The Real Werewives of Vampire County - By Alexandra Ivy Page 0,121

narrowing to one competitive moment, every action and reaction calculated to win the point and end the game. Cassandra hit the ball high and deep into Heather’s court, forcing her to exercise extra speed and leap unnaturally high to reach it.

With a rush, Heather dashed forward to meet the lob, using an overhead smash to gain the point and end the game.

“Don’t push too hard, Cassie,” Heather said, tossing her racket aside with a clatter and rubbing the sweat off her brow with her arm. “You and Gabriel aren’t the only voices in the pack.”

Cassandra and Alexis watched with narrowed eyes as Heather spun on her heel and left the court, leaving them behind.

Cassandra sipped at the mai tai Alexis had prepared for her, crossing her legs at the ankles as she relaxed in the kitchen. They’d waited a few minutes before they followed Heather inside, leaving her alone as she stalked off to one of the guest bedrooms to cool down and shower in peace.

“You’re not worried about what she said, are you?”

“No,” Cassandra replied, not meeting Alexis’s questioning gaze. “Not worried. Concerned. Vera and Heather both make good points, but I don’t think now is the time to tell Tiffany that we don’t want her around or that we won’t be turning her into one of us. It might be better if we distance ourselves instead.”

Alexis pulled her towel from around her neck and dabbed at her forehead and cheeks before picking up her own drink and leaning against the marble countertop, taking a sip before answering.

“I’m not sure if Tiffany will accept that. Do you think Gabriel will ever let one of us contract or turn her?”

“Honestly? No.”

Alexis paused in lifting her drink back to her lips, brow cocked. “And do you think she’ll accept that?”

Cassandra shook her head, setting her drink down and pushing it away. The two women said nothing for a time, the silence between them growing heavy.

Shifting her weight and looking away, Alexis broke the silence by turning around and busying herself with tidying the kitchen counters, even though the maid and the cook had already done so earlier in the day. In her Juicy shorts and Nikes with sparkling pink swooshes, she didn’t look like much of a domestic, but she did her best impression as she banged cabinets and put the drink mixes away.

“We can’t trust her, you know,” Alexis said, keeping her back to Cassandra as she reached up into one of the cabinets to adjust some of the dishes.

“I know.”

“You can’t let her go around thinking she’s still welcome, either. One of us is going to have to tell her.”

Cassandra harrumphed, a low growl rumbling in her throat. Alexis was careful not to meet her gaze, keeping her head down and her arms wrapped protectively around her stomach when she turned around.

“Maybe we should do it together. We can tell her to come over to Tiffany’s later, and we can sit down as a group and discuss it like civilized people. If we keep Vera out of it, maybe she’ll even listen to us.”

Cassandra’s eyes flashed gold, matching her eye shadow, and her lip lifted in a silent snarl before she huffed out a breath of air and let fallen lids obscure her gaze. “I’m not sure if that’s an option. If we tell her, she might react badly. Go back to her husband, maybe.”

“If we don’t tell her,” Alexis countered, “she might get it into her head that she still has a chance at becoming one of the pack, and end up doing something foolish. Worse, one of the boys might go along with it, and then where will we be? You saw how they were looking at her last night and how she had them wrapped around her fingers at the party. We can’t take the chance.”

“No, I suppose not.”

Alexis tossed her towel down on the counter before levering herself up to sit on it, reaching for her drink again. “If we tell her that we’ll still be her friends, but gradually work our way out of her life and not invite her to all of the parties, maybe she won’t take it quite so hard. We’ll be safe, she’ll be screwed, and we can all get on with our lives.”

Cassandra laughed, some of the tension easing out of her shoulders. “If she accepts it as easy as that, I’d be very surprised. I suppose we can give it a shot. Maybe after enough time passes, Gabriel