“Definitely not.”
“Okay, so I’ve known for a couple years, and I have zero problem ‘putting up with it.’ Leslie has known for a couple months, has zero problem. That’s a hundred-percent friendship success rate, man.”
“Claire’s different.”
“How so?”
Tai tried to think it through, find an explanation for his certainty. Was it based on anything real, or was it plain fear, piling onto the other burdens on his back? He tried processing out loud. Worked for Ryker. “Integrity is huge to Claire. Being a bloodfiend is the opposite of integrity.”
“That’s crap, Tai. And if you honestly don’t know by nowhowcrap that is…I don’t know where to start.”
Tai pressed his fingers to his eyes. Talking about this depleted him like nothing else did, as if a funnel formed in his chest and drained his vitality away. “Sometimes I think I know.”
“That it’s crap?”
“Yeah. That it’s just stuff he said. And that it got stuck in my head, but…but it doesn’t have to stay there.”
“Okay, good. Keep reminding yourself when you go after the woman you want.”
Tai gave a broken laugh. “I’d do it if I thought I had any chance of changing her opinion.”
“Then do it,” Ryker said. “And trust me, Claire…” He shook his head.
“Claire what?”
“I know she’s still mad, but in case you missed it, being mad at you doesn’t mean she’s not into you.”
This time Tai’s laugh was full. “What are you basing this on? Your wishful thinking or Leslie’s or what?”
“I’m basing it on the way she watched you last week. Look, I don’t know if y’all are meant to be or not. Maybe you’re not. But you’re an idiot if you don’t at least try with a woman who looks at you like Claire does.”
“Like what?”
Ryker paused, pressed his lips together. Then he said, “Like she wishes she didn’t have to stay mad.”
Six
Three weeks after the bachelor party and three days before the wedding, Claire was ready to hit Send on the email that had lain dormant for over a month in her Drafts folder. She had the funds ready for transfer. All he had to do was electronically sign on the dotted line, and he had no reason not to. She reread the email a final time, though by now there couldn’t possibly be any typos.
Hello Tai,
I have decided it’s in both our interests to end our business affiliation. Please find attached the paperwork required to sell your half of the company shares and all privileges accompanying said shares. After you sign the sale agreement, you’ll receive the funds via wire transfer within 3-5 business days.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Claire Vanderlaan
Founder and Proprietor
Slake It Off, LLC
Yep, typo-free. Just as it had been when she proofread it last week for the fourth time.
She hit Send. Let out a soft hiss of satisfaction. This was it. Cutting ties to Tai. She laughed at the phrasing, then got back to work serving the breakfast crowd. Many vampires took their necessary daily slaking of blood first thing in the morning.
Only Teresa was on the schedule this morning, but she’d worked for Claire for almost a year now, and she knew how to keep a line moving. Between the two of them, no one had to wait more than a few minutes to be served. Most people were on their way to work, so the booths and tables didn’t fill up the way they did in the evenings, when couples and groups showed up to socialize over drinks—additional servings their bodies didn’t require but which still tasted delightful to the vampire palate and gave them a brief energy buzz.
