Succubus Dreams Page 0,10

This time, I didn't dream.

CHAPTER 3

After a good night's sleep, I went to work the next morning, feeling a bit more optimistic about life. I decided Tawny had probably already scored last night, and Niphon was on his way to the airport. Plus, I'd get to see Seth soon since he had made my place of employment, Emerald City Books & Café, his writing headquarters. Yes, it wouldn't be such a bad day.

Due to my ex-manager's complicated pregnancy, I'd recently inherited her position. This had left my old assistant-manager position vacant, and we'd ended up hiring Maddie Sato who just happened to be the sister of Doug Sato - the other assistant manager. It had been a stunning display of favoritism, and Doug had thrown a fit, complaining how we'd just lowered his coolness rating by ten points. As it was, Maddie already lived with him. She'd come to visit after his recent hospitalization and never really left. She had a second job as a freelance writer at a feminist magazine, and working at Emerald City gave her a more stable source of income.

I liked Maddie. She was smart and capable and had a twisted sense of humor that spoke to mine. She worked well with customers and was always very polite in a professional capacity. For example, she could get caught up talking with Seth about 'writerly' topics and function beautifully. But, when it came to friendlier and more interpersonal stuff, her social skills were a bit lacking. After a particularly analytical writing discussion, Seth had once made an off-hand comment about her childhood, and she'd frozen up. Seeing him with someone even more socially awkward than he was had been amusing, but mostly I'd felt disappointed at her relapse. I'd made good progress in getting her to come out of her shell and knew how fun she could be. I wanted everyone else to see it too.

Today I found her upstairs in the café, sitting at the table Seth had staked out with his laptop. It apparently wasn't a writerly day because Doug sat with them. He and Maddie appeared to be in some sort of heated argument. Seth sat between them, looking like he desperately wanted to be somewhere else. Catching my eye, he gave me a pleading look. I purposely slid a chair up beside him, forcing Doug to scoot his own chair over. No one knew Seth and I were dating, and the Sato siblings were so caught up in the discussion they didn't think anything of the chair placement.

"What's going on?" I asked. "It had better involve the fate of the store to be detaining the entire management team." The holidays were nearly upon us, and business was insane lately.

Maddie had the grace to look embarrassed, suddenly remembering her duties. She opened her mouth to speak, but Doug interrupted her.

"My illustrious sister's an insensitive bitch."

Maddie rolled her eyes. "He has some crazy ideas about Beth."

I sighed. "Look, if this is about the time Beth wore leg warmers here - "

"Don't remind me of that," grumbled Doug.

"My illustrious brother has this crazy idea that Beth just broke up with someone," explained Maddie.

Both looked at me as though they expected me to set this matter straight. Puzzled, I glanced back and forth between them.

"Why's that crazy?"

"Because she has a cold," said Maddie. "She said she has a cold. That's why she's sniffling."

"She's pretending to have a cold," cried Doug. "What kind of sick and twisted world is this when an asshole like me is the one to notice heartache in the masses? For God's sake, her eyes are all red."

"Cold," Maddie repeated firmly. She considered. "Or maybe allergies."

"In December?"

The two of them bickered on. Beside me, Seth fought - and failed - to keep a straight face. I studied the way his lips curved into a smile, liking their shape and recalling how they felt. I turned my attention back to the siblings, enjoying the show. Finally, after about five more minutes, I remembered I was an authority figure and not a slacker employee.

"Why is this a big deal?" I asked.

"Because she's wrong," Doug said. "I'm just trying to prove that."

Maddie sighed. "You're like a twelve-year-old."

"Am not." He jabbed her in the arm.

"Okay, enough." I pointed to Doug. "You, register." I pointed to Maddie. "You, my office."

"Ooh...you're in trouble," Doug told her.

"I'm going to show her how to process orders," I growled.

Maddie's eyes gleamed with anticipation, dimples appearing in her round cheeks. She ate up