Succubus Dreams Page 0,36

events, bring in money, make sure everything looks good, and whip people into shape."

"Sounds like a lot of work," he said.

"Or," I said, "an excellent first date."

There was no cymbal crash, but my punch line elicited the laughs I'd hoped for. "You have some high expectations," said Nick.

"Well, I think everyone should. Why settle? If a guy meets my expectations, I'll meet his. And in the end, it's all about sense of humor and a conversation that won't put me to sleep." I realized I sounded vaguely like a Miss America contestant, but maybe there wasn't much difference. I could see from the intrigue in the audience that I'd made a good impression.

"This one's a keeper," said Nick. "Let's start at fifty for Georgie."

I got my fifty and then some. Bids flew around the room. At one point, I glanced at Seth. Our eyes met, and I could tell by his expression that he was on the verge of bidding. I shook my head. He was the only one I wanted to go out with in this room, but I didn't want to taint Maddie's win. I wanted her to feel special. Besides, I also didn't want Seth to blow that much money.

I went for seventeen-hundred dollars.

"I can't believe that," Maddie whispered to me afterward. "I think you're the highest one so far. The guy looked cute too."

He had. Late thirties. Armani suit. Harmless. Nobody I planned on establishing anything meaningful with, but he'd do for a casual date. Maybe an energy fix if I decided to use this body.

"You brought in some money yourself," I teased.

Her eyes found Seth, sitting across the room, and studied him speculatively. "Seth probably did it because he felt sorry for me."

"Of course not," I said quickly. She still looked skeptical.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I'd rather drink coffee and talk shop with him than go out with some sleazy guy. That other bidder reminded me of this sex offender I saw on TV once..."

When the auction wound down, I exchanged contact info with my buyer for a future date. Hugh attached himself to Deanna and stayed as far away from me as possible. No worries. I'd have plenty of time to deal with him later. Tawny, fortunately, also stayed away from me and clung to Nick's arm. I watched them like a proud parent. Tonight was going to be a great night.

CHAPTER 8

"Succubus."

Dante's laconic voice was the last thing I'd expected to hear when my phone rang the next day. I'd forgotten that I'd left him my number. My surprise quickly gave way to eagerness. Maybe he'd found something for me. No energy loss had occurred after the auction, but then, I hadn't taken a victim either. It wasn't much to go on, but that small pattern Dante had pointed out was still a place to start, and I hoped he'd have more to offer now.

"Hey! What's up?" I sat down on the couch. I'd been getting ready to go out with Seth later, applying makeup the old-fashioned way in order to conserve shape-shifting energy. I'd need to cash in on my auction date sooner rather than later to get some power back.

There was a pause from the other end of the line before Dante spoke again. "I've been thinking...I've been thinking we're going about all of this the wrong way."

Very unexpected. "Really?"

"Yeah. I wasn't taking it seriously, so I understand why you were getting pissed off."

Hearing him admit how he'd been blowing my problems off wasn't exactly cheering, but I appreciated his honesty.

"Well...it's okay. I'm just glad we can maybe figure something out now. I'm getting anxious."

"Me too." More silence, then I heard him take a deep breath. "So, have you ever been to El Gaucho?"

The reference to one of Seattle's downtown steakhouses was such a non sequitur that I couldn't respond for several seconds. When I did speak, it wasn't very articulate.

"What?"

"It's a restaurant. Down on First - "

"Yeah, yeah. I know what it is. What's it have to do with the dreams?"

"Dreams? What are you talking about?"

"What are you - oh, Jesus Christ. Are you asking me out?"

"Of course I am. What the fuck would El Gaucho have to do with those dreams?"

I groaned. "I can't believe this. I actually thought you had something useful for me."

"I'm trying to be nice here! Look, the dreams are a lost cause, but we aren't. You were right when you said I was being sleazy and treating you like you were cheap. So