Chapter 8

I sighed in defeat at the ever-growing weirdness of my life. The horny-haven’t-had-sex-in-too-damn-long ache was still present, so I resigned myself to the bedroom. A few more months of self-service and the porn shop’s going to have to give me a frequent shopper card.

I had just switched my vibrator on when I heard a thud in the living room. Pickle’s ears perked at the foot of the bed. Seeing the cat eliminated any hope that nothing was wrong. He looked at me as if to say, “Go check it out.”

My heart pounded in my throat. Was it Steve, trying to take me again? My cheeks involuntarily flushed at the thought and choice of words. I should be so lucky, I thought. Had a better chance of Chad’s ghost coming back to finish the job he started. I grabbed the only weapon available to me, a backscratcher on my nightstand, and tiptoed to the doorway.

“Kate, you asleep?” The sound of Vi’s voice was music to my ears. Of all the weird shit in my life, she was the least threatening.

I dropped the backscratcher to the floor. “You scared the shit out of me! What the hell are you doing here? I said I was fine…”

“Sorry, just thought with Steve on the loose, I should probably stay…” she trailed off. “What’s that buzzing noise?”

My vibrator was happily pulsating against my sheets. I hastily switched it off, then shoved it under my sheets. But not before Vi noticed.

She grinned a kind of Cheshire Cat grin.

“Look I’ve had a rough day. Coming always helps me relax,” I explained.

“Can’t argue with that,” she said and laughed. “Need any help?” The smile on her face was sweet and a little mischievous. I didn’t know what to think of it.

“You can sleep on the couch, if you insist on staying here.”

A little girl kind of frown appeared. “Your bed looks really comfortable.”

“I’m the one who’s injured, and I’m not about to give up my bed. Even if you are my guest.” I felt a little like a shit, but after everything I’d been through, I thought it was excusable.

“You misunderstand. I meant for both of us.”

The picture that appeared in her mind started innocent enough, with the two of us just sleeping in bed. Then it took a weird turn, when she imagined spooning with me. Before it got any stranger, I said, “I’m sorry, I’m not that comfortable with you.”

She let out a disappointed sigh, so I added, “Yet.”

She nodded. “I understand. You need some time to get to know me.”

“Exactly.” I grabbed a blanket and pillow from the closet. “I have a spare toothbrush in one of the drawers in the bathroom. If you need anything else, just holler.”

“But not for 10 minutes or so? Never takes me longer than that.” Her grin was downright devilish.

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen now.” I rubbed my eyes. “I’m just going to pass out.”

“Is it because I’m here? I can pop out for a while if you want.”

“No, it’s just… It’s been a crazy day. I’m tired, I really am.” It wasn’t a lie, though the thought of someone sleeping just a few feet away did put a damper on the horns.

“You want a backrub? That might help you relax,” she said, and positioned herself behind me, demonstrating. Her strong hands massaged my shoulders, and although it felt amazing, I didn’t want to trouble her.

I turned to face her. “Thank you, I appreciate it. But I’m fine.”

She shrugged. “You know where I am if you change your mind.” She gave Pickles a quick stroke and left the bedroom.

It was unusual for me to have anyone stay over, but I had to admit, I felt safer knowing Vi was just outside my bedroom. She was quirky, yes. Maybe even a little mentally unstable. But she was the first person to actually talk to me about my powers and everything that happened. Though I wasn’t sure about her stance on Steve, I did trust her. Plus with her power, she made the perfect bodyguard.

The night was blissfully uneventful, a fact I was only made aware of when Pickles decided to paw at my nose until I woke up, the following morning. His timing was uncanny, it’s like he knew the alarm was about to go off. I rubbed the crusty stuff out of the corners of my eyes and checked on Vi. She was fast asleep on my coach, curled up with a pink teddy bear.

I took a quick shower and had just finished dressing for work when I heard a gentle knock. On my way to the front door, I twirled the length of my hair into a bun, and not having any hairpins on hand, I grabbed a couple of pens off a table nearby and secured it with those. I looked through the peephole and saw a very conflicted Jay. He turned to leave. I opened the door and called out to him.

“Hi,” he said, looking down at the floor. “I know it’s strange to be stopping by in the morning, but I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

“Come in,” I said.

“Oh, I didn’t mean,” he started, but then just accepted my invitation and entered.

“Look, I’m sorry if I was a bitch the other night,” I began, but he stopped me, shaking his head.

“No, I was the one being weird. I shouldn’t have…” he appeared to be looking for the right word, but never found it. “I was trying to help when you didn’t ask for it.”

He finally had the courage to look up at me. “Looks a lot better today.”

“It is, I really appreciate your help with it.” I smiled genuinely at him. It appeared to lift his mood. I invited him to sit at the dining room table and got him a cup of coffee.

We talked a bit about projects we were working on, and it felt like we were back to normal. He said he was about to leave, and then his eyes grew large, looking past me. He muttered, “Whoa,” before hurriedly turning his face away. I looked behind me to see what caused such a reaction.

“Good morning!” Vi said, as she toweled off her hair. Problem was that was the only towel, and she hadn’t dressed yet. She looked a little surprised to see Jay there, but took no action whatsoever to cover herself up.

I wanted to look away too, but it’s like I was mesmerized. Her body was breathtaking – muscles in all the right places, and her breasts…they were magnificent. Two perfect orbs with nipples just the right size, perky and everything. Of course, her petite bush was shaped like a heart. I was surprised it wasn’t dyed pink. I’d never seen such a naturally perfect body in my entire life.

Then the fact that she was strutting around naked in my apartment finally made it to my brain. “Vi, what the hell? Put some clothes on!”

“What? I like to air dry,” she said, as if I were an asshole for suggesting otherwise.

“Go!” I yelled, motioning for her to get out. Jay was rattled – to say he was uncomfortable would be a gross understatement. He looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack.

“I’m sorry,” I said to him. “She stayed here last night because she was worried about me, and…”

“No, it’s fine, like I said, I should be going,” he said with an awkward chuckle, and in two seconds he was gone. I wondered if he’d ever dare return. Great, just when I thought it was cool between us.

Vi had finished toweling off her hair, and the towel now rested in her hair in the format of a turban. She must’ve seen me staring because she struck a pose. “Like what you see?” Her evil smile surfaced once more.

I folded my arms against my chest. “I think we need to set some ground rules.”

Vi stuck her tongue out at me. “You’re no fun anymore.” Then she turned and left, and I got a view of her stunning backside. I looked at my own butt and frowned. Being a personal trainer, you would expect she would have a nicer ass than mine, but still…wow. I’d never been attracted to a girl before, but even the most hetero woman would have had a hard time seeing Vi naked.

My reaction had to do with the ridiculous dry spell I was on more than anything else, I reasoned. I shook my head to clear it and glanced at the clock. It was getting late. Going to have to save that awkward conversation with her for later. I left Vi a note and was out the door.