Page 55 of My Big Fat Vampire Wedding
Pandora couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his mind. If that kiss had been as real for him as it had felt for her. If he was feeling as conflicted as she was.
She was so distracted by her own response to the kiss, and her desire for more, that she was only half paying attention to Victor as he started to talk about different printing places in London where they could get their invitations drawn up and made for them.
Sensing her lack of response, he let the conversation fall away before they even made it back to Luna Bean.
“Where’d he go?” Pandora asked when they walked into an empty café. Save for Lucy behind the counter, looking rather pleased with herself.
“Off to torture someone else with his awful personality, no doubt,” Lucy said, shrugging.
“I’m going to head out,” Victor said as Lucy handed him his backpack.
“Oh. Ah, OK,” Pandora said, feeling a little rejected, even if she knew that wasn’t logical.
“Text me if something comes up. Otherwise, I’ll be here tomorrow night.”
With that, and not even another glance at Pandora, he left.
“What was that about?” Lucy asked, watching Victor out the window as he walked down the street.
Pandora rushed closer, leaning over the counter. When she spoke, her voice was airy, her words practically tripping over each other. “He kissed me!”
“What?” Lucy asked, mouth falling open. “You can’t drop news like that and not give me a byline, at least.”
“Well, it starts with us being followed.” Pandora moved behind the counter to wipe down the already spotless surface.
She’d always been a stress cleaner.
By the end of this marriage, she was pretty sure she would rub the sheen off the counters and floors at this rate.
“That weaselly, conniving, arrogant—”
“I would love to hear how that ends,” Pandora said. “But it wasn’t Elias.”
“Are you sure? He headed out not long after you two.”
“He probably went to feed,” Pandora said. “No, it was Bellatrix. She was moving too fast at first to make out.” She left out that Bellatrix had also likely just fed, which had made her so much quicker even than Pandora’s own vision. “But then I saw her hair. No one else has hair like her and can move that fast. Except maybe my aunt. Butshe’s probably too busy sitting around my house telling our family how perfect her daughter is.”
“Why would she be following you? What a creep.”
“I’m worried she picked up on things not being … real between Victor and me.”
“You said you thought the party went well. Aside from Mr. Tall, Dark and Annoying showing up.”
“I thought it had. I mean, my mum was suspicious, but I think that had more to do with Victor being human. Everyone else seemed to, you know, buy it.”
“Did she see the kiss?”
“Yeah. I mean, she was there when it started. But I, you know, lost track of her once he started kissing me.”
“Did you feel it in your toes? You have the look of someone who felt it in their toes.”
“I felt it everywhere.” Her body felt warm just from the memory.
“And yet you’re speed cleaning,” Lucy said, making Pandora freeze, realizing her friend was right. She was so worked up that she was letting her supernatural speed come out.
“He was weird after.”
“Weird,” Lucy said. “Weird like he was giving you a trouser salute and was uncomfortable. Or …”
