La Luxure: Discover Your Blood Lust Read Online Free Page A

with men and she was completely
comfortable socializing with them. In fact, from time to time, she
was known for channeling her inner construction worker. Clare was
actually the only female she associated with. But the gesture was
thoughtful nonetheless.
    "That sounds fun."
    She smiled at Dave. Maybe she was expecting
too much, but the tarot reader's words buzzed in her ears. No
matter what happened, meeting Dave and his friends at the famous
New Orleans bar not only presented the perfect opportunity to cross
one attraction off her tourist "to-do" list, but also had the
potential to be a very interesting evening.
    * * *
    Julia understood why Pat O'Brien's was such a
popular tourist destination. The courtyard was spectacular: all
brick, with a large fountain, multiple bars, and enough foliage to
make a person forget they were in a completely urban environment.
It was a tranquil escape from the debauchery of Bourbon Street.
Although pretty crowded, the energy was high but not too frat-y,
and at no point was Julia worried about being clobbered by beads or
flashed.
    In spite of the cool temperature, they chose
a table outside. The moment they sat down a waiter in a green
uniform jacket approached their table. Julia stared at the drink
menu. There were pages of colorful drinks displayed in an array of
curvy glasses. They looked good, but were probably far too sweet
for her tastes and had bad hangover written all over them. She
flipped over the menu. Maybe they had a wine selection...
    Wine was usually a risky choice at a bar.
Julia wasn't a wine snob by any stretch of the imagination, but she
did have a few requests. She preferred the wine to come in a normal
sized bottle, it had to have been opened within the last three
days, and her red wine couldn't come out of the cooler or a box.
Although box wines had improved in recent years...
    "Julia? Do you want something to drink?" The
way Dave was looking at her, it wasn't the first time he'd asked
the question. In fact, they were all looking at her.
    "Um, of course." Awkwardly, she fumbled with
the drink menu. She should have made a choice by now. Something
simple, a beer, gin & tonic, maybe a vodka drink...?
    "You'll want a Hurricane," Dave told her in a
'Father knows best' tone. He turned to the waiter. "She'll have a
Hurricane."
    Julia felt her hackles rise. She was pretty
sure she did not want a Hurricane. "Um..."
    "They're yummy," Beth said, leaning towards
her and whispering across the table. Beth was classically pretty,
with long, straight blond hair and deeply tanned skin.
    "Sounds good," Julia agreed with forced
enthusiasm, choking down her snippy retort and blinking away the
dirty look she wanted to flick at Dave. He probably didn't mean
anything by it, and according to her menu, the Hurricane was created at Pat O'Brien's, so as a good tourist, she should at least
try one while sitting in their courtyard. She just didn't like Dave telling her she wanted one.
    "Dude, did you see that stripper on the way
here?" Mike said suddenly. "She had the biggest booty I have ever
seen."
    "I saw her," Beth replied. "I don't think it
was real."
    Mike looked at her incredulously. "What?
That's ridiculous."
    "They have implants, you know." Beth turned
to Julia. "No one's real butt sticks out that far, trust me. It was
insane."
    "So, Julia," Dave interjected, redirecting
the conversation. "Are you staying in the Quarter?"
    "I am. On Conti and Royal. What about you
guys?"
    "We're staying at the Holiday Inn."
    Beth rolled her eyes. "Instead of the
Marriott. I mean, don't get me wrong, the Holiday Inn's okay, but
it's not a Marriott." Julia just smiled and nodded. Sometimes it
was best to keep one's thoughts private. "Is your hotel pretty
skuzzy?"
    "No. It's fine."
    Mike made a grunting noise. "This whole
city's pretty skuzzy. It's okay to visit, but I'd never want to
live here."
    Julia shrugged. "I don't know. I kinda like
it."
    "Not me. I wouldn't want to deal with all
these drunks all the