Sleeping With the Entity (13 page)

“Anything you care to talk about?” Pat asked, taking a seat across from Nick’s desk.

“No.” Nick’s voice was curt.

“You know, the fact that you’re investigating Daniella’s background made me realize I don’t know that much about
your
background. You never talk about it.”

“That’s right.”

“Why?”

“I’m not a chatty guy,” Nick said.

“Understood. But you’ve been here in Vamptown, what … five years now?”

“Six.”

“And before that you were in…?”

“Seattle and Boston. You know this already. You know the history of everyone in Vamptown. Human and vamp.”

Pat shrugged. “That doesn’t mean I remember it all. The other vamps have talked about how they were turned, but you never refer to it. I know about Neville’s boss and about Bruce’s circus owner. I even know more than I really want to about Tanya’s biker boyfriend who turned her so she’d stay forever young. But you…”

“It wasn’t exactly the highlight of my life,” Nick said.

“Yet it forever changed your life,” Pat noted quietly.

“It forever changed my afterlife.” Nick leaned back in his chair and fiddled with a gold letter opener showcasing a large bloodstone. “You know that wars are a big recruitment time for vamps. The Civil War here, the War of 1812 in Europe, the two world wars, Korea, Vietnam. The vamp population grew with each one.” He paused, keeping his eyes on the letter opener. “I was a British officer in the Battle of Waterloo under Wellington. It marked the end of Napoleon’s reign in France, and it was the end of me. I was hit in the back. The cannonball went clear through me. I don’t remember much after that beyond the stench of blood and the moans of the mortally wounded as we all lay dying on the battlefield. I heard a woman’s voice asking if I wanted to live and I said yes.” Nick could still remember that moment as if it were yesterday. He hadn’t realized the ramifications of his reply. “She was a vampire named Magdalene and she turned me.”

Pat gave him a thoughtful look. “Do you regret that?”

“I don’t do regrets,” Nick said curtly, dropping the letter opener onto his desk. “They are a waste of time. End of discussion.”

*   *   *

Daniella’s dreams that night were filled with sex and rejection. One was so real and detailed, it felt as if she was living it. She was offering herself to a man she cared deeply for. Removing her clothing as he sat before her, she was filled with nervous anticipation. Every movement shifted to slow motion. Each button of her shirt was undone with her trembling fingers while he watched.

The process seemed to take forever. She kept her bra on but removed her black skirt and stepped out of it. She was left wearing a matching lace set of tiny panties and bra.

Moving closer, she parted her legs and straddled him. She was so damn nervous as she reached out to unbutton the top button of his white shirt.

“Not now,” he said.

She sat there frozen for a moment, suddenly realizing they were alone in a classroom and the door wasn’t locked. Was he a fellow student or a teacher? She wasn’t sure. She only knew that she had to get out of there ASAP.

“You’re right.” She scrambled off his lap and grabbed her clothes. She didn’t even bother putting them on before heading for the door. She pushed it open and peered out to see if the coast was clear. She couldn’t let him see how much his rejection had hurt her. She’d burst into tears if she stayed a second longer.

“See ya,” she tossed over her shoulder before scurrying out into the hallway, terrified someone would see her in her underwear.

Daniella woke with tears streaming down her face. She had to get up and make a cup of hot chamomile tea to settle her nerves. While she was awake, she Googled the meaning of underwear dreams.
Underclothes may represent your hidden attitudes and fears. If you dream of feeling ashamed at being seen in your underwear, this may indicate an unwillingness to reveal your feelings.

Reading on, she saw that the color of her underwear in the dream could also have meaning. She was sure it wasn’t white. She thought it was black, which could represent dark thoughts. No kidding. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out.

Since it was one in the morning, she went back to bed but didn’t get much sleep after that. It seemed like she’d barely closed her eyes when the alarm went off for her to go bake more cupcakes. She went on autopilot—shower, coffee, downstairs. In the shop she almost forgot to turn off the security system. By the time Xandra joined her, Daniella had the music cranked up. They were all edgy songs intended to keep her awake. “Radioactive” by Kings of Leon qualified.

“You okay?” Xandra asked.

Daniella just nodded and kept mixing the batter. She was too busy to think for several hours after that, which was fine by her. When she did have a moment, she brooded over the cupcake blogger instead of brooding about Nick.

What if Cupcake Q-tea hated Daniella’s cupcakes? She wasn’t even sure who she was or what she looked like. She only knew that the blogger had come to the opening yesterday and would be posting her review soon.

When Suz stopped by later in the afternoon, Daniella said, “I have a feeling something is up. I’ve just got all this pent-up anxious anticipation that I just can’t seem to get rid of.” She shook her arms like a sheepdog shaking off water.

Xandra was in the front of the shop, taking care of customers, so it was just Suz and Daniella in the work area.

“It’s just nerves from the opening,” Suz said. “And about the blog. I should have checked with you about that first.”

“No, it’s more than that. This feels personal.”

“Like your store isn’t personal? It’s your baby.”

“I know,” Daniella said. “I can’t explain. It’s just this weird premonition I’ve got.”

“Does it have anything to do with Nick St. George?” Suz asked.

“There could be a connection, but it’s bigger than he is.”

“Really?” Suz’s perfectly arched eyebrows lifted over the edge of her multicolored glass frames. “So you already know how big he is?”

“I didn’t mean that literally,” Daniella said.

“So you two haven’t done the deed?”

“No! I haven’t even known him that long.”

“You’ve known him long enough to make out with him.”

“I am not discussing this here.”

“Fine. I’ll bring a bottle of wine and pizza to your apartment tonight and we’ll talk then.”

As promised, Suz showed up at Daniella’s apartment. Not only did she bring wine and pizza but she also brought a surprise. “Special delivery,” she called out the minute Daniella opened her apartment door. “Keep that open,” she told Daniella before calling over her shoulder. “You’re almost there, guys.”

Two buffed and burly Vin Diesel look-alikes came into her place. But it was what they were carrying that really got Daniella’s attention. “Your chair! The one I love from your office.”

“It’s yours now,” Suz said. “They don’t make it anymore or I would have gotten you a new one. Where do you want it?”

Daniella pointed to the reading alcove near the window. “There.” She jumped into the chair the moment the men set it down. “It’s like it was meant to be here all along.” She snuggled into it. “Mmm, perfect.”

“The chair or the men?” Suz murmured so only Daniella could hear.

Daniella just grinned and kept quiet.

“Anything else you need, ladies?” Vin number one asked.

“We aim to please,” Vin number two said.

“No, we’re good,” Daniella said.

“Thanks for the tax help,” Vin number one told Suz.

“No problem,” she said. “You guys take care and I’ll see you soon. Thanks again for the help with the chair.”

“Was it rude not to invite them to stay for dinner?” Daniella said.

“I can call them back up if you want.”

“No, I’m really beat. I’m not up for company tonight.”

“What am I?” Suz said.

Daniella hugged her. “You’re my BF, not company.”

“True.”

“I can’t believe you’re giving me your chair.”

“Consider it a congratulations gift for your successful grand opening. Besides, I’m redecorating my office.”

“Again?”

“It’s been over a year.”

“That long, huh?” Daniella teased her.

“Shut up and eat your pizza. It’s extra-thin crust with mushrooms and black olives just the way you like it.”

Just the way she liked it … sort of like kissing Nick. His mouth blended with hers just the way she liked it. More like the way she loved it. Or the way she craved it. The way she could easily become addicted to it if she wasn’t very, very careful.

So that’s what she’d be from now on. Totally careful. Which was why she refused to answer Suz’s questions about Nick and instead changed the subject. After several attempts, Suz got the hint and let it go.

Daniella wished she could let the memory of Nick kissing her go as easily.

*   *   *

“You. Me. Flash mob. Brilliant,” Xandra said, just about bursting with excitement as she bopped into the back room of Heavenly Cupcakes a week later. Xandra didn’t glide or meander. She bopped. Daniella wasn’t sure how else to describe her employee’s energetic movements. She radiated energy like those extreme-sport people she’d followed in the Rockies. “For our first week we sort of worked the kinks out. Since then we’ve stayed mentally strong and just sort of chilled out.”

“
You
have, maybe. I wouldn’t say I’ve totally chilled out.”

“Which throws a bit of a variable in,” Xandra acknowledged. “But now we’ve got a flash mob. And not just any flash mob. A ‘Thriller’ flash mob. At noon.”

“That’s in an hour.”

“I know. I am totally stoked.”

“You’ll be working here from noon to five,” Daniella reminded her.

“And for a few minutes I’ll be working the flash mob. There will be a big crowd, and they’re going to be hungry after dancing to ‘Thriller.’ That’s why we give them coupons for cupcakes. I printed these earlier.” She waved them at Daniella. “I take video at the flash mob with my phone and put it up on YouTube where it goes viral. News crews come to the store. You change your Killer Chocolate cupcake to Thriller Killer Chocolate. If they buy three cupcakes, they get a fourth one free. Only for a few hours.”

“Do I have to dance in the flash mob?”

“No. I’ve seen you dance, and no offense but…”

Daniella grinned. “I like dancing when few people are watching instead of a crowd. And I don’t have time to learn the steps to the dance in ‘Thriller.’”

“I know them by heart,” Xandra said.

“You weren’t even born when the song came out, were you?”

“My mom loved that CD, and she taught me the steps,” Xandra said. “So do we have a plan?”

“It appears we do,” Daniella said.

“It appears we do what?” Lois asked as she entered the shop.

“Xandra is participating in a ‘Thriller’ flash mob.”

“It’s at the city park two blocks away,” Xandra said. “Today at noon. The word is continuing to go out on Twitter as we speak.”

“How many people are coming?” Lois asked.

Xandra shrugged. “Who knows? The more the merrier.”

Noticing the frown on Lois’s face, Daniella said, “Is there a problem?”

“Parking is already hard to find in this neighborhood. I’m just worried about crowd control,” Lois said.

“It’s only for a few hours. It will be good to get some new blood in the neighborhood.”

Lois’s face went blank, making Daniella wonder what her employee could be thinking.

*   *   *

“‘New blood in the neighborhood’?” Nick repeated in amazement.

He and Neville were in the Vamp Cave watching surveillance video live from Heavenly Cupcakes.

“I’m just verifying that Daniella doesn’t know we put hidden cameras in her bakery last night,” Neville said.

“It’s a cupcake shop,” Nick corrected him.

“Right. So that makes it okay to spy on her without her knowledge?”

“It’s not like we’ve got cameras in her shower or bathroom. In fact, we don’t have any cameras in her apartment. Yet.”

“What do you think Daniella is going to say when she finds out you’re spying on her?” Neville asked.

“I’m doing it for her own good. And ours.”

“What are you going to do about the flash mob ‘Thriller’ thing?”

Nick pointed to another surveillance display. “They’re already gathering in the park.”

“You can’t compel an entire crowd.”

“I know that.” Nick sounded as irritated as he looked.

“I bet they’re in costume under all those trench coats.”

“Halloween is only a few days away.”

“Wait a minute,” Nick said. “Can you zoom in on that tall one there? We’re not the only group of vamps to figure out how to deal with sunshine.”

“Especially when it’s a gray and cloudy day like today.”

“That’s one of the vamps that tried to accost Daniella in the alley behind her shop.” At Neville’s amused look, Nick said, “What?”

“
Accost
. It’s not a word you hear that often.”

“So Daniella has already informed me.”

“Where are you going?” Neville asked.

“To tell that vamp that he’s not welcome at this flash mob.”

Neville pulled up the vamp recognition app. “His name is Andy and you can’t fight him with that many witnesses.”

Nick gritted his teeth, which was painful for a vamp. Especially one who was already angry. He could feel his fangs emerging. But Neville was right. Nick couldn’t make a scene. Which no doubt was what the outsider vamp was counting on.

“You could join them if you know how to dance to ‘Thriller,’” Neville said.

Nick glared at him.

Neville shrugged. “Okay then. Not a big Michael Jackson fan. You probably only know how to do some dance from the early nineteenth century, right? Mozart, maybe?”

Instead of answering, Nick frowned at the sight of the crowd of people who had dumped their overcoats and started gyrating. “Where do they learn to do this stuff?”

“Online.”

“They look like a bunch of zombies,” Nick said in disgust.

“With an overabundance of eye shadow,” Bruce said as he entered the Vamp Cave. “Oh, a ‘Thriller’ flash mob! I wish I’d known about it sooner.”