Sookie's POV:

I can do this, I can do this, I can do this.... Words that I am chanting in my head over and over.

I cannot believe I let her convince me to come here. She had initially told me she wanted to go on a 'friends date' since she heard that I went out with Tara a few weeks ago. I was expecting fun and maybe a few good laughs, but not this. This time Eric was a lot more willing to let me go since it was Pam that was taking me out.

Someone starts banging on the door and it's Pam. "Sookie are you ready yet? We can't wait all night!"

I suddenly feel irritated. "Give me another damn minute!"

Here I am on a Thursday night, standing inside a health spa place, in a bathrobe getting ready to undergo a delicate procedure. I breathe in deeply one last time and go to open the door.

Pam walks in with an older looking Asian woman.

"She is going to do it." Pam tells me. She looks at the woman. "Sue, this is Sookie. Sookie, this is Sue."

"Hello." I tell her, my facial expressions becoming even more worrisome.

"Sukie, do not worry. Everything will be fine. I done this many times. Pam comes here all the time to do this." I can't help but probe her mind and I can tell that she is being sincere. But I also see images of many clients, even men, screaming and crying.

"Are you sure Eric is going to like this?" I ask Pam one last time.

She rolls her eyes at me, "Absolutely, now quit with your fucking worries. He is going to love it when he sees it."

I take my time moving to lie on the table. Sue stands over me and shifts my robe up to my waist. I lift my head slightly and notice that Pam is still in the room.

"Are you going to stand there and watch?" I asked her with an irritated tone.

"Yes, Eric told me to stay with you at all times," giving me a slight grin. I roll my eyes at her and lay my head on the table once more.

Sue starts applying the talcum powder to my private region. Okay this might not be too bad. I then see her dip a wooden stick into a small bowl. She applies it one side of the front part of my private area. I can feel the hot wax there and I start to tense up.

"You have to relax Sukie or else it hurt more." She tells me.

I nod as she applies a cloth strip to the wax. I take one last gulp and suddenly she rips off the cloth.

For a brief second I am shocked, then the pain hits me full force.

"FUCK! FUCK! SHIT! SHIT! That fucking hurts!" I continue to yell profanities as my eyes start to tear up. I look up at Pam and see that she is covering her mouth, trying to hide her laugh.

Sue goes to add more hot wax to the stick, but I get off the table before giving her the chance to apply it on me. "Sukie, we not done yet."

"Oh yes we are!" I walk to the bathroom across the room and shut the door.

I splash some cold water on my face.

"Oh come on Sookie. You've been staked, beaten, and tortured, and you're going to let a Brazilian wax job defeat you?" Pam is trying to reason with me through the door.

I had heard once from someone that a Brazilian wax was just as painful as giving birth. If it's that painful, then dear god, I am never having kids.

"Pam you better get my damn clothes now or else!" I yell back at her angrily.

Pam knocks on the door and I open it. She is holding my clothes and phone in her hand.

"It's Eric." She tells me.

"Sookie I felt your pain. Are you alright?" He asks.

Eric is at his office this evening working. I let out a sigh. "Yes I'm fine."

"The only thing Pam said was that 'beauty is pain', what did she mean by that?"

I can't help but smile. "I think she is referring to the beauty treatments that women go through in order to look good."

"You don't need any type of beauty treatment Lover. You are always beautiful to me no matter what."

I smile again. "I totally agree with you Eric. So no more treatments for me, not ever. I should get ready to go. I'll see you at home baby. I love you." Making a kissing sound to the phone.

"I love you too."

I put my clothes on and walk out to the lobby where Pam is waiting with Sue.

"That will be $64.56 Sukie." She tells me.

I look at her with my mouth open and then at Pam.

"You actually expect me to pay for this? And at the full price I might add!" I yell at Pam.

"Sue doesn't charge by the wax strip Sookie." Pam dryly replies. "And besides, if you had finished it, I would have gladly paid."

I start to get even angrier. I whip out my card and pay for an incomplete wax.

We get into her car and for the first ten minutes of the drive, we are both silent.

"Come on Sookie. It's not that painful. I've been going to Sue for years."

I am still fuming, staring out the side window. "Why would you need to get a Brazilian wax regularly anyway? Wouldn't your hair grow back in like minutes?" I spat.

She turns to look at me. "It takes the hair down there to grow back in two hours, sometimes three. I always go to see Sue a half hour before a hot sex date."

She continues on, "You know Sookie, I've never seen a human's face go as red as yours did after she ripped off the cloth. And now only a portion of your pussy region is hairless. We can go back to my place and I can tweeze out the rest of your pubic hair?"

I turn to look at her, ready to smash her head against the steering wheel. "My privates and especially my pubic hair are no longer a topic for discussion. If you ever do bring it up again, we are no longer friends, do I make myself clear?"

She smirks at me, "Crystal. I just wanted to have some 'two good friends girl bonding' time."

"There are many other ways for two girl friends to bond Pam."

"Really? Care to enlighten me?", she asks.

"Well for starters watching one friend go through torture with the aid of hot wax doesn't qualify as friend bonding!"

She continues to smirk at me. "I see. But my intentions were good. If I am not mistaken, friends help each other especially with their sex life. I just wanted to help my friend keep her man interested in her body."

"There is nothing wrong with my body! Eric is still keenly interested in it!" I snarl back.

"Oh, well then. Sorry, my mistake." I can tell her apology isn't the least bit sincere.

A little while later, we reach our next destination: A movie theatre.

"Seriously Pam? You want to watch a movie?" I look at her confused. Somehow I have never pictured Pam as the type who enjoyed watching movies, or even television for that matter.

"I read that it is customary for 'girl friends' to watch chick flicks together. That's why I've chosen some odious movie called 'Letters to Juliet'."

Just as I expected, I pay for my own movie admission at which Pam also informs me that friends usually pay for themselves when they go out together. I also get my own popcorn and water.

The theatre is somewhat full, so Pam glamours some teenage girls in the middle to get up and move away. I glare at her as we take our seats.

Throughout the movie, Pam scoffs at the romantic parts and continues to tell me her observations of certain scenes. I start to notice other people glaring at us and whisper to Pam to be silent. Finally a man sitting in front of us speaks up.

"Lady would you be quiet! I'm trying to watch this movie, not hear your running commentary!" A few people clap at what he says.

Pam frowns at the man and her fangs pop out, "I paid the same amount of money as you to watch this piece of shit movie. So I can do or say whatever the hell I want."

The man is clearly frightened and turns around. A few others are scared too. For the rest of the movie nobody looks at us and Pam continues with her ongoing commentary.

After the movie, she drops me off at home. As soon as I enter the house, I head to the living room and plop down on the sofa. I look at my watch and see that Eric should be home in less than a half hour. I can feel the voids outside the house. Savannah and Clint must be patrolling the grounds. During the day if I go out, I can never tell who is watching me, because the were guard assigned to me that day usually just follows me, but never approaches me. The only thing I know is that he/she is a member of Alcide's pack. As a friend to the pack, Alcide felt that it was his obligation to protect me following the 'fairy incident'. Eric at first protested, but after strenuous negotiations, he finally agreed. I didn't want Eric to spend more money on me with extra security during the day as my vampire bodyguards were already very expensive. Besides, having a daytime guard who appeared to be relatively absent was also a bonus for me, I hated that feeling of a babysitter watching over me all the time.

I think back to that night I had with Tara and that vamp. I was never able to figure out the answers to the various questions in my head. I also chose not to tell Eric because for some reason I knew that Marius would not have harmed me and I didn't want to get Savannah and Clint into trouble. I had told him that I had shut down the bond briefly because I felt a little bit overwhelmed and I didn't want to disturb him when he was working. It was technically the truth. Eric knew that I occasionally shut off my end of the bond when I didn't want him to feel my emotions so he didn't question it further. Which leads me to my next question: how did I shut it without consciously knowing it? Eric once told me that he wasn't entirely sure what would happen over time between a bonded vampire and human. I guess I shall just chalk that up as another new development between us.

During these past few weeks I also think about the obvious attraction I felt towards that vamp I had met. His good looks and sensual appeal would probably allure anyone, but I know that I love Eric wholeheartedly and would never do anything to seriously jeopardize our relationship. Besides I don't think that I will be seeing him anytime soon anyway as he has more than likely left Shreveport and the surrounding area. Pam would definitely have told me if she had seen or heard about a hot vampire during the past few weeks. She talked about a gorgeous young looking blonde vamp that came to Fangtasia that very same night, but obviously that wasn't him. It is also apparent that I am the only one who can recall seeing him that night. Tara never mentioned anything about him the next day nor had the guards mentioned anything to Eric. I wonder if he glamoured Tara into forgetting him and maybe even the guards....

I can hear Eric's corvette pulling up in our driveway and right away the butterflies and happiness inside my heart and belly take over. I always feel this way every time I see him and hope that it never ends. As soon I hear the engine being turned off, Eric appears in front of me in an instant. That's one great thing about having a vampire lover. In a flash he has us in a sitting position on the sofa with me on his lap.

He starts kissing and nipping at my neck while murmuring, "How was your evening with Pam, Lover?"

Moaning to him I whisper, "Don't stop." I am so distracted by the sensation of his cool lips on my neck that I don't hear his question.

He doesn't heed my request and stops his attentions to my neck to look into my eyes, "Did you have fun tonight?"

"Yes, besides a few moments, the events of the evening were entertaining and interesting as it always is with Pam." This time it is my turn to kiss his neck. I find a spot and start sucking as hard as I can in an attempt to form a hickey. Obviously I am not that strong enough to bruise the skin, but I will most definitely try anyway. He groans in satisfaction. While I am doing that, his hand dips under my dress and he starts caressing and kneading my ass while kissing my shoulder. I absolutely love these moments when we just make out like two teenagers. I never had a boyfriend in high school, so I am making up for lost time.

Twenty minutes later we stop our attentions to each other's bodies in order to cuddle and talk.

He holds my hand, slowly rubbing it while the other holds onto my hip. "You smell and taste like popcorn my love."

I smile at him, "Yeah I ate some when I was at the movies with Pam. I probably shouldn't have gone out tonight though. I should have worked on my paper for my English class. It's due on Monday."

He thinks about that for a moment. "Are you handling your classes well?"

"Yeah, if I can continue to keep up with the pace, maybe I can add a few more classes to my schedule."

Again he takes a moment to think about what I had just said. I can sense hesitation and guilt through our bond. "Baby what's the matter?" I ask cupping my hand against his cheek.

Hesitantly he speaks, "I have been busy. With work and travelling. I am missing a great deal of precious time with you. I should know those details about your progress in college. I should be there when you are studying or writing, aiding you and supporting you. Helping you with your language courses. I am sorry."

Awww... I can feel tears forming in my eyes. "Baby you support me so much. More than you will ever know. I wouldn't be here without you. You know more details about me than probably most boyfriends do about their girlfriends. And yes, I miss you terribly when you are gone. And maybe we are missing out on time when we are apart, but I am coming to terms with that. I understand that you need to work and whatever you are doing now, I know you wouldn't go out of town unless it was absolutely necessary. I know there are some things you can't tell me, and I am ok with that. As long as your life isn't in danger."

He leans forward towards my cheek to kiss away a tear that escapes my eye. "I swear Sookie, I will tell you what I am doing very soon. I am ensuring our survival and happiness."

"That's good enough for now." I smile at him. He is being high-handed. The old Sookie would have stormed off in a fit of rage for his high-handedness. But then again the last time that the old Sookie ignored his high-handedness, she was attacked, tortured, and almost irreparably damaged.

"Besides, when you are away on your trips, it gives me the chance to spend some time with my other boyfriends," I tease.

"Really Lover? Well then, your other boyfriends won't be able to come around tonight or any other night ever again when they accidently lose an important part of their anatomy," he growls while nipping at my earlobe.

"Lover let's go to bed now", he tells me while picking me up and carrying me to our bedroom chamber.

Yes, let's do.

He sets me down in front of our bed and slowly lifts my dress over my head. He takes my bra off and then quickly takes his own clothes off.

He lifts me up and sets me on our bed gently.

He lies down with me, above me without pressing his weight on me. We slowly kiss on the mouth for several minutes, before he starts kissing his way down my body. He makes a stop at my neck, then at my breasts, giving each of them equal attention. He traces his tongue down until he reaches my navel, where he slowly circles it with his tongue. I try to keep my eyes open to watch him, but I am burning in ecstasy. I close my eyes and arch my back while moaning out his name. He moves even lower and slowly removes my panties while still kissing and circling his tongue around my bikini line.

"Oh god Eric, that feels so good," still closing my eyes. A few seconds later, I become suddenly aware that his tongue isn't against my skin anymore. I open my eyes and look down.

My lust quickly turns into mortification.

I can feel my face turn tomato red as I see him staring at my botched Brazilian wax.

"Is this the latest fashion in women's pubic hair design?", his eyes twinkling with amusement as he looks up at me.

"Sorry about that. I'll go to the bathroom and fix it." I mumble as I try to move myself off the bed.

But he holds my hips down in place. "I am guessing that this is the source for the pain that I felt earlier?"

I close my eyes unable to look at him. "Yeah."

"Lover, open your eyes." I open my eyes and look down at him. "I meant what I told you on the phone, no matter what, you're always beautiful to me."

All I can think is aww... "Did Pam put you up to this?" He asks.

"Yeah, it was her stupid idea!" My earlier anger starting to come back.

He chuckles. "Do you want me to punish her?"

I sigh and smile down at him. "No, it's my fault for going through with it. Do you me to do something about it? You know like shave the rest of it?"

He laughs. "No, unless you prefer to do that. Though if you wanted to, maybe you could shape it to form an E."

I giggle, "I don't think so. I'm never applying wax to this part of my body ever again."

It doesn't take very long for my lust to return when he starts to rub my remaining curls with his palm, then along my already moistened folds causing me to moan yet again. He sticks two fingers into my vagina, slowly moving them in and out. He then resumes with applying his tongue to my skin as he suckles and flicks my nub. I am getting close to an orgasm as he moves his fingers faster. My inner muscles tense around his fingers when I reach the peak of my climax.

While I am coming down from my high, he positions himself between my thighs waiting for my breath to become steadier.

As soon as my breath is steady, he pushes into me and I can't help but gasp. Even though we've had quite a lot of sex over the years, I can never get used to that special sensation when he fills me completely. He continues his steady pace, pumping in and out of me for several minutes. I push at his shoulders, an indication to him that I want to be on top. He flips us over and I am now straddling him. I ride him slowly, then I gradually pick up pace as I feel my second orgasm building. He puts his hands on my hips in order to help me ride him faster. I can feel through our bond that both of our orgasms are getting close. Suddenly he sits up and plunges his fangs into my neck. It causes us both to go over the edge and I can feel his seed spilling inside me.

He licks the wounds after he stops feeding and flips us back to our original position, with him still inside me. I can already feel him hardening again as I try to catch my breath.

"Almost ready, Lover? ,he asks, smirking at me.

"Give me a couple of more seconds, you're insatiable!" I tell him while still panting.

He kisses my cheek and whispers, "Only for you."

We have sex several more times that night before I pass out from exhaustion.

I wake up past 11 in the morning in Eric's arms once again. After wiggling my body out of his embrace, I go to my nightstand to find my note.

Sookie, I forgot to tell you something before you distracted me. I roll my eyes at that. There will be a cocktail party this evening at our hotel. De Castro and some other guests will be there. I know that you would prefer not to go, but it is important to me that you are by my side. I know you wanted to go to Bon Temps today, but please hold off your visit until tomorrow. E.

I think over his request. This is the first time in awhile that he has asked me to come to a 'business party'. He's kept me out of everything that deals with his businesses and especially his official vampire business for the past three years, so it must be very important for me to attend. I doubt that my safety is at risk as I know that Eric would never put me in jeopardy. I'm not particularly comfortable being around De Castro, and especially Madden, whom I can guarantee will be there. I look down at my 'sleeping' vampire. I can't help but to lie back down and spoon him from behind. I kiss his shoulder and rub his muscular arm. All of a sudden I feel a slight tinge in our bond: comfort and love. Even though my vampire is technically dead at the moment, he can still feel my presence and love. I continue to snuggle behind him and try to move even closer to him. I eventually fall back to sleep.

A/N: Hey everyone, this chapter lacked an Eric POV which to me is unfortunate. I don't know about anyone else, but I always enjoy reading Eric's POV in other people's stories and they write it so wonderfully. The thing about that is I am having a hard time putting myself in an 'Eric frame of mind', LOL. I mean on True Blood, he is definitely a lot more colder than in the books. So I think I might try to find a balance between both interpretations which other people have done so well. Thus I will take a couple days to ponder that thought and take another stab at writing his POV for the next chapter. He's a huge part of my story and his POV is definitely important. Goodnight!He