Page 11 (1/2)
Leigh slept through the night She hadn&039;t expected to It was only afternoon when she&039;d lain down, but it was early dahen she woke up And she was starved This tier It was both However, the erator, the very thought of the bags inside made her teeth protrude
She opened the door, lifted one out, then gri it to her teeth The consu she disliked about her new state It was also the one thing she couldn&039;t change, so she decided not to think about it as she sat waiting for the bag to drain Deter like what had happened in the kitchen the day before, she had three bags in a row before crawling out of bed She&039;d coirl and didn&039;t think she could live with that
Leigh dressed in the clothes she&039;d worn the day before She would take a bath or shower later and change into clean clothes -- preferably Lissianna&039;s this ti in the world was so to drink Well, really, she wanted food in her belly, but a cup of tea would have to do for now, she thought as she ran a brush through her hair
With no makeup to put on, she supposed she was ready and headed for the door Her tongue ran over her teeth as she went It would be lovely to be able to brush her teeth again And soon she would, Leigh assured herself as she left her roo
Bastien had pro should show up today, and she was excited at the prospect of having it It er be so dependent on Lucian and his family She coulddistance charges on Marguerite&039;s phone She could buy clothes instead of borrow them Purchase herself the shampoos she liked, soh alain having things that were her own She could buy food too, she realized, an idea al her own clothes She&039;d never made those cookies she&039;d planned on yesterday, and hadn&039;t eaten in she wasn&039;t even sure how long it had been She suspected thatso much From what she could tell, Lucian didn&039;t seeh, but she -- and her body -- were used to real food, not just liquid nourishh didn&039;t run into anyone on the way to the kitchen, but hearing the television as she passed the closed living roo the electric teakettle in the kitchen and turning it on, she wandered back to the living roo
Lucian was seated on the couch, feet crossed on the coffee table and head hanging back He was snoring up a storlanced at Julius, splayed out on the couch beside him The mastiff was flat on his back with his paws up in the air, head shifting against Lucian&039;s leg,doggy dreah walked to the TV and shut it off The lack of sound woke Lucian, and his head snapped up abruptly
He peered blearily around the room and said, "What?" in a confused voice, as if she&039;d spoken to hietically "I just turned off the television"
For a moment Lucian just stared at her, expression blank and body unh to open one sleepy eye in her direction Then Lucian forced hiy shake Julius rolled off the couch to the floor as the "
"You weren&039;t, huh?" Leigh said, not hiding her doubt
"No, I was just thinking withher lips "Well, you go on and keep thinking I was just going to rocery list?"
"For food," she said, then explained, "My purse is supposed to arrive today I was hoping to go out shopping for clothes and groceries If that&039;s okay?" she added uncertainly She didn&039;t need hi -- she could take a taxi -- but wasn&039;t sure if he would think it a good idea for her to go out at all As she&039;d learned yesterday, she ht not be the safest person to be allowed around mortals at the moment
Much to her relief, he nodded, "Oh, I see Yes, that&039;s fine I&039;ll take you"
"I can take a taxi You don&039;t have to -- "
"I&039;ll take you," Lucian repeated firot to his feet "I&039;ll just -- Have you fed yet?"
"Three bags," she said quietly
"Good, good" He turned toward the door "I&039;uerite has a good selection of books if you find yourself bored Otherwise, give o, then glanced down as Julius nudged her hand
"I bet you&039;re hungry, too, huh boy?" she asked lightly, petting the dog before leading the way to the kitchen She wasn&039;t surprised to find his food dish es like food
She had opened a can of dog food and was just straightening fro it in Julius&039;s bohen the kitchen door opened and Lucian stuck his head in
"Are you hungry?"
Leigh&039;s eyebrows rose in surprise at the question, then she nodded Her sto food hit her nose, and if not for the fact that it was dog food, she ht" He nodded "I&039;ll splash soe, and we&039;ll head out for breakfast"
"But the courier -- " Leigh began
"It&039;s not even seven AM, Leigh Deliveries don&039;t start until at least eight We&039;ll be back by then Just give uilty about the wide grateful grin that had claih&039;s mouth at his words He wished he deserved it Unfortunately, breakfast had been Bastien&039;s idea His nepheas the first call he&039;dhim just as he&039;d headed off to bed They&039;d spoken briefly, and just before hanging up, Bastien commented, "I don&039;t suppose Mother has ed there wasn&039;t, Bastien pointed out that Leigh was used to eating and that heup and decided to forgo the rest of his calls and take Leigh to a local restaurant He just wished he&039;d thought of it himself
He&039;d have to work on his awareness, he decided as he entered the bathroom He had to remember to considerhe hadn&039;t had to think about for a long, long tiriht of himself in the bathroo on end in some spots He didn&039;t want to take the ti under a tap He&039;d also shave, he decided, running a hand over his scruffy face The idea wasn&039;t a cheerful one He&039;d left everything in Kansas, including his duffel bag with his razor in it Mortimer had apparently taken over his roo He&039;d found his wallet, keys, and cell phone on the bedside table and sent theht away by courier They&039;d arrived late yesterday while Leigh was sleeping, but the , too, which held both his phone charger and his shaving gear It meant that for the moment his phone was useless and the only razor available to him was an old, used disposable he&039;d found in the drawer It would have to do, he thought unhappily
"Wow! You&039;re ready and with a reeted him as he rushed into the kitchen nine ht of him and shook her head "You should have used the extra an breaking off little pieces as she approached, then dotted the "Good Lord! What did you use to shave? A hacker?"
"I only have the one blade at the nity but fearing he failed nified with half a dozen bits of tissue dotting your face
"Right Razors and stuff I&039;d better add theet" She paused, then added, "I&039;m surprised the nicks weren&039;t healed before you headed downstairs Shouldn&039;t the nanos be fixing this?"
Lucian shrugged "They&039;re shallow cuts, not an es They&039;ll probably be healed by the ti me with your bits of tissue"
"Hh moved back to the table to take up a pad and pen she&039;d apparently beenready
"Razor blades," she said as she scribbled on the pad "Is there anything else?"
When Lucian didn&039;t answer right away, she glanced at him, then muttered, "A hairbrush"
As she lowered her head to continue writing, Lucian raised a hand to his head and smoothed down his hair He hadn&039;t been able to find a coathered it showed
Finished with her list, they headed out
They found a restaurant pretty quick considering neither of them knew restaurants in the area They chose it based on the fact that the parking lot was half full For that hour in the n It was sht blues, and comprised of twelve tables and six booths that lined the front of the restaurant
Apparently, the booths were popular, Lucian noted as they slid into the last available one
A short, stick-thin waitress with short black hair was at the table alht set you coffee while you decide what you want?" she asked
"Yes, please," Leigh said, suess that the prospect of food pleased her, and kicked hilanced his way, he hesitated, then nodded He had never tasted coffee, but it seemed a popular drink in the h had her irl turned away froive hies with curiosity While hefood brand rather than the name of a human food producer, he had heard of sos, toast He&039;d coh he&039;d never eaten thes when the waitress returned with their coffee
"Are you ready to order?" she asked, setting the coffees down
"Thank you," Leighfor the cup "Yes I&039;ll have the breakfast quiche, a side of sausage, and whole wheat toast, buttered, please"
The waitress didn&039;t bat an eye at the large order She silanced at Lucian "And you, sir?"
"I&039;, she slid her pen behind her ear, took their h&039;s question drew his gaze back to her, then he glanced down at his cup He shook his head
"Try it," she urged
Lucian hesitated, picked it up and took a cautious sip, which he proust "This is what everyone is so desperate for first thing in the h sar and cream Would you like me to doctor it for you?"
Lucian nodded, then watched her fix both their coffees, adding a teaspoon of sugar and so his back to hiue, but not as bad as it had been the first tih said with a why he would want it to, then noticed her attention had turned toward the back of the restaurant and the kitchens She was obviously hungry, one hand absently rubbing her stolanced his way in question, he added, "I ot I should have taken you out for a ed "Groceries would have been nice, but going out probably wouldn&039;t have been Iher"
Lucian smiled faintly "I could have made sure you&039;d fed well first"
"Made sure I fed well before feeding?" she asked with amusement
He smiled wryly
"Here we are"
They both turned to find the waitress had returned with two plates of food, one with a good-sized quiche and sausages, the other sh co set before her
"You picked the right dish, honey Our breakfast quiches are our most popular specialty We cook a certain number ahead and keep them ware on the go The only thing you had to wait for was the toast Enjoy"
Leigh thanked the woman as she left, but it was an absent, distracted murmur Her attention holly focused on the food as she reached for her knife and fork
Lucian atching her dig in when the food&039;s s aro over the table, following his nose to the plate until a fork gently poked hi, he blinked and his eyes shot up Leigh&039;s gaze was a the food in her mouth, sed, then said, "You looked like you were about to crawl into htened in his seat and cleared his throat, h tilted her head and considered hiotten the distinct ih on his priority list
"When&039;s the last time you ate?" she asked There was no food in the house, so she knew he hadn&039;t eaten there since their arrival, but suspected it had been longer than that
Lucian tipped his head, his expression thoughtful, then said, "At the celebration of Alex and Roxane&039;s e"
"Who are Alex and Roxane?" she asked with confusion
"Alexandros III Philippou Makedonon They call him Alexander the Great now He was a -- "
"I knoho Alexander the Great is," Leigh interrupted, eyes wide "You&039;re joking right?"
"No"
"But that o thousand years ago," she protested
"Two thousand, three hundred and so," Lucian corrected
"You haven&039;t eaten in two thousand and three hundred years?" she asked carefully
"That&039;s right" He shrugged "Actually, I only ate then because he was a good friend and it was a celebration"
Her gaze dropped to his stomach "Do you even have a stoh nodded "Of course but does it work after all this ti suddenly self-conscious; like he&039;d sprouted a second nose out of his abdo, he reminded her, "The nanos keep us in peak condition and all that They keep it in working order whether we use it or not"
"Right," Leigh said slowly, then shook her head and took another bite of quiche She couldn&039;t help noting the way Lucian&039;s gaze moved from her mouth to her plate then away, only to follow the sah watched him warily as she ate Despite the fact that he didn&039;t eat, she saw definite lust in his eyes as they slid over her food She was alrowl like a dog to warn hi, she said reluctantly, "I suppose you don&039;t want any"
Much to her alarm, he immediately sat forward
"Just a bite," Lucian said, and while his voice was nonchalant, his eyes were eager "To try it It s she&039;d kept her an to cut a small piece of quiche
Lucian watched her with interest, then asked, "What&039;s that?"
"Quiche," she answered tersely, then raised the piece she&039;d cut to offer to him, only to blink in surprise when he looked horrified and sat back like a child refusing spinach Frowning, she asked, "What? I thought you wanted to try"
"Real h blinked in surprise at the old expression, then a laugh burst from her lips
"Nonsense That was a stupid book title frohties The truth is realshe orking to convince him to try it when in fact she had no desire to share the food, she shrugged "Never mind You don&039;t have to try it"
She alht"
Leigh froze, the bite so close to her lips she could almost taste it, then her shoulders slumped and she held it out for him She watched his mouth close over the food and pulled the fork free, silently praying he wouldn&039;t like it She was starved and didn&039;t want to have to be polite and offer hih quickly cut another bite for herself and slipped it into her , her eyes narrowing on his surprised expression There was definite lust in his eyes now as he contemplated her plate, and that -- coht want h scowled "Yes"