeliers hanging down, make it feel like there is no ceiling.

There’s still the grand staircase at the far end of the room, and it’s much grander than anything I could have imagined. I listen to her talk about how there are just a couple of rooms open on the second floor, available for guests to sit and visit. The third floor, she explains, was basically the attic, so there isn’t much up there, just some storage areas.

She pulls me into the kitchen, and it’s a fully functioning, massive kitchen that will serve perfectly for caterers and all our needs for the gathering.

“I’m going to wrap magnolia and gardenia garlands across all the railings and columns,” Heather says, looking up into my face expectantly. “There will be couches and tables all throughout the main floor. The ballroom is big enough to have plenty of room for dancing, even with furniture scattered throughout. We’ll also have a dance floor out on the back lawn for overflow. We’re just working on the very last details. I’ll be coming in tomorrow to add more decorations and start narrowing everything down with Marquis. What do you think?”

“I don’t know how you did it.”

She blushes and bites her lip.

“Marquis did more than I did. He organized all the workers and made sure things got done.”

“I know Marquis, and he’s great at managing, but he wouldn’t have brought this place back to its roots. You’ve turned a run-down haunted mansion into the Queen of Savannah. Mayor Richardson’s going to lose his mind when he sees this. I’m already losing my mind. The glass in the ceiling.” I point. “You’re bringing the heavens down. The furnishings you’ve chosen, the meal I know you’ve prepared… it’s all amazing.”

“I hired Homeless Joe and some of his friends to make party favors. Each table will have assigned place cards with a piece of Savannah origami next to them. They’ve been working on flowers, ships, and…” She blushes again. “Bats.”

I laugh and pull her in close.

“Let’s just hope everyone has your sense of humor,” I chuckle into her hair.

“I’ve managed to gather a bunch of the street musicians together. They’ll take care of the music. The meal is completely Southern. Oma and other ladies have been putting together peach cobblers and Mississippi mud pie, and we’ll have pralines galore. I still have some things to work on, but it’s all coming together. Your party is going to be glorious, Kenzie.”

She turns in a circle, pleased, then takes my hand.

“Let me show you the back porch. The best part is in the back.”

I don’t believe I’ve ever seen her so excited. She’s jogging with me to one of the side doors, pulling me as though I’m not moving fast enough. I can feel her energy pulsing through her hand into mine, and I find myself looking forward to whatever it is she’s showing me. She pulls me through the door, onto the wraparound porch, and to the back of the house.

There’s about a quarter acre of short, brown grass behind the mansion’s back porch, and just beyond that is the Savannah River. There are only a few old oaks and some Spanish moss blocking it from view.

“If the weather behaves itself,” Heather says, squeezing my hand, “it’ll be around sixty-five degrees with clear skies. Everyone will see the stars reflecting off the river. It’ll be chilly, but gorgeous. I’ve made sure we’ll have plenty of portable heaters, the kind with pretty grating and flames, since I know vampires tend to be cold. This will be the prettiest location for the whole party.”

“It already is.”

Bleh. Cheesy line, but I made her blush.

“I know you aren’t leaving Savannah, Heather, but I think you’re going to have to leave the café. People are going to see this and want to hire you for their events. You realize that, don’t you?”

“This is just fun for me,” she says easily.

“You’re a time traveler, and you know how to bring everyone along with you.”

“I’m just happy you’re here with me.”

Crickets are singing. Frogs are chirping. A gentle breeze is rustling through the cattails at the river’s edge, making them hum. The water is rippling softly. I couldn’t have made a more romantic setting if I tried.

“Dance with me,” I say, pulling out my phone and scrolling through it.

“Now?” she asks.

“Now. Before the party starts, when no one else is here. Just us and Savannah.”

I press play, set my phone on the porch railing, and offer her my hand as the opening strings of “Georgia on My Mind” stir hauntingly with the glorious night.

“We haven’t danced since the engagement party,” she says quietly.

“No tormenting you this time to get information.”

“You were terrible.”

“I was horny. You gave me an excuse to satisfy it.”

“Oh gosh,” she says with a laugh.

“Dance with me, Heath.”

She nods and places her hand in mine. I pull her in close, my free hand finding the small of her back, pressing her against me. She is soft and yielding, not fighting the pull, molding to me like we’re two pieces of the same puzzle. She rests her cheek against my chest, letting me move her to the crooning of Ray Charles and the melody of the night.

There is no fancy dancing here. There is no audience. There is only us.

She has become so much more to me than the cute little barista. So much more than the chef in my kitchen nightmare. She has become a part of me.

We haven’t had sex, though Lord knows I’ve been burning for it. We’ve showered together three times, fallen asleep together five. I’ve had the restraint of a saint, not looking at or feeling those gorgeous breasts when the opportunity’s come up. I should get a medal. We’ve hardly had time for any good makeout sessions.

But even without physical bonding, she’s in my blood.

Even without a bite, she’s stolen my heart.

“I love you,” I whisper against her hair.

She looks up at me, tears in the corners of her eyes.

“You do?” she asks.

“Every beautiful part of you.”

I lean down and kiss her. Soft and sweet, everything poured into one touch, until I just can’t resist. I part her lips with my tongue, taste her, mold her even closer to me as she places her hands to the back of my neck and strokes her fingers through my hair.

Nothing but us, Ray Charles, and the sweet, sexy, surrendering Savannah night.