Page 36 of Smokescreen (Knight & Daywalker)
Naked.
I walked out of the bathroom naked, carrying the clothes I intended to wear.
That was definitely not Twist exclaiming in horror, either.
“Sorry, sorry,” Davin was saying by the time I realized what was happening, his back to me, and over his shoulder I could see...was he blushing? What the fuck kind of vampirewashe? Vampires never blushed. I didn’t even think they were capable of it, let alone having the inclination to embarrassment.
Also, complete stranger seeing me naked. Oops.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize,” he mumbled, ducking his head. “I thought you’d already be up.” After saying it, he sighed. “Why didn’t I realize you wouldn’t be ready yet?”
He sounded positively disgusted with himself, the poor guy. But then, I imagined I would be a lot more flustered if I’d been the one to walk in on him naked.
This was fine for me. Easy. I was confident enough in my body. I’d had enough sex to know I didn’t look terrible. Plus I’d grown up among vampires, and while the lot of them were acutely aware of their bodies, how they moved, and the impressions they made, they were also not remotely modest or shy with other people.
Well, apparently except for Davin.
“It’s no big deal,” I told him, turning and dropping my shirt on a chair back so that I could pull on my jeans, and maybe he’d stop worrying. The blush was cute, but it wasn’t necessary for him to feel bad. I was the one living in what was now our place of business.
The shirt I’d grabbed without looking, a black one with the neon rainbow logo “Be Gay, Do Crime,” was certainly going to help me investigate a murder while being taken seriously.
On the other hand, I’d spoken to a bunch of suspects the day before while wearing a shirt with a sexual innuendo about how I, as a redhead, tasted magically delicious. It couldn’t be too much worse.
Mother had spent years telling me that someday I would regret not taking things seriously and...apparently that day had not yet arrived, because I figured it was probably for the best that Davin and I started out with a full understanding of each other.
“All better,” I assured him as I slid the shirt on over my head. “Totally decent now.”
He finally turned back around to look at me, color still high on his cheeks. “I didn’t mean to barge in on?—”
“It’s seriously fine. I’m not that shy. I was raised by vampires, and it’s not like you’re a creep.” I crossed the room and plunked myself onto the sofa to put my socks on, and Twist crossed the back to join me, tumbling down onto the seat then planting her front paws on my thigh and staring at me. Again, I thought it best to head her off before she informed me of her vast and terrifying hunger. “Food in a bit, Twist.”
“Oh, I think it might be here,” Davin said, sounding relieved to have something other than my nakedness to discuss. “There was a cooler at the door. Smelled like beef.”
“What is a beef?” Twist asked, looking to him as though he might understand her. “Is it like a chicken? I do not believe I have met a beef.”
Davin looked up to me, as though...no, definitely. Definitely expecting a translation. “She wants to know what kind of animal a beef is.”
He blinked, then slowly, cocked his head to one side. “Come to think of it, that is odd, isn’t it?”
I shrugged. “I guess. Deep shower thoughts. Why is a chicken a chicken, but a cow isn’t a beef? I’m sure every vegetarian in the universe just cringed at the notion of animals being reduced to meat supplies.”
Twist somehow looked even more confused. “What else would they be?”
I scoffed. “You. Me. Creatures with hopes and dreams of not being everyone’s lunch.”
Somehow, that seemed to surprise Twist as a concept. When Davin left and came back with the cooler he’d mentioned, it did indeed contain a giant slab of barbecued beef. A brisket? I didn’t know exactly what it was. I just knew it was multiple pounds of meat intended for my kitten.
She accepted the meat when Davin set it in front of her, but she seemed thoughtful as she ate. Maybe even confused.
I reached out and scratched behind her ears as she chewed. “Hey Twist, I didn’t mean to worry you. You’re a hyper-carnivore. You don’t have a choice here. You have to eat meat to live. Chickpeas are not a reasonable replacement for you.”
She seemed to accept that, nodding, but she didn’t speed up her eating. That was probably a good thing, since we kept running out of food.
I pulled up my phone to check the time, and found myself pleasantly surprised. It was barely nine, so I had plenty of time to do...whatever, before the first person to see the shop next door arrived.
That was when I noticed the scent of coffee in the air.
I sniffed, looking around, only to find that there was a bag and a drink carrier with two cups on the table next to the fridge. I turned to look at him and Davin ducked his head, flushing again. That was just sickeningly adorable. “Went through thefridge yesterday when I was cleaning, so I know there’s nothing in there but a couple of fizzy drinks. Asked your mam what you liked to drink.” He cocked his head and squinted at me at that, like I was the most perplexing creature ever to walk the earth. “She said you don’t even like coffee, so I got you a tea. But...if you don’t like coffee, why were you trying so hard to save that coffee maker yesterday?”
