Sleeping beauty

Joey woke slowly.

Not peacefully.

Slowly.

The first thing he became aware of was warmth.

The second was Cassandra curled against his chest with one leg tangled around his.

The third—

was hearing Crystal snoring softly from the living room.

Joey’s eyes snapped open.

“…Oh right,” he whispered.

Cassandra groaned into his shoulder. “Five more minutes.”

“You don’t even sleep normally.”

“I’m experimenting.”

Joey snorted quietly, then immediately regretted it because every sound still felt absurdly sharp. He could hear cars outside three streets over. A dog barking somewhere in the distance. The hum of electricity in the apartment walls.

And underneath all of it—

Crystal’s heartbeat.

Fast.

Uneven.

Starting to wake up.

Joey froze.

“…Uh oh.”

Cassandra lifted her head slowly, dark hair a complete mess for once. Somehow she still looked unfairly gorgeous.

“What?”

“She’s waking up.”

Cassandra blinked once.

Then sighed dramatically and collapsed back onto his chest.

“I was hoping for at least another hour before we had to explain attempted ****.”

Joey grimaced. “Yeah… about that. What exactly ARE we telling her?”

Cassandra thought for a moment.

“The truth.”

Joey stared at her.

“…The vampire hunter truth?”

“God no.” She looked offended. “A modified truth.”

“That sounds like lying with extra steps.”

“It sounds classy.”

Before Joey could respond—

“Ugh…”

Crystal’s groggy voice drifted from the living room.

“…Why do I feel like I got hit by a bus?”

Joey immediately sat upright.

Cassandra caught his wrist before he could climb out of bed.

“Relax,” she murmured.

Her fingers brushed his pulse lightly.

Instantly Joey felt calm reassurance flow through the strange emotional bond between them.

It hit him again just how bizarre that was.

And how much he already liked it.

“You realize that’s cheating, right?” he whispered.

“I’m a vampire, Joey. Cheating is part of the brand.”

The sound of Crystal shifting on the couch interrupted them.

“…Joey?” she called weakly.

“Coming!” Joey shouted.

Then paused.

“…Not like that.”

From behind him Cassandra burst into laughter.

“You are physically incapable of sounding smooth for longer than thirty seconds,” she informed him.

“I was under pressure.”

“You shouted ‘coming’ from bed while another woman is in your apartment.”

Joey buried his face in his hands.

“…I’m going to die.”

“Not if I can help it.”

The warmth behind those words caught him off guard enough that he looked back at her.

Cassandra smiled softly.

Then immediately ruined the moment.

“Now put some pants on before your manager sees me naked in your bed. I suspect her bisexual awakening has already had a stressful evening.”

Joey choked.

“You can *feel* that through the bond too?!”

Cassandra’s grin widened wickedly.

“Oh Joey… women are not nearly as difficult to read as you think.”

The emotional pulse of amusement coming through the bond made Joey’s ears burn.

Still flustered, he pulled on sweatpants and shuffled into the living room.

Crystal sat upright on the couch wrapped in a blanket, holding her head.

She looked rough.

Mascara smeared.

Hair messy.

Confused as hell.

But the second she saw Joey—

her expression softened immediately.

“You’re okay,” she breathed.

Joey blinked.

“…Yeah?”

Crystal stood suddenly and grabbed his arms.

“You got stabbed!”

Joey stared.

“…You remember that part?”

“Kind of?!” she exclaimed. “Everything after the window exploded is fuzzy but I remember some psycho throwing knives and you carrying me out of the restaurant!”

Joey glanced nervously toward the bedroom.

Cassandra appeared in the doorway a second later wearing one of Joey’s oversized shirts again.

Crystal’s eyes immediately narrowed slightly.

Not hostile.

Assessing.

Trying to figure something out.

Meanwhile Joey’s enhanced senses picked up Crystal’s heartbeat speeding up almost instantly.

Not fear.

Attraction.

Confusion.

Possessiveness.

Which was somehow weirder.

Cassandra noticed Joey noticing.

A wave of quiet amusement brushed through the bond between them.

*Oh no,* Joey thought.

Crystal crossed her arms slowly. “Okay. Somebody better start explaining.”

Joey opened his mouth.

Nothing came out.

Cassandra sighed dramatically.

“Men,” she muttered. “Hopeless in a crisis.”

Then she smoothly walked into the room and sat on the arm of the couch like she owned the apartment.

“Short version,” Cassandra began calmly, “Silas was a bounty hunter.”

Crystal blinked. “…Like Dog the Bounty Hunter?”

“Considerably less mullet-based,” Cassandra replied.

Joey snorted despite himself.

Crystal looked between them.

“…I’m serious.”

“So am I,” Cassandra said. “Silas tracked dangerous people for money. Some of those people eventually tracked him back.”

Crystal frowned. “Then why attack *us*?”

Cassandra smoothly shrugged. “He recognized me.”

Not technically a lie.

“We used to work together,” Cassandra continued casually.

Joey nearly coughed.

Crystal’s eyes widened. “You worked with *that* guy?!”

“A long time ago,” Cassandra said coolly. “Before he became… unstable.”

“That dude threw a knife through a window,” Joey added. “I think we’re past unstable.”

Crystal rubbed her temples slowly.

“So wait…” She looked at Cassandra suspiciously. “Who ARE you exactly?”

Joey felt sudden interest ripple through the bond.

Cassandra was enjoying this.

Dangerously enjoying this.

“A consultant,” Cassandra answered smoothly.

Crystal stared blankly.

“…For what?”

“Difficult problems.”

“That is the sketchiest answer I have ever heard in my life.”

“It’s also accurate.”

Crystal looked unconvinced.

Then her eyes drifted toward Joey again.

Toward the faint bandage near his neck.

Her expression changed slightly.

Concern softening into something warmer.

“You really tried to fight that guy for her,” she said quietly.

Joey rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I mean… he was trying to kill her.”

“And you,” Crystal pointed out.

“Yeah, well…” Joey shrugged. “Didn’t really think about that part at the time.”

Crystal stared at him for a long moment.

Joey’s heightened senses picked up her pulse quickening again.

Cassandra definitely noticed too because smug satisfaction flowed through the bond immediately afterward.

*Behave,* Joey thought desperately in her direction.

The fact she heard that thought enough to smirk nearly made him ****.

“Oh my God,” Joey muttered.

Crystal blinked. “What?”

“Nothing!”

Cassandra looked entirely too innocent.

Crystal narrowed her eyes.

“…Okay seriously what is going on with you two?”

Joey and Cassandra answered at the exact same time.

“Nothing.”

“Everything.”

They looked at each other.

Crystal looked exhausted already.

“You know what?” she sighed. “I’m too traumatized to unpack whatever weird goth psychic sex thing this is right now.”

Joey nearly died instantly.

Cassandra looked delighted.

“Psychic sex thing?” she repeated approvingly. “That’s actually quite good.”

“There is no psychic sex thing!” Joey exclaimed.

Crystal raised an eyebrow slowly.

“You literally answered at the same time.”

“…Coincidence.”

“You’re terrible liars,” Crystal informed them.

Joey opened his mouth—

then stopped.

Because through the bond, he suddenly felt something from Cassandra.

Not jealousy.

Not territorial anger.

Encouragement.

Acceptance.

Even curiosity.

Joey blinked slightly.

And slowly realized something important.

Cassandra genuinely did not mind that Crystal was attracted to him.

At all.

Actually—

if anything—

she seemed interested to see what Joey would do about it.

That realization hit Joey like a truck.

Especially because Crystal was still staring at him with an expression that had become significantly softer than “annoyed manager.”

“…This is getting complicated,” Joey muttered weakly.

Cassandra smiled lazily.

“Oh Joey,” she purred. “You have no idea.”