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paid trip to Hawaii—lucky them.
    Destiny was apartment sitting. So far, rummaging through their stuff only produced a lot of unpaid bills. It was a good thing she came along or it looked as though it would have been years before they could afford to take a vacation.
    She could have drained their brains and left them wandering under one of the bridges. Kind of like zombies. They would’ve been homeless of course, until she was ready to return to Hell. That is, if she put everything back the way it had been.
    They seemed nice though, and she had to admit, she was feeling sentimental at the time. Not a good thing when she was so close to getting demon status. And when she did, her life would finally be everything she wanted it to be, at least, as close to perfect as it would ever get.
    Before she went up to the apartment, she stopped in the convenience store across the street and grabbed some magazines, a bottle of wine, and a tub of ice cream—double chocolate brownie. Damn, she was born in the wrong time period! Brownie and chocolate ice cream, a win-win combination.
    She looped the plastic bag over her arm, which was so much better than lugging a paper bag all the way back, and thumbed through one of the magazines as she strolled down the street. Hmm, it didn’t look as though much had changed since the fifties. The kitchens just got bigger. She dropped it into the bag and pulled out another magazine and slowly fanned the pages.
    Starving models draped their bodies in designer clothes and expensive jewelry. Nice stuff. The sequins were a little too sparkly for her taste, but she could see herself wearing some of the outfits.
    “Hi, aren’t you staying in Max and Jennifer’s apartment?” The voice was soft and feminine.
    Destiny glanced up from the magazine as she strolled down the sidewalk. The girl was cute, not as young as she sounded. Maybe twenty-six, the age Destiny was when she died.
    “I’m sorry, what did you ask?”
    The girl smiled, showing pretty, white teeth. “I asked if you were staying in Max and Jennifer’s apartment. The Dunlops. I thought I saw you leaving earlier, but just missed saying hi.”
    Max and Jennifer? Dunlops? Of course, the young couple. “Yes, apartment sitting while they’re in Hawaii.”
    The girl’s expression turned dreamy. “I’d love to go to Hawaii. I’m happy for them. They’ve really had a hard time of it lately.” She blushed. “I’m LeAnn West.”
    “Destiny.” Starting conversations with mortals wasn’t good. They always wanted more than she was prepared to give. It was the same thing when the recently dead came through the sorting station. They always wanted to get to know her better. Knowing people only made things worse. When she was alive, she’d start to like someone and the next thing she knew, they would start taking and taking.
    Destiny mentally shook her head to clear it. The life she once had was over and done, and she was glad of it. No one would ever hurt her again, she wouldn’t let them. She focused instead on what LeAnn was telling her.
    “I’m going to be a singer.” She wryly grinned. “If I can save enough money to go to Nashville, that is. I kind of made it this far, then had to get a job.”
    “Well, good luck.” Destiny stepped inside the elevator.
    The young woman laughed. “Going up?” She stepped into the elevator. “I usually take the stairs but I’m feeling lucky tonight.” Her chuckle echoed inside the enclosed space after the doors scraped closed.
    Great. Destiny punched the number three button and attempted to bury herself in the magazine. Hopefully, LeAnn would take the hint that they would never be friends.
    “Oh, clothes. I love clothes!” The woman leaned over and looked as Destiny turned the page. She sighed. “Someday I’m going to wear an outfit just like that on stage.”
    So much for escaping LeAnn. But Destiny couldn’t help glancing at the model wearing a pair of black jeans and a fitted black jacket.