Page 32 of Satisfaction Guaranteed

“Have I mentioned that I hate you guys?” Alana’s face burns, but a smile stretches across her features. She unlocks the door and steps inside with the pair of vampires trailing close behind, kicking their rain boots off at the door. Lilith pads to the kitchen, sets the cake down, and rummages through the drawers for a bottle opener.

“Glad to see you still standing,” Nakita says, snapping a party hat over Alana’s head. She grins with her fangs on display. “I was afraid we might have lost you. You know you have to tell us everything, right?”

“Yes, please! We want all the juicy details. Leave nothing out!” Lilith chimes. She brings the assortment of champagne, glasses, and cake, setting it on the coffee table before making herself comfy on the couch. “Spill!”

A giggle bursts out of Alana as she takes a seat, and Nakita makes herself comfortable on the floor. She cuts herself a slice of thick, fudgy cake and hands one off to Lilith, who’s practically vibrating.

Alana’s face hurts from how hard she’s been smiling, and the fluttering in her stomach hasn’t gone away since she woke up. She told herself she wouldn’t do this. Promised herself that she’d fight off the urge to fall for whoever she hired, like some lovesick puppy trailing after the first person to give them a scrap of attention. Or in her case, a decent fuck. But last night was absolutely incredible. And it wasn’t just the sex that was phenomenal; it was everything. Whether it was all an act or not, Alana isn’t sure. But she’s never felt so safe or had that much fun with a man in a shamefully long time.

Tucking her legs into a crisscross position, Alana pours herself a glass of champagne. “I don’t even know where to begin. He was amazing.” She goes on to spill everything that’s occurred in the last twenty-four hours, from the chemistry and how charming Cyrus was, to the earth-shattering head and absolutely massive dick that she managed to take without 20+ damage. Normally, she’d be embarrassed opening up with this kind of information. But today? Today, she needed to get everything about Cyrus off her chest before she physically imploded. So, she babbles on, gushing like a teenage girl until the well of gossip runs dry and she’s left exhausted like she just ran a marathon.

“And, yeah. That’s pretty much it,” Alana finishes. She takes a generous sip, her face burning while Nakita and Lilith stare. Soon, grins split both of their faces.

Lilith releases a high-pitched squeal and grabs both of Alana’s hands, squeezing her tight. “That’s sooooo sweet, oh my gods. I can’t. Would you book him again? Oh! Maybe you can ask how he feels about meeting outside of work?”

To that, Nakita gives an affirming nod. “Could be worth a shot.” She digs into her cake and licks the frosting from her spoon. “Say you want to thank him for his service with a proper drink.”

Alana sighs and releases Lilith’s hands, hugging her arms around herself. She definitely wouldn’t mind booking him again. But frankly, the man wasn’t cheap. She’s not sure she’d be able to afford a session every time she wanted an excuse to be around him. Maybe she should ask about a frequent flyer discount, or a barter trade. A dick appointment once a week in exchange for unlimited baked goods.

Alana inwardly laughs. Even if she could afford his services again so soon, she honestly wouldn’t mind seeing him outside of any bedroom festivities. Where they could just talk like they had at the restaurant. The worst thing Cyrus can say is no. But there’s so much more at stake.

Her dignity, for one.

“Guys, this isn’t helping. I need you to give me a reality check here,” Alana groans. “Cyrus is great, but he’s a sex worker. He was literally just doing his job. It’s like, I don’t know, falling for a bartender for making good drinks and conversation. It was fun. I had a great time. But I can’t entertain any feelings. Can one of you just smack some sense into me? Kill me, even? I hate this.”

“No,” they reply in unison, and both vampires hit her with deeply weighted frowns.

Alana groans once again, more dramatically than the first. What good is having supernatural friends if they aren’t sucking you dry at every minor inconvenience? A chime from her phone distracts her. Sliding her phone out from her dress pocket, Alana overlooks the text from her mom ranting about her father’s blood sugar levels and instead directs her attention to the message just below it.

Had a good time, Darlin. Drive safe.

The sparkle in her eye must have been apparent, because it’s not long before Nakita and Lilith are both crowding her and peering over her shoulder to get a better look.

“I—what do I say?” Alana slaps her forehead, panicked. “I’m terrible at this.”

“Say something flirty!” Lilith advises with a playful grin. “This is your chance to take initiative and see how he responds. Let him know you want to see him again. But maybe under different circumstances.”

Alana purses her lips. You miss all the shots you never take, but the thought of rejection already has her knee-deep in the pit of despair. Staring at her phone screen, she types and then deletes several options before giving up. She’s about to chuck the thing into a wall when Nakita snatches it from her hands.

“Leave it to me,” she assures. She has a message drafted before Alana can argue. “Here. What about this?”

Hey! Just got home. Thanks for letting me wait out the storm. (: I had fun. Oh, and I still can’t really feel my legs. Thanks for that.

Alana gives her nod of approval, heart racing a mile a minute. She peers over Nakita’s shoulder as the read symbol appears, and speech bubbles pop up soon after. Seditious screaming rattles the cavern of her mind. When Cyrus’ reply comes through, the fluttering in her stomach starts to travel lower.

Anytime. And if you’re eager to see each other again, well, it seems I have an open schedule. Maybe this time I’ll get you a few extra days off work

“Alana. You see how fast that man replied?” Nakita’s grin turns wicked. “Capitalize on this.”

The screaming in the back of Alana’s mind intensifies. As if she really needs more fuel for this horrendously delusional fire. So what if they’ve established they wouldn’t mind seeing each other again? That’s great, but it makes sense to assume Cyrus sent that in the context of another session. Which, again, she honestly isn’t against, but…

This is so silly. Absolutely absurd, whatever this warmth is that’s weaving through her ribcage. The rational side of her begs her to put this to bed. She and Cyrus had their fun; he popped her cherry, and now it was time to go back to her regularly scheduled program of burying herself in her work and sliding a hand into her pants when the mood strikes.

Except, it’s been ages since she’s felt a genuine spark of connection like this with someone, and there’s nothing she wants more than to feed those popping embers. Maybe their time together was another job to Cyrus, and maybe she was getting her hopes up over nothing. Which, honestly, is likely. But, pathetic as it may be, it doesn’t stop her from wanting to see him again.

She’s just about to bite the bullet and have Nakita take the dive for her, when an image pops into her head. One of Cyrus’ eyes roaming across her message asking him out, face scrunched in discomfort. Of him having to let her down easy and avoid the shop to allow a new sense of boundaries. Alana swallows.

No. She won’t allow her impulses to ruin this for her.