Wladek nods next to her, his face paint creased around half-closed eyes. ‘Tell Elias we said hi.’
‘How long’s he staying in town?’ Peggy asks without pausing to wait for an answer. ‘Tell him he must pop in for a cuppa before he goes.’
I smile at her. The fact that they treat him as my old college friend and not the international rockstar that he is now is exactly the reason he probably will pay them a visit. ‘I will,’ I promise.
‘You two want to walk back with us?’ Sean asks, looking between me and Lucy with just the vaguest hint of a raised eyebrow. I can tell he’s desperate to know what the deal is with us, but he’s much too polite to actually ask.
I shake my head, fumbling for a reason to wait a moment so that I can have Lucy all to myself on the walk home. ‘You go on ahead. I have a few things to sort here. I’ll make sure she gets home safely.’
Peggy nods, looping her arm through Wladek’s. ‘You’re a good boy,’ she says, raising her other hand to pat my cheek softly, the way she did when I was little.
And then they say their goodbyes and leave.
‘So,’ Lucy says once it’s just us. Well, us and a packed bar full of joyously drunk goths. ‘Are you going to introduce me to your secret global megastar friend?’
I nod, pushing down the small, irrational flare of jealousy in my gut. ‘I guess. As long as you don’t fall in love with him or anything.’
‘I think I’m good.’ Her lips twitch sideways, holding back a grin. ‘I preferred the guy who did the introductions.’
Stupid, disproportionate pride fills my chest. ‘Yeah?’
‘Yeah, did you see him?’ She chuckles, one hand fanning her face. ‘He was pretty hot.’
I laugh. ‘Maybe you should check if he’s single.’
‘Maybe I will.’ She shrugs. ‘You think he’d be interested?’
‘I dunno.’ I pull her into a kiss, deep and slow, and I feel her hands fist in my T-shirt. ‘Does it feel like he’s interested?’ I mutter against her ear before I pull away.
‘Maybe,’ she says. She’s playing it cool, but her eyes are a little glazed, her skin flushed pink along her cheekbones. ‘Although, I’ve never been kissed by a vampire before, so I don’t really have anything to compare it to.’
Shock stops me in my tracks, as sudden as if she’d slapped me. I pull away from her slowly, dreading what I’ll find when I look in her eyes. But when I do, I find only the slightest twinkle. She’s joking, I realise, a beat too late. I still have my fake fangs in.
I laugh, but it’s a little hollower than I intend, relief all mixed up with something darker: something that feels a lot like guilt. I know I need to tell her, and I will. I just can’t face the idea of her getting on that train tomorrow and never speaking to me again.
But she’s here now.
I pull her close again and drop my mouth to the pale skin at the base of her throat, nipping gently before dragging my teeth up the length of her neck. A shiver runs through her as I test my fangs on her earlobe. The fake ones, obviously.
‘Maybe he could take you home and give you a more thorough demonstration,’ I say, a husk to my voice that I don’t even have to put on.
She nods enthusiastically, eyes half-closed. ‘Yeah, let’s do that.’
‘You don’t want to go see Elias?’ I ask, tracing a finger along her collarbone, which is just beginning to flush pink from my teeth.
She shakes her head, those beautiful blue eyes burning into me. ‘Not as much as I want you.’
I’ve never left a building so quickly in my entire life.
That is, until we swing open the front door and the rush of cold air from the outside makes me realise that it’s almost November, and I’ve left my jacket hanging in the back room. Immortal or not, it’s as cold as a snowman’s ball sack out there.
I lean down and kiss her once, softly.
‘Wait right here,’ I say. ‘I’ll be two seconds.’
Chapter Twenty-Five
LUCY