“Do you have a boyfriend? I heard you tell Stan you had one. That was smart, but it won’t dissuade him forever. I learned that the hard way.”
I looked over at her as she ate her ham sandwich. “Do you want to tell me what he did to you? Or what he’s still doing?”
She shook her head then shrugged. “He just annoys me. I don’t let him get me alone. Once, he backed me in a corner, but that was just the one time. His uncle is the mayor, so they could get me banned from working anywhere in this town. He told me as much. Anyway, I just wanted to warn you.”
I knew the feeling. “My mother had me blacklisted at home. I couldn’t work anywhere they could see me out front. It really sucked. I bet something could be done about Stan, if you wanted that.”Maybe vampires could feed on him?I didn’t even wince at the thought. Maybe I was a little bit dark. Somehow, I was fine with that possibility.
“Enough about Stan. What are you doing tonight? I know some fun places to hang out and drink.” She smiled broadly. “If you really don’t have a boyfriend, there are some cute boys around sometimes. Well, maybe not cute, but good looking enough for one evening.”
I swallowed at the thought of the death sentence it would be for any poor one-night stand. The same guys who might handle Stan if I asked them would certainly break all the bones of any human I dated, not that I wanted to hook up with anyone else. I had great sex, a lot of it.
“I’d love to have drinks sometime but maybe just to hang out and get to be friends or whatever. I have almost no experience with that, but my boyfriend is real. And he’s a little bit scary, actually. Not to me, but maybe to Stan or anyone else who tried to mess with me.”
She took another bite of her sandwich. “I’m jealous. I want a scary boyfriend who could make things hard on people who are mean to me.”
“Oh, you don’t want anything to do with the baggage this one carries around.” I could be speaking about any one of the vampire boys, that much was for sure. “Besides, you’ll meet someone. Plus, you should get out of here. I like you. I’d like to be friends, but I’m a big believer in getting out of places that don’t make us feel wanted. Life’s too short, you know? I spent years trapped in a box of my mother’s creation. It’s not perfect here, but it’s so much better for me.”
She nodded. “Someday maybe I’ll leave this small town and go to another small town, and for whatever reason, it’ll feel better to me, too. For now, how about Friday? Want to hang out Friday if tonight doesn’t work?”
I wasn’t working tomorrow at all. Then half a day on Thursday and Friday. I could probably make that work if I told the guys I wasn’t going to be there when they rose. They were going to have to get used to my coming and going a bit. At some point I’d be in school, too. They might not even mind that much, it would certainly free them up to go back and forth more to their compound. And I’d make sure everyone was fed the day before and get Tanner speaking as soon as I came home.
“I think that should work.” I really hoped it would.
* * *
I ate and showered by the time the guys started to rise. My hair was still a little bit damp, but only Ace was hungry. I knew it before any of them even opened their eyes, so my radar clearly extended itself to also cover him.
I sat on the edge of the bed, watching Caesar’s eyes flutter open. He blinked, reaching for where I lay when he fell asleep before he realized I wasn’t there. A second later, he sat up to pull me to him in a tight hug.
“Hi.” I hugged him back. He was always the first awake. With his head pressed against my forehead, I wasn’t sure it was even an accurate description. Maybe he just started to come back to consciousness. It was ridiculously adorable, but I was pretty sure as a vampire he would strongly object should I use that word.
Finally, he lifted his head. “Hi,” he answered. “Good day?”
“Good day.” I nodded. “I worked. Getting the hang of some things, making friends with a coworker. It’s good, so far.”
He squeezed me again. “That’s good. I’m gonna go shower. Then, since Ace is here and likely not to be sending out a text demanding everyone’s presence immediately, we could go look at the creek behind the house. I’ve still yet to see it.”
“We can do that, if you have a flashlight. My eyes can’t see in the dark like yours do.”
He kissed my cheek. “My phone has one. Yours would, too, if you’d let me buy you a new one.”
“Nope.” I kissed him back.
I’m going to look at a creek with a vampire.Those were not words I could even have imagined thinking a month ago. Griffin stumbled in the room and sat down next to me on the bed. “I’m sleeping next to you tonight. They’re all pushy about it, but it’s past being my turn. I’m reserving a space.”
Griffin picked me up in his arms and I let him squeeze me. They were clearly changing. It wasn’t just me and my strange ability to handle blood loss. No way would Griffin seek me out for a hug even days ago. I couldn’t say I minded—maybe I was getting used to their vampireness, and maybe they were adapting to me, too.
“Okay, sounds good.” I kissed his shoulder. “Sleep okay?”
“Think I had bad dreams, actually, not that I can remember them. Vampires don’t remember dreams, but I struggled past a general sense of ugliness when I rose. It’s passing. How was your day?”
That sucked.“I hate bad dreams. My day was okay. I’m off tomorrow, so I can actually sleep in. That’s something to look forward to. Then I have to study.”
His eyes widened. “You could study tonight. I’m good at it. I was as a human, and I carried that trait through transition.”
“Not tonight. I worked today, so I just want to, I don’t know, dootherthings. Caesar said something about looking at the creek.”
Griffin tilted his head. Maybe the idea was just a little bit too human for him. “Is he worried it’s going to overflow?”