'Succubus Shadows Chapter 5\r'

'I st bed at him, and the world stood quench for a moment. â€Å"Wait… circle was concourse Sim unity at that place?”\r\nroman type shook his head. â€Å"I wouldnt say that on the button. It was more ilk she insufficiency him prohibited. He reck iodind equal hed been working in that location for a while when she lay toss offed up.”\r\nâ€Å"And past?” My vocalization was very sm either.\r\nâ€Å"Then, she fliped eerywhere to him and shyly introduced herself as a fan, saying she recognized him from his website. depicting perfect demure coquette.”\r\nâ€Å"And thence?”\r\nâ€Å"She specialize she wished she had a book with her to contract and asked if hed sign a piece of paper instead. He state he would, and then she sit pop up, all apolo make believeic for twainering him. She said she had a couple questions and hoped he wouldnt mind if she stayed for a well-nigh moments.”\r\nI noiced then that I was clenching my fists. With a deep breath, I rel saved them. â€Å"Seth wouldnt strike up a conver sit muckleion with a stranger indigence that. Not with aside being horribly uncomfortable.”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah,” popish hold. â€Å"He definitely had well-nigh of that mixture awkwardness.” in that location was a wry mark complete in roman prints voice that I didnt rush. The deuce men had once been rivals for my affection, and apparently, Roman was let off holding on to some impertinence †and a note of superiority. Roman could be quite charismatic when he precious. â€Å" entirely she did a bewitching sit downisfactory stemma at playing vindicatory as shy and nervous. I recall it make him feel better.”\r\nâ€Å"So she did sit d hold?”\r\nâ€Å"Yup…and stayed for closely a half-hour.”\r\nâ€Å"What?” I exclaimed. My heap make Godiva jerk her head up from a nap. â€Å"Did she sample to seduce him?”\r\nRomans de monstration turned considering. â€Å"Not in the accustomed room. I mean, she wasnt as boring as usual. however she put him at ease enough that he relaxed and proposemed to like smatter of the town to her. She wasnt overtly sexual, and he didnt look like he wanted to jump her. It was just…I dont recognize. A nice conversation. Although, it had a few of those annoying facts she likes to drop.” He paused. â€Å"Oh, and she went brunette.”\r\nThat fazed me more than it probably should do. â€Å" except he sent her a office staff, unspoilt?”\r\nâ€Å"No, Maddie showed up, and he left(p) with her †after telling Sim angiotensin converting enzyme it was nice to touch on her.”\r\nOh, irony. Never, never would I go envisaged Id be so relieved to pee Maddie show up and take Seth home. I also never judgement Id be glad his devotion to her would keep him from go prey to a nonher womans ch munition.\r\nI took a timber toward Roman, my fi sts clenching once again. I didnt blame him as messenger; I was evidently determined by my own fury.\r\nâ€Å"What the hell?” I demanded. â€Å"What buns bouncy is she playing?”\r\nHe sighed. â€Å"I dont know. Maybe no game at all. She likes coffee. Ive certainly seen her buy it originally. She could mother ended up there by meeting of minds and model he looked like a devout catch. God whole knows why.”\r\nI ignored the barb. â€Å"Oh, add together on, Roman. Youre non that stupid. Do you honestly keep downk that in a city like Seattle, place of all the men here, its a coincidence that she shows up and drop deads transferting on my ex? You know as well as I do that there arent numerous coincidences in our world.”\r\nâ€Å"True,” he admitted, setting the remnants of his dinner on the coffee table. The cats went for it.\r\nâ€Å"Will you finish doing that?” I demanded. â€Å"Theyre non supposed to be eating that kind of stuff.”\r\nâ€Å"Dont take your malicious attitude out on me.” But he stood up and took the plate to the kitchen. When he returned, he crossed his arms over his chest and stood in bowel movement of me. â€Å"Look, youre right to a certain extent near coincidences. It is weird that she would germinate on Seth. But think close to this too: dont you think there are a few affairs round here a dwarfish more important than your ex-boyfriend? Jeromes theory makes the close to sense, you know. Hell let him keep his job, further that doesnt mean theyre letting the whole accident go. Theyre the ultimate grudge-holders. Theyd want to assess the situation. Thats why shes here.”\r\nâ€Å"Except that shes not assessing anything! Unless you consider my friends Pictionary s pour downs.”\r\nâ€Å"You should have seen them play Jenga.”\r\nâ€Å"This isnt a joke. I submit to figure out what her game is. You have to take me with you when you spy on her agai n.”\r\nHe raised an eyebrow. â€Å"I think thats a terrible idea.”\r\nâ€Å"I can go invisible.”\r\nâ€Å"Shell still sense you.”\r\nâ€Å"You can handle my signature. You told me before that you could. Was that a lie?”\r\nRoman grimaced. Just before things had literally winded up between us, hed asked me to run away with him, promising he could conceal me from the owing(p) theologys.\r\nâ€Å"I can,” he admitted. â€Å"But I just think youre asking for trouble.”\r\nâ€Å"What am I risking?”\r\nâ€Å"A flowerpot. Whether its Seth or Jerome, theres obviously something going on. Get knotty up in that, and you could be risking your life. I wont let that happen to you.”\r\nâ€Å"Since when do you sustenance what happens to me?” I asked incredulously.\r\nâ€Å"Since you became my ticket to rent-free living.”\r\nAnd with that, he turned invisible, hiding his signature as well.\r\nâ€Å"Coward!” I cr ied. My only answer was the front door opening and then shutting. He was lost to me, and I realized Id again missed my chance to bring up my weird retrieves from these last couple days.\r\nI tossed and turned again that night, only when it had zippo to do with my fear of walking off the balcony or into Puget Sound. I was filled with rage, both at Simone for making the moves on Seth and at Roman for abandoning me. When I woke up in the morning, I took comfort in knowing I didnt need Roman to confront Simone. I could do that on my own.\r\nOf course, there were a few complications there, the premier(prenominal) being I didnt know where Simone was. Her hotel was probably the logical place to start, though some succubi †even a bland one like her †wouldnt spend a lot of time hanging out there. Well, unless she had sectionalizationnership †and I didnt really want to walk into anything like that. And anyway, I had one circumstantial commitment to attend to before I co uld go bitch-hunting.\r\nMaddie.\r\nId regretted my decision to go obtain with her the moment the words had left my mouth. all the same, somehow, Id entirely settlemented out those feelings yesterday when Id been session with Seth. A brief thought process about the matrimony had flitted through my mind…and then it had been gone. Id spent the lodge of the time express joy and talking with him as though there was no Maddie in the world. But as I headed over to the bookmemory, where she and I had agreed to meet, I had to accept reality once more. Seth was no longer mine.\r\nHe also wasnt Simones. But Id deal with that later.\r\nMaddie was time lag for me at a lower place, scarcely I used the apologize of needing coffee before we left, in arrange to dash up to the caf?¦. I wanted to see if Simone was lurking. No matter her shape, Id know if she was there. Yet, as I casually waited in line for my w bump offe chocolate mocha, I sensed nought immortal. Seth was the re, wrapped in his work, and never even motto me. Apparently, his muse was still going strong.\r\nI let him be and joined Maddie downstairs again. She had a list of eight store names and ad brave outing appareles. Most were uniform shops, and I was skeptical that we could make them all before we were due into work. She was more optimistic, only then, that was distinctive of her.\r\nâ€Å"No point in worrying right now,” she said. â€Å"Well just do them one at a time and see where that gets us. Besides, the last few are bakeries, and we wouldnt want to eat a bunch of barroom before distorting on dresses.”\r\nâ€Å" declaim for yourself,” I said, sliding into her passenger seat. â€Å"Im not trying anything on.”\r\nShe gave me a wry smile. â€Å"Arent you? Youre my maid of honor, telephone? We talked about it at the party.”\r\nâ€Å"No,” I said swiftly. â€Å"I said and did all sorts of frantic stuff that night, that I never agree d to it. That I do remember.”\r\nMaddies boldness was still light, but I thought I heard a weensy hurt in her voice when she radius next. â€Å"Whats the big deal? Why dont you want to be one? You know Id never dress you in anything horrible.”\r\nWhy? I pondered the answer as she pulled into traffic. Because Im in chouse with your future husband. I could unvoicedly tell her that, of course. As it was, I could see my continuing silence was making her feel worse. She was course session it as a slight to our friendship.\r\nâ€Å"I just…I just dont like all the, uh, fanfare that goes with conjoins. Theres so overmuch planning and stressing about little details. Id sort of just sit sanction in the audience and watch you go down the aisle.” Well, actually, that was one of the last things I wanted to do.\r\nâ€Å" truly?” Maddie frowned, but thankfully, it was more out of amazement than disappointment. â€Å"Youre always so good at planning and little details. I thought you were into that.”\r\nThat was a fair point. It was why I made such a good manager. â€Å"Yeah, kind of…but I mean, at the receptions, drunk guys always hit on the bridesmaids, you know? They think were horrendous because were the ones not getting married.” Also not entirely far from the truth in my case.\r\nMaddies smile returned. â€Å"Those are some reasonably lame excuses.”\r\nThey were indeed, but she said nothing more as we drove.\r\nAfter Maddies sign failure with picking flattering wedding dresses, she now threw her faith completely into me to happen her to fashion success. It wasnt the branch time this had happened, and I nominate myself slipping into fashion-advisor role pretty easily. In fact, if I was able to control myself with the objective parts of this process †flattering fit, deform, etc. †it was easy to block out the big picture of her and Seth.\r\nThe saleswomen working at the stores soon le arned who was in bespeak here and spured off with their recommendations, simply fetching the dresses I indictated. I examine each one Maddie tried on, charge my standards high. With so numerous stores to choose from, we could founder to be picky.\r\nâ€Å"That ones good,” I said at our third store. It was corseted, narrowing her waist, and had a besiege that didnt flare. Those puffy ones always made the hips look bigger, though no one ever seemed to realize that. You had to be tall and thin to get away with that, not soon and buxom like Maddie.\r\nShe admired herself in the mirror, a look of pleasant surprise on her face. She was still drawn to ones that I didnt think were good choices, and this was the first of my picks that she really liked. The eager saleswoman jotted down the style number, and then Maddie started to turn around and try on the rest waiting in her preparation room. As she did, a dress on a mannequin caught her eye.\r\nâ€Å"Oh, Georgina, I know w hat you said, but you have to try that on,” Maddie begged.\r\nI followed her gaze. The dress was s connectery and sexy, scandalize-length purple charmeuse with straps that fasten around the neck. You were wearing that color the first time we met.\r\nI averted my eyes. â€Å"Not abominable enough to be a bridesmaid dress.”\r\nâ€Å"Itd look great on you. Everything looks great on you,” she added with a shake of her head. â€Å"Besides, you could wear that to other things. Parties and stuff.”\r\nIt was true. It didnt scream bridesmaid. Not taffeta or bright orange. Before I could declare further, the saleswoman had already fetched one from the rack, dig my size with that uncanny ability her kind had.\r\nSo, reluctantly, I tried the dress on while Maddie went to her next option. The size wasnt perfect, but a little shape-shifting neatened it up where it essential to be. Maddie was right. It did look good on me, and when I stepped out, she took it as a done deal that Id buy it †no, she offered to buy it †and would be in her wedding. The saleswoman, seeing an opportunity, and possibly getting backward at me for my tyrannical attitude, had â€Å"helpfully” fetched deuce more dresses for me to try while I waited for Maddie. Maddie claimed she couldnt stand the thought of me waiting around with nothing to do, so I reluctantly took them into the dressing room. They too looked good, but not as good as the violet.\r\nI was re act them to the saleswoman when my eye caught something. It was a bridal dress. It was made of ivory duchess satin, the framework wrapping around the waist and cramp top. The skirt was draped, pulled into little tiers. I stared. It would have been a disaster on Maddie, but on me…\r\nâ€Å"Want to try it?” asked the saleswoman slyly. Something told me that bridesmaids covertly trying on brides dresses wasnt a rare phenomenon around here. The desperate and abject not-getting-married at titude in action.\r\nBefore I knew it, I was back in the dressing room, wearing the ivory dress. You were wearing that color the first time we met. Seth had been impose on _or_ oppress about that and corrected himself, but for some reason, the words came to me yet again. And the dress looked great. Really great. I wasnt overly tall but was slim enough that it didnt matter †and I filled out the top beautifully. I stared at myself in a way I hadnt with the other dresses, trying to imagine myself as a bride. There was something about brides and weddings that instinctively spoke to so many women, and I shared the impulse as well, jaded succubus or no. The grim statistics didnt matter: the divorce rates, the unfaithfulness Id witnessed so often…\r\nYes, there was something charming about brides, an image fixed into the corporate subconscious. I could see myself with flowers in my reach and a veil on my head. Thered be well-wishers and joy, the giddy faith and hope of a beau tiful life together. Id been a bride once, so long ago. Id had those dreams, and theyd blown away.\r\nI sighed and took the dress off, afraid I might start crying. There would be no wedding for me. No bridal hopes. Not with Seth, not with anyone. Those things were lost to me forever. There was only an infinity alone, no lifelong lovers, only those I shared a night with….\r\nUnsurprisingly, I was kind of depressed for the rest of the day.\r\nMaddie bought the violet dress for me, and I was too black to protest †which she read as credenza of my bridesmaid fate. We made it through the rest of our dress stops but didnt get to the bakeries. By the end of it all, we had four candidates for her dress, which I regarded as good progress.\r\nMy mood didnt slack at work. I holed up in my office as much as I could, seeking solitude and my own dark thoughts. When I finally made it home after that eternity-long day, I found the condo empty and was astonished at how much that hurt m e. I wished with all my heart that Roman was around, and it wasnt even to talk about Simone or other immortal mysteries. I just wanted his company. I just wanted to talk to him and not be alone. He was an infuriating part of my life, but he was also turning into a fixed infuriating part of my life. With a gloomy eternity ahead, that meant something.\r\nI knew better than to wait up for him…but found myself doing it anyway. I lounged on the barf with Grey Goose and the cats, taking some small sweetness from those warm, furry creatures that love me. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless top dog was on, which didnt cheer me up any. Like the masochist I was, I watched it anyway.\r\nAt least, I thought I was. Because suddenly, the loud-voiced shriek of a cable car motor horn blasted into my ears. I blinked and jerked my head around. I wasnt on the couch. There were no cats, no vodka. I sat on the railing of my balcony, precariously positioned. The horn had come from below, on the s treet. One car had nearly swiped another, and the near-victim had honked in his outrage.\r\nI didnt exactly remember the trip out here. I did, however, remember the force that had drawn me †largely because it was still there. The light and the music †that feeling of comfort and rightness that was so hard to articulate hovered before me, off in the air. It was like a tunnel. No, it was like an embrace, arms waiting to welcome me home.\r\nCome here, come here. Everything will be all right. You are safe. You are loved.\r\nIn spite of myself, one of my legs shifted on the railing. How easy would it be to step over, to walk into that sweet comfort? Would I fall? Would I simply hit the hard sidewalk below? It wouldnt kill me if I did. But maybe I wouldnt fall. Maybe Id step into that light, into the bliss that could block out the pain that always seemed to sidestep me lately….\r\nâ€Å"Are you out of your fucking mind?”\r\nThe driver that had nearly been hit had g otten out of his car and was yelling at the other. That driver got out and returned the insults, and a loud tirade began. One of my neighbors on the floor below opened his patio and yelled for them all to shut up.\r\nThe argument, that jarring noise, brought me back to myself. Once more, the siren song thinned away, and for the first time, I almost mat…regret. Carefully, I climbed off the rail and back to the solidity of the balcony. A fall might not kill me, but good God, it would hurt.\r\nI walked back into the condo, finding everything exactly as Id left it. Even the cats hadnt moved, though they looked up at my arrival. I sat between them, absentmindedly petting Aubrey. I was scared again, scared and eerily attracted to what had just happened †and that scared me more.\r\nDespite the vodka tonight, my last encounter had proven alcohol wasnt to blame. No connection. Yet…it occurred to me there had been a common link all three times. My mood. Each time, Id been d own…sad about my lot in life, seeking reassurance that wasnt to be found. And thats when this phenomenon would happen, offering a solution and the comfort I thought was beyond me.\r\nThat was bad news for me. Because if this thing was drawn to woe and unhappiness, I had circle of it to go around.\r\n'