Where There's Smoke by Karen Kelley

chewed, then swallowed. “On my seventeenth birthday I’d had enough and went my own way.” She paused, then continued. “I thought I could do better.”
    “Have you?”
    LeAnn smiled wryly. “Not at first. I was pretty gullible. I’m doing better now.” She took another drink of coffee, then set her cup back on the table. “So what’s your story with the foster parents?”
    “Not much. My mother left me in a grocery store when I was six. I guess she thought she could do better on her own, too. I never saw her again. The courts placed me, but I acted up a lot, got knocked around a bit.” Her words tumbled out before she could call them back.
    She drew in a deep breath, forcing the bad memories to the far recesses of her mind, then smiled, hoping it didn’t come off as feeble as it felt. “All water under the bridge. You can’t live your life in the past.”
    LeAnn was quiet.
    Destiny looked up, surprised she’d told so much about herself. LeAnn reached across the table and took her hand, squeezing lightly. A ripple of warmth washed over her.
    “I’m sorry your childhood was so bad,” LeAnn said. “Maybe it was fate that brought us together. We could be sisters. You know, pretend ones?”
    Fate? That was laughable! If LeAnn knew what Destiny really was, she would run from the room screaming her head off.
    What was she thinking to tell this mortal her life story? This sister relationship was definitely not going to work. She had a soul to steal, and getting chummy was not on her list of things to do.
    “You’re right about living in the past,” LeAnn agreed, then abruptly changed the subject. “Is the ice working?”
    “Is the ice—”
    Destiny started laughing, she couldn’t help herself. It was all so ironic. Even being dead, she was fucking everything up. She was bonding with a mortal woman and had yet to get laid by a mortal man. And now LeAnn wanted to know if the ice was working.
    “Is it better?” LeAnn wore a puzzled expression. “The soreness,” she clarified.
    Did LeAnn think Destiny’s brain was fried or something? Maybe.
    But surprisingly, Destiny did feel better. “Yes, it worked. I feel great.” She was sitting in a puddle of cold water, but she wasn’t sore.
    LeAnn looked at her watch. “Crap, I have to get to work. I waitress over at the Cow Patty.” She downed her coffee, then jumped to her feet. “See you later!” She was gone almost as quickly as she’d appeared.
    Destiny shook her head and stood. The soppy hand towel slid off the chair, making a plop when it landed on the floor. Water dripped down her legs. “Yuck.”
    She made her way to the bathroom and turned on the water in the tub. She missed taking baths. She thought they would have steam baths or something in Hell. Nope, nothing. She supposed any kind of luxury was reserved for those with demon status. What was the harm enjoying some of the finer things while she was on earth?
    She untied the belt, then let the robe slide to the floor right before she stepped into the tub filled with warm water. She sighed as she sank down, the water lapping her naked skin. Nice. As soon as she was comfortable, with the water just kissing her shoulders, she closed her eyes and let all her worries float away. Baths were one of the few things she let herself indulge in when she was growing up.
    Crystal, one of her foster mothers, used to get so freakin’ pissed when Destiny would lock herself in the bathroom and soak in a tub filled with Crystal’s scented bubbles. That was probably when she actually started taking long hot baths. A smile curved her lips. She enjoyed pissing Crystal off. It only made up for a fraction of the pain the bitch had heaped on her.
    When the water started to cool, Destiny reluctantly climbed out and dried off, tossing the damp towel over the side of the tub to dry. She was going to miss all this, but she was certain it wouldn’t be long until she reached demon status, then she would have everything