“She went into my room to see if I had any laundry she could do for me. She’s always trying to be the perfect roommate—unfortunately. I think she misses the close friendship she had with her old roomie and wants us to become just as tight.”
“She seems to be quite considerate,” Drake said. “I don’t see that as unfortunate. Well, except in this case.”
“True. I tried to tell her it was all a dream and I’d jotted it down before I forgot the details. I figured she’d think I was going to tell you later so we could laugh about it.”
Drake took her hand. “That was smart. Why didn’t she believe you?”
“Because in the diary, I said I wished it was a dream, but it wasn’t. So, now she thinks I’m crazy.”
“Hmmm…” Vulcan seemed deep in thought. Hopefully he had an idea that could undo the damage. “Drake. You should tell Anthony about this.”
Bliss shot to her feet. “Anthony? Why should he tell my boss? Do you want to get me fired?”
“Not at all. I think he might be able to help.”
Drake rose and held Bliss’s shoulders. “He knows how to hypnotize people. He could make Angie forget the whole thing.”
Bliss raised her eyebrows. “Really?”
“Yeah. Just one problem… He never arrives before seven and Angie’s shift will start a couple hours before that. Do you think she could keep quiet about it until he gets there?”
Bliss sighed. “Probably not. I sure wouldn’t.”
“Who would you tell?” Drake asked.
“Claudia. But she’s my friend. That’s how I got the job. Maybe Angie could be convinced to avoid worrying her and go straight to Anthony.”
Drake thought it over and realized it was risky, but it might work. “If I could convince her to talk to the big boss privately in his office, she’d be right there so he can… do his thing. I can call him first and explain.”
“How? Won’t he wonder why I was writing crazy stuff in my journal?”
Damn. How do I tell her Anthony knows about me? I sure can’t tell her that Anthony is a vamp and knows about everyone who frequents his paranormal bar. He decided to go with partial honesty. He’d stop short of blowing the identities of the other patrons. It wasn’t his right to reveal that information anyway.
“Bliss, honey, Anthony is aware of my secret.”
“He is? And he’s okay with you hanging out in his bar?”
“Yes. He’s… um… very understanding.”
Bliss was silent for a few moments and appeared to be mulling it over. “I guess it could work. I still don’t understand why you told Anthony. I thought other than Zina and Vulcan, I was the only one who knew.”
Drake gave her a charming smile. “You’re one of a very select few.”
“Huh. Well, whatever. How do we proceed?”
“I suggest you and Vulcan leave so I can talk to Angie alone.”
“Where will you say I went? To the booby hatch?”
He chuckled. “No, but it wouldn’t hurt to say you made a doctor’s appointment, just to get checked out.”
“Great. She’ll think I went to see a shrink about a dragon.”
“Or that you decided to get a blood test to make sure there wasn’t some kind of physical cause.”
She jammed her hands on her hips. “I’m not admitting there’s something wrong with me when there isn’t.”
Frustrated, he said, “Fine. I’ll say you had a dentist appointment.”
Bliss dropped her hands by her sides. “I guess that’ll do.” She faced Vulcan and said, “Okay. Shall we go get root canals?”
“Not me, thanks. My teeth are just fine.”
“Then let’s go get some ice cream with sticky caramel sauce and make some cavities.”
***
Bliss stayed out of the way until it was time for her work shift. By the time she’d run upstairs to change into her uniform, Angie was already gone. Perfect. I didn’t want to answer any more of her questions anyway.
When she arrived at the bar, she gave Angie a jaunty wave, but her roommate just ducked behind the bar and grabbed a rag. Then she proceeded to polish the bar with unnecessary force.
Uh-oh. That doesn’t look good. Rather than worry about what Angie was thinking, Bliss simply glanced around at the customers to see who might be thirsty.
She went about her usual duties until Anthony arrived and entered the office. A few moments later, Claudia exited wearing her spring coat and carrying her purse. Bliss wanted to talk to her friend, but she left the bar so quickly, she must have had an errand to run.
Sadie caught Bliss’s eye and waved her over.