through the glass but ultimately decided to back away and not wreck my credit rating by giving in to earring temptation.
I turned away, digging through my purse for my phone. Ben was probably at the house by now, waiting to start the Macaulay-thon. I glanced up and saw a tall, lean shape against the backdrop of the building next to Jane’s. I could make out the shock of blond hair in the bluish light of the security lamp. And his eyes glowed gold.
My imaginary vampire friend appeared to be of a more solid variety.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up. I stepped toward my car and nearly walked into a lamppost. His eyes followed my bumbling progress across the street. It didn’t feel . . . bad or wrong. And that was probably an indicator that there was something seriously wrong with the way my brain worked.
I fumbled in my bag for good old Mr. Sparky, but before I could pull my hand out, he was standing right in front of me. I yelped, stumbling back. Stupid vampire speed. I was going to end up ass-over-teakettle on the pavement because I had a poor startle reflex in front of attractive supernatural creatures.
Cool, strong hands closed around my elbows and pulled me back upright. From far away, fade-y, imaginary vampire-ghost guy was sort of attractive. Imagine a portrait of an incredibly handsome nobleman come to life, then rip off the tacky white wig. Up close, imaginary vampire-ghost guy was cortex-meltingly hot. High cheekbones, long straight nose, chiseled jawline, and a mouth I wanted to taste more than I wanted my next breath. He was wearing a long black trench coat over jeans and a white button-down with the collar open just enough that licking the man’s Adam’s apple seemed like a reasonable thing to do.
The gold—how was that even possible?—eyes bored into mine. My breath stuttered. I couldn’t speak, couldn’t make a sound. Come on, poise and logical thinking, I prayed, give me something to work with.
“Guuhhh.”
You are dead to me, poise. And tell logical thinking it can screw itself.
Those full lips quirked into a smug little smile, and he ran the tip of his nose in a long line down the curve of my jaw, breathing in the scent of my throat. His lip curled back into something resembling a smile before he brushed his mouth across mine. He slid his hand under my hair and pulled me close, swallowing my alarmed little exhalation.
I pulled back, staring up at him with what I am sure were wide anime eyes. He was smiling down at me, running his thumb along my cheek, making me shiver. He kissed me again, sinking his blunt teeth into my bottom lip. I moaned, and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue past my lips, teasing it ever so gently across my teeth.
I turned back toward the bookshop, hoping that Jane wasn’t watching me make out with a strange vampire on the street. I stammered, “Wh-who are you?”
But as I turned back, he vanished.
The hell?
Mishaps will occur during holidays with the undead, just like holidays with the living. The trick is not to overreact, because sudden movement around vampires is not a good idea.
—Not So Silent Night: Creating Happy and Stress-Free Holidays with Newly Undead Family Members
I was having what could only be described as a Christmas movie hangover. Starting a Home Alone marathon that late at night was just inadvisable.
It had started off well. Cal liked all movies, because motion pictures were still pretty much a novelty for him. And Iris was nose-deep in her Sangre Select, so nothing would bother her until February. Ben was super enthusiastic about watching the first one, snuggling up next to me on the couch and keeping me supplied with Junior Mints. But as the night wore on (and on—why the hell did we choose Home Alone for a theme?), Ben noticed that I was putting space between us. I was squirming in my own big vat of guilt juices, replaying my kiss with my maybe-a-hallucination-but-definitely-not-a-ghost vampire friend in my head. One
I turned away, digging through my purse for my phone. Ben was probably at the house by now, waiting to start the Macaulay-thon. I glanced up and saw a tall, lean shape against the backdrop of the building next to Jane’s. I could make out the shock of blond hair in the bluish light of the security lamp. And his eyes glowed gold.
My imaginary vampire friend appeared to be of a more solid variety.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up. I stepped toward my car and nearly walked into a lamppost. His eyes followed my bumbling progress across the street. It didn’t feel . . . bad or wrong. And that was probably an indicator that there was something seriously wrong with the way my brain worked.
I fumbled in my bag for good old Mr. Sparky, but before I could pull my hand out, he was standing right in front of me. I yelped, stumbling back. Stupid vampire speed. I was going to end up ass-over-teakettle on the pavement because I had a poor startle reflex in front of attractive supernatural creatures.
Cool, strong hands closed around my elbows and pulled me back upright. From far away, fade-y, imaginary vampire-ghost guy was sort of attractive. Imagine a portrait of an incredibly handsome nobleman come to life, then rip off the tacky white wig. Up close, imaginary vampire-ghost guy was cortex-meltingly hot. High cheekbones, long straight nose, chiseled jawline, and a mouth I wanted to taste more than I wanted my next breath. He was wearing a long black trench coat over jeans and a white button-down with the collar open just enough that licking the man’s Adam’s apple seemed like a reasonable thing to do.
The gold—how was that even possible?—eyes bored into mine. My breath stuttered. I couldn’t speak, couldn’t make a sound. Come on, poise and logical thinking, I prayed, give me something to work with.
“Guuhhh.”
You are dead to me, poise. And tell logical thinking it can screw itself.
Those full lips quirked into a smug little smile, and he ran the tip of his nose in a long line down the curve of my jaw, breathing in the scent of my throat. His lip curled back into something resembling a smile before he brushed his mouth across mine. He slid his hand under my hair and pulled me close, swallowing my alarmed little exhalation.
I pulled back, staring up at him with what I am sure were wide anime eyes. He was smiling down at me, running his thumb along my cheek, making me shiver. He kissed me again, sinking his blunt teeth into my bottom lip. I moaned, and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue past my lips, teasing it ever so gently across my teeth.
I turned back toward the bookshop, hoping that Jane wasn’t watching me make out with a strange vampire on the street. I stammered, “Wh-who are you?”
But as I turned back, he vanished.
The hell?
Mishaps will occur during holidays with the undead, just like holidays with the living. The trick is not to overreact, because sudden movement around vampires is not a good idea.
—Not So Silent Night: Creating Happy and Stress-Free Holidays with Newly Undead Family Members
I was having what could only be described as a Christmas movie hangover. Starting a Home Alone marathon that late at night was just inadvisable.
It had started off well. Cal liked all movies, because motion pictures were still pretty much a novelty for him. And Iris was nose-deep in her Sangre Select, so nothing would bother her until February. Ben was super enthusiastic about watching the first one, snuggling up next to me on the couch and keeping me supplied with Junior Mints. But as the night wore on (and on—why the hell did we choose Home Alone for a theme?), Ben noticed that I was putting space between us. I was squirming in my own big vat of guilt juices, replaying my kiss with my maybe-a-hallucination-but-definitely-not-a-ghost vampire friend in my head. One
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