Rylie Cruz 3 - How to Date a Demon (5 page)

Okay, that was it a little, but he
didn’t need to know that. Thank goodness, in spite of the
supervision, he agreed on the date.

How to Date a Demon, Rule
#6

Holding a séance is not an
ideal date night. No need to conjure up more demons.

The next evening, Jennifer stood in
front of her closet, searching for just the right thing to wear.
Something she usually didn’t have a problem with. She had
impeccable fashion sense.

Jennifer pulled a pair of jeans from
the closet and tossed them on the floor. “Ugh, I hate those
things.”

“
I thought they were your
favorite. What’s wrong with them?”

She rolled her eyes. “They’re ugly.
They’re practically mom jeans.”

“
They’re low-rise. They
barely cover your goods,” I said, picking up the pants from the
floor.

She scoffed. “If you think they look
so good, then you wear them.”

Okay. This wasn’t going to be
easy.

“
How about that great black
dress you bought the other day?”

“
It looks like something I’d
wear to a funeral. I’m taking it back.” She pulled out a pair of
shorts that I’d seen her wear to sleep in. “What about
these?”

“
Don’t you wear those to
bed?” I raised an eyebrow.

“
Well, everything I own
looks like I’m trying to cover every square inch of skin on my
body.”

I frowned. “You probably don’t want to
show too much skin on the first date anyway, right?”

She glared at me. “Don’t you have to
find some clean sweats to wear for our date?”

Ouch. That was a completely unprovoked
attack. I’d let it slide though because she was obviously nervous
about the date. And I did need to get ready. I’d leave her to find
whatever it was she was looking for.

“
Fine. I’ll just get ready
then,” I said as I made my way to the door.

She didn’t answer as she continued
tossing clothing onto the floor.

Jennifer was freaking out about the
date. If she was acting this way, then how did Neil feel about it?
I knew he had to feel weird going on a date with the three of us.
It was awkward enough to have a first date, but to have another
strange couple tagging along was downright bizarre. He probably
thought I was some kind of freak. Regardless, this was the way it
had to be.

Neil had left the section blank where
I asked if he was interested in dating a particular paranormal or
human. I still couldn’t figure out if he was paranormal. Not that
it mattered, although Jennifer might want to know if she was dating
another vampire.

Proving Jennifer wrong about the
sweats, I decided on my best pair of jeans and a royal blue blouse
that I’d purchased at a half-off sale at a boutique around the
corner. My mother said royal blue was a good color for me. I hoped
that was true. Of course, she said orange was a good color for me
too and I knew that wasn’t true. Anyway, I’d just put on a layer of
my favorite lip gloss and walked into the living room when Jennifer
emerged from her bedroom.

When I saw her, it was as if someone
had whacked me over the head with a baseball bat. I stared at her,
speechless. What did I even say to her about her outfit choice for
the evening? She wore a fire-engine-red mini-dress. The fabric
barely reached her thighs, almost not covering her delicate flower.
The neckline plunged, showing off most of her perky girls. Jennifer
had always been fashionable and her style was timeless and classy.
Now she looked as if she should be hanging out on the street corner
waiting for Richard Gere to pull up in his Lotus Espirit. The black
thigh-high stiletto boots topped off her hooker-chic
look.

“
Jennifer, sweetie, where
did you get that dress?” I wiggled my finger in her
direction.

An evil grin spread across her face.
”You like it?” She spun around and struck a pose.

How did I put this delicately without
hurting her feelings? There was probably no way to spare her
feelings. “It shows a lot of skin. I heard it’s going to be a
little cooler this evening. Perhaps you’ll want to put on a little
more clothing?”

I thought I’d handled that
diplomatically.

She snorted. “You’re just jealous
because I look way hot in this dress.”

Hmm. This was an interesting turn of
events. It was as if Jennifer had stepped out for the evening and
let someone else borrow her body. A very slutty someone else. It
looked as if I wasn’t going to be able to talk her out of the
outfit.

The doorbell rang, breaking up our
conversation. Jennifer sashayed over to the door. It wasn’t her
usual walk. It had a lot more swing with each step. Her hips swayed
from side to side and her chest bounced. How did she do that? I’d
look like I had something seriously wrong with me if I tried that.
She threw the door open and I thought Jack’s mouth might fall all
the way to the floor. I’d have to get him a bib to catch the
drool.

“
Um, hello, Jennifer,” he
said trying not to look at her exposed skin, which was virtually
impossible. I commended him for the effort though.

“
Hi, doll,” she said as she
ran her hand across his chest.

Jack eased through the door, trying to
get away from her touch.

“
Oh, I almost forgot my
purse. I’ll be right back.” Jennifer bounced away.

A stunned look appeared on Jack’s
face. “What the hell happened to her?” he asked.

I threw my hands up in disbelief. “I…
I have no idea. I’ve never seen her dress that way
before.”

“
Neither have I.” Jack
leaned down and kissed my lips.

Even his kiss couldn’t ease the worry
I felt for Jennifer. Was she going through some kind of dating
crisis?

A knock sounded against the doorframe.
Neil stood in the hallway in front of the door. It looked as if
he’d found the hair gel again. He wore an expensive-looking black
tailored suit, so he was definitely well-dressed. Jennifer wouldn’t
like him though if he spent too much time in the bathroom. She
thought it wasn’t right if a guy took more time than her to get
ready. Should I have put that on his questionnaire? It was a
legitimate question, right?

I eyed him up and down wondering if
there was anything else Jennifer wouldn’t like. She wasn’t picky
about looks. It was what was on the inside the counted and I
totally agreed. Sense of humor would probably be her number one
request. If you couldn’t laugh and have fun then it would never
work.

“
Hello,” he said.

Jack spun around, eyeing Neil up and
down.

“
Hi, Neil. Please come in.”
I motioned for him to enter. “Neil, this is my boyfriend, Jack. He
lives across the hall and has an office downstairs across from
mine.”

“
How convenient,” Neil said
as he shook Jack’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Jack nodded and returned the
comment.

“
Can I get you something to
drink?” I asked, trying to play the good hostess.

“
No, I’m good. Thank you.”
he said, looking around my apartment.

This was more awkward than if I was
going on a first date with him. At least then maybe I’d know how to
make small talk.

“
Would you like to have a
seat? Jennifer should be just a moment longer.”

Before he could respond, a screeching
sound came from the hallway. From the bedroom, the sound of
Jennifer signing grew louder and louder. Her song of choice was the
classic Madonna hit, Like a Virgin.

“
She likes that song,” I
said, heat rushing to my cheeks.

Actually, it was the first time I’d
ever heard Jennifer sing the song. For that matter, I think it
might have been the first time I’d ever heard Jennifer sing. In all
the years I’d know her she’d done little more than hummed along to
the radio. Now I knew why. She made my ears hurt. Werewolves miles
around would be howling.

“
I really appreciate you
understanding about the double date tonight,” I said over the
noise.

He waved off my comment. “It’s
understandable. First dates are always awkward. I completely
understand.”

The words had just left his lips when
Jennifer appeared from her bedroom. At least she’d stopped the
caterwauling. Neil’s mouth dropped open and his eyes bulged. I
worried that he might collapse right there in the living room. This
was going to be one heck of an evening.

“
Neil Allen, this is my best
friend, Jennifer Matthews.”

Jennifer closed the distance between
them with two steps and wrapped her arms around Neil’s neck. She
planted a big kiss on his lips. When she finally released him,
there was red lipstick covering his lips.

“
Damn, you are more gorgeous
than Rylie said. You’re hot.”

I’d never seen Jennifer be this bold
before. It was definitely out of character for her. I thought I
might have to pry her off Neil, so I figured the best thing to do
was get this date started. The faster we started, the faster we
could get it finished. I knew Neil must wonder what the heck was
going on. Jennifer wasn’t as I’d described her over the
phone.

“
Are we ready to go?” I
asked.

Jennifer looped her arm through
Neil’s. “Come on, doll. Shall we paint the town red?” She threw her
head back in laughter as if that was the funniest joke she’d ever
told.

I noticed the ring on Jennifer’s hand.
It stuck out like a sore thumb. The ring was gold and in the middle
was a black symbol outlined with a black scrolled line. There were
no diamonds or any other gems, just the black, which I guessed was
onyx. I’d found the ring at an abandoned warehouse when I’d been
searching for Jack when the evil vampire Sophie had kidnapped
him.

The ring had been in a little silk
pouch, sitting in the middle of a room. Apparently, someone had
lost it, but no one had ever claimed it. Since no one was willing
to take the thing, the ring was now mine. I didn’t want it, so I
had stored the ring in my jewelry chest. I hadn’t looked at it
since I’d hidden it away. I’d thought it was a man’s ring, but
since it seemed to fit Jennifer’s finger, apparently I’d been
wrong. Jennifer and I sometimes shared clothing or jewelry, but I
remembered her remarking when I’d shown it to her about how ugly
the thing was, so why would she change her mind and wear the
ring?

I’d never pressed to find out what the
ring meant. It hadn’t seemed important at the time. But now that I
saw it on Jennifer’s finger, I realized that there had to be some
story behind the symbol. What did the symbol stand for in the
middle? Maybe if I asked Quinton Arlington, he could shed light on
the situation. He was a vampire detective of sorts. The initials on
the inside of the ring matched his initials. When I asked Quinton,
he had dismissed the topic, so I’d finally let the subject drop.
Maybe it was time to broach the subject again. I’d force him to
tell me more.

As Jack and I made our way down the
stairs, he whispered, “What is wrong with her?”

“
She’s not acting herself at
all,” I said.

Maybe Jack could talk with her and get
to the bottom of this.

Jennifer looked over her shoulder at
us. “You know what I need… some jalapeno peppers. Those are so good
and hot. I love hot.” She wiggled her hips in a circular
motion.

It was like watching a train wreck, or
an episode of some reality show featuring a drunken celebrity. I
couldn’t look away.

“
Is she on drugs?” Jack
asked.

I shook my head. “I don’t think
so.”

Her actions were so embarrassing that
I wanted to hide under the staircase. But beyond that, I was
worried for my best friend. This was not normal behavior and
something had to be wrong.

Jennifer was chatting away. Her voice
grew louder with each step.

“
When did this start?” Jack
asked as we stepped out onto the sidewalk.

The sights and sounds of The Big Easy
surrounded us. History encircled us. Jazz music waved across the
air with an impromptu free concert on every corner. Latticework
encased the balconies, French architecture reigned and narrow
alleys led to tucked away locations. The streets were crowded with
tourists moving from shop to shop. The nicer weather had brought
out a lot of people. It was perfect if you liked people
watching.

“
Um, earlier today,” I
answered.

Jennifer and Neil walked in front of
us. She still had the topsy-turvy sashay. Should I mention to Jack
about the strange look in her eyes? Would he think I was nuts?
Okay, dumb question. Could he really think I was any more bonkers
than he already thought? Apparently, he enjoyed the zaniness
though, because he was still with me.

We had agreed on a great little Cajun
restaurant down the street and I was thankful that it was nearby.
They had the best chicken étouffée in all of Louisiana. That was a
hard task to achieve, but they’d managed to pull it off. My mouth
watered just thinking of it. Passersby were already giving Jennifer
strange looks. But they should be used to seeing almost anything in
the French Quarter. Maybe they’d think she had one too many
Hurricanes. Clouds hurried across the dark sky and shadows lurked
around every corner.