we'll figure things out."
Lucky laughed but it was a bitter sound. "Figure things out? Honey, I've got forever to do that." She headed down the hall.
"Oh, Lucky."
"Yes?"
"I brought you something from the shop." I held out a gently used leather hobo.
"You're kidding." She grabbed the strap and looked inside. "It's a knockoff."
"Oh, well." I followed her down the hall. Oh, yeah. There was my reward, empty and ready to go.
"You won't change your mind? I'll pay you-"
I held up a hand. "Nope. Taking money for saving your life would be tacky. But this"-I stroked the Birkin bag's supple leather and smiled-"this is, um, appropriate."
"Aw, Glory, have a heart. A thousand bucks."
I just smiled and strolled toward my bedroom, Lucky right behind me. I tossed Lucky a pink gown. Lucky looked it over and wrinkled her custom-made nose. "Take this. Flo sleeps raw."
"Nylon? You are determined to punish me, aren't you? I like silk teddies."
"Sorry, Lucky, but you were saved by an ordinary working woman who just happens to be vampire." I smiled. "I have a few silk teddies, but I save them for special occasions that don't include sleeping. And I'm not punishing you, though you have complicated the hell out of my life. By the time you hit the sheets, you'll be dead to the world and what you're wearing won't matter."
"Dead?"
I heard Lucky's plaintive wail as I headed for the bathroom. Maybe I should have stopped to explain, but what was the point? Roll out the coffin, vampires are as good as dead during daylight hours. I heard some thumps that sounded like Lucky's boots hitting the wall in Flo's bedroom.
Valdez hopped on the foot of the bed and gave me a sympathetic look. "Relax, Blondie. You did the right thing. Lucky owes you, not vice versa."
"Thank you. But maybe I should have locked up all the knives in the kitchen. If she wakes up first and isn't all that happy-" I couldn't finish the thought; the sun was coming up and with it oblivion.
I woke up with a start. Just after sunset. Sometimes it's like that. Other times it takes me a while to get moving. Lucky. I nudged Valdez off the bed and got up. I was coming out of the bathroom when Lucky grabbed my arm.
"Is . . . Was Damian really Casanova?"
I laughed and pried off her fingers. "Maybe, maybe not. But nobody's better than Damian at fantasy." I headed for the kitchen, Lucky on my heels. "Sleep well?"
"No dreams, which is a bummer. But I woke up thinking about Damian and, um, sinking my teeth into him. Is that sick or what?" Lucky staggered to the couch and collapsed, my pink nightgown a tent around her.
"Perfectly normal. Feeding is erotic with the right guy."
"Are you and Damian, uh, involved?" Lucky wiggled her bare toes, which were painted scarlet.
"No way, no how." I handed her a Fangtastic and sat across from her. "I warned you, Lucky. Damian is bad news." She sagged back against the cushions. "Of course he is. I have a history of falling for the wrong guy. But forget him. For now." She took a swallow and groaned. "This is disgusting. Is there only one kind of fake blood? There's got to be something better than this."
"Sure there is. But the rare ones are expensive. This is a fairly common blood type." I have a thing for AB negative, but it's not in my budget. "And there are other brands."
"Hey, I'll kick in if you want to order something better. It's the least I can do while I'm staying here." Lucky gave me a searching look. "But why don't you just drink from, what do you call them, uh, mortals? I don't mean kill or anything, but Damian says you can drink enough to satisfy the urge and not leave a person on the verge of death." Damian says. Like he was her go-to guy for everything vampire. "Listen, Lucky. Damian is a very ancient vampire. He has tricks that you've yet to learn. You can't just go around drinking from mortals. You want to start a vampire-hunting frenzy?"
"No, but Damian said you can fix it so they don't remember what happened. Even erase the fang
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