relationship. We'd also agreed to our next meeting - the next night, midnight at the Rossi mansion in upstate New York. Ross seemed to think I should be honored by the invitation, but I was mostly pissed off at the late hour. Comes with the territory, I suppose. The rest of our time together was conducted in complete silence, me staring daggers over my glass of wine and Ross, either oblivious or unbothered, sipping away at his pint of AB neg while checking emails on his Blackberry. I left The Graveyard as soon as was polite to do so, though not before downing two shots of whiskey at the bar. Frankly I was tempted to drink myself into a stupor. And would have, too, if I didn't need to be in the office and functional by 9:00 a.m.
By the time I got home to my apartment in downtown Manhattan, I was exhausted, physically and emotionally. Here I was, all of 23 years old, one week into my first real job, and already I was dealing with a death threat and an ethical dilemma. Pretty sure that withholding information from my boss was not going to ingratiate me to him any. And I had a feeling I wasn't going to like whatever Ross had to tell me tomorrow night.
Upon opening the door to my apartment, I was immediately bowled over by a large, heavy body. Wet kisses covered my face.
"Hey, Bran, let me up, will you?" When I moved into the apartment three weeks ago, a horse-sized dog mutt of unknown heritage was already there to greet me. He didn't have a collar or dog tags, but he was very sweet and apparently house trained, and I didn't have the heart to turn him over to the pound. So I named him Branigan after my great-uncle, and now we cohabited my tiny apartment. Honestly, I preferred the company and it was nice to come home to a warm, friendly face, especially since I didn't really know anyone in the city yet.
Bran sniffed at my right hand, the one Ross had inked, and started growling softly. I guess his doggy senses picked up on the Rossi rose, too.
"I know, Bran, baby. The mean vampire did it to me." Bran looked up at me, his big puppy eyes sad and accusing. "Don't look at me like that. I didn't ask for this."
Bran cocked his head to one side and stuck out a conciliatory paw. I accepted his apology, and then wrapped my arms around him, burrowing my face into his thick golden fur. Bran stood their patiently while I sobbed like a pathetic little girl against his torso, feeling more alone than I had in a really long time.
"Alright, you can sleep in my room tonight. But no hogging the bed!"
****
By the time I got home to my apartment in downtown Manhattan, I was exhausted, physically and emotionally. Here I was, all of 23 years old, one week into my first real job, and already I was dealing with a death threat and an ethical dilemma. Pretty sure that withholding information from my boss was not going to ingratiate me to him any. And I had a feeling I wasn't going to like whatever Ross had to tell me tomorrow night.
Upon opening the door to my apartment, I was immediately bowled over by a large, heavy body. Wet kisses covered my face.
"Hey, Bran, let me up, will you?" When I moved into the apartment three weeks ago, a horse-sized dog mutt of unknown heritage was already there to greet me. He didn't have a collar or dog tags, but he was very sweet and apparently house trained, and I didn't have the heart to turn him over to the pound. So I named him Branigan after my great-uncle, and now we cohabited my tiny apartment. Honestly, I preferred the company and it was nice to come home to a warm, friendly face, especially since I didn't really know anyone in the city yet.
Bran sniffed at my right hand, the one Ross had inked, and started growling softly. I guess his doggy senses picked up on the Rossi rose, too.
"I know, Bran, baby. The mean vampire did it to me." Bran looked up at me, his big puppy eyes sad and accusing. "Don't look at me like that. I didn't ask for this."
Bran cocked his head to one side and stuck out a conciliatory paw. I accepted his apology, and then wrapped my arms around him, burrowing my face into his thick golden fur. Bran stood their patiently while I sobbed like a pathetic little girl against his torso, feeling more alone than I had in a really long time.
"Alright, you can sleep in my room tonight. But no hogging the bed!"
****
