Chapter One: Unwelcome Memories

"I don't know. What do you think?" I asked.

"This one," said Tara. "Definitely."

I ran my hands over it, smoothing out the skirt, turned my hips a little in front of the mirror. She was right. The black one had been beautiful, but it was too dressy. This little blue dress was cute, but not over the top, and it made my size ten butt look more like an eight. The bodice clung, but wasn't tight, and the loose waistline flowed down into a gentle flair, swinging around my knees. I'd have to avoid that street vent Marilyn Monroe stood over, but other than that the only daring thing about it was the back, and I fully intended to wear it with a little white crocheted cardigan, so that wouldn't be a problem.

"Okay. But no 'friend' discount," I insisted as I went back into the dressing room. It was bad enough that Tara had probably set the dress aside for me when it came in months ago, knowing I wouldn't be able to afford it until it went on clearance. I didn't need her cutting into her profits any further. Now if only I had an occasion to wear it.

I waited while she rang it up and wrapped it in tissue, gave her a quick hug, and rushed out.

"Tell JB I said hi!" I called out as I was running out the door.

I was going to be late to work if I didn't get a move on.


It was a slow night at Merlotte's, and I was enjoying not having to put too much effort into shielding thoughts. Jane Bodehouse was too drunk to think at all, and Sam's thoughts were a hazy, un-intrusive buzz. The only other people in the bar were Arlene, who was mentally tallying her meager tips and hoping Sam would let her leave early, and Andy Bellefleur, who was wishing Halleigh would hold her book club meetings at someone else's house so he could go home. My section was completely cleaned and stocked, so I leaned across the bar and chatted with Sam for a while.

It had been over a month since I'd seen Bill, and that hadn't gone so well. Eric had only dropped by my house once in that time, and my only other interaction with the supernatural world had been working for Sam, who was a shape shifter. I hadn't been seen publicly with vampires in so long that Sam had asked me out again, but I'd made excuses and turned him down. He was a little angry at first, not understanding why I wouldn't give him a chance now that no one had their fangs in me (his words, not mine), but after four days of not talking, he'd apologized and we'd managed to settle back into a comfortable friendship. Sam was attractive, and he was certainly a great catch, but I was a bit jaded when it came to men, especially the supernatural ones.

My last boyfriend had been Quinn, a gorgeous hunk of weretiger. He was strong and sweet and down to earth, and I had fancied we could have a real future together. He'd even taken me on a real date. But then he'd betrayed me for another woman, his crazy mother, and it led to my nearly getting killed, along with a bunch of people I cared about. I couldn't blame him for his mother's problems, but I couldn't stay in a relationship where I didn't come first. I still cared about him, and remembering the hurt in his eyes when I broke it off with him still tugged at my heart, but I had to believe it was for the best.

Before Quinn there was Eric. I'm not sure if the 'boyfriend' label really applied, but the result was the same. He was sweet and funny and sexy as hell (he was a Viking before he was turned), but he was also suffering from witch-induced amnesia at the time. He'd even taken a bullet for me and helped me when I'd killed that horrible Debbie Pelt. But as soon as he remembered who he was, he quite literally forgot about us and went back to being the pompous, irritating, badass vampire sheriff of Area Five. I couldn't really be mad at him for it, but I could certainly be hurt. He'd recently regained his memory of our time together, but he'd made almost no effort to talk to me, much less rekindle anything. The blood bond we now shared didn't help matters.

But first there had been Bill, another vampire and my first love in every way. He'd taken my heart and my virginity, and then he left me for a woman who ended up torturing him, all because of some stupid vampire database. By some miracle, I'd managed to kill her and save him, only to end up locked in a trunk with him. His bloodlust, as well as his plain old regular lust, had taken over, and he'd come awfully close to killing me before Eric showed up. In my heart I knew he'd only hurt me because he was starving and out of his mind, but it didn't change how terrifying and painful the whole thing was. Some time later I'd found out the whole reason he'd even moved to Bon Temps was to seduce me and turn me over to his Queen.

Bill and I dated for quite a while, and he was the closest thing I ever had to a normal relationship, if you didn't count the whole drinking my blood part. He was now my oldest heartbreak, and also the one that still pained me the worst. Ironically, he was also the one who had never stopped trying to win me back, something I found both comforting and annoying, especially since he was my nearest neighbor, and I couldn't very well avoid him. Like the others, I couldn't blame him for leaving me. The 'other woman' had been his maker, and apparently when your maker calls, you have no choice but to go. What I blamed him for was being all secretive about it. And when I'd found out why he'd really started seeing me in the first place, that blame became something close to hate. His latest attempt to win me back had resulted in a near screaming match on my front porch. I felt a little pang when I thought of the defeated look in his eyes. I really hated hurting him. But it was better than letting him hurt me again.

"Well some things never change."

I knew that voice, that mind, the second I heard it. I just hadn't ever expected to hear it again. Sam looked past me and his eyebrows shot up. Then he looked back at me with something close to pity, and my heart just dropped. Selah.

Selah Pumphrey had dated Bill after he and I broke up. He'd brought her into Merlotte's every time I worked at night, just to make me jealous. And it worked. But it had also hurt me even more, though I'd tried to deny it at the time. It was bad enough that he'd lied to me and left me for someone else, but his childish attempt to make me come back to him had only twisted the knife. And Selah had made every effort to rub my face in it. I had a bad feeling she was about to do that again.

I fixed my 'crazy Sookie' smile on my face and spun around. Of course, she'd sat down in my section. That was just the way things happened in my life.

"What can I get for you, Selah?" I asked in my nicest, most insincere tone.

"Sookie, I didn't expect to see you here," she said with a condescending smile. 'Not that I ever expected you to move up in the world. No wonder Bill left you.'

I threw my shields up as fast as I could. "You know I could never leave Sam," I said, forcing my smile to stay put. "What can I get for you?" I asked again.

"White wine would be great."

"Coming right up," I said, and I walked back to the bar as fast as I could without breaking into a sprint.

"Everything okay, Sook?" Sam asked.

"I need a white wine," I said, ignoring his question. It's not like he didn't hear every word she'd spoken aloud, and he knew enough of my life to know everything was not okay.

"Want me to take it to her?" he offered.

"Of course not, Sam," I said. "I am perfectly capable of serving drinks."

I took a deep breath and squared my shoulders. I didn't know what she was doing back in town, but I wasn't going to let her get to me. Sam gave me a supportive smile, and I grabbed the glass, heading back over to Selah's table.

"Here ya go," I said, setting it down on the little napkin. "Anything else?" I dropped my shields for a minute, my curiosity getting the best of me.

"Actually, Sookie, I was hoping you could tell me if Bill's in town tonight," she said, her innocent expression doing nothing to hide her intent. "…no marks…doesn't want her…still wants me…"

"I wouldn't know," I said through clenched teeth, my knuckles turning white as I gripped my empty tray.

"Hey, Selah. Back for good or just visiting?" Sam asked.

He must have noticed I was quickly losing it and decided to step in before things got ugly. I wasn't sure if I wanted to hug him or slap him. I definitely wanted to slap someone.

"Just visiting," she said, "But I might stick around for a while," she added, giving me a pointed look.

"Okay, then…I've gotta go check on Jane," I mumbled, snapping my shields back up and heading for the imaginary refuge of the bar.

Jane was practically passed out, but I shoved another drink at her anyway. It's not like she would be driving.

"You're too kind, Sookie," she slurred at me.

"Don't I know it."


Sam let me go home early, irritating Arlene to no end. I'd tried to argue with him, but he insisted it wasn't worth my time or his money on such a slow night. I knew the real reason was Selah, who hadn't moved from her seat for over an hour. Sam had even taken to waiting on her himself, just to spare me, and she only got up to leave after I came out with my purse to say goodbye to Arlene.

Fourteen dollars and a headache. That's all I had to show for a six-hour shift. And seeing Selah hadn't made my night any better. I wasn't even jealous anymore. I just felt betrayed all over again. Knowing she was just being spiteful only made it worse.

The living room light was on and Tray's truck was in the driveway when I pulled in. At least Amelia was having a good night. Tray was a good guy, a normal guy as far as werewolves were concerned. He spoke his mind and told the truth, never playing mind games, and he stayed out of Supe politics.

"That's what I need," I mumbled to myself as I got out of the car. I was so lost in my own thoughts that I forgot to do a mental headcount as I made my way to the back door, so when Bill silently glided out of the shadows, I nearly jumped out of my skin.

"Dammit, Bill! What do you want?" I snapped.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Well, that didn't work out so well, did it?" I was more than a little irritated, and he was really the last person I wanted to see. If he was going to sneak up on me in my own yard, he was just going to have to deal with that.

"I only came to check on you," he explained.

"I'm fine," I said. "Now go home."

"Sookie---"

"Your girlfriend's probably waiting for you."

He looked genuinely confused, but before he could say anything more, the back door opened, and a big blond Viking stepped out.

To be continued...


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