I eyed him warily. "Is that what this is about? I have to sleep with you to get help?"

Dante shoved his hands in his pockets. "Nope. You'd be more fun if you were willing, I think. Besides, I have no other help to give."

Disappointed, I made motions to leave. "Okay. Thanks. Sort of."

"You know what else might help?" he called after me.

"If it involves sex—"

"A vacation. At the very least, a massage. Basic stress reliever things."

Those were actually reasonable things, and I was pleasantly surprised to see his mind wasn't always in the gutter. "They can help," I told him. "But I doubt a massage will fix the problems in my life."

"Maybe. Maybe not. But if you want a free one…a naked free one…"

I left.

I'd already felt like my romance with Seth was some infinite loop tape reel. The rest of my life apparently was too. Have the same dream, go to Dante, get no help, go to work, and ruminate. Because that's exactly how my day was unfolding, just like before.

I went through the motions of paperwork and customer service at Emerald City, all the while consumed by images of the little girl in the dream and the sweet fantasy of having a daughter. My heart ached to see her again, to see that smile. Everything at my job seemed so shallow and meaningless compared with her.

When work ended, I brought Maddie back to my apartment to make good on my promise to get her a date.

"You're going to sell me?" she exclaimed when I told her the plan.

"It's an auction," I said. "For a children's charity. You don't hate kids, do you?"

"Well, no, but—"

"Then this'll be great. Here, try this on." I tossed her a BCBG shopping bag. She eyed it warily.

"Isn't that a place for teenagers?"

"It's a place for anybody with style," I assured her.

She opened the bag and pulled out the knee-length dress I'd picked up for her the other day. It was silk chiffon with a dark pink geometric print. The empire waist had a slightly gathered top, and the V-neck had a bow that tied underneath it. Fluttery cap sleeves finished it off.

"I can't wear this," she said immediately.

"Why? Because it'll look good?"

She shot me a glare. "There's hardly anything there."

"What? There's plenty." I owned lots of dresses that had "hardly anything there." This was elegant and tasteful. Amish country compared to some of my clothing. "Try it on, and we'll see."

She did, reluctantly, and I could have crowed with delight when she stepped out of my bathroom. I'd totally nailed the size. It fit perfectly.

"There isn't an extra inch here," she fretted, pulling at the fabric around the waist.

"Exactly."

"Doesn't it make me look fat?"

"It makes you look great. If it were spandex or something, there might be a problem, but this is light and drapey."

"The neckline's awfully low—"

"Oh, be quiet," I snapped. "And let's finish the rest of you."

I did her makeup and arranged her hair down for a change. It shone like black silk when brushed out, and I thought it was a shame she wore it in a haphazard ponytail so often. Besides, everyone knows that in the movies, shy girls always become beautiful by letting down their hair and taking off their glasses. Maddie already wore contacts, but the principle was still sound. I finally finished her off with half-heeled shoes I'd bought to match the dress. Higher ones would have looked better, but even I knew when not to press my luck. Satisfied with the results, we headed out to the auction.

"You're like my fairy godmother," she muttered as we walked into the hotel the event was being held at. "But I'm still a pumpkin."

I elbowed her. "How did you get so negative? You should start some angstful emo rock band to compete with Doug's."

"Oh, yeah. That'd go over—hey, is that Seth?"

We were cutting across the open room the auction would take place in, heading toward the volunteers' area. Lots of people had gathered, filling most of the round tables facing the stage. I followed her gesture to where Seth sat at one of the few tables that wasn't already full. Seeing us notice him, he held up his hand in greeting.

"He wanted to come support you," I told her. Actually, Seth had been appalled at me strong-arming Maddie into this and had attended mainly out of a perverse fascination at what he thought might end in disaster.

But Maddie, not knowing his motives, was pleasantly surprised. She smiled, and I nearly swooned.

"That," I said. "That right there is what you need to do."

The smile dropped. "That what?"

Hugh practically skipped over when he saw us. "I knew you didn't hate kids. I knew you'd cave and come help—"

"Not me," I said. "Maddie." I rested a hand on her shoulder.

Hugh's face turned perfectly blank. "Oh?"

Just then, a tall brunette in a black satin evening dress strolled over. The "fucking fox," presumably. She extended her hand. "Hello, I'm Deanna, the coordinator. You must be Hugh's friend?"

"Georgina," I said, shaking. "But Maddie here is your volunteer. She's a journalist for an important women's magazine."

Deanna's eyes lit up. "Ah! We love celebrities. Let me take down your information."

She led Maddie away. As soon as they were gone, Hugh turned on me. "What the hell? I wanted Georgina, and you give me Georgy Girl."

"You are such an asshole. That's a horrible thing to say."

He shrugged, eyes on Maddie. "I call 'em like I see 'em. She's huge."

My eyes were on Maddie too. She actually looked quite slim in the dress, but Hugh was one of those guys who liked bony types—so long as their chests were big enough.

"You're the reason women have such horrible self-esteem issues. You tear them apart. Women, I mean. Not the issues."

"Look, I'm sure she's not all bad," he said. "She probably gives good head."

I rolled my eyes. "Flatterer. Why do you say that?"

"Fat girls always do. They have to. Only way they can get men."

I punched him in the arm. Hard.

"Ow! Fuck, that hurt."

"You're a jerk," I told him. "Maddie's beautiful."

"She's okay," he said, rubbing his injured arm. "And I can't exactly have just okay tonight—not with that liability already on deck."

He pointed over to where some of the other volunteers waited. Immediately, I found what he referred to. It was easy because Tawny towered over the other women by about a foot.

"Holy Christ," I said. "How did that happen?"

He threw up his hands, looking miserable. "She latched on to the idea when you mentioned it at the bar."

"I didn't even think she heard me," I said apologetically.

Hugh waved me toward the crowd. "Too late now. Go have a seat, Brutus, so this disaster can get under way. You've ruined the night. I don't know why you hate kids so much."

I gave him a parting glare and went off to find Seth. The vampires had joined him since I'd come in.

"You guys here to get a date or a victim?" I asked.

"Neither," said Peter. "We're here to see the Tawny Show."

I sighed. "This is supposed to be a charity event, and people are treating it like a freak show. Hugh already accused me of ruining it by bringing Maddie."

Seth looked surprised. "Why? She looks great."

I pointed her out to Peter and Cody, who also concurred about her cuteness. "She'll be fine," said Cody. "Tawny's going to be the one to watch. I haven't really been able to see what she's wearing. I hope it's up to her usual standards."

"Maybe her Secret Santa will get her some nicer clothes," said Peter. He glanced at me. "You bought for yours yet?"

"Huh?" Right. Carter. I'd completely forgotten. Buying something for that cynical angel hadn't exactly been at the top of my priority list. "I, um, have some ideas. Still thinking about it."

"What about a Christmas tree? You got one of those?"