(Glory St Clair 11) Real Vampires Say Read My Hips
Page 32
“Hello! It’s Gloriana St. Clair. I contacted you from Texas?”
“Yes. I’ll be right down.” The voice sounded far away.
I gestured to the rest of the gang to get out of the car and they did, muttering about the trash in the gutters and the bars we could see on the windows of other buildings nearby.
“I don’t know about this, Glory.” Charis was determined to be a wet blanket. “The other places were much nicer.”
A buzzer sounded and the door clicked open. “Come in!” A short woman with wild gray hair waved us in. She wore a wonderful caftan made of purple silk and her feet were bare. “I wasn’t sure when you were coming so I was watching a DVD upstairs and fell asleep. Sorry I look a fright.”
“Thanks for having us this late.” I stepped inside and sucked in my breath. Clothes. Everywhere. They were beautiful and from all my favorite decades—the fifties, forties, even the roaring twenties. There were cocktail dresses, suits, blouses made of silks and satins and, against one wall, ball gowns and wedding dresses. I lunged for them.
“Gloriana! Look at this!” My mother had stopped next to a black velvet cocktail dress that looked straight from the fifties. “I had one like this that I wore in Paris. The men would follow me, hoping for a look down my décolleté. Naughty boys.” She laughed and moved on to the jewelry. “Oh, I love these earrings. Give me your father’s credit card.”
“Mother, can’t you, uh, you know,” I snapped my fingers.
“Of course. But sometimes one enjoys owning a thing. And taking this home and showing it off will be worth the trouble.” She was slipping off her own diamond earrings and tried one on in front of the mirror. “Gold filigree with pink diamonds. Aren’t they exquisite? You just don’t see this anymore.”
“No, you don’t. They are Tiffany, of course.” The clerk zeroed in on her. “I am Matilde.” She held out her hand. “Did you say Paris?” She said something in French and my mother answered her in that language.
I tuned them out. I was carefully going through the rack of wedding dresses. Would any of them fit me? I was afraid to hope.
“Glory, this place is a gold mine.” Flo came up next to me. “I’m with your mother. The jewels! Ricardo may scold me but I can’t resist. Even if it has been worn before.” She stopped and pointed at a wedding dress. “That one. You must try. It will fit. I know it.”
“You think?” I had my hand on a cream gown heavy with appliqued lace. The vee neck would show off my assets and the satin came in at the waist to flatter even my figure. If I could get it to button at the low back, I had a feeling it was the dress. A sprinkling of seed pearls and crystals made it sparkle under the lights.
“Oh, it’s beautiful,” Charis said as I pulled it off the rack. “Try it on!”
“That color of cream is perfect for you. Those are Swarovski crystals, hand sewn on the dress. It is exquisite work.” Matilde took it from me and led the way to a drapery covered alcove. “Here is the dressing room. If you need help with the buttons, call me.” She hung it on a hook and left me alone.
I quickly undressed and stepped into it. Heavy. Flo slipped inside before I could ask for help and began working on the buttons.
“The back is very beautiful. It is low and very pretty with lacy edges. And it fits perfectly.” She sniffed. “I think you will be the most beautiful bride. This dress feels lucky to me.” She turned me. “Let me look before you go out there.”
“It feels good.” I looked down. My breasts swelled above the low neckline and built-in bra. She was right, the lacy scalloped edge was beautiful.
“It is perfetto.” She pulled out the skirt. “Not too much. You will be able to dance without tripping over it. I think you must have it.”
“Come out, will you?” Charis was impatient.
I threw back the curtain and walked into the shop.
“Oh, Gloriana. You look radiant.” My mother beamed. “It’s the one. Don’t you agree?”
“It’s a designer original. An elderly woman brought it in just last week. She and her mother both wore it for their weddings but now there are no more children or grandchildren to pass it on to. They each had long happy marriages, if that makes a difference to you.” Matilde handed me a swatch of antique lace that matched perfectly. “She said this veil was handed down with it. If you pull your hair back, it will frame your face without hiding it.” She got busy with a few hair pins and soon had it fixed to her satisfaction. “The mirror is right over here.”
“No, I just want to stand here and feel it on me.” I wasn’t about to let this woman know I didn’t reflect. “Seriously? Mother, Charis, should I get it?”
“It’s lovely, dear.” Mother actually pretended to wipe away a tear.
“You look great, Glory. Didn’t you say you also needed a going away dress?” Charis had a couple of things over her arm. For once, she’d thought of someone besides herself. “Try these on. I wasn’t sure if you wanted cocktail or simpler so I picked one of each.”
“Thanks, Sis.” I smiled. “Flo? You sure this is it?”
“Sí, amica. You must have. The veil too. Like I said. Perfetto.”
“Okay then.” I tugged her into the dressing room with me. “Now help me get this off.” I tried on the other dresses and ended up getting both of them. Charis had great taste and obviously was more observant than I’d given her credit for. She’d nailed my size and preferences.
Mother insisted I needed to select earrings and a necklace to go with the wedding dress too. By the time I handed Matilde my father’s credit card, I was afraid to look at the total. It had to be enormous from the way the shop owner was beaming. What the heck. I couldn’t stop smiling either. For the first time in my life I hadn’t looked at a single price tag.
“I hope you will be very happy, Gloriana.” Matilde certainly was. She carefully placed the wedding dress in a garment bag of its own. It would need to be hemmed, but we could have that done by my own alteration person at home.
“Thanks, Matilde, for staying open late for us. I will tell everyone I know that this is the place to come in New York City for vintage clothing.” I wanted to rush right back to Austin. Of course our plane didn’t leave until Sunday. We had another night to spend in the Big Apple.
“Vintage jewelry too.” Flo had a tiny bag that had cost a big price. So did my mother. Surprisingly Charis hadn’t bought anything and I hadn’t caught her shoplifting either. We settled into the limo and I hoped we were headed back to the hotel.
“All right. Our work is done. Now it’s time to play.” Charis had finished off the bottle of champagne. Now she pressed the button to call the driver. “Take us to a club. One that has good music and a lively crowd.”
“Charis, no! I’m tired. I want to go back and rest.” I got a look that made me squirm.
“Excuse me? Who just spent two solid hours in a shop full of old clothes just so you could find the dress of your dreams? And before that how many hours did I spend on you? It’s all Glory all the time. Right, ladies?” Charis dared anyone to disagree with her. No one seemed inclined to argue. In fact, Flo was busy adding her new bracelet to her outfit.
“I know. You were all great. Seriously, thanks for being there for me. I needed the help making a decision.” Not. “Anyway, if you want to go out. Go. Drop me back at the hotel. Flo, you’ll watch Charis for me, won’t you?”
“I don’t need a watch dog, Glory.” Charis leaned forward, ready to fight about it.
“Don’t you? And I’m not taking responsibility for you.” Flo was studying Charis. “Glory, I think she took something from that last shop. What’s in your pocket, Olympus girl? Show me.”
Charis stuck out her lower lip. “What did Glory tell you? That I might do that? Slip things in my pocket from time to time? Gee thanks, Glory.”
“I didn’t tell her a thing. You didn’t do as Flo asked, Charis. What the hell is in your pocket?” I was going to die if she’d stolen something from that nice Matilde.
“Oh, give me a break.” Charis pulled out a tiny chain with the letter C on it.
“A Chanel ankle bracelet!” Flo slapped Charis’s hand. “Little thief! You know what that costs?”
“Oh, get over yourself. You telling me you never picked up something without paying?” Charis still didn’t look ashamed. I wanted to slap her.
“What I might or might not have done when I was hungry, centuries ago, is not the thing here, is it, Glory?” Flo’s face was red. “I liked Matilde. She works for her money. Which you never do, do you, ladro?”
“She will pay for it. Tell me how much it costs and I will see that it is paid for.” My mother finally spoke. “And her father is going to hear about this.” She plucked the anklet from Charis’s hand. “Don’t be surprised if this is your ticket home, girl.”
“No, please don’t tell him. I can’t go home. Not now.” Charis teared up.
“Why shouldn’t I tell him?” My mother wasn’t smiling but she looked like she was enjoying this. “You’ve been acting like a spoiled brat since you got to Earth. You think I don’t monitor what goes on around my daughter? Oh, yes, I’ve heard your excuses. Mama’s in the cells and my fiancé dumped me. Poor Charis.” She twirled the thin chain on her finger. “Well, none of that excuses theft. Grow up or go home. What’s it going to be, Charis?”
“I’ll change. I promise. Is that what you want to hear?” She stared down at her lap.
“No, I want to see the change. You’re on probation, as of now. I’ll be watching. If I see even one more thing that makes Gloriana uncomfortable around you, your father gets the whole story.” Mother smiled. Obviously she was trying to mend fences with me by helping with this.
“Thank you, Mother.” This was one favor I’d take. “Can we go back to the hotel now?” The limo had stopped in front of a club that was clearly popular if you could believe the line snaking around the block and the loud music blasting from the doorway.
“Sure. Whatever you want.” Charis slumped in her seat.
“Tomorrow night we must go out, though, Glory.” Flo admired her bracelet in the dim light. “We can’t be in New York City and not visit the most famous vampire club in the world.”
“Seriously? And you’d take me with you?” That got Charis up again.
“Doubtful.” I punched the button and told the driver to head to the hotel. I hoped Flo knew what she was doing. Of course I’d been to the club before. And had vowed to never go back. Damn it.
Chapter 18
When we got back to the hotel, we went our separate ways. As luck would have it, we had rooms on different floors. Flo and I were on sixteen, Charis and my mother were on twelve. They stepped off the elevator first, then Flo and I rode up in silence. There were two mortals in the car with us and I saw Flo’s nose quivering.
“Thirsty?” I said this casually. The mortals didn’t have a clue that they were in danger.
“God, yes.” Flo glanced up at the ceiling. “Great security in this hotel.”
“Yes. Cameras everywhere.” We both sighed and stepped off on our floor. The mortals stayed on and the doors closed.
Flo giggled. “You weren’t really thinking of drinking from those two men, were you?” She’d already checked to see that we were alone in the hallway.
“One of them was kind of cute and smelled delicious.” I slung an arm around her. “But, like you said, security. It’s almost Halloween. Think going vampire on hotel guests would be seen as a prank we could talk our way out of? A little mind wiping and we’d be home free.”
“Stop. I know how you are about sticking to synthetics.” Flo stopped at her door. “But what are we supposed to do? Starve ourselves?”
“There will be plenty to drink at Red tomorrow night. I think you can hold out until then.” I was across the hall and dug into my purse for my key card so Flo couldn’t see my face. I dreaded going. Wished I could think of an excuse to skip the whole thing.
“Do you know the owner of Red?” Flo paused with her door open. “I’ve been hearing about that club for decades and I know you lived in New York for a while.”
“Oh, yes, I know her.” And she knew me, or at least she’d known the wimpy Glory who’d been afraid to use her powers back then. “Red might not even remember me, Flo. Maybe I can find us another vampire club to go to.” I pushed my door open and almost tripped over a package. “Hey, I got a care package. Come here and let’s see what Jerry sent me.” I’d spotted the return address immediately and was glad for the change of subject. I picked it up. “It’s heavy and says ‘Fragile.’”
Flo let her door slam and came inside with me. “He’s so thoughtful. What is it?” She sat on the bed while I ripped off the brown paper. Inside were an insulated box and a note.
“He says he knows I won’t sample New Yorkers so here’s a little something from home to tide me over.” I grinned. “That’s my man.” I pulled out six bottles, two of the EV champagne, two of my favorite A-B Negative and two of Flo’s favorite flavor. “There’s a note inside from Richard for you too.” I handed the folded paper to her and opened the champagne then grabbed two glasses from the bar.
“Ah, Ricardo is thoughtful too.” She pressed the note to her bosom. “Mio amante.” She took the glass of blood with the champagne kick and we clinked glasses. “To our men.”
“Yes. To our men.” I took a drink and we grinned at each other. “Guess we won’t have to go trolling the streets of Manhattan for blood donors after all.”
“I’m almost disappointed.” Flo laughed. “It’s been a long time since I let my fangs out on a stranger.”
“Me too.” I sat next to her. “But you’ll have another chance if you really want to go native. Red runs a pretty wild place. Plenty of donors, if you feel the urge. Red calls them drones. There’s a fee to use one, of course. You can even charge it on your credit card. It’s not a nice place.”
“Really. Are there both sexes? And exactly what kind of services can you get from these drones?” Flo refilled both of our glasses until the bottle was empty. “Not that I’m interested since I’m true to Ricardo. But it’s a matter of curiosity, capisci?”
“Oh, yes, I get it.” I was feeling pleasantly buzzed. Some things I hadn’t forgotten. “Back in the day, you could buy anything you wanted. You know how some mortals are about vampires. Silly drones think it’s an honor to have sex with a pair of fangs in their neck.”
“It isn’t?” Flo laughed. “How do you think I became vampire myself? I was dazzled by a man who honored me that way.” She fanned her cheeks. “So handsome, and one of the best lovers I ever had.” She flushed. “Don’t you dare tell Ricardo this but that vampire made me beg to be turned.”
“You think I don’t get that?” I sighed. “That’s how I was with Jerry.” I missed him desperately just then.
“I’m getting the feeling that you don’t like this club or Red.” Flo stared at me. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
Something? There were a lot of things I wouldn’t share with Flo. But then I knew little about her life before she’d come to Austin either.
“New York wasn’t the best time in my life, pal. I’d run from Jerry, thinking I could make it on my own. When I couldn’t, I let the first vampire who came along with a good line and nice body take over.” I jumped when Flo sat beside me and squeezed my shoulders.
“I understand, amica. I hope he was at least rich.”
“No! He was also a bully and I let him get away with it. We both had to work to pay rent.” I leaned against her. “He worked for Red so I spent a lot of time in the club. The vampires who hung out there did whatever they wanted and things would get pretty rough.” I drained my glass. “You could get high by taking blood from a drone on drugs. It didn’t always end well for the drone. I hope Red has things more under control now.”
“She’s stayed in business a long time. So she must be doing something right.” Flo shook her head. “You sure there’s not more to it?”
“I’ll just bet she did. So the waitresses could give blood too.” Flo studied me. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, Glory. We can find other things to do.”
“No, I need to see Red. Because not only was my boyfriend then a bully, he did something to me that made me forget whole chunks of my New York years.” I got up and paced the floor. “I ran into him in Austin, Flo. He worked for the Energy Vampires.”
“Really? Strange. But then the vampire world is not so big, I think.” Flo watched me walk the floor. “What did he say?”
“He taunted me. Said we’d done things here when we were together that I couldn’t remember.” I sat beside her again. “It’s driving me crazy, Flo. How could Greg have erased my memory? And what have I forgotten? I need to know and maybe Red can help me fill in some blanks.”
“Yes, we must go.” Flo finished her drink, got up and stretched. Then she gathered up her two extra bottles. “I’m sorry this happened to you, Glory. Tomorrow night I will help you. Now I go call Ricardo and thank him.” She faked a smile. I could tell she was trying to cheer me up. “What will you do with the rest of your night? Will you call Jeremiah?”
“Yes, but I won’t tell him about my dress. Just that I found one. Let’s keep this trip to Red our secret, Flo.” I walked her to the door. “I’m sure the guys have both heard of the club and wouldn’t approve of our going there without them.”
“Fine. I like keeping a little secret from time to time.” She played with her new bracelet. “It is enough that Ricardo will notice I bought another expensive piece of jewelry and fuss at me.” Flo shook her head. “Pah. I say enjoy your money. I have always managed to find more, have I not?”