Dead Broke
Chapter 2
I sat right down in the doorway and started to cry. There was no use fighting it. I didn't even care enough to get up out of the cold. Amelia frowned and walked back up the stairs. She left the lacy panties and cotton briefs on the floor. I folded my knees up and leaned my elbows on them. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I thought about Eric, but the fact that he was gone only made me more miserable. When I looked up, Bill Compton was standing at the foot of the porch. He was watching me.
"What the hell do you want, Bill Compton?" I half-screamed at him. Gran would have smacked me good. But hell, I needed to scream at someone and Bill deserved it on some level, I was sure.
"I saw your car abandoned at the end of the road. I came to see if everything was okay." He didn't even react to my anger. He just stood there like a wet, glowing, pale lump. That sounds like a stupid description, but if you'd been there, you would have said the same thing.
"Is everything okay?!" My voice was squeaking. I sounded like one of those whistles only dogs can hear. Well, except I can't hear them. You know what I mean. "Oh, Bill Compton, my vampire ex-lover who lied to me and cheated on me wants to know if everything's okay! Well, everything is not okay! My car broke down and my washer flooded and my dryer died and…and… just look at the rain gutter! LOOK AT IT!"
I was definitely freaking out now. This was a whole new level of freaking out, even for me. I wondered if I had paid the insurance bill yet. I was definitely going to have a heart attack.
"And I'm pulling a double shift tomorrow, and I just know I'm not going to get any sleep. I know it! And I can't believe I'm saying this out loud but I miss Eric! Don't you judge me Bill Compton. You left me first, you evil, lying, cheating asshole! I miss that damn Viking and he's off on some fucking errand for the vampire king of this rainy, freezing cold state!"
I let loose a few more sharply toned swear words. Bill was blinking at me from the porch step. I stood up in the doorway and narrowed my eyes at him.
"I rescind your invitation, Bill Compton. Don't you DARE try to come in my house! I don't need you or anyone! Screw you and the horse you rode in on!"
And with that, I slammed the door.
I leaned back against the front door. I was crying even harder now. What was that? Where did that come from? Had I just told my ex-lover that I missed my current lover, who, by the way, was my ex-lover's boss? Eric and I weren't even officially dating as far as I knew. He was sort of a secret. Only Amelia knew he spent the night sometimes. Okay, probably Pam knew too, and maybe Bill but only because he lived across the cemetery. But I'd said it out loud and that was probably a big faux pas. I wiped my face with my sleeve and stomped back to my bedroom. I stared at the phone as I tried to fall asleep. It was a little after midnight. I wondered how long Eric would be with the King. Would he go back to Fangtasia after the meeting let out? Would he go home? I knew Eric had his own house, but I'd never seen it. I didn't have a phone number for him there, though I did know his cell phone number.
I grabbed my own cellular off the nightstand. Eric was fascinated by text messages, but I wasn't too talented with the combination number-letter keys on my model. I flipped open the phone and stared at it for a long time. I wondered if he'd put his own phone on vibrate for the meeting. I clicked a few buttons to get to the text messaging menu. Then I selected Eric's number from a short list of contacts.
"Eric. I miss you. Please wake me up and make love to me." I thought out loud. Hm. Not subtle enough. Eric wouldn't be able to help laughing and he'd ruin the sour mood of the meeting.
"Eric. I love you. Sookie." Hm. Too serious. Also, I hadn't told him that in person so saying it in a text message would be weird.
"Eric, I missed you tonight. Also, I yelled at Bill." But then he'd want to know why and it'd be this whole big thing and I'd never get to sleep.
"Eric." I was typing now. "I have to work a double tomorrow. Can you call after two? Miss you. Sookie." I stared at the message, thought a moment, and deleted the sentimental message at the end. I stuck my name in after the question mark. There. Much better. I pressed send, flipped the phone shut, and put my head on the pillow.
It was still raining when I fell asleep.
And when I woke up a little after eight, it was still raining. I looked over at my phone, sitting precariously on the snooze button of my alarm clock. The screen was lit up and it was beeping quietly. I flipped open the phone and clicked a button to view the message in my inbox. Predictably, it was from Eric. Who else would it be from?
"My lover, I missed you this evening. I will call you tonight at two. E."
A little spark of joy raced up my spine before I realized that it would take me a long time to get home from the bar after it closed. I thought about asking Sam for a lift. I decided that if it was still raining, I'd suck it up and ask him. But if the storm cleared up, I'd just walk. I tucked the phone in my purse and got out of bed to take a shower.
That's when I remembered the night before. My indoor porch was flooded. My dryer was probably flooded in addition to being broken. My car had stopped running beside the mailbox. My rain gutter had leaked water onto the porch all night long. Happy Monday Sookie. Ugh.
When I got back out of the shower, the phone was ringing. I grabbed it on the fifth ring. The phone fumbled and slid out of my grip. It banged heavily on the floor.
"Shit!" I swore. I yanked it back up to my ear by the cord.
"Sookie? Everything okay? Look, are you doing that double for me today? You didn't call back last night."
"Oh no!" Damnit! I knew I'd forgotten something. "I mean, yes. Yes Sam. I'll see you at ten. Sorry I didn't call you back."
"It's fine." It wasn't. His voice was tight, strained. "I'll see you then."
I dropped my towel and shimmied into my work clothes. After checking the thermostat outside my window, I opted for the long sleeve Merlotte's uniform shirt and the long pants. I was about to head out to walk to the bus stop when I saw Amelia standing in the kitchen sipping her tea.
"Can I give you a lift?" She smiled at me, still half-asleep. I nodded and sank into one of the kitchen chairs. Amelia threw a cup of coffee and a bowl of Cheerios in front of me. I was really going to miss having her around.
"Thanks roomie," I said with a sigh. The coffee had too much sugar and not enough milk. It looked murky. I drank it down in one gulp. Then I dug into my cereal.
"You're out of milk."
"Yeah, I guess so."
"I made my famous noodle casserole for you to munch while I'm gone. And I let the water out of the porch and scrubbed the floors. Oh, and I dumped the firewood out back. It's pretty much useless now that it's all soaked through."
"When did you wake up?"
"I couldn't sleep."
"Oh. Thanks Amelia." I ate the last bite of cereal. The milk had gone off a little, but it wasn't chunky. I figured I would be alright.
"Sure. Come on, we'd better get going. Do you need a lift home?"
I shrugged as I pulled on my coat. I told her I could probably squeeze a ride out of Sam and Amelia nodded. She was thinking about the mountain of stuff she had to pile into her car before she left on Tuesday morning. It was just as well. I needed to stop relying on her for awhile.
"So Eric was busy last night?" Amelia asked as we drove into town. I nodded, trying not to look too disappointed. "So who were you yelling at?"
"Bill came over to ask about my car." I said succinctly. Amelia nodded. She was my roommate and my friend. She knew all about my history with Vampire Bill.
"If he's any kind of a man, he'll understand about the yelling." Amelia said in a defensive sort of way.
"He's scum."
"Yep."
"I wish I could blame the whole of Sunday on him. Everything. All of it."
"That's the beauty of ex-boyfriends, Sook." We were pulling into the lot at the bar. Amelia grinned at me. "You can blame everything on them. What are they going to do, whine about it?"
I couldn't help but grin at her as I got out of the car.
"Car broke down. Bill's fault. Washer flooded and dryer died. Bill's fault. Overdue bills? Bill's fault. Rain gutter broken and water damage on my front porch? Yep, you guessed it, Bill's fault."
I definitely felt a little better.
Sporting a bit of a smile, I walked into Merlotte's through the employee door and hung my damp coat on the rack. Arlene's coat was hanging next to mine. My good mood faltered. Arlene and I didn't get along so well anymore and where I once looked forward to seeing her, I now dreaded working alongside her. Sam's office was empty when I stowed my purse on the shelf in his office. I walked down the hall and out into the bar. Arlene was already clearing off her tables and putting out place settings. Sam was drinking a cup of coffee.
"Morning Sookie," he said to me in a grumpy sort of way. I flashed him my fake, nervous smile. He was still mad that I hadn't called him the night before to tell him I was available to work. I couldn't blame him, but I'd had had problems of my own. Bill's fault, I reminded myself. I tried to push the bad memories out of my mind and think about Eric. That didn't help. I frowned.
"Hey Sam, can I bum a ride home tonight? My car broke down." I sighed as I picked up my settings from the box on top of the bar.
"Sure Sook," Sam nodded. He didn't even ask about the car. Great. This was going to be the longest shift of my life.
I hadn't been exaggerating either. It really was the longest shift I had ever had. Arlene left at six just as the orders began piling up, and Danielle, her replacement, was an hour late. Sam ferreted drink orders to and from the bar while I schlepped food to a restaurant full of hungry customers. I even cleaned up the empty plates since the bus boy was MIA. In my exhaustion, it was difficult to keep up the mental barrier between my telepathic mind and the crude, drunken thoughts of my patrons.
Bet she's goin' commando underneath them pants. I can see the outline of her sweet pussy. I plastered that crazy smile on my face as I passed the man his burger. I made sure to spit on the bun. Hear that stupid bitch is a fangbanger. Wonder what them vamps are like in the sack. Bet their dicks are like ice! This was from a guy sitting in the back. He was on his fourth Jack and Coke. Damn Sookie's lookin' hot tonight. Her hair, her lips, and those breasts…wow, what a rack! Hoyt Fortenberry smiled dreamily up at me. My brother, Jason, was sitting beside him. Wonder if they're fake. Another guy on the road crew, some new guy from the high school football team, stared right at my chest. I was certain he was going to reach out and test to see if I had silicone implants.
Sam yanked me aside as Danielle passed by me en-route to a table near the front door. He pulled me behind the bar and stared at me, his hands on my shoulders.
"You've had that grin on your face for twenty minutes, Sookie. I know it's a long shift. Maybe you should take a break."
"No, Sam. I'm fine. I can deal with it."
"I'm worried about you," he frowned. "You let me know if someone steps over the line."
But I wasn't about to give in. If Sam saw that I was losing my cool, I was sure he'd yank my new hours out from under me. I needed the money, badly. I could take care of myself if it meant I would make enough to get my car fixed. I snuck back out from behind the bar. I tried to block out the incessant mind chatter. When that failed, I tried to move so quickly that I'd only be able to pick up a little of the jabbering.
At the end of the night, I collapsed onto a bar stool. I'd made fifty dollars in tips. Things would get better. It was only Monday night.
I got into Sam's car at two-fifteen and my cellular phone was ringing. Sam turned down the radio so I could answer it. Eric's name had lit up the screen. I let out a little sigh of relief and even though I was tired of listening to voices, I wanted to hear his. I wished I could feel that bond thing through the phone.
"My lover," Eric said on the other end of the line. Faint music drifted around in the background. Eric was at the office. "How was work?"
"Long," I said quietly. I didn't want Sam to think I was tired or ungrateful for the hours. "I think I'm going to sink into bed as soon as I get home."
"I'll tuck you in,"
"Are you there?" I blinked. That was a surprise. I thought the music was the background radio at Fangtasia. Maybe it was the radio in his car.
"Nearly," he said gently and hung up the phone. I tried not to smile dreamily. As far as I knew, Sam didn't know Eric and I were seeing each other. And he didn't need to know either.
Sam dropped me off in front of the house and waved as he pulled off. I walked around to the back door and saw Eric's car sitting beside Amelia's. When I walked inside, I saw them sitting on the sofa. Eric got to his feet and smiled at me, a warm, teasing, Eric sort of smile. Amelia got up too, winked at me, and made some pathetic excuse about packing. She bolted up the stairs.
"My lover," Eric said, slipping an arm around my waist. He lifted me effortlessly into his arms and carried me down the hall to my bedroom. I watched Mops trot after Eric's heels. That cat had a thing for vampires.
With one sweep of his hand, the Viking pulled back my sheets. Mops hopped up on the bed and sat on his pillow. He chuckled in a kindly way and set me down on the floor. He undressed me slowly, pulling up the hem of my shirt as he tickled my skin. He reached behind me and unclasped my bra, bending his head to kiss the place where my breasts swelled from my sternum. His hands slid over my hips and he pushed my pants down my thighs. I stepped out of them, kicking them aside along with my shoes. I was shivering in a pink lacy thong and a pair of ankle-high white socks. My vampire then took the nightgown I had left over the back of a chair and pulled it down over my head. I slithered my arms into the sleeves as if I were a little girl getting ready for bed.
"It's cold tonight," he frowned a little, kissing my nose. I nodded. "Get under the covers."
"Join me?" I asked, as if he wouldn't. He grinned and removed his shirt, a fitted plain white tee shirt. Eric bent down to untie his shoes while I shimmied over to my side of the bed and pulled up the flannel sheets, knitted blanket, and heavy winter quilt. Eric gave the kitten a little shove with his hand and she scooted down beside me under the sheets. She pouted as she went.
"Tell me what happened with Bill," Eric began as soon as I'd gotten comfortable. I had rested my cheek on his muscular shoulder while he lay on his back beside me. He ran his fingers through my hair with one hand. I stiffened.
"I screamed at him." I said. I felt a little guilty. I couldn't tell if Eric was laughing or serious without looking at him. I was afraid to check.
"Did he hurt you?" He sounded more serious than amused. I still didn't want to double-check.
"No. I was having a bad day. He just picked the wrong time to stop by and ask stupid questions."
"He called to tell me your car broke down. He demanded to know why I wasn't with you."
"It's none of his business!" I squeaked. I sat up. Mops protested my movement under the blanket. "He had no right to stop by! I'm a person in my own right damnit! I don't need him looking out for me!" I took a deep breath. My voice was doing that high pitched whistle thing again. I glanced at Eric. His mouth was a straight, flat line.
"Relax, lover." He said slowly. He pulled me back down against him. I went with a little reluctance. "Amelia told me about the broken appliances, the rain gutter, the car."
Please don't offer me money, please please. I can't take it, but I'm so broke I might not be able to say no. I could feel myself tightening up again. His hand was soothing on my back, but not soothing enough.
"I took more hours at work. It'll be fine. I might not be able to see you as much, but I really need the extra time." I wanted him to know I was taking care of it. I didn't need his charity.
"I'll miss being with you, lover. But I understand." His voice was flat. He was holding back whatever he really wanted to say. I treasured whatever that bond between us was telling him.
"I rescinded Bill's invitation," I said after a bit of silence. If I'd been looking at him, I might have seen him flinch. "I wish he would just move."
"Hm," was all Eric said in reply. I didn't ask what he meant.