B008DSVE7O EBOK Page 8

  “It turns out that there are vampires living amongst us. I am now a vampire and before you say anything…” I paused, feeling glad she didn’t freak out on me yet. She promised to give me the benefit of the doubt; and bless her heart, she was.

  “Before you say anything, I am going to show you three things. Alright?”

  She nodded once. At that moment, I wished that I could read her mind. I could see that she was nervous because the skin on her chest and neck was starting to show red splotches. That only happened when she was nervous, or drank too much. If I were in her position, I’d be ready to call the police to Baker Act my friend. I’d probably have her committed.

  “Look,” I said as my fangs descended. “Look at these fangs.” I retracted the fangs just as quickly, and she let out a small gasp. I let them descend one more time for good measure.

  “You still with me?” I asked.

  This time, she didn’t react at all.

  “Look at how strong I am,” I said moving into the kitchen. She followed me, but stayed on the other side of the kitchen bar. I bent down next to her large, stainless steel fridge and lifted it off the ground an inch by using only two of my fingers. I looked to make sure she was watching. Her eyes went wide and I could see tears pooling.

  “Crazy, right? There’s something else,” I said. Using my insane speed, I flashed to the other side of the apartment. “Hi,” I said, popping up behind her.

  She screamed and covered her mouth with her hand. I flashed again to the other side, then back to the kitchen, and she just stared at me wide-eyed.

  “Are you going to hurt me?” she asked, obviously drawing on her knowledge of vampires gleaned from the movies and books she’d read. I wished that I could tell her none of it was true. Unfortunately, a lot of it was true. Especially, the whole blood-drinking part.

  “No, Laura, I would never hurt you.”

  “What happened to you?”

  “You believe me?” I asked.

  “Well, how else could you possibly do those things, Liv? It’s insane, yes. But that must mean that I’m insane, not you. I know what I just saw you do. What happened?” she demanded. “Wait, I need a drink first.”

  Laura sat down on the couch while I poured her a glass of wine. I brought the bottle over to the coffee table in case she needed more. I reminded her about the blind date with the surgeon, and about meeting Benjamin, and the whole debacle that followed. I told her what I knew of the demons and made her promise that she’d be more careful from now on whenever she went out.

  “So you’re living with the man that attacked you? The man that drank your blood? That’s pretty twisted, Liv.” Laura was on her third glass of wine by this point.

  Surprisingly, I could smell the fruity wine in the scent of her blood. It scared me that I could actually smell her blood, but that was one detail I would not be sharing with her.

  “I know it’s weird, but I kind of need him to show me the ropes. There’s nothing I can do to change what’s already been done.”

  She nodded, taking another sip of her wine. “You have to adapt, Liv. You’re good at that. You’ll be fine. What’s this Benjamin like anyway?”

  I sighed. “He’s not so bad. He didn’t want this to happen anymore than I did. I guess he has to adapt as much as I do. For one thing, I’m sure he hasn’t had a roommate in over five hundred years.”

  “What!” Laura yelled. “Are you going to live that long?”

  “I guess, assuming I don’t get myself killed. I don’t think Ben will let that happen though.”

  “Oh, so it’s Ben now, hmm?”

  “Oh shut up,” I said.

  “So what does Ben look like?” she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

  “Oh Laura, he’s so…. Perfect,” I said, not knowing how else to describe him. “He’s got this chocolate hair that’s so rich in color. He combs it back all sexy like the guy on that show from the 60s. His eyes are like the Caribbean Ocean, surrounded by dark, thick eyelashes. His nose is straight, and manly. He’s pretty tall and has broad shoulders like that guy you dated in college, but his torso tapers down to this narrow waist. He’s quite possibly the most knowledgeable person I ever met. And he dresses in suits. Like, all the time. I mean, really. Who looks that good ALL the time?”

  Laura set her wine glass on the coffee table, careful to use one of her leather coasters. “Oh my, you have the hots for the vampire!”

  “No, I don’t. Seriously,” I said, shaking my head frantically, as if it would somehow emphasize my point. “I was just giving you the facts about him.”

  “I can’t help feeling like you shouldn’t have the hots for the man that killed you.”

  “He didn’t kill me,” I said, suddenly aware that I was using Benjamin’s argument.

  “But you do have the hots for him?”

  “Shit, yes, I guess so. He’s so freaking perfect looking! It kills me!” It felt nice to talk to Laura about this. I got so wrapped up in saturating myself with Benjamin these past few days that I missed girl time.

  “But,” I said, “number one, he attacked me, almost murdered me, and turned me into one of the undead.”

  “So, we’re not a fan,” Laura said. It was something we said whenever we weighed the pros and cons of the particular men in our life.

  “Right,” I said, happy that she was taking things so well. “Also, I don’t even know if he’s attracted to me.”

  “Of course, he’s attracted to you. I’ve never met a guy that wasn’t attracted to you.”

  “That’s wildly untrue, Laura.”

  “These imaginary men must be gay.”

  “You’re ridiculous. Still, I don’t think Benjamin thinks of me that way. I’m like this annoying obligation that he got stuck with.” I sounded disappointed and I knew it. Did I have it bad for Benjamin? Geez, I hoped not.

  “Look, crazy,” Laura said, “why do you think he drank all of your blood? Because he had the hots for you.”

  “He drained me because he’s a vampire and got greedy. End of story. Although,” I said, remembering the other night, “he did say something about how he’s usually practical when he drinks blood, and that I wasn’t practical.”

  “You see?” Laura replied.

  I shook my head at these thoughts. “Well, it doesn’t matter anyway. I need him for a long time and I’m not about to make a fool of myself by throwing myself at him when I need him to help me for, I don’t know, like a hundred years.”

  “You’re going to outlive me,” Laura said.

  “Please,” I whined, “don’t remind me.”

  Laura reached across the sofa and pulled me in for a hug. I caught the scent of her blood, thick in my nostrils. I froze, using every ounce of concentrated restraint to not rip her neck out at that moment. My blood thirst had reared its ugly head—choosing the moment I was alone with my best friend to make its intrusive debut.

  “Everything is going to be all right, Laura,” I said, through clenched teeth. “I just need to use your restroom.”

  Laura pulled back and laughed. “Nobody calls it a restroom unless you’re in public. There’s a bathtub in there. Call it a bathroom.”

  “I can’t help it,” I said, trying to laugh along with her. “You know I always call it that.” A terrible pain was building in the pit of my stomach and my throat felt tight and hot. I struggled to reach her restroom… bathroom... whatever.

  I closed the door behind me and then turned the faucet on. I cupped cold water in my hands, splashing it on my face. Each time I closed my eyes, I caught visions of myself biting into Laura’s carotid. I locked the door and backed away.

  I sat on the bathroom rug, unable to leave, knowing that if I stepped back into Laura’s living room, I was going to attack her. Really? Is this what my life had become? Hiding out in a bathroom to avoid drinking my best friend’s blood? I’d completely lost my cool. Not knowing what else to do, I called Benjamin.

  “Olivia,” Benjamin said, by way of a greeting.


  “Benjamin.”

  He waited patiently for me to… get to the point.

  “Benjamin,” I repeated, “I need you.”

  I heard the Jaguar’s engine purr on the other side of the phone call.

  “Where are you?” he asked, giving me his full attention.

  “Tomlin Building, downtown, fifth floor, suite B,” I sighed, loath to admit how bad of a situation I found myself in. “Are you close?”

  “Ten minutes. Tell me what happened. Are you hurt?”

  “I locked myself in Laura’s bathroom. I’m very... thirsty. If I leave this room, I’ll kill her. Benjamin, please.”

  “I’m on my way.”

  “Benjamin,” I said, struggling with my words. “I’m sorry I let this happen.”

  “Nine minutes,” he said, before ending the call.

  “Liv?” Laura called from the other side of the door.

  I groaned, and wondered if this was how a drug addict felt without a fix.

  “Did you paint this room green or was it already like this when you moved in?” I asked.

  Small talk? Seriously?

  “It was already that color. I don’t know if I like it, honestly.”

  “No, it’s good. You should keep it.” I pushed myself up against the wall. As if that could stop me from tearing the door down and sinking my teeth into Laura’s tender neck.

  “Laura, you should leave. I’m sick. I’m not well. Benjamin is coming to get me.”

  “Is there something I can do?”

  Sure! You can willingly offer me just, oh, I don’t know... a few pints of your blood!

  “You should probably leave the condo, Laura. I’m having... Cravings.”

  She didn’t speak right away. “Like, blood cravings?”

  “Unfortunately, yes,” I confessed.

  I heard the sound of car keys. Reason number six thousand, two hundred and four of why I loved Laura? She’s was no fool.

  “I’m leaving the front door locked. You’ll get through this, Liv. You’re strong. Call me later, okay? I’m just going to walk over to the coffee house and sober up.”

  “Okay,” I said, laughing at the absurdity of the situation. “I don’t want to hurt you, Laura.”

  “I know, sweetie. That’s why I’m leaving.”

  “Don’t forget what I told you. There are scary things out there. You have to be careful. Don’t trust any strange men like I did!”

  I heard Laura leave the condo. A few minutes later, my phone rang. My hands were trembling, but I managed to answer the phone. It was Benjamin.

  “I’ll be upstairs in thirty seconds,” he said.

  “Laura left. Door’s locked. I’m losing it, Ben.”

  And then he was outside the door.

  “Unlock the door, Olivia, or I’ll have to break it down.”

  “Don’t break anything! She just moved in, for crying out loud,” I said, unlocking the door.

  Benjamin knelt down on the floor and brushed my hair away from my eyes. He searched my face for what seemed like minutes though it must have been mere seconds.

  “I feel terrible. You weren’t kidding about this bloodthirsty thing.”

  “We’ll get you someone to drink from.”

  “No, no, no,” I said, shaking my head. “Just take me home. Will you?”

  Benjamin’s eyebrows rose. It was probably the first time I’d referred to his house as my home.

  “Olivia, don’t fight me on this,” Benjamin said, looking as handsome as ever.

  “Why are you wearing a three-piece suit?” I asked, feeling the fabric of his jacket between my forefinger and thumb.

  “Olivia,” he said, ignoring my pitiful attempt to change the subject. “You need to feed.”

  Benjamin’s brilliant blue eyes did their best to convince me. Lucky for me, he could no longer influence my actions, now that I was a vampire.

  “I’m not doing it, Benjamin. Just take me home and let me die of starvation.”

  He scooped me up in his arms and carried me effortlessly out of the condo. I locked the door from the inside before hooking my arms around Benjamin’s neck.

  “You can’t starve yourself. The pain will keep getting worse until it reaches the point where you’ll wish for death.”

  “So be it,” I said with resignation. “I’m not feeding on a human being.”

  We were riding the elevator down.

  “You’re so stubborn sometimes that I could kill you.” Benjamin strained his neck to the left to avoid my hair getting in his face.

  “What, kill me again?”

  “Very funny.”

  “I’m glad you think of my death as a joke, Benjamin.”

  “And yet here you are, talking, and walking and visiting your friend downtown.”

  “Yes, that’s right, and craving human blood,” I said, just as the elevator doors opened up to the lobby, revealing an elderly couple.

  “Good evening, ma’am,” Benjamin said, as we passed the old lady with a flower-trimmed hat.

  “So how are we going to do this? There are a lot of people in the lobby and I’m about to go all-you-can-eat on every last snow bird.” My voice shook with anxiety.

  “Just keep your head down, Olivia. The car is right outside. You trust me, right?”

  I gulped. “Yeah... right.”

  I felt the soft rumble of Benjamin’s laughter through his suit. Oddly, the sound comforted me. As we walked through the lobby, I caught the scent of blood immediately. If Benjamin hadn’t held me against his body with iron-like pressure, I could probably have torn people’s heads off.

  He got me to the Jaguar and sped us out of downtown and back to Coral Gables. We didn’t talk the entire drive, and I kept my eyes closed to avoid being enticed by the people passing by.

  By the time I made it into the house, I could barely handle the hunger pains. My throat was achingly parched and dry. I stretched out on the living room couch.

  “So this is how I go,” I said, pouring on the theatrics.

  Benjamin stepped into my line of sight. I watched as he removed his jacket. Next, he unbuttoned his vest and laid it neatly on the sofa chair. When he started to remove his dress shirt, I sat up.

  “Benjamin, what are you doing?”

  “If you don’t want to feed on a human, then you’ll just have to drink from me.”

  “I can do that? I mean... I can live off your blood?”

  “Can you?” Benjamin repeated, while removing his shirt and standing before me with his hard chest exposed. “Yes, you can. But you won’t because it’s not how things are done. In fact, you won’t breathe a word of this to anyone because it’s frowned upon.”

  “You don’t play by the rules. Do you?”

  Benjamin smirked in response. That sexy grin, mingled with his shirtless display gave me quite the brain fuzz, and I probably should have paid more attention to what he was saying. Breaking regulation... blah, blah, blah.

  “But,” he continued. “It will get you through the next week until I convince you that you need to feed on humans.”

  “And your shirt is off because...”

  “Because I don’t want you to make a mess, of course.”

  “Of course,” I said.

  “Wrist or neck?” he asked, as if he were asking, “Breast or thigh?”

  “This is painfully awkward,” I replied.

  “I suggest the neck. It’s much faster.”

  I nodded, wanting the whole ordeal to be over with as quickly as possible. I couldn’t stand the cravings anymore, and if drinking the vampire’s blood could get me out of my current predicament, then I would just have to bite the bullet… er, bite the vampire, that is.

  Benjamin sat next to me on the couch, and I looked at him for further instruction. With a businesslike demeanor, he turned to me and placed his hands on either side of my waist. Lifting me up, he placed me back down so that I was straddling his body and facing him. Carefully, he gathered my mass of hair in his h
ands and managed to tie the waves into a knot at the nape of my neck. Tilting his head to one side, he gently cupped the back of my head and guided my mouth to his neck.

  I didn’t hesitate. This was happening no matter what I did. Short of me actually feeding on a human being, of course. Benjamin didn’t even flinch when my teeth punctured his skin. I must of hit his jugular vein because the blood flooded my mouth. I moaned at the satisfaction I instantly felt. A tiny part of me was disgusted with myself, but mostly, I felt relief. The ache subsided and eventually, I pulled away from his neck.

  He tasted... good.

  I didn’t dare look in his eyes right away. I couldn’t see those bedroom blues just yet. Instead, I eyed the tiny wound on his neck. The blood pooled to the smallest amount until a drop overflowed and rolled lazily down his chest. Without thinking, I leaned forward and licked it off the hard plane of his chest, my tongue lingering ever so lightly over Benjamin’s nipple. Oops!

  His hands resumed their grip on either side of my waist. He pressed me down onto his lap and I gasped when I felt his arousal against my inner thigh. He released his grip on my waist for a moment and pressed me down again. I obliged his silent request and let my body grind against him in easy movements as my hips swayed from front to back. His leg massage the night before had just about driven me insane. My eyes locked on his for a moment before his mouth descended on my lips. His kiss was just as I remembered it—strong and tender. His tongue entered my mouth and I kept rhythm, enjoying the taste of him. I felt his hard chest in frantic movements. I was finally able to feel the muscles I’d only been able to guess were hidden under his shirt. I moved on to his shoulders and then his arms, savoring the steely strength under my soft fingertips. Somehow, he drew me closer to him, reaching his hands under me and cupping my bottom.

  Bringing his hands up, he pulled at my blouse, which I had neatly tucked into my slacks. Deftly, he unbuttoned the shirt and tossed it to the side. He stared down at my chest appreciatively before rolling us over, and laying me on my back across the sofa while he hovered just above me.

  “God, you’re beautiful,” he said, running his hand along my side.

  I smiled. “I was about to say the same thing.”

  Benjamin crushed his lips against mine as the front door suddenly opened. He jumped up, landing in a defensive stance. I stood up too, my new vampire reflexes coming to attention. Sure, I was in my pink, lacy bra, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t tear someone’s head off if necessary.