Eric POV

Eric Northman had never had any human refuse him anything. In fact, many had begged him for what he now offered Sookie. Looking at Sookie now, the pleas of that thieving bitch Yvetta asking to be his human came back to him. When she mentioned it, his stomach fought to hold on to the blood he had just ingested from her. Even then he knew that the title of being his belonged only to one person. Sookie. She stood there, hand on her blue bathrobe clad hip, her brown eyes on absolute fire with frustration and anger. She looked stunningly beautiful.

"Eric, there is no way in hell that is going to happen. I promised myself while I was away that I would stay as far away as possible from vampires and all the bullshit that comes along with being in any kind of relationship with them. I can buy back the house from you. Even if I end up paying more for what it's worth I will figure it out." She took in a deep breath and let it out quickly. He regarded her, only wanting to give her anything her heart desired. His panged at the idea that it didn't include him. No, he needed this house to maintain a connection to Sookie.

While there was a slim thread of the bond he had created back in Dallas, it was weak and getting weaker every day. He awoke every night reaching into his mind desperate to hold onto it, terrified of losing it. Many times he felt Pam jerk awake with him. Sensing his panic, she called him immediately to assure herself there was no danger. Thankfully, she didn't know the cause of his turmoil. As he looked at the person who haunted him during his waking nights and almost sleepless days, his mind immediately began trying to find a way to get even a drop more of his blood in her system. But he had learned what was in store for himself when plotting without Sookie in the know. Bill's betrayal had been his first lesson. Never lie, manipulate, or keep anything from Sookie. Period. He would never take the chance. He couldn't even fathom the idea of Sookie, with tear filled eyes looking at him with the amount of betrayal and hurt that she had that night as she looked at Bill.

"No. As I said before Miss Stackhouse, the house is not currently for sale. Perhaps we could reach an understanding that would please us both," he said with his trademark smirk. He knew it riled her up, but he noticed it also caused her breath to catch. "I will not be sleeping with you. I am not a whore. I love this home, but I would never degrade myself on that level," Sookie spat at him. She moved to walk around him into the kitchen. She went to the cupboards and pulled out a glass. As she took the glass to the sink to fill with water, Eric attempted to hold his temper at her stubborn and willful personality. She was the loveliest creature he had ever laid eyes on, but she could cause a monk vowed to silence to swear in frustration. While she took long gulps of water he advanced on her slowly as to not alert her to the fact. She suddenly looked over the rim of her cup at him. "Nice try. Stay the hell out of my personal bubble," she snickered waving her hand in front of her indicating the perimeters of said bubble. He growled low, but remained outside of her of her "bubble".

"Sookie, what I offer you is extremely generous on my part. If you don't want to be mine, there is only so much I can do to ensure your safety. As of right now you are open to all vampires. I know you hold a small amount of trust when it comes to vampires. I seek to change your perspective on this. If you were to be mine, vampires would think twice before attacking you." He wanted to expand on what being his would entail, including his heart which had never been held by one such as Sookie. He hated to admit it, being who he was and his reputation. But this girl had captured his attention and heart from the beginning. Upon first laying eyes on her in Fangtasia, he had known Sookie would change everything. It was the sweetest and most precious curse. "So what would you expect in return? Sex, blood, and telepathic abilities all available to you whenever you desire? I am sorry, but I fail to see how this deal is supposed to appeal to me. If I barter myself like that, then I would be no better than your common whore. The only difference is I get to keep the home I grew up in, which should never have been sold in the first place. If it's between packing up my shit and becoming a low dollar prostitute, I will move out and make a new home for myself." Her eyes welled up at the idea of leaving this old farmhouse. All of her memories of her childhood with her brother Jason and her Gran were here. Was she serious?

Eric growled and vamped in front of her in seconds, "You would leave your home? Your history so as not to be bound to me?" Just as quickly, he pulled the deeds to the house out of his jacket along with a pen and signed the papers over to Sookie. When he finished signing, he threw the papers on the table and without looking at Sookie disappeared out the door. He knew it was impulsive and folding to her like that seemed foolish. But the thought of Sookie leaving him again or causing her pain was the last thing he wanted.

Sookie POV

Sookie looked down, causing the tears to fall down her cheeks. Her eyes had barely blinked them in existence before Eric had signed them and left. She could not believe how easily Eric had just caved. She was so confused about what the hell just happened. She looked at the house deed, picked it up, and studied it. She couldn't believe it. She had been serious when she said she would move. It wasn't so much about not being with vampires anymore, but more about not letting anyone have that much control over her ever again. Even if it meant giving up her home, she would never give that much of herself as quickly as she had with Bill. She had been too burned last time. She almost didn't survive. Besides the overwhelming sense of relief washing over her as she realized Stackhouse was the name the house now belonged to again, she felt oddly unsettled. What the hell was going on?

Eric's actions had her confused from the moment she met him, but even more so in the last few hours. When she found out he bought her house, she had thought about the motivation behind it for him while she showered in her refurbished bathroom. The house was lovely. The state that she had left it was almost unlivable and she had so much stuff on her plate. No matter how much progress she made, something happened that put her ten steps back from where she started. When she returned, she thought Jason, Tara, and Lafayette were likely responsible for the pristine condition of the house. She had walked room to room and had noticed all the love that went in to cleaning up the house and restoring it. She had noticed small things that had seemed odd for Tara, Jason and Lafayette to update. Like her television. Her old television hadn't been the best, but not the worst either. It was the same with her washer, dryer, fridge, dishwasher, water heater, and AC. Even if she was gone a year, those items still would have lasted at least another five years. So why replace them? None of her friends had that kind of cash put away to her knowledge. She had decided to pay them back slowly. She brushed away the small changes. She knew that a lot could happen in a year and things were bound to change in her absence. When she found out Eric had been the cause of the home's beautiful state and subtle updates, she blinked in shock and confusion.

As she stepped out of the shower, sliding on her blue robe, she wondered why she hadn't seen or heard from Tara yet. They really needed to figure this stuff out about the house. She absently toweled her hair as she walked out of the bedroom, hoping some of her clothes were still here. She went to the box on the window seat spotting her well-worn pink nightie. She began to remove her robe, when she noticed a void mind signature, indicating that a vampire was here in her bedroom with her. She turned around with dread filling her stomach. When her eyes met those of Eric Northman, sheriff of area five, she expelled her breath she had been holding and pulled her robe so tight she almost cut off circulation. Thank God she hadn't taken off her robe yet! Sheesh!

As she held the signed papers going over what had just happened, she suddenly remembered how Eric had been looking at her when she turned around. It was both passionate and primal, to steal his words. Thinking about it now she began to blush. What the hell was she going to do? Why was she so upset? In all honesty, Sookie knew what Eric had done for her was incredible. If he hadn't bought her house and restored it, it could have been sold to someone else or fallen into much worse disrepair. Now, she was once again standing in her home surrounded by her things. All because of Eric. What was she going to do? She was without a doubt indebted to him. If she didn't figure out how to handle this, her Gran would jump out of the grave and skin her alive.

Reaching for the phone she called Tara's number. When the operator tone buzzed in her ear telling her the line was no longer in service she hung up and tried Lafayette's home line. Maybe Tare was there? Someone picked up the line that she didn't recognize. She asked for Lafayette and when asked who was calling the guy swore in Spanish and put a hand over the receiver of the phone. Lafayette picked up the line and started ranting about how whoever was calling was a sick motherfucker for pulling this prank. Sookie couldn't even get a word in while he went on and on. Finally he quieted down and she began to speak. He was silent for so long she thought he had hung up the line. Finally she heard him breathe in deep, "Sook? Hookah where the fuck have you been? Are you okay? What happened to you? Was it Bill?" At the mention of Bill's name, she hiccupped into the phone attempting to hold back a sob. She had so far forgotten about Bill before now. She had too much going on with the house, Jason, and Eric before Lafayette brought him to the forefront of her mind. She heard Lafayette say he was coming and the line click. Ten minutes later she heard a purr outside her home and the back screen door creak open as Lafayette called out to me. I briefly registered another mind in the house with Lafayette that thought in a mixture of Spanish and English. Lafayette had changed! He looked good. His hair was in a Mohawk and each finger of his hand held a blinged out ring as he held hands with the other man that walked in to her home. He released his hand and came towards Sookie embracing her in a hug. He didn't even say anything. Similar to Tara, Lafayette sometimes just got shit. They had both inherited the gene that told them when to say shit and more importantly when not to. He led her to the living room and sat with her on the sofa.

"Lafayette, I will tell you. But please not tonight?" she pleaded with him. He nodded and gestured to the man who had come in with him. "Sook, this is Jesus. My Don Juan," he said with a wink at Jesus. Sookie laughed and introduced herself. She told him she was happy Lafayette had found someone to make him so happy. They chatted about what all had been happening in Bon Temps. But Sookie had one thing she needed to know. "Where is Tara? I tried her cell but it told me she had disconnected it. Did she get a new number?" Lafayette looked down and then back up at Sookie through his thick false eyelashes. "Tara been gone since you disappeared. Once in a while she send us a post card from where ever the hell she is at the time, but it damn near impossible to get ahold of her." Sookie wondered what her friend was doing and when she would see her again. Tara had always given her pretty straightforward advice. When Tara was calm and nothing was threatening her or her loved ones, she could paint the situation back to you without a lot of fluff or opinion, even if she had one. But if she was pissed or scared, it was a different story. Sookie wished she was here to help her figure shit out. She leaned her head on her hand and looked at Lafayette. As if reading her mind, he said "Hookah, what's on your mind. I am not Tara, thank the fuckin' Lord, but I will try to help you make heads or tails of whatever fucked up shit you got going now."

She grabbed his hand and squeezed it as a silent thank you. She looked over at Jesus and said, "You are lucky to have him. Please treat him how he deserves to be treated." The way she said it didn't hold any trace of threat or hostility like some can sound. It was a genuine request. Jesus nodded seriously while looking at Sookie. Shortly after, they stood and both embraced Sookie before making their way to Lafayette's corvette. She padded up the stairs and went to her room. She pulled on the pink nightie and went to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She was still turning over everything that had happened since she came back into this realm with Granddaddy Earl. With her head swirling with thoughts, she told herself to crash now and pick up where she left off tomorrow. Before she fell into deep sleep she remembered she hadn't rescinded Eric's or Bill's invitations. Then sleep took her.