Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 71312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“It wasn’t that long ago men preferred women with fuller figures,” Nik tells her. The five of us are at a restaurant in Paradise Valley and are going to the bed and breakfast after we eat. “And I’ve had over a thousand lovers both male and female in my years and the ten pounds you’re talking about has never once made a difference.”
“Over a thousand?” Keith and I echo at the same time.
“He’s going on two-centuries old,” Ethan reminds me, talking with his mouth full. “Even if he had just ten hookups a year, that’s still one thousand people every hundred years.”
“I’ve gone on five dates in the last two years,” Keith deadpans.
“Until Ethan, I was in the same ballpark.” I set my vegan vegetable wrap on my plate. “I don’t even know fifty people I’d want to sleep with since I lost my virginity.”
“You two are a little pickier than I am when it comes to love.” Nik opens another sugar packet and sprinkles it on top of his milkshake. “And I have twice the dating pool to dip into since I have no preference other than they need to be human-ish.”
“Human-ish?” Rene raises her eyebrows. “I’m gonna need you to elaborate on that.”
“They need to have basic human anatomy. Vampires don’t consider themselves human and some werewolves will get very offended if you call them human.”
“Ohhh, gotcha.”
Nik picks the cherry out of his milkshake. “Though I did spend the night in a cave in Tibet with these ogre brothers and let's just say I tried things I’d never tried before. I had also done a crap ton of coke along with faery weed.” He pops the cherry in his mouth and smiles at the memory as we all stare at him incredulously.
“Sometimes you say things that make me second guess letting you live in my house,” I say, realizing the couple at the table next to us are listening to our conversation with a mixture of amusement and curiosity.
“Ogres are real?” Rene echoes. “Nothing is off the table, is it?”
“Fairytales and myths came from somewhere,” Ethan tells her. “Though ogres…that’s a new one, even for me.”
“Well, next time I babysit my niece, I might ask to borrow some of her fairytale books.”
“My demon dictionary probably has you covered,” I joke.
“You got the full history of the place?” Ethan asks Keith.
“Yep.” Keith takes one more bite of his sandwich, sets it down, and reaches into his bag, pulling out a folder. “Everything is in here and I am dying to fully let Anora dig into this.” He hands the folder to Ethan, who flips through the papers.
“I’ve seen it already,” Rene tells us. “It’s intense.”
“Don’t tell me anything.” I break my wrap in half, already full from the pita bread and humus I had as an appetizer before this. “Something already reached out the last time I was there. I’m pretty sure a woman was beaten to death,” I start, and Keith and Rene exchange looks. “None of that! I can’t have any precognition of what’s going on. There’s something dark there as well and if it realizes I already have a theory, it’ll play to that and can take advantage of me.”
“I really admire your determination to do this,” Keith says. “I know you don’t have to lie or play games to impress us since you’re the actual real-deal, but you also don’t have to do this.”
I shrug. “People are born with abilities for a reason. I wasn’t gifted to become an Olympic athlete or teach the next generation math or whatever. But I can talk to ghosts.”
“Your aunt would be proud,” Nik says quietly. He’s told me that a few times before, and every time it still makes me a little emotional. I have so many mixed feelings toward Great Aunt Estelle. From anger for her keeping the truth from me, to a great sadness that we never got to know each other. It’s a complicated relationship, even though she’s dead.
You’d think she’d at least have the courtesy of paying me a visit in a dream or using a spirit board to talk to me.
“I brought some equipment,” Rene tells us and shows off the new EMF meter she ordered. We finish eating, and the waitress brings us the check.
“I got this,” Ethan says, grabbing it before anyone else can. He takes the check up to the little counter to pay.
“Hey,” I start, leaning in a bit as soon as Ethan is out of earshot. “Don’t you think it’s weird he’s like not rattled at all about the whole getting arrested thing?” I had texted Rene and Keith a breakdown of everything that happened since that fateful Friday afternoon.
“He’s been arrested before, right?” Rene asks, shifting her eyes from me to Ethan. He’s behind two people, buying us a little more time.