Page 41 of Santa's Wish
"You still feel the twinge in your pinky?" I asked. Usually, vampire blood healed every ailment at once.
He glanced down at where it rested on my shoulder and frowned. "Now that you mention it, no."
I grinned. "You're welcome."
He swatted my shoulder. "Are you ever going to tell me why it made you so nervous to give me your blood?"
"Greed can tell you," I said. "Her brother sired her. It took a deal with the empress to break her sire bond."
"But it can be broken." My hand bounced along hisshoulder as he shrugged. "That's a chance I'm willing to take."
"I'd have to answer to Empress Marcella, if I turned you," I whispered. "It could go badly for both of us."
"The empress loves me, remember?" Boz grinned and twirled away from me as part of the dance, returning to slide his body against mine from hip to shoulder.
The music stopped after the third song, and Irena waited for us at the table. "You dance beautifully."
"Did you want a spin?" I held out my arms.
She shook her head. "Another time. Don't be late. Your friends will think you abandoned them."
I clasped her hands again and kissed her knuckles. "Better them than you." Her smile still held a hint of sorrow, so I kept talking. "They're vampires. They can take it."
I glanced around the empty restaurant, and my gaze landed on her husband, once again waiting in the shadows near the kitchen. He wasn't fond of vampires, but he loved Irena more than anything. For that, I was willing to forgive the quick beat of his heart and the sour stench of fear whenever I was around.
There was a time when I'd wanted the same for myself. I remembered another Christmas Eve, not that long ago, when she'd asked, "What is Santa's Christmas wish?" She might have been a little tipsy on the festive bottle of red she'd saved for the occasion.
"Same as yours, I imagine."
"Find someone to put up with you for the rest of your life." She clinked her wine glass against my empty to-go cup and drank the last dregs.
My eyes were a little misty as I came back to the present. I grinned at her and kissed both of her hands again. "Thanks for putting up with me, after everything," I said. "Merry Christmas."
When I released her hands, she clutched them to her chest. "It's wonderful to see you again. Have a wonderful time at the party, and don't forget, you're welcome to come here tomorrow night."
"Boz won't be home until late," I said, resting my head against his shoulder. "I'll see you at dusk."
For years, I'd assumed Irena was the only person who would put up with me. I'd pushed her away, trying to save her the frustration of dealing with me. Only one person had brought us back together. Boz.
The scary truth loomed before me. I wanted Boz by my side for the foreseeable future, maybe even the rest of my life. The question was, would he want to be with me?
Irena's was onlytwo rooftops away from Key's apartment building. They also had roof access, but the door was locked. Instead of breaking in, which wouldhave alerted every council member and half the city's vampire militia, I texted Key for help.
He opened the door for us a moment later, giving a low wolf whistle for our matching suits. He wore a green velvet smoking jacket over baggy blue jeans.
"I forgot you like to hop from roof to roof," Key said once I'd made introductions. "Are you about frozen?" he asked Boz.
"Nah. We danced at Irena's for a warmup before coming here."
"Irena's." Key whistled. "Must be serious if he introduced you to his best friend."
"I thought you were my best friend."
My scowl only made him laugh. "If I'm your best friend, I feel bad for you. I'm the worst."
"You've been busy with the new job and the rekindled flame," I reminded him.
"That's no excuse. Even Greed has been staying home more since what happened with Dobbins. We're all tired of dealing with the fallout, honestly."
