Bright Things

Chapter 19

Mismatched

**

I had waited for Sookie in the jacuzzi after telling her to hurry back… but I waited, hoping her impatient fuming would subside, until I was nearly waterlogged.

I gave up completely when I felt how close Lynn was.

I found Sookie and Jason in the room that would eventually be Maguire’s. She was holding the end of a tape measure for him while he went on and on about lumber and stain and hardware and assembly.

Sookie gave me a desperate look and mouthed ‘kill me’ when I stopped in the doorway…

“Congratulations, asshole. You’ve successfully cock-blocked us… Lynn’s on her way back to the house.”

Sookie growled and released the tape measure, letting it whip Jason’s hand.

“How long I been up here?”

“An hour.” Sookie and I had growled in unison, making our frustration as obvious as possible.

“Damn! No wonder! Why didn’t y’all just say something? Mind-reading’s your trick, Sook.”

Sookie growled, “Moods are your trick, Jason… You couldn’t tell we had other plans?”

“Well… yeah, but no more than when I first got here. Shit. I’m sorry…” He started to chuckle. “It’s kinda funny to see you- well, as many times as you been a pain in my ass when I had something goin’ on…”

Sookie only had to take one step towards him before he took that as his cue to run… and he looked like a cartoon in the process, laughing that he’d be back tomorrow night to start on Maguire’s room.

She shook her head until the door slammed shut behind him.

“Is Lynn really on her way back or was that a brilliant lie?”

“She’s actually in the neighborhood…” I was surprised Sookie couldn’t hear the bikes. “That was the first time I heard you call her Lynn.”

“I did it once earlier too. I’m working on it…” She sighed and walked over to stretch up to kiss my cheek. “I’m cutting my losses. Shower and bed for me…”

At least she didn’t seem surprised when I followed her to her bathroom.

She warned, “We’re just going to get spun up again.”

I untied her top and shrugged. “We’re still spun up from earlier.”

She nibbled the corner of her lip and giggled, “Knowing we might only have a couple of minutes before we’re interrupted…”

I nodded. “The damage is done. I might as well enjoy what I can.”

She reached up and rested her arms on my shoulders. “Do you like having blue balls?”

I shook my head as I steered her towards the tub. “No, but I enjoy how you cause them. If you’re trying to discourage me, you’re doing a horrible job.”

When her heel hit the side of the tub, she let me lift her legs, wrapping them around my waist, and stepping into the tub to pin her against the wall.

While I worked her neck she breathed, “You’re serious? About the damage being done?”

I repeated, “I might as well enjoy what we can,” against her skin.

She was already wedging her hand between us when she whimpered, “You asked for it.”

She untied my trunks, pushing them out of her way, sliding her palm over every fucking inch of me before grabbing ahold…

She stretched up to nibble my chin, working slowly… chewing and licking…

And I wasn’t anything more than her willing victim, holding her up, letting her teach me  my lesson about being careful what I asked for.

Hearing the bikes shut off on the property hadn’t been enough to slow us down… I wanted more than I was going to be able to have, and I was willing to wait until the last second to stop her…

Of course, I assumed ‘the last second’ would have been footsteps on the staircase, but Gawain didn’t give me any warning.

He was in the bathroom when he demanded, “Bobby’s number. I need it.”

I knew he’d want a bike of his own… but, silly me, I thought he’d wait to discuss ordering one until Sookie’s hand wasn’t wrapped around my cock.

Sookie laid her head on my shoulder like she had when her brother interrupted, and I growled, “Busy.”

“I see that. Bobby’s number.”

“In my phone.”

“Tell me you didn’t buy an assortment of vehicles just to get Sookie alo-”

Before he could finish his suggestion, Sookie groaned, “He said the number’s in his phone.”

“What colors are they available in?”

When I growled again, Sookie whined, “We knew we’d be interrupted… Why didn’t we take into account that he’d be a shit?”

Because one would hope he’d be an adult and excuse himself from the room…

Meanwhile, said ‘adult’ stood behind me chuckling until Sookie released her grip on my cock, and moved her legs to put them under herself.

FUCK!

She hissed, “It would serve you right if I left the TV on talk shows all day long so you have to listen to baby-mama drama.”

He scoffed, “If you actually intended to fuck him, I would have interrupted more than kissing and groping. He’s lucky you let him remove his trunks-”

He stopped abruptly and left the bathroom, closing the door, and then the bedroom’s, on his way out.

Sookie rolled her eyes and snorted, “And he shuts the doors like I’m tacky enough to do anything when other people are home.”

“What did you say to him?”

“I told him about our first interruption.”

“Because if your brother hadn’t come along, Gawain would have interrupted more, yes?”

She pushed against my chest and sighed, “I probably would’ve gotten carried away, yeah… alright… Now that quiet time’s over, I’m…” When I reached out to turn the showerhead on, she narrowed her eyes. “What are you up to?”

“We need a shower.”

She corrected, “We need showerssssss.”

She was still drawing out the S when I crooned, “What about the water bill?”

She rolled her eyes and offered, “You’re persistent,” but that was the extent of her argument.

“So is your resolve. It’s still doing everything it can to annoy me.”

Sookie gave me a more serious look and warned, “Even if those three wouldn’t make a game out of interrupting us, I’m not going to get carried away while my aunt’s here.”

I tried, “Your aunt’s dead?”

She laughed and slapped my chest before turning around to take her shampoo from the edge of the tub. She squeezed a dab into her palm and passed the bottle to me…

“Do you want me to wash your back?”

She snickered, “No. Neither one of us needs an excuse to be handsy. Behave.”

“I don’t want to.”

She smirked and cooed, “You’ll live.”

**

It would have been smarter for me to leave, shower in my own bathroom, but there wasn’t any way for me to tear my attention away from the simple show of her bathing.

I might have been more depraved than usual, but… I was still winning.

Even if it was a baby step, she was comfortable enough to bathe in front of me. Even her complaints were because of how I was looking at her instead of her modesty…

Apparently, I was just making ‘it’ worse somehow.

Me?

I had to assume I was responsible for how Sookie’s tiny little nightgown taunted me too.

I was a step behind her, delayed by how much I enjoyed the view… I was still toweling off, standing in the doorway between her bathroom and bedroom like a common voyeur, when she slid into her bed.

She took a book from the nightstand and grinned. “Are you just going to stand there all night?”

“Is that an option?”

She shook her head and opened her book as she giggled, “Not unless you’re going for gold in the Creep Olympics.”

When I took a step towards the bed, she held her hand up. “Oh no… I’m going to read until I go to sleep…”

“What are we reading?”

She whimpered, “The Bible?”

I chuckled, “That’s cute, but you seem to be forgetting how much fucking biblical characters do.”

As I followed her into bed, she offered, “I left Oscar Wilde on the counter in the kitchen. I have Of Mice And Men…”

“You certainly bought a diverse selection of reading options… Was it a blind sampling?”

She shrugged. “A little of this, a little of that… Gawain went on and on about how American writers suck, so I bought a handful of Steinbeck, Mailer, Faulkner…”

“Has he been converted?”

“He liked The Sound And The Fury enough to start As I Lay Dying as soon as he was done… And he threatened to hold Aunt Linda down and glue her mouth shut when she tried to interrupt him.”

“That’s probably a good sign.”

She nodded. “So… are you seriously planning to read over my shoulder?”

I shrugged. “Why not? I don’t have anything else to do for the next hour.”

She eyed me suspiciously as she moved to lie on her side, warning me about ‘funny business’ as she opened the book.

Her body was ridged and her legs were straight… It was almost funny how tense she was.

When I wrapped my arm around her waist, she asked, “Didn’t I just say ‘no funny business’?”

I chuckled as I moved her, pushing my knee between her legs, practically lying on top of her. “I’m just snuggling in.”

She shook her head and mumbled, “I suppose you’re comfy now that we’re practically spooning.”

Absolutely.

“Planning to fake a complaint?”

She let out a little snort and began flipping pages to find the first chapter…

**

She read chapter one at an impressive pace… I hadn’t waited long before she turned each page, but she yawned every few minutes, until she gave up during chapter two…

Instead of just turning the page, she offered it to me. She yawned, “Save me from myself. I can hardly keep my eyes open.”

“How am I supposed to read if you aren’t holding the book and turning the pages?”

She giggled sleepily, “Scoot back.”

“I’m comfortable.”

“Me too, which is why it’s so hard for me to keep my eyes open. Scoot back.”

As I rolled away from her slightly, I growled, “I don’t like being told what to do.”

She moved with me at first, but then she shifted to her other side… and she pulled her leg up, draping it over my thigh.

She made little moves to become more comfortable, tightening her leg around mine, stretching her arm out to rest her hand on my shoulder, shifting her head to find a more comfortable place on my chest …

She finally cooed, “There. I’m comfy. You’re comfy. You have a hand free for page-turning.”

“No goodnight kiss?”

She moved her head and kissed my shoulder. “G’night.”

“That isn’t what I had in mind.”

She snickered, “G’night anyway.”

**

I barely noticed Pam’s return and the subsequent activity downstairs…

I was too busy pretending to read while being stunned that Sookie had actually fallen asleep snuggled against my side. It had only taken a couple of minutes for her to slip away, purring restful breaths that swept over my chest…

I couldn’t help but be surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Sookie had only been sleeping for thirty minutes when Pam interrupted us… She didn’t bother knocking. She barged into Sookie’s room, dressed for Glamour with more clothing in her hand.

She had her mouth open to say something, but she clearly changed her mind as she stood in the doorway gawking at me as though she’d never seen me with a book in my hand.

I nodded towards the handful of glittering black clothing clearly meant for Sookie. “I’m almost sure that won’t flatter my figure.”

She opened her mouth, but closed it again.

“As ever, you look phenomenal… New treasures from Milan?”

She looked down as though she’d forgotten what she was wearing, scanning her black lace bodice and metallic purple skirt before shaking her head. “No… I found this while I was shopping for Lynn.”

“Are you planning to join us at Glamour tonight?”

She nodded slowly. “Eric, you’re snuggling.”

It was becoming more and more difficult to keep from laughing at the look on her face.

“I’m reading, or I was until you came in. Sookie is snuggling.”

“It’s 11:30… I thought she’d want to join us. I even…”

When she trailed off, I asked, “You even what?”

“She… when she dances…” She held up the pair of black sandals in her hand. “Straps.”

Overnight she’d become a Douglas Adams parody. ‘Straps’… as though it was the new ‘42’… Straps were the answer to life, the universe and everything.

“What about straps?”

“She danced out of her pumps when Gawain and I took her. She ended up dancing barefoot.”

“Is there a theme to your clothing?”

“We’re just wearing black… Lynn stole a leather mini and a corset top from me… Did you notice how incredible her legs are?”

I nodded. “Not until I brought her here to go to ground. In spite of her illness she didn’t look old enough to have an adult daugh-”

“You’re snuggling.”

I snorted at her and ran my hand over Sookie’s arm. “Sookie, Pam hand-picked an outfit for you to wear to Glamour… The shoes have straps and everything.”

She tightened her arm over my chest and mumbled, “Shut up and read. I’m comfy.”

I chuckled, “I have to leave regardless. It’s 11:30. Shawn and Lynn need to feed.”

She shook her head slightly and argued, “But… I’m comfy.”

“You aren’t obliged to go to Glamour, but I am.”

Sookie didn’t respond, so Pam reached out and set the outfit on the dresser before leaving, shaking her head and mumbling, “What the fuck. He’s snuggling. He doesn’t snuggle. Snuggling? Eric? He’s snuggling…”

I chuckled, “Sookie?”

Nothing. I could feel her reaction to my voice, but she didn’t move.

“Are you playing possum?”

I translated the twitch at the corner of her mouth to ‘yes’.

I heard Lynn ask, “Did you say Sookie’s snuggling?” from downstairs.

Pam snorted, “No. I said Eric’s snuggling. He doesn’t snuggle.”

“Neither does Sookie… Did you get a picture?”

I offered, “Sookie, someone else is going to barge in on us.”

She took a deep breath, but instead of moving her arm and leg to release me, she moved to straddle me… yanking off her nightgown in one swift motion, and breathing, “Gawain,” just in time to kiss me before the door opened.

It was absolutely perfect… she’d even thought to begin panting to sell the farce.

I growled at him, “Get out!”

His face puckered as he backed out of the room. “For the record, Pam tried to convince us you were just snuggling.”

Sookie joined me when I repeated, “Get. Out!”

She stayed perfectly still for a moment, waiting to be sure he was actually going to leave us alone.

We finally heard him chide, “Very funny, Pam.”

She gasped, “What?”

“They aren’t snuggling.”

“They are too!”

“Is ‘snuggling’ is how Americans say ‘she’s on top’?”

As Pam’s pumps climbed the stairs, Sookie grabbed her nightgown again to slip it on, barely having the time to reposition herself the way she’d been laying when Pam originally intruded.

She mewled, “I guess since I’m up, I’ll go… Are you taking your bike?”

Just as Pam opened the door, I answered, “I think so. Do you want to ride with me?”

Pam rolled her eyes and closed the door again… and Sookie began shaking, laughing silently, and holding back as much as possible.

I was already amused enough to find it difficult to control myself, but then Pam scoffed, “Way to make me look like a moron. I just stuck my head in and they’re snuggling. You’re such an asshole sometimes.”

Sookie let out a little snort.

Gawain argued, “I’m not falling for it! I could have lost my head the last time I went up there!”

Sookie snorted again, but lifted the blanket to dive under the covers…

For a split second, I assumed she’d forgotten I wasn’t wearing anything, or she was just planning to fake a blow job…

But she ran her teeth over my thigh… and there was nothing fake about the way I groaned… there wasn’t any way to prepare myself… My fangs dropped quickly enough that I bit my own lip…

He had to have heard me, but that asshole, my friend, still opened the fucking door…

I didn’t do anything but growl at him.

And Sookie didn’t stop chewing on my thigh, putting on the perfect show for him, but making it nearly impossible for me to remember we were fucking with them.

He slammed the door when he left, shouting, “Fucking hilarious, WINIFRED!”

To make matters worse, Sookie started giggling against my leg, before pushing the sheet off and sitting up.

Pam breathed, “Oh. No. You. Didn’t.”

While Gawain and Pam bickered, Sookie whispered, “Sorry about that. He was scanning us. I needed to sell it.”

“You’ve mind-fucked all three of us in one fell swoop.”

She licked her lips with an evil little smirk on her face. “I didn’t mean to get you too.”

She kissed me again before she left the bed, padding downstairs, grumbling, “Don’t even,” before anyone had the chance to say anything to her.

When she returned, she had a pair of my jeans and a shirt in her hand… She tossed them to the bed before turning to the dresser, taking the small skirt and holding it up to her waist before reaching into the top drawer for a pair of black panties to replace the white ones she’d gone to bed in.

While she dressed, she asked, “Still spun up?”

I nodded. “Come back to bed.”

She gave me a pouty face and reminded me, “Newborns need to feed.”

“You hardly slept.”

She snickered, “That would be a valid argument if you wanted to let me sleep… besides, it was an awesome nap.”

She shimmied her skirt up and asked, “How do I prevent getting windblown hair on a motorcycle?”

I still hadn’t recovered from what she’d started and watching her dress wasn’t going to help.

When she tossed her nightgown into the basket next to her bathroom door, I reached for my jeans and said, “Just braid it to keep it from tangling, and then let it down when we get there.”

Once her backless halter top was on, she took her shoes to sit on the other side of the bed.

“Easy enough… I still can’t lift the pool table, so I couldn’t get your shoes for you. Sorry.”

After she’d donned her sandals with straps, she went to the bathroom.

Shoes were the least of my problems… I couldn’t stop thinking about the blow job I hadn’t gotten.

It wasn’t bad enough that I had to tear myself away from watching her apply her makeup…

Then I was tempted by the view from the bottom of the staircase as she jogged down to meet me…

And there was the cruel way she wrapped herself around me on my bike…

Her prank had worked perfectly, and she was giving Pam and Gawain the silent treatment for interrupting us. They were both avoiding eye contact with me. They went as far as riding together in Pam’s new car, probably to compare notes.

The catcalls for Sookie between the lake and the club were all the more irksome. She was called everything… Baby Doll, Sweetness, Hotness, Princess and Angel. One man offered to leave his wife for her, another prayed aloud that I was her gay brother, and yet another asked her what time I (her boyfriend) went to work so he could pay her a visit.

**

There were more Vampires than usual at Glamour… I had to assume the Vampires in attendance the night before had gone home to call everyone they knew to gossip about my new children.

It actually occurred to me that they’d all be jealous if I told them I’d found a cure for boredom… Yes, blue balls were a side effect, but that was entirely my fault (so I was told).

After the way one of my bouncers eye-fucked Sookie, I made it a point of pulling her onto my lap when we settled into my sitting area.

Even though we were five minutes late, Shawn wasn’t waiting for us…

Sookie placed her order with the waitress… and began scanning the fucking crowd…

What the fuck did she think she was looking for?

Once her drink was delivered, Sookie sipped and watched the dancers, occasionally chewing a piece of ice…

On top of the fact that Sookie seemed to be under the impression that she was shopping for her own victims, Lynn was more anxious and hungry than she should have been.

I had the briefest of inklings… that it would be nice to be in two places at once so I could keep Sookie from being bored and still supervise Lynn, but given the madness of the braid, I decided not to invite that on myself.

When Sookie finished her drink, she leaned over to set her glass on the table and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Lynn immediately cringed, but she didn’t answer.

Sookie snorted, “Really? That’s how you’re gonna be? After all the prying and gossiping you’ve been doing about me? Out with it… You’re on edge and you’re trying to focus on too many people at once…” She looked at me and continued, “She isn’t like this at home. Was she like this last night?”

I shook my head. “No.”

Maybe Sookie had been following Lynn’s concentration?

“Is she spun up?”

I shook my head again. “Not at all. She feels as though she’s starving though… and she’s anxious, if not frightened.”

Sookie and I stared at Lynn. It wasn’t planned; it was more of a silent demand for answers that was accidentally synchronized.

Lynn finally mumbled, “I… think I psyched myself out…”

Her fangs were down… when she’d had so much control the night before.

Sookie nodded knowingly before leaving my legs, asking me to order another drink for her if the waitress returned… and she felt entirely up to something.

I watched her meld into the crowd of dancers as though the horde had swallowed her…

She danced alone for a moment before a dark-haired man joined her, watching her move more than he danced himself… and it had hardly been a couple of minutes before another man tried to cut in… Rather than excusing Asshole #1, Asshole #2 was invited to join them…

For the rest of the song, the two men pawed at Sookie, struggling to earn her attention, while Lynn and I watched in awe.

The Fae allure at work… Sookie was using herself as bait for her aunt’s donors.

Lynn mumbled, “I can hide my fangs, but how the hell do I not cry?”

“Why would you cry?”

“If I talk about it, there’s no hope of stopping it.”

I chuckled, “Fine. I’ll watch Sookie for a signal. You can think about your setback. What’s different about tonight? You were eager last night, but you weren’t so bothered.”

“Um… I’m pretty sure… it’s Sookie. I mean, at home it’s more like a normal meal. We even do it in the kitchen. But… maybe I was worried she’d look at this differently.”

“As though you’re luring hapless victims to a dark alley?”

She sighed, still hardly moving her lips as she spoke. “I guess. I mean, she’s always had a unique perspective on things. I should have known better… So while I was out on my bike, what had you so giddy?”

“Shortly after you left the house?”

She nodded. “Maybe ten, fifteen minutes.”

“That was probably when Sookie told me about an estate sale. A complete Clarissa is, as Sookie put it, my Golden Fleece.”

“Ahhhh. Where do you keep them all? Gawain said you collect books, but there isn’t anything at the house.”

“Until you came along, I’d been staying in a different house. I opted for the lake house because the neighbors are farther away. Pam’s heightened hearing made her miserable for weeks. The room downstairs is practically soundproof because it’s underground. I thought you’d be more comfortable there.”

“Awwww. That’s sweet. Thank you… I guess I’m pretty lucky, huh? To only have issues with being finicky and all?”

“You’ve adjusted remarkably well…” I took her hand and stood up as Sookie moved towards the back hallway, towing her eager prey behind her. “Sookie might make an excellent Vampire in her own right. She’s quite the predator.”

As Lynn trailed me, she offered, “She’s always been a bug-light… You know, hearing about the allure thing… It makes me wonder if Momma’s brother couldn’t help himself…”

“I’ve heard girls in short skirts are asking for it too…”

She snorted, “I didn’t mean like that.”

“It doesn’t matter how you meant it. Fae are intoxicating to Vampires, Lynn. If I can be alone with an adult Sookie without becoming a rapist, then your uncle doesn’t have an excuse.”

She sighed and kissed the back of my shoulder as we moved through the crowd. “Thank you. I didn’t want to have to forgive him… not after hating him for so long.”

“Do you want to let him live so you can continue to ha-?”

“No! That motherfucker needs to go through a meat-grinder one inch at a damn time.”

“Do we have a date tomorrow night after dinner then?”

She felt giddy as she cooed, “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.”

“Good. During the day, you can fantasize different scenarios. Perhaps we can use one of them.”

When I opened the door to the feeding room, Sookie was sandwiched between her dance partners… but it seemed like they were competing with each other more than anything else, even if the one behind her had pulled her skirt up over her ass.

Not only could I see how relieved she was for Lynn and me to arrive, I could feel her skin crawling.

It had only been dancing until she’d stepped into the back hallway.

She faked a smile for her aunt and said, “Good timing. There’s only so far I’m willing to go…” As she slid from between her very confused ‘dates’, she asked, “Is two enough to take the edge off?”

As soon as Sookie pushed her skirt into place, Lynn hugged her and cooed, “It should be, baby girl. Thanks.”

“Alright. I’m gonna to go grab another drink. Watch out for Mr. Goatee. He’s got dragon-breath.”

As Sookie walked towards the door, I raised an eyebrow… and she answered by narrowing her eyes… Loosely translated, I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone how uncomfortable the chore had been for her.

**

By the time Lynn had fed from both of her donors, Pam and Gawain had arrived…

I watched a waitress replace Sookie’s empty glass with two drinks, but she wasn’t sitting with Gawain and Pam…

She was on the dance floor… with Shawn.

While Lynn explained to Pam and Gawain that she’d been so tense that Sookie had played wingman for the first course for her, I watched Sookie enjoy a slow dance with Shawn with her arms over his shoulders.

I also watched three Vampires and a Were stare at them as though she was on the marquee.

Unacceptable.

When one of the Vampires tried to cut in, I couldn’t see Sookie’s face to catch any hints from her lips, but the Vampire glanced at me before respectfully leaving them alone.

Again, she was up to something…

It wasn’t until the music changed that Gawain made a joke about Sookie being a better wingman than me…

But I didn’t have to be pleased to see Sookie dancing with another Vampire.

I watched her summon a pair of girls over to them with a curl of her finger… and they danced as a foursome for the length of the song… and then she invited the girls to go ‘somewhere quiet’.

While being touched by her Aunt’s meal had made Sookie feel ill, she’d only been gone for a minute before I realized how much fun she was having in the back room with Shawn… and how proud of herself she was.

It went on long enough that I could feel how amused Pam was by the way I watched the doorway to the back hall… and when Sookie finally emerged, she was wrapped around Shawn’s arm.

I was forced to watch her participate in yet another scouting mission, taking another pair of girls to the feeding rooms…

Feeling how much fun she was having with someone else…

I was not amused.

In fact, I was willing to admit I was furious, and I didn’t care who the fuck heard me growling.

**

When Sookie finally remembered that she’d come to the club with someone else, she made her way back to the sitting area with Shawn in tow… and she sat ridiculously close to him.

Like she was trying to piss me off, Pam pouted, “You said you aren’t bi.”

As Sookie reached for one of her drinks, she snorted, “Oh, I’m still firm on that…” She used the napkin under her drink to wipe away the lipstick she wasn’t wearing when we arrived before chugging her drink and reaching for the second. “I should be used to being thought of as a slut by now though.”

Lynn snarled, “You’re not a slut.”

Sookie shrugged, “If I am, I’m an underachiever… It’s the same old song and dance. The same bullshit that reminds me why I prefer book-” She widened her eyes and showed her middle finger to a girl staring at her from the dance floor. “Like that bitch. ‘Why does that slut get to sit with the owner?’ She’s pretty sure she gives a better blow job than me… Anyone else notice how ironic that is?”

Absolutely. Under normal circumstances, I might even laugh.

Gawain snorted, “Ignore it. I’m sure you give a much better blow job.”

Sookie snickered, “You’re so sweet. You should write for Hallmark.”

“How many drinks is that? Your thoughts are becoming… murky.”

He could hear that before I could feel it?

“My fourth, but I had a tall rum and coke at home.”

“And you haven’t eaten anything since the catastrophic lunch with the horrible waitress.”

Sookie cringed and shook her head. “Goddamn you… people… I forgot to eat…” She tipped her drink back to finish it, and set the empty glass on the table. She reached under the table for her purse and offered, “I’ll be back in a few. Don’t have too much fun without me.”

“Where are you going?”

“There’s a Wendy’s just up the street. I’m gonna go…”

Shawn scoffed, “Not alone, you aren’t. Not dressed like that. Do you even watch the news? I’ll run you over there. If I take Frosties to the kids, it’ll be a great tie in. I can rub it in that I got to hang out with you…”

No. She’s Mine. Seeing to her safety was my job.

She giggled, “Thanks, but don’t rub so hard that you get me in trouble. I hear Jules can hold a grudge.”

He stood up and offered his hand to me for a shake. “Thanks… And to think I practically had a heart attack when you called me. This is… this is turning out to be the best set up… Sookie’s a perk, but the club scene is much easier than the little bars I was trolling. I have to dip out earlier than usual, but I’ll be home to tuck my kids in. Thanks a lot. Really.”

Sookie’s a perk?

Fuck him.

Sookie’s MY perk.

Shawn needed to further his fucking education.

I shook his hand, but I explained, “We tend to nod rather than leave our traces behind on one another. It’s as easy for Vampires to identify individuals by their scent as is for Humans to use fingerprinting… Be very mindful of who you touch.”

His eyes lit up, mistaking my warning as friendly advice. “Wow. Thanks. I’ll see y’all tomorrow night.”

**

No sooner than Sookie and Shawn were gone, Pam invited Lynn to join her on the dance floor…

I knew. As long as Gawain had known me, I fucking knew he was going to add his two cents.

And the asshole had fun making me wait for it too.

“You’re so obvious, it’s comical.”

“It’s my pleasure to entertain you.”

“No it’s not. You’re ready to pull something apart. You should calm down. After all, this is your fault.”

“How the fuck is it my fault? She came with me and left with Shawn. I’m almost sure that’s been poor form since I was alive.”

He chuckled, “Her behavior with Shawn is innocent. You’re being a jealous prick because she’s talking to another Vampire.”

Talking to, touching, dancing with…

“I’m not jealous. I’m offended.”

He chuckled again, and waited for me to look at him to explain, “You need to feed.”

“I fed last night.”

“You fed to recover from healing the girl who just ditched you for your foster child.”

“Prick.”

“Besides, what better way to teach Sookie a lesson than to be with other women?”

“Now that I know how old you really were when you were brought over, it’s even more absurd when you make juvenile suggestions like that.”

“You aren’t dealing with another Vampire, asshole. You’re dealing with a girl who only just clawed out of her backwater town a few nights ago. She doesn’t know better, so give her a lesson disguised as a taste of her own medicine.”

“The fact that my feeding needs aren’t the same as her continual flirting seems to be eluding you.”

“Who said you should just feed? You’re on your own. Sulk if you want, but that’s even more asinine than my idea.”

At least he was right about one thing… sulking wasn’t exactly the most mature approach.

If nothing else Sookie needed a lesson in common etiquette.