Jill was chattering on about something and hadn't noticed them yet. She turned with a plate of bacon in hand and approached Mandy. Jill frowned as Mandy ignored her and finally followed Mandy's gaze to where they stood in the entryway. The plate clattered against the granite as she practically dropped it onto the counter.
"Uh, hey," Jill greeted awkwardly, something she never was. "You hungry?"
"Starving," Emma admitted.
"I should get going," Ethan said. "I'll be back in an hour."
She hated the disappointment filling her over him leaving, but she forced herself to smile. "Sounds good."
He kissed her cheek before slipping out the door. Taking a steadying breath, she braced herself before turning to face her friends again. They both stared at her as if she were a piece of meat they couldn't wait to sink their teeth into. Oh hell, she was in for it, she realized with a sigh. Resigning herself to the barrage of questions she knew were about to unfold, she climbed down the steps and walked over to join them.
"I guess we know why you're hungry," Jill said as she heaped eggs onto a plate and placed it in the empty spot next to Mandy. "And why you didn't join us last night."
"We got caught in the rain," Emma told her as she bit into a piece of bacon.
"Oh, I bet," Mandy said as Emma settled onto the stool next to her.
She grabbed a handful of bacon and dropped it onto her plate. "We did!" she protested.
"You are going to tell us much more than that!" Jill declared as she danced away to get more eggs. "You better spill."
"Jill—"
"Not the disgusting details but give us something here, Emma."
She shook her head at Jill and dove into her eggs. Their eyes bored into her as she ate. She had to tell them something, but she needed to put some food in her belly if she was going to have the strength to deal with them. With her stomach full, and their patience fraying, she finally wiped her mouth with her napkin and lifted her head to meet their inquisitive gazes.
"It was the best night of my life," she told them honestly.
"Well that's definitely something," Mandy said with a laugh.
Ethan wasn't surprised to find Isabelle waiting to pounce on him when he returned to the living room after showering and changing. Her arms were crossed firmly over her chest; her foot was tapping on the floor as her eyes locked on his.
"Where were you last night?" she demanded as she followed him to the fridge.
He pulled the door on the refrigerator open and removed a bag of blood from it. "I was out," he answered absently.
"I was concerned about you Ethan."
"I'm a grown man, Isabelle," he said as he tore the top of the bag off with his teeth.
"Damn it, Ethan!" she yelled as she stomped her foot. "You're a grown man, but I'd still like to know you're safe and alive!"
He took a deep breath as he leaned against the island. He hadn't meant to worry her; he simply hadn't thought of her while he was with Emma. Looking at her now though, guilt tugged at him as she rang her hands before her.
"I'm sorry, but I didn't think mom was here." She wasn't at all amused by his teasing words or his playful tug on her hair. "Come on, Issy, you can't stay mad at me. You know it's impossible."
Some of the unease went out of her as she finally smiled at him. "That's true. Were you with her?"
Ethan paused in the middle of drinking the blood; he brought his head back down to look at her. The relaxed, good-natured temperament he'd been experiencing vanished as unreasonable hostility took its place. "She has a name, and it would be better if you used it."
He was a little perplexed when Isabelle didn't become riled up at his tone. She tilted her head to the side to study him.
"I meant no offense," she told him. "Were you with, Emma?"
Movement drew his attention to the patio doors when Stefan stepped through them. Stefan's gaze searched the two of them as he strode gracefully across the floor toward the kitchen.
Ethan finished off the bag of blood and dumped it into the trashcan, typically one satisfied him, but it wasn’t enough today. "I was."
"You like her," Isabelle said.
Isabelle stepped aside when he opened the fridge. He lifted his head to look at her as she started ringing her hands again and shifted from foot to foot. Isabelle wasn't nervous by nature; in fact, she was one of the most steadfast vampires he'd ever known, but something had her extremely agitated right now.
"I do," he admitted as he closed the fridge.
"She's human," she said as if it were some big secret.
"She is," he agreed as he tore the top off the bag.
Stefan stopped behind Isabelle and rested his hands on her shoulders. "I've never seen you spend this much time with a human before. I uh...are you okay?"
He grinned at her, consumed the bag, and tossed it into the trash. "I've never been better, Iss; you have nothing to worry about."
"Ethan—"
"I know what you're thinking, so just stop." Ethan tapped his fingers on the counter as he thought over what Isabelle had been about to say and the reality growing within him. "Truth be told, I've thought it too."
She inhaled sharply, and even Stefan's eyebrows shot up. "You're really
