Summary: After aiding a beautiful stranger from possible death, Elijah offers her an unusual arrangement.
*A/N*: After providing ideas for Lotheriel's story 'The Joy of the Hunt' (Amazing writer, check her out under my favorite authors) and offering my editing knowledge to yesbones for her story 'Elijah's Witch', I finally decided to submit my own story. Hope you enjoy it!
The hunger gnaws at her stomach like a scared animal trying to claw its way out; the pain is almost too much to bear. 'Only one more hour' she says to herself as she stares longingly at the clock, noting that the hands are moving way too slow for her liking. Only one more hour and she can head home; not that any food would be there either, but at least she could sleep through the hunger pangs and the weakness.
She makes her way to the exit after changing out of her scrubs into her regular clothes, her body trying desperately to fight the dizziness. Cutting through the park, she pulls her jacket closer to her body and quickens her pace. She hears a leaf crunch but sees no one as she quickly looks over her shoulder. This action only aggravates her dizziness and she collapses to the cold dirt, the world spinning uncontrollably. She briefly sees the face of a man standing over her, his comforting voice washing over her as she succumbs to the darkness.
She feels drained as she struggles to open her eyes. Noticing she is no longer in the park, she is startled by the crackle of the fire that is blazing in the warm hearth at the end of the room. She finds she is now in a soft bed with silky black sheets and a thick red down comforter. "Sleeping beauty is finally awake." She gasps and turns in the direction of the voice, barely making out a figure in the corner of the room. As her eyes adjust, the silhouette rises from the chair he has been sitting on and makes his way toward her.
She is taken aback by his striking dark eyes and strong jaw line, his long and lean body enveloped in a dark blue dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and pressed trousers. She instinctively draws her knees toward her chest as he sits down next to her, his expression a combination of curiosity and amusement. "I mean you no harm, little one" he says calmly, reaching a hand slowly to brush a strand of hair from her pale face, her body stiffening as his fingers graze her cheek. He turns to the nightstand and picks up a large bowl of what looks like soup and moves closer to her. He passes the bowl of soup to her but she has trouble holding it up. Holding the bowl in one hand, he hands her the spoon to bring to her mouth. She chokes momentarily as she nearly guzzles the hot liquid, her insides tightening from the sudden onslaught of nourishment. "Slow sips", he reminds her.
After she finishes the soup and nibbles on the crackers that came with it, he puts the soup back on the nightstand and turns back toward her. "What is your name, little one?" he asks her softly. She pauses for a moment. "Jordan", she says softly. "Jordan", he tests the name in his mouth for a moment. Despite being a somewhat masculine name, it surprisingly suits her.
"My name is Elijah. I saw you faint in the park and took you to my home. You are still very weak", he pointed out…"When was the last time you ate something"? She bows her head away from him, completely mortified that she is being chastised… by a complete stranger, no less! This annoys her. "It's not like I want to starve!" The tone and force of her words surprises even him. Like millions of other people, the economy has not been kind to her. A combination of bad luck and student loans has forced her at times to choose between rent and utilities, or food. She turns from him and crosses her arms over her chest.
He takes this time to really study her features. Despite her ghostly pallor, her sunken-in cheeks, and stringy black hair, she still is beautiful. When he had laid her down on the bed to rest, he could still see remnants of womanly hips and breasts under her clothes, although her lower ribs were starting to become quite noticeable. At the rate she was deteriorating, she wouldn't last more than a few days. Imagining what several weeks, maybe even days, of steady nutrition and solid rest could do for this supple beauty, an idea suddenly teases his conscious mind. It would be quite unorthodox in this day and age, but what's the harm in asking?
"Well, miss Jordan" he begins, a slight purr noted in his words. "How would you like to never go hungry again?"