“Indeed.” Parker was eyeing my pajama top and I hugged my elbows tightly, my cheeks pulsing hot with blood. “I’m going to go get my sweatshirt,” I said.
I tossed on a sweatshirt and fixed my hair, swabbed on a bit of deodorant, and gave myself a once-over in the mirror. I could probably do without the sheet creases on my pink cheek, but other than that, I didn’t think I looked half bad.
When I walked into the kitchen, Parker was leaning against my counter, shirtless. His jeans hung low on his slim hips, his legs were crossed at the ankles, his feet bare. He studied me from beneath lowered lashes and sipped his mug of coffee, looking very GQ very man-I’d-like-to-roll-in-the-hay-with. I swallowed hard and did a mental finger shake, reminding myself that Parker Hayes was my partner and my workmate and therefore completely off-limits.
Mostly.
“Morning, sunshine,” Parker said with a grin.
“Good morning again,” I said.
“So, where’s the fabulous spread you promised me?”
I opened the fridge and knocked over Nina’s Blood Light while snaking the two remaining pudding cups. I offered one to Parker.
“I’m afraid this is as fabulous as it gets this morning.” I raised my coffee mug and smiled. “But at least there’s coffee.”
Parker took the pudding cup and the spoon I offered. “Chocolate pudding. The breakfast of champions.”
We stood in the kitchen eating in silence for a moment until Parker said, “So Nina. She’s the vampire?”
I nodded, licking my spoon. “Uh-huh. And Vlad, of course.”
“Isn’t living with a vampire—or vampires—a little weird, though?”
“Oh no,” I said, leading Parker into the other room. “Nina is the best roommate I’ve ever had. I never have to worry about waking her up, she never hogs the mirror, and best of all”—I raised my pudding cup—“she never eats my food.”
“I don’t know,” Parker said, slumping down at the kitchen table. “I couldn’t sleep if I knew the vampire was there. I’d be sure it was just a matter of time until she ate me.”
“All you breathers are exactly the same!” Nina shouted, stomping into the living room, pale nostrils flared.
“She’s also super quiet,” I said, licking the chocolate pudding from my spoon.
“Look, buddy,” Nina said as she gathered her dark hair into a long, slick ponytail. “We’ve been around awhile. You breathers aren’t the only ones who’ve evolved.”
Parker’s eyes narrowed, and for once, I thought I saw genuine terror in them. I considered intervening, but I wasn’t done with my pudding cup.
“Whoa, I didn’t mean to insult you. I’m just trying to figure this whole thing out,” he said, palms up, placating.
“Well, you no longer have to go all bow-and-arrow around dinnertime”—Nina shrugged—“and neither do we.”
Parker looked from Nina to me and back again and dropped his voice. “Vampire restaurants?”
“Something like that,” I said.
“See? This is what I can’t stand. We’re not all crazed maniacs, you know. When you walk into a grocery store, do you start ripping everything off the shelves, tearing into a box of Frosted Flakes with your teeth? No! Sure, when you’re hungry you might make a few bad decisions”—Nina rubbed her stomach and winced—“but you can control yourself. So can we.”
Parker shuddered. “But don’t you … like … the thrill of the hunt?”
Nina’s eyes went wild, primitive, and her lips parted, the pink tip of her tongue touching her sharp incisors. “Do I ever!” She kicked out her right leg and pointed at it. “Dolce and Gabbana slouch boots, forty percent off!”
The color returned to Parker’s cheeks, and he groaned, tossing his pudding cup in the trash. “I don’t know why I was worried. You chicks are all the same—dead or alive.”
Nina cocked her head, her nostrils fluttering as Parker passed her.
“What?” he asked, eyes wide.
“You smell … different.”
Parker’s cheeks flushed, and I tossed Nina my “it’s impolite to sniff our guests” look. “So, Nina, how was Dirt last night?”
“Wait. One more thing,” Parker started, taking a large step back from Nina. “What about the no-sunlight part? Is that true?”
Nina crossed her arms in front of her chest and nodded. “Yeah. You know the whole UV-sunburn thing?”
Parker nodded.
“Well, it’s like that, times, like, a billion. And then we burst into flames.”
I grimaced, but Parker seemed unfazed. “And what about the no-aging part? People have to wonder about that. How do you get around that one?”
“Most vampires are nomadic for that reason. But it’s not as big a problem as you might think. Men never question it; it’s the women who always ask.”
“And what do you tell them?”
“Pilates.”