Jessica almost laughed out loud at their worries, thinking of how strong she knew her neighbor could be, and how quickly he could move when he was in a hurry. If he’d wanted to, he could’ve grabbed her from the hallway while they’d been talking just now, whisked her inside his apartment, and slammed the door shut in under two seconds flat. He could’ve done whatever he wanted with her in there—she might’ve been gone for good—and no one but Dara and Lucy would have ever even known she’d been there. She texted back:
Pretty sure not a perv. 2 of us alone together when we talked just now, and he was naked. If he’d wanted to jump me, totally could have. But didn’t.
Oops. She regretted the message as soon as she’d sent it. Particularly since that last line made her sound so disappointed.
Dara: What?!
Lucy:He was naked?! Why?!
Jessica:Never mind, you guys. Just…pretty sure there’s nothing to worry about. TTYL.
She added a few smileys for reassurance and slipped her phone back into her pocket.Then she spent the next nine and a half minutes anxiously straightening her already-spotless living area and practicing sitting on various pieces of furniture, trying to decide the most appropriate posture for interviewing a vampire. She wondered how Anne Rice had done it the first time. When a knock sounded at the door, she almost jumped out of her skin.
“Hi!” she shouted, swinging open the door. Just in case the old saw about explicit invitations being necessary was true, she added, “Please! Come in!”
The vampire had changed into his usual jeans, gray t-shirt, and boots. He’d combed his hair. He looked around while she shut the door behind him, and then stood by it with his arms crossed. His biceps bulged. His t-shirt strained across his pectorals. He still smelled like men’s grooming products, which was to say, deliciously intoxicating.
“Thanks for coming,” she said, fighting the urge to sway toward him. “Can I get you anything to drink? I’ve got water, tea, diet soda. Maybe a Bloody Mary? Ha.”
He looked at her funny. “No, thank you. What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Wow, okay, right down to business, huh? Well…why don’t you have a seat?” She waved toward her sofa.
He turned his head slowly, staring into her living area as if he’d rather wade into a murky pit teeming with hungry alligators. Finally, though, he ambled over and settled on the edge of a couch cushion. He kept his arms crossed and his posture rigid. Jessica sat across from him on her love seat, her own back ramrod straight. “Well, before we get started,” she said, “could you, um, maybe tell me your name? It only seems fair, since you already know mine.”
Again, he paused, watching her before answering. “Nathan,” he finally offered. “Smith.”
Nathan Smith, huh? What a normal sounding name for a…paranormal.
Jessica, forcing down nervous giggles, said, “Well, Nathan, there’s really no good way to ask this without sounding crazy, but, hey, you never talk to me anyway, so I guess it doesn’t matter if you think I’m a nutcase, so…” She swept her gaze away from him, briefly studying the floor. When she looked back up at him, she blurted it out. “Are you a vampire, by any chance?”
Nathan’s eyes widened the barest fraction. If she hadn’t been watching him so closely, she would never have noticed it. He tilted his head and looked at her askance. “You believe in vampires?” His tone was disturbingly neutral.
“Well, I wasn’t a hundred percent sold on them before today,” she admitted. “But with all the evidence I’ve seen and heard over the past few hours? Yeah, I’d have to say I’m about ready to invest in some holy water and start stringing garlic bulbs around my windows.” She held up her hands. “Aaand I’m noticing you didn’t say ‘no’ just now, so does that mean…?”
The vampire said nothing, only stared at her with bland disinterest.
The clock on Jessica’s mantel seemed to grow noisier, its ticking suddenly way too loud. She clasped her hands together and chewed on the inside of her cheek, wondering where to go from here.
Just then, a bell tinkled and Jessica’s cat, Wilhelmina, came trotting into the living area from the bedroom. The white Angora froze when she spotted the vampire sitting on the couch, her lime green eyes widening, and Jessica had a sudden worry the cat was about to start hissing and otherwise making a scene. Animals were supposed to be sensitive to the presence of the undead, weren’t they?
“Oh, no, Wilhelmina, shoo!” Jessica cried, clapping her hands. “Back into the bedroom with you!”
Unsurprisingly, the cat ignored her commands. What did surprise her was the way the cat snapped out of its reverie, leapt up onto the coffee table, and went bounding across it to land squarely in the vampire’s lap. Wilhelmina butted her head against Nathan’s chin, flicked her tail, and started purring like a lawnmower.
Jessica gasped. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. She’s not usually that friendly.” In fact, Wilhelmina was never that friendly. Not even with Jessica.
“Wilhelmina, what’re you doing? Come here, you silly girl. Not everyone likes a cat climbing all over them...” Jessica hopped up with her arms extended, reaching to snatch the cat away from him, but Nathan held up his hand to stop her. He rested his other hand on Wilhelmina’s nape, his long fingers curling against her pink rhinestone collar.
“Please, I do not mind,” he said, and gave the cat a few gentle scratches. What might’ve been pleasure animated his expression as he stroked her behind the ears, crooning, “You aren’t bothering anybody, are
