A big smile spread across his face. He came out from behind the bar and before I knew it he was shaking my hand vigorously. “Oh, my word! You’re the Slayer of Slayers I’ve been hearing so much about.”
I glanced at George. “Really, it’s no big deal.”
“No big deal, she says. No big deal? It’s a big deal. Sorry I was a little rude earlier. I didn’t know who you were! Gosh. The Slayer of Slayers. It’s a pleasure to be in your presence.” He didn’t let go of my hand. “Ooo. I can feel it. Your powerful vibe. It’s coming off you in waves. It gives me shivers. But in a good way.”
“Um . . . ”
He frowned. “What happened to your neck?”
George looked at me curiously.
I wrenched my hand away from the enthusiastic new bartender and covered up my neck. “Oh, it’s nothing. Just a bruise. You know, with two deep puncture marks. Into my jugular. No biggie.”
George pulled my hand away and inspected the wound. He frowned. “Sarah, honey, what happened?”
I cleared my throat. “I fell on some barbecue prongs.”
He looked so concerned that I started to feel uncomfortable. “Sarah, this is serious. What happened?”
“It’s nothing. Just a little accident.”
He glanced around the club. “Where is Mr. Barbecue Prongs, anyhow?”
I waved my hand absently. “Gone. I don’t know. He’ll be back. I’m going to take off, too. I’m kind of tired and I think I may be a tad anemic. Big day tomorrow. Plus, I’d better take Barkley for a walk.”
His expression didn’t change. “We’ll talk about this. Later.”
I nodded with fake enthusiasm and then felt a little dizzy. “Sure. Sounds like a plan. Okay, I’m out of here.”
I left Haven to find Lenny waiting outside scribbling in a notebook under a nearby streetlamp. He waved when he saw me. I walked toward him as briskly as my high heels would take me away from the relative safety of the club.
Yeah. Where I’d just been nearly bled to death by my date who was also a confirmed murderer, where
I’d volunteered to be bait to trap the leader of all hunters, and where I’d met my biggest fan.
All in all, a productive evening, I’d say.
Islept for more than twelve hours. When I woke up it was almost noon. I didn’t want to get up. I wanted to pull the covers up over my head like I did when I was a little girl and make the world go away.
But it didn’t look like the world was going anywhere.
George wasn’t home, but he’d left some nearly undrinkable coffee and half an apple danish. I ignored the pastry and filled a mug with the dark, lukewarm liquid, sipping it slowly while I mentally assessed my current problems.
Thierry couldn’t find out what I’d agreed to do. If he knew what Nicolai’s plan was, then I was off to live in a nunnery as Sister Sarah.
I had no idea where he’d gone last night. I grabbed the phone and dialed his cell phone number, but I hung up after the first ring. Later. I’d talk to him later.
I touched my neck. The bite marks were still there. Strange that they hadn’t healed yet, since most of my cuts and scrapes were gone within hours lately.
My wardrobe and everything I owned could now fit comfortably in two suitcases. From the small selection I picked out some black jeans, a white T-shirt, and the leather jacket from last night to wear.
Ready for the day. Ready to face all challenges head-on. Fearless and self-assured. That was me. Bring it on. Come and get me, Gideon Chase.
I stood in place staring at the front door for a good twenty minutes before I finally opened it and went outside.
Lenny and Janie were waiting. Janie eyed my neck but didn’t say anything other than “Good morning.”
“I don’t know about good, but it is a morning,” I replied. “Listen, if you’re willing to give me some of those self-defense lessons today that we talked about, I would be eternally grateful. And as a vampire, that isn’t just an empty promise.”
She glanced at Lenny, then back at me. “Sure. No problem.”
I’d decided that learning self-defense was now essential. I needed to feel more secure. Leaving my life in the hands of other people was not a good thing. And I needed to learn how to protect myself as soon as possible. At least a little. And though Quinn had offered his enthusiastic services to me, I would have to decline. Being around Quinn was extremely distracting. It wasn’t good for him or for me. Plus after what
George had said about it looking like I was using him to make Thierry jealous, I thought I’d try to avoid the ex-hunter as much as possible. Because Iwasn’t using him. Unless I was doing it subconsciously. My subconscious was a very devious thing.
And this had nothing to do with my dreaming about kissing him. Because that was just a dream. I wasn’t interested in Quinn. No way.
I never bothered to consider the fact that being with Quinn would cause me way less stress and emotional pain than being with Thierry. Or that we might be better matched, from the fact that we’re both fledgling vampires, to our ages, to our interests. Or that it was strongly possible that I had made a mistake in choosing to be with my bloodthirsty boyfriend who had scared the crap out of me last night and seemed to have enough issues to open his own magazine stand.
Nope. Hadn’t considered any of those things. Not at all.
“When do you want to start?” Janie asked.
“I have a little something I need to take care of first. But right after that would be perfect.”
“After we take care of your chore do you mind if we grab some lunch?” she asked. “It’s very unprofessional, I know. But I’ve been working a couple jobs while I’m in town and haven’t had a chance to grab anything this morning. And if I’m going to teach you some self-defense, I’d prefer to have some protein first.”
Lenny tucked his notebook into his jacket pocket. “I could have picked something up for you. Why didn’t you say something?”
She shook her head. “You’re guarding Sarah. It’s okay. Really.”
“Remember when you picked me up that BLT sandwich because you thought I looked hungry? That was really sweet. I could do that for you, too.”
She smiled. “Lenny, why don’t you go get the car?”
“Can do.” He nodded and jogged off down the street.
I raised an eyebrow.
“He’s got a bit of a crush on me,” she explained. “What can I say? I’m irresistible. And extremely hungry.”
I’d decided that I liked Janie. We could probably become friends given enough time. And now she was going to teach me how to kick some ass. It was totally fate that she was hired as my bodyguard. Fate that I’d spilled a moccaccino on her expensive suede shoes.
And speaking of fate, I had a promise to fulfill.
When Lenny pulled the black sedan up to the curb, I instructed him on how to get to Amy’sMelrose