“A good one?” Gianna’s gaze probed mine with an intensity that spoke a silentDon’t give me a bullshit answer.
“I wouldn’t say I’m on the top of the world.” My shoulders tensed. It was more like struggling to keep from falling off a hamster wheel while juggling squirming snakes half the time. “But I have a job. Well, two.”
“You can find a job—or two—here.” She motioned through the club. “I’m sure I could get you some shifts here if you wanted.”
“Thanks, but Salem and me?” My lips twitched. “A witch unskilled in magic is about as welcome here as—say, fur on a dragon.”
Gianna laughed. “That’s a bit of a stretch, but I get it.”
“I also have an apartment there.”
“You have ahousehere that youown. Even better.”
“With tenants,” I clarified.
“Have you met them yet?”
“Yes, I stopped by earlier. There are two shifters and a vampire living in the main part of the house. My aunt lived in a separate apartment, including tower rooms, which is pretty cool.”
“How are they?” She arched her brows.
“Okay, I guess.” Biting my lip, I then added, “Well, there was a bit of an embarrassing situation with the vampire, Diego.”
Gianna’s blue eyes sparkled. “Ooh, tell me. You know how I love stories with awkwardness.”
That’s because we’d collected a vast number between us growing up and often joked we should share them on stage atMortified. But after puberty, Gianna had blossomed into a beautiful butterfly. Me? Well, at least I wasn’t as gawky anymore.
I exhaled with a heavy sigh. “I almost fried him by sunlight when I started to open the shades. He tackled me to the ground. While we tried to get up, body parts of the opposite sex were accidentally grabbed.”
Gianna covered her mouth and howled with laughter. “You felt up your tenant?”
I raised my chin as if I could crawl out of the depths of indignity. “It wasn’t one sided. He grabbed my boob.”
“This is the best. What a way to make an introduction!”
“Utterly embarrassing.” Heat returned to my cheeks.
She raised her brows. “Is he cute?”
I pictured Diego with his dark hair and blue eyes, when they weren’t masked by that reddish tinge. “I guess some people might consider him attractive.”
“Are yousomepeople?”
Averting eye contact, I shrugged. “Sure, he’s okay.”
Gianna clapped. “Even better. Does this mean it will lead to some hot monkey sex while you’re in town?”
“Hell no,” I protested. “After that incident, I’m hoping I can deal with what I have to do without seeing him again.”
Gianna put her arm around my shoulder and steered me to the bar. “Come on, you need a drink.”
After we sat at the bar and ordered cocktails, Gianna and I continued to catch up. I’d ordered a “Black Hole Sun,” a variation on a Malibu Sunset. She’d selected a “Peaches,” a Bellini-type drink she said was her current favorite.
“This is amazing.” I took another sip. “It could be dangerous as it goes down so smooth.” I’d have to stick to one, though, as I was driving later.
She took command of the music. When I heard the first notes of Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy,” I grinned at her.
“Dearly beloved,” we said at the same time and laughed.
