got nothing from all of that?” I knew the Matrix wasn’t something everyone understood, but I was sure I did a pretty good job at explaining the first half of the theory behind the film.
Heck, I could give a Ted Talk on it.
Did they have Ted Talks for that?
I needed to get a hold of Ted and fast.
Or maybe I could do those deep theory videos for YouTube. How much did those creators get paid anyway? Was it based on views? Could I get sponsors? I should probably look into that since I wasn’t allowed to work at the mini-market anymore. Actually, I'd been banned from the establishment altogether, which wouldn’t have bothered me so much if I were in a bigger city, but out here in the mountains of Virginia, going to the mini-mart was a trip to Disneyland.
Alan’s lips twitched in a way that told me he was holding back a laugh. “While the movie’s premise eludes me, I understand that you are desperately in want of Dr. Pepper.”
I smiled. I couldn’t help it. There was a chance that Alan would live for a thousand years and never understand The Matrix, but he one hundred percent got me. I didn’t elude him at all.
Looking into his eyes, I found it hard to believe that it had only been a year since we’d met. I wish I could say every moment of our acquaintance had been bliss, but between the attempted murders, near-death accidents, and fights that were absolved to full-blown wars, I’d manage to find sanctuary along the way.
That sanctuary came in the form of the men who held my heart.
Yes, I said men.
It was something I never thought I’d possess. While most people collected cars and engraved teaspoons from around the world, I’d collected love. More specifically, lovers.
Even more specifically vampires. Four dark, sensual creatures who took just as much as they gave.
Alan rubbed my lower back in leisurely strokes and then slipped his fingers to my hips. “You’re obsessed with the stuff. I see why Marquessa and Jenny have warded you from returning to the mini-mart.”
And there was the reason I was out of a job.
Two weeks ago, my friend Jenny and her grandmother Marquessa found me in the back of the shop. There I was, crouching in the corner of the storage room. A bottle of bleach and mop on one side. A six-pack of Dr. Pepper on the other. It wasn’t my finest moment, and at the young age of twenty, I was almost sure I hadn’t had my finest moment yet, but that moment had been pretty bad. They’d called in reinforcements.
I was dragged out, kicking and screaming, which everyone found amusing except for me.
And Alan hadn’t used the word “ward” lightly. The witches were magically blocking me from going back.
Some friends.
At least I wasn’t a cheapskate. I paid for the sodas! What more did they want from me?
But I already knew what they wanted from me. It was what the whole world wanted from me. It was the reason my boyfriends’ mansion was currently filled to the brim with werewolves, fairies, and witches.
The baby.
“You know we’re doing this because we care.”
I huffed, but deep down inside, he was right. The baby was the answer to a zillion prayers. My child would return magic to the world, and everyone wanted to make sure the baby was healthy.
But what everyone seemed to pleasantly forget was the fact that this was inside my body.
“Dr. Shaw said Dr. Pepper isn’t good for the baby.”
“Dr. Shaw said,” I mocked, hissing to replace the many, many vulgar words that came to mind. So many words came to mind that selecting just one became an impossible feat. Every time someone said, “Dr. Shaw said,” it was like a switch went off in a mind, striking up a spark and turning my rage into a live wire.
My skin tightened.
Alan frowned. “Lorena, calm down. You know what Dr. Shaw said. Anger is poison to the blood.”
My left eye twitched.
Dr. Shaw, who was a witch and OBGYN, had blown into my world like Mary Poppins, bringing the medicine but without leaving the spoonful of sugar behind.
Refined sugars were on the witches' “no-no” list. In fact, in the last month, Dr. Shaw’s no-no list had grown so long that she all but put my name on it.
No being Lorena Quinn.
All the delicious, delectable delights that I craved were being replaced with whole grains, lean meats, and organic fruits and vegetables.