I blinked and looked up. His face was blank. When I continued to stare, he rolled his eyes and pulled his hands out of his pockets. “I’m lazy, but I’m not a complete dick. I can do a little work here and there.”
“Cool. Sounds like a plan.”
He left then, and I finished my work a few minutes later. Usually, I was the last one here, but I was surprised to find Desi waiting by the time clock.
“What are you still doing here?” I asked, glancing at the time.
“There’s still two minutes before the hour. Might as well wait,” he said casually. I squinted, still suspicious of his motives.
We didn’t speak while we waited. Instead, chose awkward silence. We walked out together and waved to the morning shift crew as they sauntered in. They weren’t nearly as busy as the day or night crew.
“How do you two know each other? You and Arsenio?” I asked as Desi, and I walked to our cars. He hesitated.
“We’ve been friends for a long time.” His words were vague enough to put me on edge.Did he know what he was? All of it?I wanted to ask, but I almost didn’t want to know. While I cared for Arsenio, I knew the monster that lurked just under the surface. What if this vampire was just like him?
“How did you two meet?” he asked me instead.
“At an art show. I was a featured artist.” I smiled, remembering our first meeting fondly. “He told me it looked like a princess threw up on my painting.”
My words got a real smile out of Desi, although he didn’t look up from the ground. I continued telling him how I started dating his friend.
“I told him, ‘This is my painting,’and he crossed his arms and smirked at me! He replied, ‘I know. That’s why I’m telling you.’We argued back and forth for a while, and then I realized that he was flirting with me. He asked me for a drink, and that was all she wrote.” I reached my car, and we both stopped.
“Sounds just like him. Arsenio was always a charmer.” His smile waned some then, but he perked back up when he caught it. “Well, I guess this is it until tomorrow. See you later,” he hurried to his own car.
I climbed into mine, slid the key into the ignition then turned the key. The engine sputtered. My brows furrowed as I pumped the gas and muttered under my breath, praying to the powers that be to get this car to sputter. This was new. I continued trying to get the car to start, and it did for one second before shutting off completely.
What the hell?
I threw myself back so hard in frustration that my hair flew across my face. I blew it back in a huff. I really didn’t need car problems right now. I sat there, trying to assess the issue at hand. I pulled out my phone, checking the time. I still had a few hours until sunrise. I could walk home. It was kind of cold, though. Plus, I would still have to figure out how to get my car out of the parking lot.
A knock on my window caused me to jump. I looked up to see Desi standing back, hands in his pockets, looking down at me. I opened the door, as the automatic windows weren’t working.
“You need a ride somewhere?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Nah, I’m good. I’m just gonna call Arsenio,” Although I spoke with confidence, I wasn’t sure he’d even answer. I flashed Desi my phone as he waited for me to call. I forced a smile and dialed the number.
Please answer. Please pick up.
It rang and rang until it went to voicemail, as usual. I hung up and took a deep breath.
What now?
I turned to Desi, who watched me expectantly.
“I’ll figure it out. I always do.” I reached for my backpack on the other seat and pulled myself out of the car. I manually locked it up and shut the door. We stood there for a long moment.
I shivered as a small gust of wind blew by.
Damn it.
“You sure you don’t want a ride?” He smirked. I turned back to him.
“Fine.” I sighed, and he nodded toward his vehicle. I followed him and got into the passenger side.
“Where to?” he asked when we pulled out of the parking lot. I gave him my address and pointed in the direction he needed to go.
“He wasn’t ignoring me.” I defended Arsenio. “He just never answers his phone calls.”
