Page 39 of Reapers Don’t Ride

I winced and squeezed his hands. “How lucky for us that he didn’t give us away to Richard. Are you sure you’ve been drinking enough liquids? What about food? You need a lot of calories after all that blood loss. And the bruising. You’re saying that I shouldn’t kill Cupid, even after all that he did to you?”

“I’m saying that you shouldn’t kill anyone. Your soul is precious.” He raised one hand, kissed it, then the other and the same. His kiss was so sweet, it made me ache in all sorts of uncomfortable places, like my teeth. I desperately wanted to sink my fangs into him and never stop.

“And your body is precious. So where does that leave us?” If we couldn’t torture Lorien even if we did catch him, what were we doing there?

“I guess we’ll have to continue lying low, avoiding angelic habitations, and enjoying each other’s company.”

My skin prickled. I was enjoying his company far too much. I licked my lips. “That sounds dangerous.”

“Well, you’re a notoriously dangerous vampire.” He kissed my head and then stepped away, flicking out his wings before folding them more tightly against his back. “We should go down and talk to the crew, try to find out what they do, see if this place is a powder keg ready to blow.”

“How do you make it sound so fun? You’re gifted.”

He flashed me a smile, took my hand, and walked close beside me downstairs.

“I was wondering,” he murmured as we walked.

I glanced at him. Did he want to talk about the words of love? Did he want to assure me that they meant nothing and make sure I knew that?

He frowned slightly and then murmured. “Romi’s contract. Why did you have me check it?”

“It’s good to get another set of eyes.”

“But I have no experience with contracts. You knew exactly what you were doing, but then, it was almost as if you couldn’t see the words.”

Was this embarrassing? Yes. “Words are blurry to me.”

“Blurry?”

I shrugged. “I can’t make out the words. I know how to read and write, but it’s hard to see.”

“I’ve never heard of a vampire with glasses.”

I shot him a frown. “And…”

He gave me a puzzled look. “I thought all the usual senses were enhanced when you turned. People who need glasses as a human don’t need them when they’re turned.”

“Thank you for telling me. Now I can see much better.”

He grabbed me around the waist and pulled me close. “You love books, but you prefer the crypt. Because you can’t read the books. Have you been unable to do something you love for a hundred years?”

I sighed heavily, inhaling the sweetness of him without actually tasting him. “I have been unable to do anything I love for a hundred years. A hundred and ten, more or less. Reading words is a very small thing compared to being alive.”

“Yes, but it’s a small thing that we should be able to fix.”

“Vampires don’t wear glasses. You said it yourself.”

“Neither do angels, but I do know one angel with glasses. He actually is an eye doctor for all kinds of creatures. We could go to him and see about, well, seeing.”

“I can see well enough to catch a bullet between my fingers. It’s just reading.”

“Then we’ll just get you reading glasses. No one will have to know that you’re a vampire with glasses.”

“Except for you.”

He bumped me and tangled our fingers together while he gazed at me with shameless adoration. “Except for me. I won’t tell a soul.” He raised my hand and kissed my fingers, making them itch and burn, also my gums.

Downstairs, it was quiet. Shane was behind the counter in front, polishing glasses. “I have the sandwiches you asked for,” he said, looking up when he heard us. “I had Frankie grab them from the ogre place. I hope you like mystery meat.” He pulled wrapped packages out of the counter-height fridge and then nodded at me. “You hibernated for a long time. I started to wonder if you’d ever wake up.”