“I can’t talk to you until you tell me what’s going on.”
“I’m not sure . . . I don’t know how much I can say.”
“Okay, so it’s vampire stuff.”
“Janette—”
“Come on, Nat. I know where you work, that’s no secret. And there’s no other reason for you to be so stressed about it. Tell me what’s up. Pinky-swear I won’t tell anyone else.”
Natalie bit her lip, thinking hard. She had to talk to someone, or she’d go nuts. And Janette was one of only two people in her life she could really talk to, especially about the vampire stuff. She didn’t even tell her family how she felt about working for Anthony, because (a) she didn’t want to upset them, and (b) she didn’t want to get them on Anthony’s shit list. So there was Janette, and there was Alon. And that was it.
“Okay, but not a word to anyone. I don’t give a shit about Anthony, but I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Those vamps probably don’t even know I exist.”
Natalie snorted. “You’d be surprised, so not a word.”
“Fine, fine, what’s going on?”
“Okay, so there’s this new guy—”
“Oh, my God,” Janette exclaimed, clutching Natalie’s arm. “A new guy? An actual guy with a penis and everything?” she said, pretending to be tearing up with emotion. “I’m so proud.”
“Shut up,” Natalie said, trying not to laugh. “And keep your voice down. Yes, there’s an actual guy, but not like you think.”
“Is he gorgeous?”
Natalie groaned in exasperation. “Of course, he’s gorgeous. They all are. But . . .”
Janette studied her, eyes wide. “Oh, my God,” she said again. “I’m right. You like this one.”
“He’s different,” Natalie admitted.
“Different how?”
She blew out a long sigh. She didn’t know what to say, how to make Janette understand. It wasn’t any one thing, it was . . . “It’s the whole package,” she admitted slowly. “It’s not just his looks, although God knows he’s handsome. But he’s smart and charming and nice.” Her inner voice scoffed, Nice, Nat? Really?
Janette stared at her like she’d grown a second head.
“Okay, so not nice. That’s the wrong word. But he was sweet and polite.”
“Sweet and nice? Does he want a job at the preschool? ’Cuz you make him sound like somebody’s dog.”
Natalie gaped at her in disbelief. “He’s not like that at all! He’s huge and built, with shoulders out to there, and the most amazing blue eyes, and his smile—” She snapped her mouth shut when she realized she’d been had.
Janette covered her mouth against a laugh.
“Okay, so call me shallow,” Natalie sniffed. “He’s beautiful. Fine. But you know how you meet some people, and there’s this spark of intellect in their eyes, an awareness or something that tells you this person is smarter than the average bear. Well, I love that, and he has that spark, whatever it is. And . . .”
“And you want him,” Janette said knowingly.
Nat puffed out a breath. “I do,” she admitted. “But that’s not the problem.”
“Of course not. This is you, after all.”
Natalie switched her gaze to the Krav Maga class for a bit, then turned back to Janette. “I saw something I wasn’t supposed to see. Something involving Christian.”
“That’s the new hunk’s name? Christian?”