Chapter 15

Remy really hadn't expected Ephie to want to go grocery shopping with him, but it needed to be done. He didn't have much in the house, since food wasn't a prerequisite for his life. He also hadn't known he was going to have a guest.

It was nice to have her along, though. Much better than doing it himself. And this way, he could get the things she actually liked as opposed to his best guesses.

They grabbed a cart as they headed into the Shop-n-Save. He figured he'd just start at one end of the store and work his way around.

"Nice produce section," Ephie said.

"Get whatever you want."

"I know you eat some food. Do you eat fruits and vegetables?"

"Some fruit. Vegetables don't do a lot for me."

"Spoken like a true man." She grinned. "How about some apples?"

"Whatever you want is fine with me. I mean it. If you want vegetables, get them, too."

She picked out a few things. A bag of apples, some red grapes, a head of lettuce, a cucumber, a pint of cherry tomatoes, and a sweet onion.

They moved on to the meat department.

"Now a good steak I can get behind. I do have a grill. Although fried chicken is always good. Even a nice piece of fish, or pork chops in gravy—"

"You're making me hungry." She put her hand on her stomach. "I guess that burger didn't last as long as I thought it would." She picked up some steaks and then, farther down, a package of pork chops.

"After we get the groceries home, we could go out for something to eat."

"Maybe," she said. "Or I could make something. I mean, we are buying all this food."

"Not much of a vacation if you have to cook."

"I don't mind. I don't do a lot of it at home because it's just me. Cooking for two is different." She turned toward the seafood counter. "You know, I could make jambalaya. Not tonight, but for dinner tomorrow."

Now he was starting to get hungry. "Yeah? Is it any good?"

She playfully smacked his arm. "Remy!"

"It's a valid question." He laughed. "You never cooked for me."

"That's not true. I made mac and cheese once."

"Yes, from a box, on a hot plate. That's not really cooking."

"I suppose it's not an accurate representation of my skills. But I make good jambalaya. Alphonso gave me his recipe."

"Get what you need. I'm in."

That required them going back to the produce department for a few more things, then hitting some of the other aisles.

By the time they were done shopping, the cart was about as full as it could get. Ephie had picked out enough for three weeks, but he didn't mind one bit. Maybe she'd stay that long.

Maybe she'd stay forever.

He knew that wasn't going to happen. He was letting his brokenhearted self dream. Nothing wrong with that, was there? Other than the fact he was setting himself up for more disappointment. But that was his business and he'd deal with it.

He couldn't imagine who wouldn't want this beautiful woman at their side. Being with her had definitely reinvigorated all his old feelings.

Her continuing to wear the ring he'd given her only encouraged the small spark of hope flickering inside him. Could he change her feelings toward him? Could he get her to love him again?

Maybe. There was always a chance.

But not if she knew he was hiding something from her.

Right there, in the checkout lane, he resolved to text Leonie and tell her he was done keeping the truth from Ephie. She was a grown woman, and he saw nothing in her that said she wouldn't be able to handle what was going on. In no way did she seem fragile.

He wouldn't let anything happen to her. He put his life on the line every time he was on duty, and for perfect strangers. As long as he was around, Ephie had nothing to worry about. He'd make sure she knew that.

"Cash or credit?"

He blinked his thoughts away in time to see Ephie getting her credit card out. "Not happening. Put that away."

"Remy—"

"No. You are my guest." He pulled his wallet out.

"But that's a lot of food."

"I couldn't care less if you'd filled the cart with lobsters and caviar." He slid his card through the machine. "Eph, seriously." He lifted his brows, smiling because she was so pretty, he couldn't help himself. "Do you even know what the word ‘guest' means?"

She made a face at him. "Yes, I know what it means, but I didn't come here for a free ride. I can pay my own way."

"I know you can. But there's no need. Besides, you're going to do the really hard part of turning all this into a meal." The cashier handed him the receipt as the bagger put their groceries back into their cart.

"Oh, don't think you aren't going to help."

"Nice try, but I don't know how to cook."

She put her hands on the cart to push it to the SUV. "I'm going to teach you."

"That's cute." And so was she. If she thought he was really going to complain about spending more time with her, she'd soon find out how wrong she was.

He got everything loaded into the back. She took the empty cart to the closest corral, and then they got in. He drove back to his place. Between the two of them, they had the SUV unloaded in one trip apiece. Granted, he could carry a lot more than the average man.

Once they were inside and the groceries on the counter, she started unpacking the bags. "Where do you keep the dry goods?"

He looked around the kitchen. "I don't think I have any dry goods. I have coffee in the cabinet over the machine."

She shot him a look of pure disbelief. "Don't you have a pantry? Where do you put your food? I know you're a vampire, but you must have some snacks or something."

"Not really. Just put the stuff where you want it."

She opened the nearest set of cabinets. There was nothing in them. "Remy. How do you live like this?"

He laughed. "Pretty well, I'd say."

She just shook her head at him. "I suppose if you don't eat, you don't need food." She put the bag of rice they'd gotten on the shelf, along with a can of crushed tomatoes, a carton of chicken stock, and the small jars of seasonings she'd needed.

He put the meat into the fridge, pushing aside his personal stock of liquid sustenance to make more room. "Should any of this go into the freezer?"

She looked over and caught sight of the bottles on the top shelf. "Those are what I think they are, aren't they?"

"Yes. Sorry. Does it bother you? I could … put them in a cooler or something."

"Remy," she said softly. "This is your house. You don't need to apologize, and you don't need to do anything different on my account. I know what they are, and I know you need them to live. They don't bother me. I'm just not used to seeing that sort of thing."

"I don't suppose you are." He closed the fridge. "I want you to be comfortable here."

"I am," she assured him. "You have a lovely home."

"You haven't even seen the backyard yet."

She moved past him to put the fruits and veggies into one of the refrigerator drawers. "I can't wait."

"Do you still feel like going out for something to eat?"

"No, I guess I can manage." She closed the refrigerator. The groceries were all put away. That full cart didn't seem like very much now.

"I don't want you to manage. If you're hungry, let's go get something."

She leaned on the counter, her hands planted on the quartz top behind her. "What are my options?"

"Italian, Thai, pizza, barbecue, burgers, diner food, ice cream, fancy chocolates and desserts, French…" He shrugged. "If you're in the mood for it, the town probably has it." He caught the time on the microwave. "Although I'm not sure all of that's open now."

"Okay, what is open?"

"I'm pretty sure Mummy's Diner, Howler's bar and grill, Salvatore's pizza place, and ice cream. Any of those work for you?"

"Probably not the best dietary choice, but ice cream sounds good. Is it good? I'd hate to waste all those calories on something that's just okay."

He grinned. "I don't eat it very often, but people love I Scream's ice cream. Birdie's a big fan, I know that. And she's not one to waste calories, either. I believe they make their ice cream right there at the shop, and they're always changing out flavors for new ones."

"That sounds awesome. Let me check on Jean-Luc and grab a jacket. I didn't think about it being cooler here because of the elevation."

"If you need something warmer, you can borrow something of mine. Help yourself."

"Thanks, but I think I brought a sweater that will work."

As she went off to the guest room, he went to the sliding doors that led out to his back deck and the patio that surrounded it. He'd done most of the work himself, and he was proud of the space. He turned on the lights he'd strung over the patio.

They went from the trees on one side to the trees on the other, casting just enough light to give the space a soft, welcoming glow.

"Oh, that's beautiful," Ephie breathed. She was standing beside him now, wrapped in a long ivory cardigan.

"Thanks. I like my backyard a lot. I spend a lot of time out there."

"I can see why." She turned to him. "Not a major problem, but I can't find Jean-Luc. I'm sure he's around."

"Did you look in my bedroom?"

"No." She chewed the inside of her cheek. "That's your space."

"Let's take a peek."

Together they went back to his room. Jean-Luc was sleeping in the middle of Remy's king-size bed.

"Little traitor," Ephie murmured. "He likes you better than me!"

"I don't think that's true. He probably just didn't know which room was yours." Although Remy couldn't help but think the cat recognized Remy as a similar being, since vampires were technically also dead.

"I'll get him out."

Remy put his hand on her arm. "He's fine. He can sleep anywhere he wants. And I'm sure when you go to bed, he'll come in with you. He's still finding his way around this new space."

"I guess so."

Remy nudged her. "Come on. Let's go eat some ice cream."