Naked Came the Vampire (Hypernaturals 1)

Adoring...

We set our sunglasses and Snowball on the little kitchen table. At Jessica's insistence, I sat down at the table, and resumed adoring Snowball, while Jessica went into the kitchen. She refused any help "Your job is to keep Snowball occupied" she said while pulling things out of cabinets and the fridge. Another opened beer appeared in front of me as well. A different IPA "Try that one" she said. "From Hops and Grains. I think you will like it."

It was good as well. More citrusy than the 512. No label on the bottle at all and the fact that it is a bottle meant it is another one-off. H&G only does cans. "I like it very much." I told her.

"80 IBU. 7.5% as I recall" she said. I believe it. I like a more bitter beer to cut the sweetness of the malt. Which made me ask her "Ever have the Oskar Blues Hotbox IPA? IPA bittered with coffee?"

She stopped knocking around for a second and answered "Up at the Colorado brewery. Not the one here. I like it."

I need to go to the used beer department, but that seems to not be hydraulically possible.

On the little passthrough between the kitchenette and the table sat a picture frame. The picture is of Snowball, sitting on the bench of the aft deck where we just were. It was bright and they were near a shore someplace in the picture. "I see you have a picture of your baby".

Jessica glanced over, and even though she could only see the back of it, she smiled. "Yeah: my furr-child"

"I'd show you my two furr-kids, but I left the phone back in the car. Parking lot top of the hill."

"Too bad. I would like to see them." Jessica said sincerely.

We were quickly situated with an array of blue corn tortilla chips, dips that included her fresh Guacamole, cheese, crackers, and thinly sliced meats. Jessica sat down opposite me at the table, the array in easy reach for both of us. This arrangement let me look directly at her face sans sunglasses for an extended period of time. So interesting: full lips, high cheekbones, thick dark eyebrows, and all the other things that go along with exotic and old-world beauty. Not a carved Cameo kind of classic beauty. Not a delicate flower. Her smile is full, wide, easy, un-assumed, and revealed evenly spaced white teeth.

As she talked, all sorts of tiny expressions flitted across her face. Her appearance changed as she turned so that from one angle it seemed her nose is her most prominent feature. From another angle, it is her mouth or her eyes that stand out.

She talked about how she came to rescue Snowball from a truck stop. How a beautiful, well-behaved cat like Snowball got loose at a truck stop and there were not people frantically looking for her is beyond me. It was beyond Jessica as well. Jessica had looked and looked, and gone around all the parked trucks asking. No one claimed her, so she took her home. She realized I was nodding and studying her face after a while.

"Are you listening at all?" Jessica asked.

I tried to look hurt. "Jessica! Please! Every word. In summary: Snowball found at a truck stop. Many trucks, some of the men nice, other men pigs. Knees to the groin occasionally required and quickly administered, etc. One dude was particularly insistent that you enter his truck and fuck. He might have regained consciousness by now. I can give it to you verbatim if you like." I am pretty sure I could too. I am trying to memorize her.

One side of her mouth turned up in a wry grin and changed the way she looked yet again.

That she can handle herself with less than savory men is no real shock. The way she scampered up that ladder told me she is strong. Add in her height and weight. I would not give myself even odds in a tussle with her. I have never been in a fight in my life so I would be the underdog on that fight card. She could surely throw me to the canvas and pin me down. I would enjoy that.