I hate to wait. There is nothing more precious in this world than time. People who waste it, are a waste.
I sighed heavily and forced myself to accept the inevitable situation around me. The club music booming over the speakers was amateur to say the least and the cage dancers were second string, at best. Maybe the booze would make up for my inconvenience.
"Bourbon." I rested my elbows on the tacky,
lighted bar top and smiled playfully at the 20-something bartender that fell over his feet to reach the top shelf. Thank God he didn't reach for the well. I would have snapped his neck and made it look like an accident before he hit the ground. I smiled at the thought.
He laid out a small napkin and set the short glass containing the amber liquid strategically in the middle of it. "Thanks doll." I winked and pouted my lips before bringing the glass up to them and sipping the savory, full, golden taste of the Devil's fire water. Bourbon. Bourbon makes immortality slightly tolerable. I slowly returned the glass to the bar top and turned to scan the room again. If I had a heart, it would have stopped.
Standing at the top of the stairs on the far side of the room was a shadow. I couldn't quite make out anything else in the smoky, strobe lit club, but I will never forget that smell. It filled my nose and made my every nerve ending pulsate with pleasure. Much how I imagine it would feel to be hit with a Taser, if I could feel anything. He walked slowly down the stairs towards the ground floor of the club. He never looked down at his feet throughout the decent. He pulled his cell phone from his breast pocket, glanced at it quickly and replaced it without ever missing a step. He buttoned his jacket at the middle button and was met by an annoying, yelling, man before reaching the bottom of the stairs.
"The man of the hour!" The annoying, dark headed man yelled, as he patted "Delicious'," shoulder. Delicious. That's what I'll call him for now. The club erupted in cheers and glasses were raised in unison. I cocked an interested eyebrow. Who could Mr. Delicious be and why is he worth so much attention?
"Ladies, please give this man a proper homecoming!" Mr. Delicious stepped down onto the main floor of the club and was enveloped into a sea of "Boring Bettys." Gross. I rolled my eyes and turned back to my bourbon.
A cliché rendition of "We are the Champions," rang out over the speakers. I could see Mr. Delicious in the reflection of the bar mirror as he stepped up onto a table.
"Thank you very much everybody!" He collected a shot and threw it back before yelling, "I missed tequila!" Tequila? That was probably my shortest relationship to date. What a waste. The club erupted in cheers again. I threw back the remainder of bourbon in my glass and ordered another. The slight distraction was short lived and now, I'm back to being pissed off. He was supposed to be here by now.
In the next few moments I had to fight harder against my nature than I have in a very long time. Mr. Delicious and his annoying friend came to stand at the bar now, only a little less than six feet away. I brought all the air between us into my nose and blew it away. I couldn't stand it much longer. I wanted to run my fingers through his short brown hair, grip a handful, pull his head back and find out what all the fuss was about. "You're not here for him." I took another drink of bourbon.
It appeared that the dark haired man was trying to play match maker to some degree. He said to Mr. Delicious, "By my rough estimate you have not had sex in 1,839 days. As your wing man, I highly recommend, Carmen Golden." They turned their backs to the bar and looked up at trio of Boring Bettys, dancing in drunken stupor, on a table top. Jesus, he's more like a pimp. I wonder if he gets a cut.
"Which one is she?" Mr. Delicious played along.
"The one that looks like the chick from Twilight."
"What's Twilight?" Mr. Delicious furrowed his eyebrows. I smiled slightly. Twilight. What an iconic children's fairy tale. How does he not know what Twilight is?
"You're so better off not knowing." The dark haired man answered. I agree.
Mr. Delicious let his gaze fall out into the club crowd until he fixed on a tiny teen of a girl with dark hair similar to the annoying man. The plot thickens. He set out across the club floor towards her.
I caught a glimpse of my target entering the service door to the left of the bar. I threw the rest of my drink back and moved to a better position in order to trail him. I followed him through a side door and into the back part of the club kitchen. I lost him. How the hell did I lose him?! Heavy footsteps coming down the corridor now. This person wants to be heard. I pushed my eyebrows together in frustration as I tried to concentrate past the sound. There it was. No concentrating now. The smell of Mr. Delicious filled my nose and I was instantly drawn towards him. I stepped out into the corridor to gaze at him again. Just his back was visible as he walked away. His back and his… backside. I smiled and bit my bottom lip. He most definitely had an exquisite ass. He stopped and turned around when he reached the next hall opening. I pressed my back to the wall.
In the well-lit kitchen corridor, I could finally see him clearly. Time stood still and I committed every inch of him to memory. Standing at 5'll with short light brown hair and piercingly sad blue eyes, his pink kissed lips were pulled back in a half smile revealing, a perfectly straight and beautifully white, row of teeth. His strong jaw line was prominent behind the 5 o'clock shadow that trailed down his jaw and chin. I felt as though he looked right at me. It was like Cupid's painful arrow slicing through my chest as it searched for my absent heart.
He spoke to someone standing on the wall in the hallway entrance, shook his head and started down the hall. I heard the door handle shake as it was grabbed and jiggled. I wasn't prepared for what I heard next.
The swishing of sports coats as they briefly entangled and the grunt of a man that wasn't Mr. Delicious. I darted across the corridor and pressed my back to the wall on the outside of the hallway. I peered cautiously around the corner and saw Mr. Delicious with a strong arm wrapped around the back of another man's head as he held him downward and applied pressure. From where he was standing, he looked right at me, but didn't let go of the other man until he was unconscious. When he released his stronghold, the man fell to the floor at his feet and he looked up at me dead in the eyes.
"Can I help you?" He stood straight and adjusted his jacket, straightening it out before buttoning it at the middle.
"How interesting." I cocked my head to the side studying him as I took him all in. I wanted to rip his throat out. Not for sport, but for need. I needed, now more than ever, in this moment to understand what was happening.
From behind me, the clang of a baker's pan hitting the floor interrupted my concentration. I escaped through the back exit and scaled the building to the roof. Once I was on the roof, I regained my composure. If I wasn't in control, like I am now, I was certain of one thing… I would kill him.
I needed to find Dante. This was the first good lead I had on him in three months. I couldn't be distracted by the distractible Mr. Delicious, even if there felt to be something drawing me to him like a magnet. I took a deep breath trying to push the hunger down, deep down into my belly where I could force myself to ignore it until all this was over. My head jerked toward the adjacent building when the lights suddenly went out on all floors. What the hell? What else is going to go wrong tonight?
I pulled back the sleeve on my jacket and released a grappling hook that dragged my body through the air, through the glass of a floor length window, and onto the 26th floor of the dark building. I released the cable and crouched down behind a decorative couch in the center of the room. I could hear them all around me. Men; they were fighting and shooting and in no specific pattern. The smell of evil entered my senses and I leaned my head back to crack my neck. My favorite. I can't continue with my mission when I need to feed so badly. I smiled coyly. "Think of this as an opportunity."
I ran to the nearest fire escape and froze with my hand on the door knob. I turned my head slightly and listened. Five men were running up the stair well. I backed away to the window I came through, threw my body into a back hand spring with my hands landing on the ledge and curved my body downward feet first onto the lower floor, through another large window. I backed into a corner and squeezed my hands together in tight fists. Bright red blood seeped through the cracks between my fingers and palms. I hissed at the sting from the deep cuts torn into my flesh from the glass shards on the window seal. The cuts sealed quickly and I realized that I was right in the middle of the fight. I watched, intrigued as a figure in a green hood went hand to hand with some hired muscle in leather. The green hood landed a devastating blow to the face of the other man knocking him down to the floor on his belly. Nice one, I thought to myself. I inhaled sharply as the muscle noticed a gun lying nearby. He grabbed it, got to his feet quickly, and began firing at the man in the green hood. I smiled when I found my opportunity. The man in the green hood lunged over the desk at the far end of the room. A bullet struck him. He'll be dead soon. I jumped on the back of the muscle and sunk my teeth into his neck before he could even resist. I could feel his life draining away and the fire in my core beginning to subside as I syphoned what I needed. I could hear the policemen coming down the hallway. They're too close. I let the muscle fall to the floor and grappled back to the rooftop across the street. I felt better now. Back to business.
I stepped up to the bar and smiled when the 20-something bartender hurried over with another bourbon. "You're an angel." I winked and pressed the glass to my lips.
Suddenly, the police entered the club floor from several different directions and announced their presence. The club erupted in boos. I even joined in with a small one to keep up pretenses. Mr. Delicious stepped back into the limelight to address the police. He yelled, "Hey everybody! Two million dollars to anyone that can find a nut bar in a green hood!" Cheers rang out and for a second, I pondered winning those two million dollars myself. Not for the money of course, but for the chance at Mr. Delicious. I smiled devilishly.
I didn't know it at that exact moment, but I would get my chance at Mr. Delicious, and then some.
I'm not willing to waste any more time. At this point, I accepted the fact that I wasn't going to see Dante's henchman again tonight. He couldn't have gone far. I laid a hundred dollar bill on the bar top and blew the bartender a kiss before turning to leave.
I was only momentarily distracted when Mr. Delicious cut in front of me on his way to the door as well. This could be fun. I smiled to myself, drank in his amazing smell and prepared to track him.
Imagine my surprise when Mr. Delicious entered an abandoned factory warehouse on the bad side of town. What kinky mess is he in to? I slipped in through a side door and watched him descend the stairs into the basement. I slowly walked down the stairs until I reached the bottom, then I sunk back into the shadows to watch.
Of all things dreamy and steamy, he was an amazing specimen. I couldn't decide yet if he was only human. No ordinary man ever took me this way. He pulled the bag in his hand up onto the table and began to empty it. First, a few pieces of dark colored clothing and then, it seared into me like a lightning bolt as he lifted the bow out of the bag and set it on the table next to the green hood.
He's not human. I saw him get shot and hit the ground before I drained the shooter.
The last thing he pulled from the bag was a flash drive looking device in which he took across the room to the computer sitting on another table. I watched as he plugged the device in and initiated a transaction. It didn't take me long to zoom in on the screen and find out that he had just stolen millions from Adam Hunt. Not bad. However, he is a petty thief, and not worth the effort. I turned to leave when I heard the computer beep. As I took one more look, I discovered that he had just transferred the millions into several different accounts. Random, ordinary, people's accounts. Who is this guy? Robin Hood?
I stepped out of the shadows slowly and approached him from behind. He drew a deep breath in and I froze when he didn't expel it.
"Who are you?" He asked in a stale, but firm voice.
"Not your type." I answered coolly. That would strike a nerve. I think woman is his type.
"Are you following me?" He asked. I could see him searching for me in the reflection of the computer screen and the lamp light bulb just to the left of the computer's screen. Clever boy.
"Not on purpose." I pursued cautiously. His fragrance was starting to overload my senses and I wasn't sure how well I would be able to control myself.
He shifted ever so slightly in his chair and I froze. "I'm going to turn around now." He put his hands behind his head intertwining his fingers and started to turn.
"No!" I hissed and he stopped. I wasn't ready to face him. I was losing control quickly and I didn't want to kill him before I was able to understand more about him.
"You were there." He said. "Why?"
I rolled my eyes. "It's kind of a long story." I smiled. "But, let's just call it the right place at the right time." If I hadn't jumped the muscle when I did, he would have surely killed Mr. Delicious.
"I call it interference." He replied quickly. I frowned slightly. No points for modesty and a thank you wouldn't have been so difficult either. I did save your life, I thought.
"He shot you." I remembered the scene in my head. I saw the bullet hit him. I saw him go down behind that desk. He didn't move again. "How are you alive?"
"A magician never reveals his secrets." He turned in his chair quickly and looked up at me with the coolest expression. His eyes shot down to my chest. Naughty boy, I smiled inside. "Are you hurt?" He asked with a confused looking expression on his face.
"Hardly." I smiled playfully. "Are you?" I shifted my eyes to his chest where I know that I saw the bullet hit him before he landed on the floor behind the desk.
"No." He never took his eyes away from mine. I was beginning to feel like he was trying to figure me out.
I inhaled his amazing scent again and pushed myself to step closer to him. I wasn't sure how much more I could take, but I was going to try. The electricity that surged through my body every time I breathed him in was like a drug to me. I couldn't resist much longer. "Why are you running through dark buildings in a green hood?"
"Why are you interfering with me running through dark buildings in a green hood?" He shot back at me quickly. There was that word again. I don't interfere. I do what I want, when I want.
"I don't know." I finally answered. The truth is, I didn't know. All I know is that I am drawn to him. There's something about his intoxicating scent, his ridiculously handsome face, and his ripped physique that had me wanting to strip him naked and spill his blood all at the same time. I took a few steps back away from him."Who are you?"
"Oliver Queen." He answered quickly and I knew he wasn't lying. "Now, who are you?"
I can't remember the last time I said my own name. "Tristen."
"Tristen." He repeated. I could have exploded in all different directions at that very moment. The sound of my name coming from that mouth that I wanted to devour in mine, was almost too much. "No last name?" He asked.
Touche, Mr. Queen. I wasn't so enthralled that I missed the signs.
"Please don't." I said softly, only slightly shifting my gaze from his eyes to the double edged knife he was thinking about pulling from his left boot. I really didn't want to kill him, yet.
I watched as he swallowed hard before saying, "Okay." He relaxed minutely and I could read intrigue on his face. "Maybe we can reach an agreement." He said studying my face. "You want to know more about me and I want to know more about you, right?"
"Maybe." I'll bite. "What's the pitch?"
"If you get rid of the knife in your belt," he glanced down at my waist. "I'll get rid of the knife in my boot."
Clever boy. I smiled coyly, "What about the one under the arm of your chair?"
"Okay." He nodded in agreement.
"How do I know you'll keep your word?" If he didn't keep his word and he did try to hurt me, I wouldn't be responsible for my reactions, which would surely result in his death.
"Scouts honor." He held up his hand indicating the symbol. I didn't know the boy scouts even existed anymore. I felt a little amused.
I pulled the knife out from behind my back where it was looped through my belt and held it out to him. I must have moved too quickly because he drew the knife from under his chair's arm in response. I opened my hand and let my knife fall to the concrete floor with a clang. The truth is, I didn't need my knife to kill him, but he didn't need to know that yet. He opened his hand and let his fall to the floor too
"The other one?" I asked staring straight into his dark blue eyes. I could tell his last wall was about to come down.
He traced his hand down his leg, pulled the knife from his boot and let it fall to the ground without losing eye contact.
Now, he was completely defenseless and I didn't know what I would do if I couldn't control myself.
"Why would you do that?" The fire was rising in my throat and I had to fight it back with everything I had.
"Do what?" His eyebrows furrowed together in confusion.
"Give up your only weapons so easily…" I kept my eyes locked on him. The predator in me was waiting for him to make a move so that I could rip his throat out, but there was another part of me that wished he would get his hands on his bow and loose an arrow right into my chest.
He studied my face intently, "Why would you?"
I almost laughed. "You don't know me. You don't know what I'm capable of." I took a few steps to the right. The predator in me was initiating the hunt and there was nothing that I could do to stop it now. "Why would you let your guard down so quickly?"
"I never let my guard down." He answered back. He looked down at my feet quickly and back to my eyes. "If you take one more step, I'm going to assume you are trying to flank me and I'm going to be forced to act."
Oh, how I love foreplay. "No weapons." I smiled, staring him down as I crouched slightly in preparation.
"No weapons." He nodded, never taking his eyes off of me.
In that very moment, I felt as if he was peering deep down into my soul. I had never felt more vulnerable or more turned on in my entire existence. If I didn't have him, I would explode. I stepped to the right and waited. Come on playboy.
I watched it happen in slow motion. He spun around in his chair, pressed his feet up against the desk and launched himself backward towards me in the chair. He lifted himself up on the arms of the chair with the palms of his hands and left the chair with such force that it sent him flying through the air feet first, right towards me. I moved to the other side of the desk that he pressed his feet to in order to maneuver out of his chair like he did. I couldn't help but smile. He was pretty good. Not good enough, but good.
His feet hit the floor and his head jerked up to find me in the room.
"Too slow." I stood straight and walked to the corner of the desk.
He didn't reply or retort, but he stared at me as he stood up straight as well. I knew there must be a million thoughts running through his head at this very moment. I allowed him the time to process.
"Who are you?" He demanded.
"I told you my name already." I shook my head waiting for the next move.
"Right," he said. "Tristen. But that doesn't tell me what I need to know."
"What is it that you think you need to know about me Oliver?" I tilted my head to the side trying to gauge his mood. This is the longest I have ever interacted with anyone. I was moving into unfamiliar territory very quickly.
"Why are you here?" He asked. "First, you were at the club tonight." He took a step to the left and I countered by stepping away in the opposite direction. "Then, you followed me into Adam Hunt's building. I saw you there. You did something to the man that shot me." He stepped again and I countered. "Then, you follow me back here. For what?" His voice raised. "A game?" He was getting angry and I was getting uncomfortable. Maybe I had pushed him too far. "This is not my idea of a good time." He shouted and in a split second he had his bow in his hand and an arrow was flying through the air at me. I couldn't have moved out of the way, even if I wanted to.
He bested me. I knew it and he knew it.
The last thing I remember was seeing him crouched over me pulling the arrow out of my shoulder. "Goodnight." He whispered with a playful smile.