We get back to our homework and time passes without incident, short of Nolan complaining about Connor’s “chicken scratch.” In a little over an hour, we’re finished and lounging in the den arguing over what to watch. I have little to contribute because everything they name is meaningless to me.
While Felix argues the merits of watchingSpiderman Homecoming, Donovan squints over from one of the armchairs at Nolan who’s sitting next to me on the couch.
“You’re looking a little pale, dude,” he murmurs, his aqua eyes focused intently on Nolan’s face.
“I’m fine,” Nolan assures with a strained smile, earning a challenging grunt from Donovan. He sighs. “Really, I’m fine for now, and there’s a party on Saturday night I plan to go to so dial it back, mother hen.” He arches a brow and appeals, “You wanna be my wingman? I’ll let you drive the Audi.”
“You mean your bodyguard?” Donovan mocks.
“Wingman. Bodyguard. Semantics,” he replies with a smirk and a shrug. “Coming or not?”
A sinking feeling fills my stomach. They haven’t said it, but the implication is pretty clear that Nolan will be hunting to fulfill the requirements of his specialized diet.Is there no other way?In movies and TV shows, the ‘good’ vampires are always feeding from blood bags or animals.
“Sure, I’ll go,” Donovan answers then turns a wicked grin on Kaleb. “How about you? If anyone needs to spend a night acting like a real teenager, it’s you.”
Kaleb, seated in the other armchair, looks thoughtful against Donovan’s obvious baiting, and he turns to look at me. “Would you like to go, Callie?”
I’m shocked out of my musings at the invitation. Pulling on my sleeves, I mumble, “I’ve never been to a high school party before, so… sure?”
Kaleb nods, then replies simply, “Yeah. I’ll go.”
Connor, seated on the other side of me on the couch, looks down at me. His head is tilted in that way that makes me feel like he’s seeing more than I want him to.
“I’ll go, too,” he announces, his voice a low, smooth murmur.
“Holy shit, hell has frozen over!” Nolan whoops with a grin. “KalebandConnor agreed to go to a high school party. Sorry, Felix. Unless you want to mope at Callie’s, you’re coming too.”
Felix playfully groans from his position on the floor. “Fine, but one of you has to promise to be somewhere I can attempt to not spend my entire evening with random people walking through me. Not a fun experience--- And we’re watching Spiderman.” He claps his hands together. “Chop chop, corporeal meat bags that can operate the remote. Make the movie happen.”
Everyone laughs. There’s a knock at the door while Nolan flips through the screens to orderSpiderman Homecomingoff of Amazon streaming, and Kaleb hurriedly gets up to answer it.
Margaret is standing there with a silver rolling cart filled with covered dishes and a large pitcher of lemonade. “Thank you, dear,” she says to Kaleb as she rolls the cart in. “Alright. Dinner is served, and now Alicia and I are off. Be good.”
“Always,” Nolan croons with a smirk that implies the exact opposite.
Margaret shakes her head and sings a farewell before leaving us alone to our meal.
I didn’t have any of the snacks that were left out on the counter when we got here, so I’m quite hungry, but I’m surprised at the speed with which the others retrieve their food, settling with the plates in their laps and glasses on the floor next to their feet.It’s like they’ve swallowed tapeworms.
I pull the lid from my dinner, marked with a small strip of paper that has my name written on it in a woman’s curly script. Heavenly smells waft up to my nose from the artisan burger and thick cut fries, a wondrous collection of garlic, perfectly cooked beef and several different cheeses. If this dinner tastes as good as it smells, I’m going to have to find and kiss the hand of this mysterious Alicia.
Whereas I only ordered a single burger, Connor, DonovanandKaleb have two, along with a mountain of fries.
“I thought you were joking about slaughtering the second cow,” I exclaim. “Where do you put all that?”
Connor gives me a patent shrug and mutters, “Shifter,” like I have any idea what the hell that means.
“It takes fuel to make these,” Donovan leers, waving a hand along his body to draw attention to the bulging muscles on display through his painted on Henley.
“Ah yes,” I bemoan sarcastically, “Can’t forget the distracting eight pack.”
He grins, winks at me, then takes a huge bite of one of his burgers.Boys.
Nolan grabs a remote from the small end table beside him, hits a few buttons, and then behind us thick drapes draw closed, blocking the sinking evening sun. Ceiling lights set to low turn on, allowing us to see while we eat and watch the movie. Apparently, this place is wired for optimal laziness. Also, that cart means there’s an elevator somewhere in this freaking house.Now how do I ask where it is without explaining why I need it?
Munching on one of the fries, I notice several Marvel heroes in this Spiderman film. “What’s Iron Man doing in a Spiderman movie?”
It’s the proverbial record scratch. Nolan pauses the movie, and all of them turn to look at me.Why didn’t I keep my mouth shut and watch the damn movie?
