AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Trillian gave me a blistering scowl but surrendered the massive hoagie, and I ran it into the kitchen, holding it out in front of me so it wouldn't drip all over my shirt. I dumped it in the garbage, then washed my hands. Before I set about making another for him—and one for myself—I took a quick peek in Iris's room to make certain she and Maggie were snuggled in for the night.
When I returned to the living room, Trillian was taking potshots at Smoky and berating Morio for allowing the deal to be struck.
"What was I supposed to do?" Morio said. "She's not my property. If she wants to fuck a dragon, I'm not going to stop her. And bluntly put, after what we felt on that shield today, I wouldn't bother to try. If it takes a roll in the meadow with Smoky to net us some much-needed information, then that's what it takes. Since Camille doesn't mind, why should we?">The rest of the room seemed to pause, the other—living—guests warily backing toward the exits. The last thing we needed were for the vampires to get set off because of a cat-fight. Even though Belinda wasn't exactly model material, the sight of two women rolling around in a wrestling match might just do it for these guys, and the fact that there were a few meals-on-wheels like me around would only serve to heighten their excitement.
Wade eased his way between Belinda and Menolly. He gently pushed them apart. "Mother, Menolly, back off. We don't want a fight here." He glanced at each one in turn.
Speak for yourself , psych-boy, I thought. Menolly loved a good fight. And it looked like Belinda was no slouch in the rough-and-ready category herself, though I'd wager she'd deny it.
"Please, Mother," he added, whispering so low that I could barely hear him. Only my cat's hearing helped me pick up what he was saying. "This is my group. Don't embarrass me in front of them."
She gave him that icy stare that only irate mothers can give and then sighed and sat down, shaking her head. "Have it your way. Ignore the fact that I gave birth to you and spent thirty-two hours in labor. Ignore the fact that I put you through medical school when that no-good father of yours disappeared and that I made sure you had enough to eat and all the clean clothes you could ever want. You're an adult now. But all I ever wanted was for you to be happy. I just try to find out a little bit about this girl you've fallen for, and you both nearly stake me for my questions. Don't mind me—I'm just an old woman, and my feelings don't count—"
Wade pressed his lips together and shook his head at the ceiling. "I'm sorry, Mother. You know I appreciate all you've done for me—"
"And I keep on doing for you, and it looks like now I'll be your mother forever, or until you drive me into the sun with your lack of consideration!"
Menolly bit her lip so hard I could see the tooth marks. She touched Wade on the arm. "I think we'd better get the meeting started." Ignoring Belinda entirely, she turned and walked away, effectively slapping the woman in the face.
I turned, wildly looking around for something to focus my attention on so I wouldn't break into hysterical laughter. Sassy noticed my expression and did the last thing in the world I was prepared for. She grabbed me and planted her lips full on mine as one of her hands reached up to caress my breast.
Shocked by how good her kiss felt, how exquisite her touch felt, I let her lock lips with me, swooning as I wondered languidly if she'd take me home with her and do delicious things to my body all night long. But, amid the lingering kiss and ensuing fantasies running through my mind, I realized my danger. Trying to keep panic at bay, I did my best to push Sassy back. Menolly had beat the warnings into my head: Vampires Are Not Safe. Do Not Mess Around with the Undead. Do Not Offer Yourself As a Willing Slushy Machine.
Don't get me wrong, the concept of having sex with another woman wasn't the issue—that had occurred to me before, and I expected one day I'd act on it—but Sassy was a vampire, not an FBH anymore, and her tongue in my mouth was a little more than I could handle at the moment. I had no designs, past my immediate carnal reaction, on being her love bunny.
As I was starting to get afraid that I hadn't objected quickly enough, Sassy broke it off. Staring at me with glittering eyes, she grabbed my hand and dragged me to the back of the room.
"Sorry about that," she muttered. "I just didn't want you to laugh. That might have caused problems. Most vampires take themselves way too seriously, and the laughter thing kind of gets to them."
"And you don't?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Heaven help me, no." She grinned at me and patted her hair back in place. "My dear, I didn't reach the age I did by taking myself seriously. You have to let go and laugh. It's a lesson I learned the hard way during life, and it's one that I hope never to forget in death. Undeath."
"Thank you," I murmured, still shaken by my reaction to her. "I think." Once I made sure we were well away from the melodrama playing out with Wade and his mother, I added, "I thought for sure there would be bloodshed between Menolly and Belinda."
Sassy stifled a laugh. "I think it's funny. Menolly's just trying to be accepted by Wade's nest, my dear, and her way of doing that is to earn the respect of his mother through asserting herself."
Somehow I didn't think Menolly gave a rat's ass about being accepted by Belinda Stevens, but I kept my mouth shut.
"I do pity the poor boy," Sassy continued. "I gather somebody got pissed off at him and turned his mother into a vampire in retaliation. Wade and his mother never got along in life. Now she's going to be on his back forever, because I can guarantee you, women like that do not give up control over their sons."
I glanced over my shoulder at the trio and shuddered. Just another reason why I never intended to marry. My family was warped enough, but add somebody else's family to the mix, and the possibilities were nightmarish. I turned back to Sassy.
"So, we really are looking forward to your party next week," I said, striving for some sense of normalcy.
She beamed. "My dear, it's simply going to be the event of the season! I'm glad you're coming," she added, reaching out to sweep my bangs out of my eyes. "You really are a lovely girl," she said in a husky voice, and I realized that Sassy was hiding more than the fact that she was a vampire. She was definitely a woman's woman. My stomach lurched as she swept her gaze up and down my body. The scary thing was that I found myself responding to the invitation. Vampires could charm Fae, but not as easily as they could humans.
"My boyfriend thinks so, too," I said, deciding that Chase had uses I hadn't put to the test. Deflecting interested vamps might just be one of them.
Sassy gave me a curious look, then after a moment shook her head and turned away. "It looks like they're ready to start the meeting," she said. "By the way, at my party, please remember that most of my old friends don't know I'm dead, so mum's the word."
With a giggle, she brushed a stray strand of her gray hair back into the tidy chignon she wore it in. Sassy's brilliant plum dress and sable wrap seemed lushly out of place in the basement meeting hall, but when I looked in her eyes, I realized how alone she must feel, hiding in the closet for so many reasons. She was a lonely woman, and it was obvious that she still had quite the conscience. Sassy Branson was a misfit, as were we all. And perhaps that is why I liked the woman.
By the time Menolly and I pulled into the driveway, she was willing to talk again. After the meeting, the moment I opened my mouth to say something, she shushed me, telling me to shut up. She fumed all the way home, driving a good sixty miles an hour, though I kept asking her to slow down. She didn't even notice when I plugged CCR into her CD player, a group she usually detested.
Morio's Subaru was in the yard, though, and so was Trillian's Harley. We'd jumped out of the Jag and headed for the house when she stopped me.
"Kitten, I'm sorry I was so snippy on the way home. It just took me some time to calm down. I never expected Wade's mother to be such a bitch."
