I couldn’t let any of them get hurt.

“Already done, sweet cheeks!” someone called from the direction of the bar. I took a step and snatched the gun away from Roger as fast as I could, which meant that in the blink of an eye it was out of his trigger-happy fingers. I pressed the flattened bullet into his open hand, then lifted the gun up to his eyes so he could see what I was about to do.

“Please don’t shoot me,” he whimpered. He truly didn’t know me if he thought I could shoot him.

I put a hand on either side of the gun and bent it in half as if I were making a pretzel. The crowd oohed, and there was a distinct snicker from Ernie somewhere on the sidelines.

“Roger. If you ever come near me again, you’re going to wish you were this gun. Do you understand?” I smiled at him, but I could feel that the smile was anything but pretty.

Dangerous, that’s what it felt like. If that was even a thing. Could a smile feel dangerous? Well, in that moment it was.

He swallowed hard several times and gave a nod, but said nothing. The door behind him opened, and two police officers stepped in. I wasn’t surprised to see that Ben Jensen was one of them, since he was one of Remo’s men. Human, but bound to serve the vampire, Jensen always seemed to be around. Suspicious? Yes, but then again, Remo didn’t like to let things slide. He trusted me to take care of myself, but a little backup wasn’t a bad thing either. After all I’d seen in my few weeks as a Super Duper, I wouldn’t turn down a friend who was good in a tight spot.

Jensen nodded at me, and within seconds he and the other officer were escorting Roger through the door while my ex babbled about being out of his mind.

“I didn’t know where I was. I just thought that I should come here—the voices told me to!” Roger’s legs seemed to give out from under him, forcing the two officers to hold his weight up.

“You should take him to the psych ward then,” Ernie called out, helpful as always.

“Put him in a straitjacket!” someone else yelled.

“Give him a prostate exam.”

My fangs retracted as I thought about that last suggestion, my lips curling up with distaste. No one should have to be exposed to Roger’s private parts.

I turned away from the open door to see Remo still there. Waiting. The man had the patience of someone who was far older than he looked. Which, from what I understood of him, was exactly the reason he could manage the calm, cool look under severe pressure.

He held a hand out to me, his eyes sad. “That’s some way to start a date, even for you and me.”

I flicked a finger at the hole in the top of my chest. “Hole” wasn’t really the right word. The bullet had torn through my human skin and revealed the brightly colored snakeskin below. Snakeskin that was harder than diamonds and had very few weaknesses. That I knew of anyway. Fennel oil was at the top of the list, and it could burn me like flames to a piece of paper, eating up the snakeskin and cutting right through bone if left on me long enough. It was my kryptonite, but I hoped I’d seen the last of it.

I combed one hand through my hair and gave Remo my other.

He led me through the room. Several people smiled at us, some even going so far as to wave, which I didn’t understand at first. It was like we were royalty or something. What the heck was going on?

“They saw you on TV.” Ernie floated close to my shoulder, his wings brushing against my skin. The thin straps of my tank top left my shoulders mostly bare, something I never would have worn before. Not because of a lack of confidence but because of all the rules I’d followed for so long. Which made wearing the top and matching skirt so much more enjoyable, knowing that I was finally making decisions based on what I wanted and not what was expected of me.

I glanced at him.

“So?”

“You’re kinda famous now, girlfriend.” He smiled, flashing his white teeth even as his blue eyes sparkled.

“I don’t want to be famous,” I said.

Ernie shrugged. “Could be a boon to the bakery, all this free publicity. Maybe you need to hand out cards.” He shot into the air. “Ladies and gents, if you’d like to see the Drakaina in her natural habitat, be sure to stop by her bakery, Vanilla and Honey, for a taste test. Out-of-this-world baked goods!” He swept a hand toward me, and I blushed as the crowd clapped.

“Ernie, knock it off!” I whispered.

He dropped back down to my eye level. “Nah, it’s more fun to watch you squirm. And let’s be honest. It will grind Roger’s gears to see your business really take off. If you make a crap ton of money, he will really lose his mind.”

“Oh,” I whispered. He had a very good point there. I smiled and held up my hand, tightening it into a fist. Ernie curled up his hand and knocked it against mine.

“Go team!” he yelled and did a backward somersault in the air.

Remo kept us moving through the bar, finally stopping at a secluded table, where he pulled a chair out for me. I slid in and smoothed my skirt down my legs. The edge of the silky, flowing material stopped at midthigh, far shorter than anything I’d ever worn before I’d been turned into a Drakaina. White with blue and green flowers speckled over it, the green brought out the color in my eyes, and the white showed off the warm tones in my olive skin. I’d worn it thinking only of how Remo would see me. Okay, that and maybe I just really liked the feel of the soft material.

Our waitress came, and I ordered a Shirley Temple. Remo raised an eyebrow. “Still not drinking?”