Author's note: So this is a reminder this is a Sookie/Eric story (even though it may not feel that way at the moment). I'm as keen to get to some proper Eric and Sookie time as I expect you all are. I promise it's coming! Enjoy!

Over the next week, Quinn and I fell into a rhythm of our own. We'd have breakfast together, in the mornings I'd do chores, run errands or go to work. When I was busy he'd go to the gym in Shreveport (turns out those abs didn't maintain themselves), read or go for a run.

On Monday we went out for dinner in Clarice to a restaurant I'd been wanting to try. Quinn insisted on paying, and after he pointed out that I'd been cooking for him all weekend I relented. I worked the next few nights and would arrive home to find Quinn reading a self-help book or fiddling around on his laptop.

On Thursday I had the day off and we went into Shreveport. We visited the art gallery and spent the afternoon in the adjoining botanical gardens. As we were driving out of the city I saw a sign for a club that had a jazz band playing live music that night. Quinn pulled into a park before I even had a chance to finish my sentence. We spent the rest of the evening flushed and dancing.

On Friday I was working the night shift with Holly and Sam when Quinn came in. I went over and gave him a kiss, smiling at the frenzy of thoughts that it provoked — admiration, surprise, jealousy, arousal. Eww. I put my shields up firmly again.

"I didn't know you were planning on comin' in."

"Amelia wanted to swing by and I thought I'd join her." He gestured over to a table in my section where Amelia was chatting to Hoyt, Jason and Crystal. Oh, brother. "Don't say I didn't warn you," I said.

"I'm sure I can handle it."

Sam raised his eyebrows at me from the bar and I made my way over to him. "Things seem to be going well with Quinn then?"

"That's right," I said proudly.

"Well, if he's treatin' you right then I'm glad to hear it."

Quinn glanced up at us and I realised he could hear us from his seat, even over the noise of the bar. "He is," I said, looking back at him.

A group of six came in and sat in my section and I grabbed some menus and hurried over. It was a busy night, and apart from running out new pitchers of beer and clearing glasses, I didn't get much of a chance to talk to Quinn, Amelia or Jason.

After I dropped off a third pitcher of beer at the table I pulled Quinn aside. "Havin' fun?" I asked.

He nodded. "I'm glad I came." I'd wondered if he was getting tipsy but he seemed fine. Maybe he hadn't been the one drinking all the beer at the table. I glanced over. Crystal had half a beer in front of her, but to my relief she didn't seem to be planning on finishing it. She was pregnant, after all. Jason, Amelia and Hoyt on the other hand all looked liked they had drunk one (or three) too many. Amelia's head was very close to Hoyt's and she was whispering to him. Jason was just staring into space.

"Should I be cutting them off?"

"They could probably use a round of water next," he said diplomatically.

"Lord help me. Just make sure none of them get into trouble would ya?"

"Will do babe," Quinn kissed me on the cheek.

At that moment Andy and Halleigh came in and made their way to my section. I grabbed some menus and hustled over.

"This looks familiar," I smiled at them as they sat down. They were sitting in the same seats they had when Andy proposed.

"Except for one big difference," Halleigh wiggled her ring finger pointedly. "We're still so grateful for your help Sookie," Halleigh said significantly. From her past comments I knew she wasn't just talking about how I'd helped Andy hide the ring for his proposal, but also about a time I'd used my telepathy to help Halleigh find a missing student at her school.

Andy nodded grimly. Andy had warmed to me since I'd helped with his proposal. I still freaked him out but he was less suspicious of me after my help.

"I was just doin' my job," I waved her comment away.

"Who's the big fellow?" Andy nodded toward Quinn.

"That's my boyfriend, Quinn."

Guess she's finally done fucking fangers. I pursed my lips and Andy looked down guiltily when he saw my expression. He was one of the rare humans that truly believed I was telepathic. At least he was too polite to say his comment aloud.

"Well, isn't he just a tall glass of water!" Halleigh gushed. "You'll have to bring him to the wedding!" She was emanating genuine pleasure. I truly liked Halleigh.

"Actually Halleigh, Sam asked me to work the wedding. You know he's bartending and he needs a waitress on to help."

"Nonsense, I invited you Sookie. You can't work. Unless," I sensed Halleigh's embarrassment as she wondered whether I needed the money. "Unless you'd prefer to waitress of course?"

I considered that. I didn't really need the money, especially since I'd cashed my cheque from the Queen. I was mainly doing it as a favour for Sam. It was rumoured the wedding was going to be a grand affair, by Bon Temps standards at least. It was a double wedding — Andy Bellefleur was marrying Halleigh and Portia was marrying her fiancé, some finance guy if I recalled.

I had a distinct feeling that Portia had asked me to be the one to help bartend because she didn't want me at the wedding as one of Halleigh's guests. I'd agreed since I hadn't wanted to cause a fuss, but it would be nice to go to a wedding. I hadn't been to many after all.

"I'd love to go, if it doesn't put Sam out," I said honestly.

"Well, I'll talk to Sam, he can hardly go stealing his staff from the guest list."

I walked off to place their order with a little skip in my step. I noticed Jason, Amelia and Hoyt had started up a game of darts and I took out five large cups of ice water to their table. Crystal was talking loudly to Quinn about life in Hotshot. I was debating whether to go rescue him when Sam waved me over to Halleigh and Andy's table.

"So apparently I'm forbidden from rostering you on for the wedding?" Sam asked amusedly.

"That's right Sam, and what the bride wants, the bride gets," Halleigh said charmingly. I felt a little bad for Sam, what kind of chance did he have against a woman like Halleigh?

"Will it be putting you out too much Sam?"

"Cher, you're my best waitress and I'm sure that's why Portia requested you specifically." Sam's eyes were mischievous and I knew in that moment he also suspected Portia of ulterior motives. "But if you don't want to work it I can't force you. I'll find someone else."

Halleigh nodded, her work here was done. "There must be plenty of bartenders around. Who was that one who helped out when you were hurt Sam? The pirate? He was real sweet."

Charles Twining. Sam stiffened beside me and it took all my willpower not to glance over at him. Charles was a vampire bartender who had been staked by bar patrons after he tried to kill me. Neither Andy nor Halleigh had been witness to that incident, and somehow the secret had never spread beyond those there that night.

"Yeah, I'll look into that," Sam said vaguely. And we both made ourselves busy.

It was after midnight by the time Sam, Holly and I were closing up. Sam was counting the till while Holly and I finished stacking chairs. Holly was chatting away about her kids getting into trouble at school when I felt my phone go off in my pocket.

I normally didn't carry my phone while on shift, but today I'd made an exception. Quinn had ended up offering to drive Jason, Crystal and Hoyt home, in addition to Amelia. The roads between Bon Temps and Hotshot were pretty bad so I'd asked him to text me when he got home. I relaxed, that must be him safe at home, he'd made good time then.

I finished stacking my chairs and said goodnight to Sam and Holly. I'd had a good night, all in all. I had guaranteed my invitation to Halleigh's wedding, I'd made decent tips and Quinn had gotten to bond with my friends and family. Life was alright.

I whistled a tune as I drove home. It wasn't until I got inside that I realised no one was there. I hadn't seen Quinn's truck out the front, I realised. I frowned and fished my phone out of my pocket.

I had a missed call from a number I didn't recognise. I was looking at the screen when the phone started vibrating again. I answered on instinct.

"Hello?"

"Hello, former lover."

I rolled my eyes. "Eric, what are you doing? Whose phone are you calling me from?"

"My own."

"Oh," that stumped me. Eric had always called me from Fangtasia's phone, which was programmed in. I walked into my bedroom and turned on the light, picking some of Quinn's things up from the floor and tossing them into my clothes basket. "What do you want?"

"A date for the marriage ceremony has been set. The week after next." That was the same week as Halleigh's wedding.

"I have a wedding that weekend. A human wedding," I added the last part as an afterthought.

"The ceremony is mid-week, you will be home by Thursday."

"That's something I guess," I sighed. It was just my luck that this vampire wedding ceremony would fall smack bang in the middle of Quinn's visit. "I'll have to check with Sam, he already has lots on that week. He's bartending the wedding." I was rambling a little but Eric didn't interrupt.

"We need to have our talk before we leave for New Orleans. We should do it soon."

I waited, this was the part where Eric demanded my presence at Fangtasia at some very inconvenient time. He didn't say anything.

"I'm working tomorrow night and then Quinn and I have plans Sunday…" I trailed off, thinking over the best night for me. "Does Tuesday night suit? I finish work at six so we could get to Fangtasia by eight." Maybe Quinn and I could go for a drink afterward if it didn't take too long.

"I will need to rearrange a few meetings but that can be done." I thought about offering to meet Wednesday, Quinn and I had kept both nights free so far, but refrained. For once we were organising plans around my schedule.

"I'll talk to Sam and see about the time off, but I might only be able to attend the night of the ceremony if he can't cover me."

"We will discuss it on Tuesday."

"Okay, anythin' else?"

"Yes, what are you wearing?"

"Goodnight Eric," I sighed and hung up.

I was in the shower when I heard Quinn and Amelia arrive home. I emerged a few minutes later to find them in the kitchen. Amelia sat at the table eating a grilled cheese sandwich while Quinn leaned on the counter.

"Sookie!" Amelia squealed and I winced. Somehow her thoughts were even louder when she was drunk. "We played darts and I won! Hoyt wanted me to go back to his place but Quinn wouldn't let him. And Crystal likes Quinn!" She giggled and then hiccupped.

Quinn and I smiled at each other. Of all the people I was worried about stealing Quinn away from me, Crystal was not one of them. He was polite to her, which I appreciated, but I could sense his distaste for her throughout the night. "That's good Ames."

"Hoyt's cute," she murmured between hiccups. I wondered idly where Bob was, but he didn't seem to be around. Lucky. The last time Amelia had gone home with another man, Bob had peed all over her bed. Amelia had sworn not to date any men until she figured out how to turn Bob back into a human. Women were still allowed, of course.

"Thanks Quinn," I said gratefully. Sure, Amelia was a grown woman and if she wanted to date Hoyt tomorrow, I wouldn't stop her, but tonight she needed a good night's sleep, as did I.

The next morning over breakfast I told Quinn about the marriage ceremony in New Orleans.

"They didn't give you much notice," Quinn said evenly.

"Eric mentioned it before you arrived," I said, answering his unspoken question. "But he only just found out the date. I was hoping it would just go away."

"When it comes to vampires problems don't just go away on their own," Quinn said meaningfully. I focused on my eggs and grits, reluctant to start a bigger conversation about vampires. "If E(E)E are organising the event then they have someone else covering it," he continued.

"I asked if you could come as my date but I think they're keeping the guest list small."

"I'll make some calls and see if we're organising it. Maybe I can attend in that capacity."

The thought made my stomach churn. "I don't want you to have to work, you're meant to be on holiday after all."

"I don't like the idea of you being alone with those vamps, babe." I was sure he'd like it even less when he heard the full plan, but I wasn't ready for that discussion just yet.

"I won't be alone, Eric will be with me." Quinn gave me a dark look over his coffee which I chose to ignore. "How about you come to New Orleans and we stay together? That way you're nearby if anything happens."

Quinn seemed to be weighing up that option.

"We could even go a night early so we can spend some time in New Orleans together," I added, feeling some enthusiasm with the prospect. "We can figure it all out on Tuesday."

"Why Tuesday?"

"I'm going to Fangtasia so Eric and I can talk logistics. I was thinking you could come and then afterward you and I could go for a drink somewhere in Shreveport."

Quinn frowned. "I'm guessing Eric suggested Tuesday?"

"No, I did," I said. I had a bad feeling about this. "Why?"

"I can't come Tuesday, it's the full moon."

"Oh," I kicked myself mentally. "I forgot. I'll change it to another night."

Quinn just nodded and finished his eggs. Although he wasn't saying anything I could feel his displeasure emanating off of him. I could hardly blame him. Our little bubble had been well and truly popped.

"I'm going to head into Shreveport, need me to pick up anything from the shops on the way back?"

"We're running low on milk. It would be great if you could pick some up. Are you going to the gym?"

"Yeah, I might stop by the shops too." Quinn leaned down and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll be home in time for dinner."

"Okay honey, we're having pork chops so don't be late," I teased. I was having fun playing house.

After Quinn left I realised I was home alone. Well, home without Quinn at least. Amelia was in her room but I had a feeling she wouldn't be rising for a few hours yet. I hadn't had any proper time to myself since I didn't have to get ready work for a few hours yet so I decided to pass some time sunbathing in my tiniest bikini. It was creeping closer to the end of the year and I wanted to get in as much tanning as I could before winter came.

I decided to call Eric and leave a message letting him know I couldn't go to Fangtasia on Tuesday after all. I left a voicemail on the Fangtasia answering machine, before remembering Eric had called me off another phone last time. I decided to leave a message there too, that way he couldn't say he didn't get it. The phone rang out, as I expected, before a a generic voicemail message played.

"Eric, it's me. I don't know what number you want me to use. I can't do Tuesday after all, so I'll need to change our meeting to Wednesday instead. I left a message at the bar too. Okay, bye." I hung up. There, that was one thing sorted.

I was working the lunch shift today along with Arlene. I tended to avoid her these days since she was still involved in the Fellowship of the Sun Church. So I kept my head down and focused on my work. Arlene and Holly were working tonight, and Sam was also going to try out a new waitress who I hadn't met.

Toward the end of my shift I made my way over the Sam, "Am I right to head off boss?"

Sam smiled at the moniker (today's Word of the Day). "Sure thing, it ain't too busy and Holly will be here any minute."

"While I have you, do you have a second to chat?"

Either, I was getting predictable or Sam could read me like a book. "You need more time off Sookie?"

"Looks that way," I said apologetically. "I don't want to go but it sounds like a might need to. It's stuff to do with Rhodes, and the Queen. It's complicated."

"It always is with you, cher," Sam said a little sadly.

I felt like that was unfair, but I wasn't going to get distracted by that now. "It would be the week after next, hopefully just a day or two. Say Wednesday and Thursday?"

Sam rubbed his forehead. "I'll have a look at the roster for that week. Thanks for the heads up." He didn't sound very thankful, and I couldn't blame him. I had only been back from Rhodes a handful or weeks and now I was asking for more time off. Plus I knew Sam was short on waitresses as it was.

As I was walking to the car my phone buzzed in my bag. I hopped into my car and checked my text messages. I had a message from Amelia that she must've sent just after I left the house and she had sent a string of messages since then with the most recent one just coming through.

10.49 am SOS

12.51 pm wat happened last nite?

1.38 pm I think sum1 cast a hex on me

5.34 pm if you bring me food ill luv u 4ever

I smiled to myself and looked at the clock. It was just after 6 pm. I had time to make it to the Sonic drive-in and pick up Amelia's favourite hangover food: a sonic burger, french fries and a cherry limeade.

I turned on the radio and tapped a beat on the steering wheel as I drove. I was waiting for my order when my phone buzzed again. I picked up my phone, expecting another text from Amelia. It was Eric.

6.09 pm I got your message. No can do.

What the damn hell. I called Eric, he answered after one ring.

"Sookie, my darling," Eric said warmly. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Cut the crap Eric. I can't do Tuesday anymore, I need to change to Wednesday. Don't be difficult about this."

"As I said, I'm unavailable Wednesday."

"Well, what about Thursday? Or Sunday?"

I was working Friday and Saturday again and didn't want to travel all the way to Shreveport after my shift. And I certainly didn't want Eric coming round to my house.

"I have scheduled my other meetings for the week around this plan. I cannot change to another night."

"Eric, Quinn can't come on Tuesday, it's the full moon."

"So it is." Eric didn't sound surprised at all.

"Damn it Eric! Did you know that the whole time?"

"If you recall Sookie, you chose Tuesday night and I accommodated that choice."

A rap on my car window announced the arrival of Amelia's food. "One second," I said to Eric before putting my phone in my lap.

I grabbed the food, rolled the window back up, put my phone on speaker in my lap and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Okay," I said, "I'm back".

"In the past you have accused me of ordering you to attend Fangtasia without regard for your schedule. This was an attempt to try things your way," Eric said smoothly. After a pause he spoke again, "You are driving?"

"Yeah I'm picking up some food for Amelia. She drank too much last night."

"Ahh, hangovers. I do not miss that," I could hear the smile in Eric's voice.

"I would love to see you hungover," I grinned. "I bet you were real sorry for yourself."

Eric made a non-committal noise. "We did not have medicine in those days to effectively relieve the symptoms like humans do today. Or fast food."

"No, I guess you had to work through the pain."

"Sometimes, other times I would find a pretty blonde woman to distract me from my pain." Eric's tone was teasing.

"Well, Amelia hasn't requested a pretty blonde woman to fix this hangover. Although there is one that might be interested in the task."

"Is that so?" Eric sounded surprised.

"Not me Eric," I snorted. "I'm talking about Pam. They were giving each other the eyes at Merlotte's last month."

"She did not mention it, but Amelia is her type."

"Maybe we should set them up."

"For what?"

"A date, that's what people say Eric. You set people up when you try and get them to realise they like each other." Just then I realised something I'd been too distracted to notice earlier. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be dead..or erm, asleep still?" I corrected the harshness of the question. "It's still daylight."

"Many older vampires can resist the call of the sun, rise earlier and go to ground later, without the same consequences younger vampires face."

"So you just have to stay in your coffin? That kind of sucks."

I turned onto Hummingbird Road, slowing down to navigate the potholes.

"I do not rest in a coffin," Eric sounded amused. "Why would you think that?"

"There was a coffin in Rhodes when I woke you, and Bill…" I trailed off, it occurred to me that it would probably be a big no-no to give Eric information about where Bill rested during day.

"Bill sleeps in a coffin?" Eric was definitely amused now.

"Don't make fun." I was still angry at Bill for his betrayal, but I wouldn't go snickering about him behind his back, not with his boss at least. "I actually don't know where Bill sleeps for the day, but even if it's not a coffin I have a feeling it's pretty cramped."

My suspicions were that it was under the house. I'd seen him once or twice just after he'd risen and he had definitely needed a bath — his hair and clothes were cobweb-ridden.

I parked my car, turning off the engine. The sun's rays slanted through the trees and across the yard. I reached out with my mind. Amelia was on the couch but Quinn wasn't home. I took a little sip of her drink, I reasoned it was my payment for collecting it.

"Some vampires choose to sleep in coffins regularly, although it is more common for those who share a nest. It affords more privacy and security. They are common when traveling."

I was tempted to ask where he did sleep then, but I hesitated. This conversation was probably getting too personal, and if Bill hadn't told me about his sleeping arrangements when we were dating I doubt Eric would. The silence lengthened before I thought of another topic. "So, what do you do when you're waiting to be able to rise?"

"Respond to emails or calls, review contracts or paperwork. Sometimes I read."

My mouth twisted in a smile. "Well, how about that."

"Are you home now?"

"Yeah, I should probably go in now. Amelia's food is getting cold. Give me a second, I'm just getting out of the car." I fiddled with my phone, taking it off speaker and holding it between my ear and shoulder as I manouvered out of the car with Amelia's food.

"So you really aren't going to change our meeting?"

"No," Eric said simply. "Even if I wanted to, I could not change it now without significant disruption to both mine and others' schedules."

"I bet you're not sorry about that one bit," I said. Eric didn't answer right away, which told me all I needed to know.

"You should call me on this number," the abrupt change in topic threw me.

"Excuse me?"

"In your message you said you did not know which number to call me on. You should use this number."

"Oh okay."

"It is my personal number."

There was a rumbling behind me and I spun around to find Quinn's truck coming down the drive. I gave him a little half wave, the soda in my hand making the movement clunky.

"Okay, got it," I said. "Listen, Eric I've got to go. I'll see you Tuesday." I tucked the fast food bag under my arm so I could hang up, and ran over to greet my man.