I look down at my black leather jacket, white thermal shirt, jeans, and boots. “Yep. Pretty much. No one gave me a clothing spell. Is it horrible?”
She studies me, frowning. “No. You look fuckin’ hot.”
“Then why do you look so upset?”
“Because you’re not supposed to look hot when I’m not around!”
I guffaw. “What’s good for the goose…”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. But I like the jacket. This flannel isn’t enough. It’s much colder out here than it is at the sanctuary. I wish I was wearing something warmer.”
“Like fur?”
She giggles. “I have grown fond of my fur.”
“Here.” I slip the leather jacket down my arms. “Take mine. I have this thermal on and to be honest, this is way too much clothing for me.”
Pie smiles and accepts my offer, slips her arms into the jacket and tugs it tight around her body. It’s way too big for her. While I am not my typical seven-foot-tall beast without the hocks, the new conformation of my leg bones only shaves off about seven inches of my original height. Human Pie, on the other hand, is petite. Almost diminutive. So the jacket covers her all the way down to mid-thigh. I like this look. Not only does the jacket hide her too-tight bustier and postage-stamp skirt, it also sends signals. Anyone who checks her out will immediately understand that she is wearing my jacket.
They will know that she is mine.
“What’s this?” Pie asks.
She’s fished a pen and paper out of one of the pockets. “Spendin’ money.” I wince. I hate that she is the one who supports us all. It’s… kind of demoralizing. I should be providing for her, not the other way around.
Pie shakes her head at me. “Don’t worry about it. We have doors now, Pell. The curse doesn’t matter. We have loopholes. So we might as well enjoy it, I guess.”
“I will find a way to get rid of this debt. I promise, Pie. I will.”
“All things for other times. Tonight, we’re on a date.”
“Yeah,” I say, letting out a breath. “All right.” I take her hand and look around for a path we can use for our walk.
“Wait,” Pie says.
I look down at her and notice that her eyes are the color of moonlight right now. “What?”
“We’re both human. For the first time since the hallways. And you know what this means?”
There is a hint of deviousness in her tone. I love it. “Tell me. I’m dying to know.”
“Our date plans have changed. Forget the walk in the woods. We’re going to the bar and we’re gonna get shitfaced drunk. On something good, too. Not some cheap-ass beer. Something I’ve never had. Like… bourbon.”
“You’ve never had bourbon?”
“Nope.” She’s grinning wildly up at me. “I’m a keg girl. I never really had the money to drink in a bar so all my party moments come from crashing keggers. I want a real drink tonight. Something expensive. Then it will be a moment I never forget and it will have happened with you.”
A drink, in a bar, with a woman.
No. A drink, in a bar, with the woman I love.
This is the best day of my two-thousand-year-long life.
“Your wish is my command.” I take Pie’s hand and we make our way down the side of the hill. It’s a foggy, December night, but there’s a full moon out, and no wind, so everything is lit up in a silvery mist that almost gives the town an air of mystique.
The bar is called Savage Saints. Which is an interesting name for these parts considering our home also has the word ‘saint’ in the title. I kinda want to think more about this coincidence, but we’re already approaching the bar, so real life can wait. This is date night.
When I pull the door open and we walk into the dark, atmospheric room, I find that I’m excited in a way that I had almost forgotten was possible. I let out a breath and relax as we pause in the little entryway and take it all in. Rock and roll is blaring from a jukebox, but in between beats, the crack of a cue ball draws our attention to the far end of the room where a group is playing pool. The flickering neon beer signs above the top shelf behind the bar light the bottles up pink, and yellow, and blue.