but we should at least warn her.” I watched Liz pop open a can of diet soda and gulp it down. She opened a second can and slid it across the counter to me. I caught it without taking my eyes off her.
Her eyes fell to the soda in my hand and then back to her own can. “Sorry, I forgot you don’t…”
“It’s okay.” I smiled at her. We used to always share a soda together when we were stressed about something. Although I had no desire to down the cool, bubbly contents; I wanted to, just for nostalgias sake.
She traced the rim of the can with her finger, the condensation dripping down to the countertop. “I’m glad you came back, Claire. I’m still pissed at you, but I’m glad you came back.” A genuine smile lit her face.
“Me too.” I smiled back at her, no longer afraid to let my fangs peek out between my lips.
“What’s it like?” She rounded the counter slowly, eyeing my fangs with amazement.
“It’s like… I’d been living my whole life with blurry vision, and didn’t even realize it until I was turned.” No one had ever asked me that before, but I felt that summed it up nicely. There were so many emotions, sounds and details in this world that humans were missing out on.
“Wow.” Liz and I were standing face to face as she eyed me curiously. Taking in every aspect of my new appearance. “You still look like you… mostly.” She smiled at me wryly, a hint of the old, wild Liz coming back.
“Gee… thanks.” I flicked her arm playfully.
“You do know that you’re going to have to tell me all the deets, right?”
“I thought I did.” I twirled the soda can between my fingers, spinning it on the counter as it glided across the condensation like an ice skater.
“I mean the good stuff.” She swallowed the last gulps of her soda. “Not the scary, evil vampires are going to kill us all stuff.”
“Oh! That stuff.” I giggled at her.
A gust of air blew into the kitchen as Arrick flew in like a ghost. “We should get going. It’ll be sunrise soon.” He smiled at me as I sensed him searching my emotions. I winked at him, letting him know he’d been right and that I felt loads better. From now on I’d let everyone in and be open to their feelings. The only anger I needed to feel would be focused solely on Baal.
“Whoa…” Liz’s mouth hung open as she gazed at Arrick who stood like a chiseled bulk of sexiness beside me.
“Hello, Elizabeth. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Arrick said, holding out his hand. He could be a total guy sometimes, but then he’d act like… well a prince for lack of a better word. He was so weird, but I loved it about him.
A snort burst out of me, and I slapped my hands across my mouth to stop the giggles from erupting, but I failed miserably. Liz’s eyes were practically bugging out of her head, and Arrick looked like a dignified gentlemen utterly confused by her reaction. It was completely comical.
Liz took his hand weakly, too flabbergasted to grasp it tightly. “This is Arrick?” She whispered to me like he wouldn’t hear.
“Yeah.” I wiped the happy tears from my eyes and sighed as I caught my breath. I bumped Arrick’s shoulder. “She hates being called Elizabeth by the way. It’s Liz.”
“Oh, I don’t mind.” Liz fluttered her eyelashes and flashed a dazzling smile at him. She popped her hip to the side, striking her usual pose. I knew this pose all too well; she’d tried teaching it to me once. She said it showed off a woman’s curves and drove men wild. She was no longer weakly holding his hand, so Arrick slid his fingers out of her grasp, like her touch made him uncomfortable. A trickle of nervousness eked out of him, and the expression on his face almost made me break out in laughter all over again. The immediate attraction Liz felt for him was obvious, it filled the room like the smell of sweet cotton candy, and it made Arrick tense. His eyes kept dodging her and searching for an escape. Was he scared I’d get jealous? I wasn’t even close to jealous; I thought it was hilarious to see him squirm.
“I guess I better get ready,” Liz said, without taking her eyes off Arrick. She smiled at him sweetly, her eyes drinking him