Page 9 of Help Wanted, Vampires Inquire Within
“Yeah, super nice,” Mason grumbled, but he wasn’t glaring at Arthur anymore. “You’re not bad for a vampire.”
“High praise,” Arthur said with a chuckle.
“‘Night,” Mason said, standing up and holding out his hand. “I hope you find your flock.”
Arthur shook Mason’s hand and gave Skyler a smile. “I wish you both the best of luck. Good evening.”
He put enough bills on the table to cover several nights' worth of drinking and left.
“At least that one didn’t end in a fight,” Skyler said, slumping down in her chair a little.
“That’s because Cutie was decent, unlike the other vampires we’ve talked to,” Mason said, finishing off the coffee. Their table was covered in empty glasses, making her realize that it was Mason’s fourth coffee.
Two things occurred to her. She needed to put him to bed, and the man must have a massive bladder. She’d only had one drink, and she was ready to visit the bathroom!
“You laughed and looked like you had fun, but then he left,” Rissa said, walking up to stand next to her chair. “What happened?”
“There wasn’t anything there,” Skyler explained with a little shrug. “He wanted there to be at least a little spark.”
“Aww, that’s sweet,” Rissa said. “With all these other vampires running around ready to kidnap you and force you into a bond, this Arthur guy says no because it's not true love. That’s damn romantic.”
“Should I be jealous?” Anatoly said, coming up behind her and putting his arms around her. “Do I need to rip Arthur’s head from his body?”
Rissa smiled. “I love those threats.”
Skyler found it both disturbing and adorable that Anatoly meant the threat, and Rissa knew it, but was still charmed. Rissa, Zan, and Anatoly were perfect for each other.
Would she ever find anything even close?
That thought almost made her want to run after Arthur and ask him to reconsider. They could learn to love each other, right?
“Hey, what’s going on in that busy head of yours?” Mason asked.
She forced a bright smile on her face. “That you need sleep! It’s bedtime for the gargoyle.”
Mason chuckled and nodded. “Yeah, that sounds good.”
He stood up and stretched, a massive yawn making his jaw crack. Skyler let herself take in the gorgeous, muscled belly revealed with his lifted shirt. She wanted to lean forward and nuzzle him so badly that it was a real battle to keep herself still.
No molesting the kind gargoyle trying to keep you safe,she reminded herself.
She caught Rissa giving her a pitying look. Yeah, she deserved that.
Standing up, she grabbed a handful of Mason’s shirt sleeve and tugged him to the back stairs. “Let’s go.”
Mason followed without protest or hesitation. She let go of his sleeve, and he followed her up the stairs and into the studio.
She pushed him into the small bathroom. “You go first.”
It was a testament to his fatigue that he obeyed without a word. Once the bathroom door was shut, she went to tug the air mattress out from where it was tucked up against the wall.
It was half deflated and leaning over like a wilted plant. She tossed it down and plugged in the cord. The little inbuilt motor started up, refilling the mattress. The bad part was that even with the motor going full out, the mattress would be flat before the night was half over.
Even though they’d purchased one of the nicest ones they could find, it wasn’t up to the task of handling Mason’s weight. Even in human form, he was heavy!
At first, she’d thought he was being silly with the way he always eased his body down on any piece of furniture. After a chair broke under him, she understood. There weren't many mass-produced items that could handle his bulk.
The problem was that they couldn’t really fit another bed in the studio. The air mattress worked because it was easy to shove against the wall when not being used.
