Chapter Twenty-Three
Kelli took one look at the empty apartment and the starch went out of her spine. Dressed for work, she wore the standard Spanky’s pink t-shirt paired with a skimpy black skirt that revealed ruffled white panties whenever she bent in any direction, and spiked heels so tall, she had to take little baby steps when she walked. “I thought Ian was going to be here,” she pouted, plopping onto the couch.
“Since when do you care if he’s here or not?” Cady locked the door behind them, her own brief clothing positively dowdy by comparison. “Are you into my brother?”
“No…” Kelli’s voice squeaked abnormally high; she made a terrible liar. “It’s just you said he was going to be here, and I was surprised he wasn’t, that’s all.”
“He got called to work a private party tonight and had to leave earlier than we originally planned. It’s only going to be you and me tonight, and then I snagged us a ride to work with my neighbor, David.”
“I thought his name was something with an E or was it an A?”
“Nope, it’s David.” Cady steered her back to the original topic, bringing them each a diet soda. “Back to Ian though… Seriously, are you into my brother? It’s fine if you are, I just want to know about it. It makes me feel weird to think about you two making googly eyes at each other behind my back.”
“Why, did he say something?” Her eyes flashed wide.
“No, not exactly,” Cady hedged, not wanting to give her the wrong impression. It wasn’t like Ian spent his time mooning over Kelli or writing her name all over a notebook with little hearts over the i. “He just seemed glad to hear you were going to come over tonight. Do you like him like that?”
“What’s not to like? He’d definitely doable.”
“Ick. Okay, I don’t need to hear about how he gets your motor running. I’m only curious if you’ve ever been out before.”
“We’ve run into each other in a social setting,” Kelli said carefully, and that clinched it for Cady.
“Well, I think you should go for it. If you like him and he likes you, why not try to run into each other on purpose?”
“Really? You wouldn’t mind?”
“Why should I mind? It wouldn’t kill you to go out with someone semi-respectable for a change. Ian can be a pain in my ass, but he’s actually a pretty decent guy.”
“Thanks, maybe I will.” Kelli brightened, sipping at her soda thoughtfully.
“Good. Because there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Uh oh… I know that look. That’s your mama-bear look. What did I do this time?”
“It’s nothing like that,” Cady laughed at the guilty expression on her face. “Just… did you see the news today?”
“Ugh, no, I never watch that stuff. It’s depressing as hell.”
“Maybe you should. Some girl got murdered last night, right here in our neighborhood. It’s getting dangerous out there, Kel. I want you to promise me you won’t go to any clubs for a while, not alone anyway.”
“Oh come on, I would never go home with a creeper. I know better than that.”
“Did Penny tell you I stopped her from almost going home with a guy who ended up being a psycho killer?”
“What? No! When did this happen?”
Cady told her a carefully edited version of the events, detailing how even innocent Penny had fallen under the sway of Claudio, who’d later been found murdered nearby. She said nothing of demons or body switching or Ethan’s involvement with any of it. “So you have to be careful, you can’t judge a book by its cover.”
“Damn.” Kelli fell back against the arm of the couch. “Alright, unless one of you bitches is there to watch my back I’ll stick to libraries and Laundromats from now on,” she vowed.
“No, no Laundromats either. I met a weirdo there the other day.”
“Shit, is nothing sacred anymore?” Kelli shook her head, her mind switching tracks. “What about you and this neighbor guy? Did he get your shirt off this time?”
“I wouldn’t have said no, but I told you, he’s a gentleman,” Cady admitted with a sheepish grin.
“You dog!” Kelli laughed in delight. “Tell me everything.”
Cady managed another heavily edited edition of some of the time she’d spent with Ethan, omitting any mention of his injuries and leaning more towards the kisses they’d shared. Kelli ate it all up, eyes shining with excitement, leading Cady to go into more detail than she probably should have about those private moments. “Listen, don’t say anything about what I told you about him when he comes to give us a ride tonight, okay?”
“It’s alright, I know the girl code. I’ll settle for meaningful glances at you behind his back.”
“Good. He can be pretty shy around girls.”
That turned out to be an understatement.
When Ethan rapped on the door, he barely lifted his gaze off the ground, offering a mumbled greeting to Kelli. He treated her more like a fare than a friend as he drove them down to Spanky’s, responding with a series of monosyllabic grunts when she tried to draw him into the conversation. Kelli ignored him after he failed to respond to her flirty request to see his sexy tattoos. There was no sign of the sling or bandage, and he moved easily with no sign of pain or restriction.
There wasn’t a good time to brace him about loosening up until after he parked the car and escorted them into the store. While Kelli stood chatting with Dylan, their boss, she cornered Ethan by the door. “What’s with the Mr. Mumbles routine? You didn’t have this much trouble talking to Penny the other day.”
“That was different,” Ethan replied, clenching his hands into fists and then releasing them, rhythmically. “We were supposed to be neighbors, nothing more. I don’t know how to talk to someone like your friend Kelli. Am I supposed to flirt back with her when I’m your boyfriend?” he shook his head, and Cady took pity on his bewildered expression.
“No, but she’s never gonna buy that you’re my boyfriend if you keep up with the silent routine. Can’t you at least be a little friendlier than that to me?”
“Friendlier?” Ethan nodded slowly, digesting the critique, before wrapping a possessive arm around her waist. “Alright, I can do that.” His hand dipped to the curve of her ass, pulling her tightly to his lean form. He delivered a scorching kiss that chased all thoughts of subterfuge from her mind.
“What was that?” she murmured, slightly dazed when it was over.
“I thought about what you said. I’m supposed to be protecting you, and I figure the quickest way to draw the subject out of hiding is to provoke a reaction from him.”
“You have my permission to try that tactic anytime you like,” Cady breathed, more than a little affected by the coiled strength in his body and the way he held her.
Unfortunately, the only reaction it provoked was one from her boss.
“Hey, no touching the merchandise, pal,” Dylan growled. He’d tied his scraggly hair back into a ponytail and trimmed the ragged facial hair into a thin mustache and the suggestion of a goatee. A huge improvement, but the clothes were still awful. An open button up shirt in a hellish orange print over brown, fringed, suede pants and pointy toed boots.
Ethan made no move to let go of Cady. “I’m just saying goodnight to my girlfriend,” he replied in a challenging, cocky tone she didn’t recognize.
Dylan’s eyes narrowed at him, giving Ethan a bold look up and down before flicking to Cady. “I’m not paying you to make out with your boyfriend. Time to get to work.”
“I know, I’ll be there in a minute,” she replied meekly, wanting another word before she let go of Ethan.
“Move those gorgeous buns, kitten, I don’t got all night.” Her boss fired out that last order before going back to locking up the rest of the shop.
“Looks like he’s the only one who objected,” Cady whispered once he was out of earshot and Ethan leaned close t
o her ear, his words sending a shiver down her spine.
“Keep an eye on him.”
“He’s my boss, he’s harmless. I do have to go though. Are you really going to hang out waiting all night while I’m in here working?”
“Yes, I’ll be out there keeping an eye on you, don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried. I’ll be locked in safe and sound until closing time. If you had anything else you wanted to take care of, you could take off for a while. Actually, I should be fine for the rest of the night. Ian’s set to pick me up after two and then we’re gonna hang out with Kelli at home. Which you’re perfectly welcome to join us, you know,” she pointed out.
“I’ll stay put for a while, see what happens. If I do need to bug out, I’ll send you a text.”
“What happened to the Challenger, by the way?” Cady asked, not having been able to react much when he picked them up in an unfamiliar white Jetta.
“I junked it.”
“Aww, I loved that car,” she mourned, wondering how he’d managed to get his hands on a new car so quickly.
“Chop chop, missy.” Dylan snapped his fingers at her like a dog and she fixed him with a withering glance.
“Alright, alright, I’m coming. I’ll see you later.”
“Stay safe.” Ethan’s fingers brushed over the necklace, and for the first time Cady thought she saw naked emotion escaping the tight confines of his will.
“You too.”