went to fetch her brother Doug. My desk was organized for a change, and I found the clipboard bearing the schedule for the next couple of weeks. I skimmed it, relieved to see we had a full complement of staff for a change. My immortal friends didn't understand why I cared so much about this job. There had been days recently-days when I didn't want to get out of bed because I was so depressed-that I'd wondered the same thing. But the truth was, eternity was an extremely long time, and I'd spent most of my time always occupied with some activity. It was part of my nature; I couldn't be idle. And sometimes- sometimes -I could get so caught up in the day-to-day affairs of the human world that I could almost pretend for a heartbeat that I was one of them again.
'I don't think we'll need anyone to cover me,' I said when I heard the office door open a few minutes later. 'Someone'll just need to take over my-' I looked up.
Maddie had returned, along with Doug, but they weren't alone. Seth was with them.
All the easy confidence I'd shown in the store, all the brashness and bravado I'd shown at the club…it all shriveled up into a cold, hard knot as I looked at him. Walls slammed down around me. How could he affect me like this, particularly while wearing a Buck Rogers T-shirt? It had been three months. Why wasn't I over him? Why did I still want to cry or break something whenever I saw him?
'Whoa, Kincaid,' said Doug, partially distracting me from my angst. He glanced at my outfit and raised an eyebrow. 'We interrupting your social life?'
I wore a knee-length black trench coat over a short red dress. My makeup was done to seductive perfection, whorish dark eyeliner and lipstick to match the dress. Shape-shifting in the car would have been a snap, but I didn't feel like I needed to prove anything here. In fact, I kind of reveled in my tramp look tonight.
'Apparently this is my social life, if I'm pathetic enough to come in on a Saturday night.' I forced myself to focus on Doug and Maddie only, trying hard not to look at Seth's soft, coppery brown hair or gentle eyes. Why did he have to be here of all nights? The answer: he was here every night. He was an author and did his best work in coffee shops. When we'd broken up, he'd tried to tactfully find another and stay away from me, but Maddie-oblivious to his reasons-had begged him to stay at the bookstore's.
'Where are you going?' asked Maddie. 'Is everything okay?'
'Yeah, yeah,' I said brusquely. 'Long story.'
I beckoned Maddie and Doug to the clipboard, explaining again how I was pretty sure the store would be fine without my labor, so long as they could cover the tasks I did as manager. We sketched out a brief list of my responsibilities, like payroll and inventory, and began divvying them up.
Doug tapped the list. 'I've done all these before, at one time or another. They're no problem. I'll take the first half.' He elbowed his sister. 'What about you? You gonna take the rest and pull your share here?'
Maddie pursed her lips. She was immensely talented but suffered from bouts of insecurity, which I'd repeatedly told her was ridiculous. She'd improved a lot over the months-again, thanks to me-but still faltered. 'I didn't realize you did so much. I hope I can learn it all.'
'Stop playing coy. I'll teach you,' said Doug. 'You'll be as good as Kincaid in no time.'
'Yeah,' I said dryly. 'We're practically interchangeable anyway.' Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Seth shift uncomfortably.
'The whole thing seems kind of sketchy, though,' remarked Doug, tilting his head so that his black hair fell away from his face. 'You're going to be gone, but you're not sure when or how long? I thought you were the reliable one around here.'
'It's…family stuff,' I told them. 'Just gotta be dealt with. Besides, now you can have a chance to be responsible. You should be thanking me, Doug.' He stuck his tongue out at me.
'Is Warren going to be okay with it?' asked Maddie, still fretting on my behalf.
'Let me deal with Warren,' I assured her.
Doug scoffed at that, but Maddie didn't catch on. Warren, the store's marginally moral owner, had been a longtime sex buddy of mine. He gave me about as much energy as Dante, but he was convenient and suited my mood lately. I'd stopped our tryst while dating Seth but had since returned to old habits. Doug had known about my affair with Warren then and now but was tactful enough to leave me to my own choices, aside from the occasional bit of eye rolling. I suspected Seth knew what was going on too, but I didn't care. Warren wasn't going to give me any grief about taking time off. I was too good at what I did, both at work and in the bedroom.
We shuffled one shift where I was supposed to have closed, and then I tossed the clipboard back on its pile, suddenly needing to get out of there as soon as possible. 'Alright. Thanks, team. I'll leave you to your work.'
'Off to hit the town?' asked Doug, still amused. 'I can join you in about a half-hour. I know a killer party.'
I shook my head. 'Already hit the town. I'm heading home.'
'Loser,' he called after me.
Maddie wished me well with my mysterious time off, and then I left them, walking through the store and exchanging greetings with my other co-workers as they scurried around with their closing tasks. I'd nearly made it to the door when I heard someone call my name. I turned and saw Casey hurrying toward me. She was twenty or so and went to the University of Washington. She'd worked here almost the entire time she'd been in college and was one of our best employees. So, I stopped and forced a smile, my eyes straying longingly toward the door.
'Hey, what's up?'
She grinned, dark eyes sparkling. 'I wanted to know if you were going to go to my party next weekend,' she said. 'You never answered the e-mail.'
I didn't remember any e-mail, but then, I'd been pretty trigger-happy with the delete key lately. 'I didn't get it,' I lied. 'What's going on?'
'It's my graduation party. This Sunday.'
I frowned. 'It's April.'
'I'm graduating early. I got all my credits finished up, so I don't have to do spring quarter. Pretty cool, huh?'
'Whoa,' I said, actually impressed. 'That is cool. Math, right?'
'Math and Latvian.'
'Why on earth-never mind.' Now was not the time to pursue why someone of Filipino heritage was studying Baltic languages. 'I wish I could go, but I'm leaving town tomorrow for some family stuff and don't know when I'll be back. I'm really sorry.'
Casey's face fell a little, but she told me she understood. And like Maddie, she wished me well and hoped my 'family' business would be taken care of easily. That made two of us. She left me and went to finish her closing tasks.
As soon as I cleared the store's door and was outdoors, I stopped and exhaled. Breezy night air washed over me. Being in Seth's presence was smothering. It stirred up too much in me. Even while talking business and numbers with Doug and Maddie, most of my attention had been on Seth-exactly how far away he stood from me, the way he smelled, the way his messy hair stuck up today. Everything else had been background noise compared to him.
Reaching into my purse with shaking hands, I pulled out my cigarettes, desperately needing one for the walk home. I'd smoked for a century or so and stopped ten years ago, something I'd been very proud of, even though I was immune to the effects. Stress had driven me to pick up the habit again. I felt a little bad about subjecting others to secondhand smoke, but honestly, smoking was the least of my problems right now.
'Fuck.' I flicked the switch on my lighter and got nothing. Three more flicks produced similar results. Holding the lighter up to my ear, I shook it. Nothing. It was out of fluid. 'Fuck,' I repeated. I only lived a few blocks away, but somehow, that walk was now going to be agony.
Suddenly, I heard what sounded like a boot scuff around the corner of the building. Frowning, I took a few steps forward, wondering if anyone was there. This area was pretty safe, but Lower Queen Anne still had its share of vagrants. Yet, when I glanced around the corner, there was no one there.
There was, however, a pack of matches lying on the ground.
Kneeling down, I picked the book up and examined them. Mark's Mad Martini Bar. I'd been there a long time ago. It was in Upper Queen Anne, not too far away if you didn't mind trekking up the hill. It wasn't unreasonable that a pack of their matches would find their way here. What was weird was that the matches showed up right when I needed them.
Behind me, I heard the store's door open. 'Georgina?'
