After an entire four hours with him without one flirting comment or sexual/blood innuendo, I felt comfortable. I hadn’t known he could be like this: normal. I watched him move, seeing him with his thoughts on nothing. I liked what I saw, and I wondered what it would be like to be this way all the time.

As if feeling my eyes on him, Kisten turned. “What?” he asked, smiling.

“Nothing.” I glanced at the black hallway. “I want to check on Ivy.”

Kisten’s lips parted to show a glimpse of teeth as his smile widened. “Okay.”

Not sure why that seemed to please him, I gave him a last, high-eyebrow look and headed into the candlelit living room. Ivy was sprawled across her cushy suede chair, her head on one arm, her legs draped over the other. Her brown eyes flicked to mine as I entered, taking in the smooth, elegant lines of my clothes all the way to my feet in their nylons.

“You’ve got snow all over you,” she said, her expression and position unchanging.

“I, uh, slipped,” I lied, and she accepted that, taking my nervousness as embarrassment. “Why are the pixies still asleep?”

She snorted—sitting up to put her feet on the floor—and I sat on the matching couch across from her with the coffee table between us. “Jenks kept them up after you left so they wouldn’t be awake when you got home.”

A thankful smile came over me. “Remind me to make him some honey cakes,” I said, leaning back and crossing my legs.

Ivy slumped into her chair, mirroring my posture. “So…how was your date?”

My eyes met hers. Very aware of Kisten listening from the kitchen, I shrugged. Ivy often acted like a cloying ex-boyfriend, which was really, really weird. But now that I knew it stemmed from her need to keep my trust, it was a bit easier to understand, though still odd.

She took a slow breath, and I knew she was scenting the air to make sure no one had bitten me at Piscary’s. Her shoulders eased, and I rolled my eyes in exasperation.

“Hey, um,” I started. “I’m really sorry about what I said earlier. About Piscary’s?” Her eyes jerked to mine and I quickly added, “You want to go sometime? Together, I mean? I think if I stay downstairs, I won’t pass out.” My eyes pinched, not knowing why I was doing this except if she didn’t find a way to relax soon, she was going to snap. I didn’t want to be around for that. And I’d feel better if I was there to keep an eye on her. I had a feeling she would pass out quicker than I had.