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hand!
    Begrudgingly I muttered, “Yes. Had to feed.” Why was I hanging my head? I really did have to feed! “I tried not to hurt you.” That was the closest thing to an apology any of my…donors had ever gotten.
    “You didn’t.” His voice lost some of its edge. “I thought it was just a”—he cleared his throat—“an expression of passion.”
    I ghosted my fingers over the door in the wish-it-were-my-guy-instead-of-the-wooden-surface rom-com way. For a second, I allowed myself to believe he wanted it to be just that, and maybe I’d get a chance for a do-over.
    “But I was just a snack!”
    I got defensive, even though his tone hadn’t been angry. “I chose you, okay? I slept with you!” I jabbed the air with my index finger, like he could see me. “I don’t fucking do that!” I barely resisted punching the wall to stress my point.
    “Am I going to become like you now?”
    “No.” Maybe I should just open the door and use my mind trick after all. Nothing else seemed likely to get him off that interrogation line.
    “How do I know that?”
    Again with the stupid questions. “It doesn’t work like that. There’s more to turning someone, and I’m not allowed to do that, anyway.”
    “Why?”
    I didn’t have to keep answering him but decided to stick with it. “I was the last person to be turned before the new regime banned turning altogether.” I was also the reason for the banning, since the asshole who turned me didn’t realize I was sort of recognizable and had a family, unlike most people chosen for turning, so there was the possibility my resurrection wouldn’t go unnoticed.
    “You’re the youngest vampire?” I heard him take a couple of deep breaths. “When were you made?”
    “ Turned ,” I said. “Six years ago.”
    “That makes you what? Thirty?”
    “No.” I added dumbass in my head. “It makes me twenty-four, forever.”
    I don’t know if he was about to make a brilliant comeback, because I caught a buzzing sound, and soon he was on the phone. I didn’t bother listening to both sides of the conversation—it’s good that we can tune our senses up or down depending on our needs, or the abundance of stimuli would drive every last one of us crazy. My relief when I heard him say, “I’m coming over now,” was indescribable.
    He hung up and told me he had to go see a contact and then run by the police station. I found the fact that he explained both odd and endearing.
    “I shouldn’t trust you with the place,” he said with a sigh, “but I guess I don’t have a choice.”
    My day had just gotten better, except for one thing. “Will you tell people about me?” I hated how small and worried my voice sounded.
    “Of course I will. Nothing says ‘captain material’ more than a cop claiming he has a vampire locked in his basement.”
    “You know, you were a lot nicer before I put out.” That shut him up as expected, so I continued refusing to acknowledge the fact that his attitude had changed after my revelation and not after the sex.
    Just before the front door slammed shut, I heard him mutter, “You better be here when I get back. This isn’t over.”
    This couldn’t have been more over, but I chose not to say anything. When he got home, I’d wipe him and fly out of there, never to be seen by Alex Marsden again.

Chapter Three
    “You’ve been missing for six years.” That was the greeting Alex gave me when he returned to the house.
    I could say duh or say nothing. I opted for the second. It had sure taken him long enough to get back. At least I’d taken a nap while he was gone. Nice of his mother to have a comfy sofa in the basement.
    “I found your file, Cherry. Or should I call you—”
    “No, you definitely shouldn’t call me that!” It was bad enough that he’d obviously found my real name out. I didn’t want to hear it again. It belonged to someone who’d died, who’d had a family and a future. Still, I couldn’t help but feel a little