SAGE: I can’t sleep. Tell me EVERYTHING
SAGE: Not so much the day. I want to know what happened when you got back to your room
SAGE: Why haven’t you responded
SAGE: Are you making out with him RIGHT NOW
SAGE: Poppy Rose Gable if you are ignoring me for some undead makeout session, I will fly to the Bahamas
SAGE: That was a joke. Mostly. Only because I have my own wedding problems here
SAGE: Fine I’m going to sleep but I expect a FULL debrief tomorrow
SAGE: Today. It’s technically today. You know what I mean.
Then the morning shift:
SAGE: Good morning sunshine
SAGE: Still waiting
SAGE: Your silence is DEAFENING
SAGE: I’ve been patient for like 8 hours which is a personal record
SAGE: Should I be worried? On a scale of 1-10?
SAGE: Poppy you’re killing me
SAGE: If you don’t respond in the next hour I’m booking a flight
SAGE: That’s not a threat it’s a PROMISE
I sit up in bed, wincing at the remnants of last night’s food poisoning. My stomach has settled, but my head is still processing everything else. The confession. The vampires. The fact that I’m apparently dating an immortal creature of the night, and my biggest concern right now is how to not give away Julian’s secret to my best friend—who pretty much guessed it already. Even if I could tell her, how could I do it without sounding insane?
Julian is already awake. Of course he is. He’s sitting at the desk in the corner, tablet in hand, looking like he stepped out of a magazine spread for “Billionaires Who Don’t Need Sleep.” His hair is perfectly disheveled. His shirt is crisp. I’m pretty sure I have pillow creases on my face and something suspicious in my hair.
“Morning,” I croak.
He looks up. Something softens in his expression. “How do you feel?”
“Like I was hit by a truck made of bad shrimp.” I reach for my phone. “I need to text Sage before she actually books a flight.”
“She seems persistent.”
“You have no idea.”
I type back quickly:
ME: Sorry! Food poisoning aftermath. Fell asleep early.
ME: The kiss was... complicated.
ME: I’ll explain everything after the wedding. Promise.
The response comes in seconds.
SAGE: COMPLICATED???
