"Ok Jim, yeah, see you tomorrow." Kat finally managed to pry herself away from her obsequious neighbor. She rushed over to her jeep, opened the door, thrust her keys into the ignition and sped off before anyone else could stop her.
The drive was a familiar one so Kat soon found herself easing into autopilot while she thought about what the thug had said.
Tomorrow night at 1 am huh? It's probably a trap but I haven't got any other leads. If I'm careful I should be ok.
The other comment he had made about his employer didn't surprise her, but it did worry her. Thugs and hired hands almost always made that boast, but the last few had really seemed to mean it. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts she almost missed the turn into Tori's drive.
Odd, why are the lights off if she just invited me over? Has it been that long?
She looked at her watch. It was only 10:30 and it was the weekend, Tori wasn't due at work tomorrow so she should still be up. Puzzled, Kat walked up to the front door, her superhero senses kicking in. Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention and she snapped her head around to look. The streetlights cast long shadows across the yard. A few leaves rustled in the wind, a car horn honked in the distance but everything looked still. Turning back to the door, she placed her hand on the knob and was just about to test it when the living room light turned on and the door swung open.
"Hey Kat! What took you so long?"
Kat shook herself slightly to clear the spooky feelings and then beamed back at her friend, "Oh you know how Jim is, if he catches you alone he'll talk your ear off."
Her friend chuckled and stepped aside, welcoming Kat in. Kat stepped across the threshold and once again noticed something out of the corner of her eye. She paused and turned her head, daring whatever it was to move again.
"What is it?"
"Oh... nothing, just thought I saw something move out there."
"Probably just a rabbit."
"Yeah, probably..." she finished lamely. She shrugged and continued indoors. "I brought a bottle of wine with me to help us relax." Kat winked at her friend.
"Great, I threw a pizza in the oven about 10 minutes ago so we'll be all set to do nothing for a while. Any idea what you wanted to watch?"
"Haha, I was hoping you had something in mind."
Tori walked over to her dvd collection and pulled out a stack of dvds.
"Hmm, Pirates of the Caribbean, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars... aha, how about Interview with a Vampire?"
Still scanning the house for anything out of the ordinary, Kat's response was a half-hearted "Yeah, sure."
There was something off here but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Even Tori seemed a little... different.
Tori popped the DVD into the player and they sat back on the couch with glasses of wine in hand. There was the usual small talk about each other's day while the opening credits rolled by and then there was a ding from the kitchen.
"Wow, that was quick," Kat said.
"Yeah, do you wanna get it? I'll pause the movie."
"Sure thing," Kat put her glass down on the coffee table but once again something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. There was a shadow where it shouldn't be on the carpet but when she turned to get a better look there was nothing out of place. Tori caught the glance however and took that moment to brush her bare foot against her friend's leg. Goosebumps rushed up Kat's leg to her spine and then crashed back down to her stomach. Her nipples hardened slightly and her neck flushed.
Wow... has it really been that long? Must be the wine,
thought Kat. She shook it off and stood up to get the pizza. Had she been watching Tori she might have noticed the hungry stare from her friend as Tori watched Kat unintentionally sway into the kitchen, bend over and pull the pizza out of the oven. She might have even seen the barest flicker of a tongue run across Tori's lips.
"This smells delicious Tori, what's in it?"
"I'm not sure really, it said 'Italian Garden' on the box." Kat's stomach grumbled and she sliced off a few pieces for herself and her friend then walked back to the couch.
"Want a refill on your glass?" Tori asked.
"Oh I don't know, I still have to drive back tonight and it's been a long day."
"Nonsense, take a break from the humdrum of every day life and crash at my place tonight. You look worn out Kat, treat yourself to a little vacation." An almost wicked smile crept across Tori's face. Kat arched an eyebrow but the suggestion really did make sense to her. It was a Friday night after all, she didn't have work tomorrow and her earliest real obligation was this "meeting" tomorrow night.