Gwyneth opened her apartment door to let in the landlord’s wife. “Thanks for comin’ to visit me, Merry. Take a load off.”
Merry stuck a hand on her hip. “Excuse me?”
It took a moment to realize what might have upset her. “Oh, I didn’t mean y’all are a load or anythin’. It’s just an expression that means ‘set a spell.’”
Merry chuckled. “I knew that. I was just joking.” She gingerly seated herself on Gwyneth’s flowered couch. “Since Max was born, I’ve lost about twenty pounds, but I still have another ten to go. I can’t help feeling heavy. But my old jeans will fit again—someday.” She sighed.
Gwyneth offered a dismissive wave. “Oh, pshaw. You look wonderful. So, can I get you some sweet tea?”
“How about a small glass of milk, if you have it.”
“You got it.” On her way to the kitchen, Gwyneth asked over her shoulder, “How’s the little bundle of joy doin’?”
She chuckled. “He’s pull of piss and vinegar, as Sly would say.”
Gwyneth laughed. “That’s prob’ly truer than it’s meant to be.” She quickly poured the milk and arranged some cookies on abamboo tray. She put the pitcher of sweet tea and an extra glass in the middle, just in case Merry changed her mind about the tea. Maybe she was worried about caffeine. Most new parents needed all the caffeine they could get after waking up a couple of times a night with a baby hollering for attention.
When she returned to the living room, Merry smiled. “This is the first time I’ve gone anywhere in a week. It was nice of you to invite me.”
“No need to go thankin’ me yet. Not that it isn’t nice just to share a snack and some gossip with y’all, but I kinda need to ask a favor too.”
“A favor? Sure.”
“I ain’t asked it yet.”
Merry chuckled. “I mean, sure, you can ask. If it’s something I can do, I will. What do you need?”
“Well, I was hopin’ y’all could talk to Jules. You see, that favor is for Sly, but Jules didn’t know what we was tryin’ to do and he kinda undid it.”
“I’m confused. Can you be more specific?”
Gwyneth took a deep breath. “Well, Morgaine and Sly went to New York right before Thanksgiving to get a cure for his vampirism.”
Merry’s posture straightened, and her eyes rounded. “A cure? I didn’t know there was one.”
“Well, it’s only temporary, but it cures the worst parts of bein’ a vampire. I guess it takes the place of blood and Sly could walk around in sunlight without passin’ out or burnin’ up.”
“Wow. That sounds awesome. So, what can I do to help?”
“Well, Sly’s probably too proud to ask, and Morgaine thought we should let you rest and recover a little longer, but I saw no harm in askin’…”
“Sure. Go ahead, ask.”
“Well, it’s crazy expensive, but Morgaine figured out how to make more from what we got.”
“That’s great. And?”
“It’s like a Sourdough bread recipe. You know how they make it with starter?”
Merry nodded.
“Well, ya’ll have to add some of the old wine to new-made wine before it gets bottled.”
“Okay…so what do I need to talk to Jules about?” She sipped her milk.
“Well, Morgaine and I found a big wooden vat and we’d like permission to stomp grapes down in the basement. Then we can put the stuff in bottles with the vampire cure and let it age where it’s the right temperature. We’re fixin’ to buy some wine racks too if we get y’all okay. We want to make it as close to the real thing as possible.”
Merry shrugged. “I’ll need to ask Jason, but I don’t think it would be a problem. You said Jules undid something you’d tried to do before?”
