Sam woke up to the crashing sound of thunder and sat straight up in his bed. For a wild moment, he thought someone had broken into the house, so he paused, listening. He heard nothing save for Mercy's light snoring from the other room and the pitter patter of rain on the roof of the trailer. He scoffed. As if he needed to worry about a human robber.

Sam glanced at the clock. Ten to four . He sighed and lay back down with his hands over his face. The last month had really put him on edge. Mercy had an uncanny knack for putting her nose where it didn't belong and that got her into a lot of trouble. Thankfully, her latest problem was over. The vampires had signed a peace treaty with the werewolves and that vampire in Spokane was dead. Mercy would be fine, for now anyway. Besides, she had Adam now.

He thought about this. He should have felt anger at the thought of Mercy and Adam but he couldn't muster it. He loved Mercy, but not as a mate, not like Adam loved her. Adam would make her happy because he really did love her and that was fine with Sam.

"So what am I still doing here?" Sam said out loud.

Even as he said it, he knew he didn't want to leave. He might not have ended up with the girl like he had planned but that wasn't so bad. At least Bran couldn't hear him all the way out here. Sam wondered what was left for him now. Bran would never agree to put him out of his misery and Sam certainly didn't have anything else to look forward to.

Sam sighed again. Maybe I should just take it a day at a time, Sam thought. Sam's thoughts wondered aimlessly for another few minutes before he decided to catch another few hours of sleep before work. When he closed his eyes, he found sleep easily.


"Vincent, I have a question for you," Celeste said as she walked out of her room. She walked over to the living room, where Vincent was watching TV with his feet up on her new table. She stood in front of the TV.

Vincent mumbled something about her being in the way and shifted so he could watch around her. Celeste turned around and pushed the power button on the television. Vincent groaned in protest. "What? That game is really important!"

Celeste turned her blazing green eyes on him. "You should have thought of that before you put those boxes in my room." They had just moved into Richland of the Tri-city area and bought an expensive three bedroom apartment. Celeste was working hard to make the new place feel like home and her efforts were being thwarted by Vincent.

"There are two other rooms, and you decided to put your stuff in the room that I already told you I was taking," she said, annoyed.

"Jeez, Celes, for someone as old as the dinosaurs, you sure are materialistic," Vincent said, grinning up at her.

Celeste narrowed her eyes in response. "Move your stuff or I will burn it."

His grin was gone and he got off the couch with haste, apparently believing that she would do it.

"And you're older than me by centuries, you asshole," she called back at him. She heard him laugh from the other room and smiled a little too, despite her annoyance.

She watched as he carried several heavy boxes effortlessly from her room to his, something no human could do. When he had deposited his boxes to his own room, he joined her in the living room.

He gracefully bowed very low to the ground. "I'm done, your Highness. Is there anything else you would like from me?"

"Watch it," she said still smiling. Vincent liked to call her "Princess" or variations of "your Highness" because he knew it bothered her.

Celeste went to the kitchen and got a glass of water, because there was nothing in the refrigerator just yet. She heard Vincent turn on the television and groan when he learned that his team was down several points. She looked out of the window and out to the dull gray sky. It hadn't stopped raining since last night. They got in late and slept in a hotel, since their beds hadn't been delivered until this morning.

She torn her gaze away from the dark Monday afternoon haze and looked around the apartment. There was still a lot of decorating left to do, something she would have to do between her hours at the hospital. She could have asked Vincent. He has excellent taste, but he has his own work to worry about. Vincent owns and runs several bars and lounges. His newest was right here in the Tri-cities, which was opening on Friday night. He should have been busy, but knowing Vince, he was probably on top of paperwork for the next month.

She glanced back into the living room where Vincent was watching her, instead of the television. "What?" she asked a little surprised.

"If you didn't want to leave home, why are we here?" he asked, his chocolate brown eyes piercing hers. Sometimes Vince joked around so much that she forgot just how smart and observant he was. She forgot that he always saw right through her act.

Celeste swallowed before she answered. "Of course I didn't want to leave home, but we had to. This is the best place to make a new start."

His eyes didn't leave her face. "They'll follow you here too, you know? They won't stop just because you left town."

Celeste closed her eyes and breathed out loudly. "Yeah, I know. I just…this will give me time to think about what I should do."

Vincent studied her face before looking back at the television. "Well, when you figure it out, you know I'll be right behind you."

Celeste opened her eyes and smiled at him. "Yeah, I know you will." Vincent would be there, just like he always was. That made her feel a little bit better, but only a little. She needed to come up with something before they found her again, but she had already thought about this a hundred times, always going in circles. She needed something to distract her and she knew just what it was. She tied her long dark hair up in a pony tail.

"I'm going shopping," she told Vincent.

"Big surprise there," Vincent said sarcastically.

Celeste went to her room to grab her purse. "I still need to get an outfit for my interview on Wednesday and one for your opening. Not to mention all the things we still need for the house," she said, feeling she needed to explain. She wasn't worried about the job interview. She was more than qualified but it was a formality and she still wanted to look her best.

"You bought an outfit for your interview when we were in New York City," Vincent said. He was now in the kitchen, looking into the empty fridge. "Oh, grab some beer on your way back."

Celeste looked at him. "Vincent..," she started.

"No," he said without looking at her.

"But-"

"No."

"Oh, come on! Please come with me. You're going to be so busy with managing the bar and I'm going to be busy with the hospital. Who knows when we will have time to hang out?" she pleaded.

When Vincent sighed, she knew she had won. She grinned. "Go and get dressed, I'll wait out by the car."

Defeated, Vincent walked to his room. "I hate you," he called over his shoulder.

Her grin widened.


Celeste and Vincent shopped for hours. Celeste managed to two possible outfits for her interview and three outfits she didn't have any occasions for. Vincent, despite his protests earlier, had managed to buy more than Celeste.

"You're a shopaholic," she told him as they pulled their bags from the trunk of Vincent's black Audi.

"I'm ashamed," Vincent said jokingly. "Let's put these groceries away, eat and then go out for a drink."

By the time they had finished eating, it was dark out. They got into Vincent's car again and drove, looking for a good place to have a drink.

"You know," Vincent said, glancing at Celeste as they continued their hunt, "when my bar opens, people won't have to do this. Everyone will know that my bar is the bar to go to." He smirked at her.

Celeste rolled her eyes and continued to look out her window, when she spotted a tall, thin balding man walking into a bar. Celeste swatted Vince to take a look. "That bald man over there. He's fae."

Vincent looked to where she was pointing and nodded. "Yeah, he is. And so is everyone else around that bar."

Celeste looked at the small crowd coming in and out. Vince was right. "Uncle Mike's," Celeste read out loud. She turned to Vince and smiled. "Let's go in."

Vincent groaned. "Celes, why do you always look for trouble? You know if we go in there, they will realize that we're not fae and they will demand to know who we are."

"This isn't just a fae bar." Celeste pointed to a young high school boy stepping into the bar. "He's a vampire." Celeste motioned for him to park his car.

Vince rolled his eyes. "Oh good, a vampire. That's much better." Vincent parked but didn't get out. "I'm your Guardian, Celes. How am I supposed to protect you if you dive head first into trouble?"

Celeste shifted to face him. She could tell from the look on his face that he was serious. "You don't have to protect me anymore. I'm centuries old. I've been in control of my powers for a long time now." She looked at her lap. "I told you before that you could leave if you wanted." Even as she said it, she knew it would hurt if Vincent left. He'd always been there for her and she didn't know what she would do if he was gone.

Vincent sensed that. "I would never leave you alone, Celes. Besides, I made a promise to your mother that I would protect you, no matter what or how old you get."

Celeste smiled at him. Sometimes she forgot that he was old enough to be her father. It was hard to tell with her kind, even to each other. "Thanks."

Vincent sighed and his serious face was gone. "Well, let's get this over with." They got out the car and began their small trek to the front doors of the bar.

Vincent quietly hummed the funeral march. Celeste swatted him with her purse.