Chapter 20

London, March 1912

As March drew to a close, the nights in London just begun to warm slightly, not that Eric or Pam could enjoy them that particular evening. His only job that night was to help her choose dresses she was going to look ravishing in when he was not going to get a chance to enjoy the view. It was a task he almost resented – bitterly so.

"You know you can still stay here and wait for me to come with you. Then we can enjoy a proper English summer, rainy nights and dancing till three," Eric sighed looking teasingly at his progeny. She knew he was half serious though, even if he had already paid her fare to board the ship.

"No," she was as blunt as ever.

"Thank you for making me feel so loved."

Pam and Eric shared their laughter as she packed a trunk.

"Would you prefer me pout over how much I am going to miss you?"

"Perhaps," he nodded.

A playful silence hung in the room as he sat in the arm chair of their bed room. She walked over to him, each step careful, and a seductive glint in her eye.

"Well, then – just to feed your ego... Of course, I'll miss you."

But the way she said it made him think the last thing she was doing it to feed his ego. No – he had never had relationship with a woman as real as the one he and his progeny was sharing. She would miss him. Very much.

"But I want to show you I can do this. I want you proud of me," she admitted.

"I am proud of you."

Reaching out his hand he beckoned her over to him and when she was at his side he pulled her into his lap. Biting her lip, she smiled.

"I love those five words above all others."

He nodded. "I know you do." Running a hand through her loss curls, Eric looked deeply in to her eyes. "My love."

"I quite like those words as well."

He had a chuckle as he stroke his hand down her back and kissed her.

"So it is tomorrow I have to get you to Southampton?"

"It is," she said with a nod.

"And once you set sail it is going to be two to three months until we are reunited?"

"Too long, I know," she said as she turned to face him, running her hands up and down his chest. She left her arms loosely linked around his neck as she looked back into his eyes, leaning into his protective embrace.

"Well then – we had better make the most of your final night."

"Hadn't we just?"

They were on the bed in a matter of seconds.

XXX

Louisiana, Present Day

"They just took another half litre of blood." Said Eric as he returned to the room where his child lay in bed recovering.

It was one of the inside rooms of the clinic, meaning that even though she would be safe enough with a black out blind, the sun was just not an issue there.

"You can't put your own health at risk," Godric told him.

"If I have too, then that is exactly what I will do."

"I may not be able to command you, but if I said I forbid you to maker yourself ill, would it have an effect."

Eric shook his head. "Not until her life is secure."

Godric could appreciate that. If he were in Eric's shoes. If it was him or Nora in that bed...

"Do you need me to get you anything?" asked Godric.

"No."

XXX

Southampton, April 1912

As he cupped Pam's face, Eric was still wondering if he should just throw her back in the carriage and take her back to London.

The plan had been for the two of them to cross the pond together. He wanted to do it with her.

But that was not what she wanted.

For so long she had been caged. Her human mother and her father had kept her so trapped. And she had such a zest for life.

He did not want to trao her. He did not want her bitter towards him...

And so if she felt she was ready to go and set up their business for them in Boston then that was good enough for him. It was by no means sure that he was going to be the sheriff of the area. But it was sure they needed a base in the states if they were going to get a place out there.
And it was for sure that was where she wanted to be.

"And you are sure you do not want to wait for me?"

"You're sure you don't want to come with me?" she countered.

As the two of the shook there head, Eric mourned the fact the two of them were so similar and so stubborn.

Pulling her close to him, Eric kissed Pamela deeply. He had not known what it was to be close to someone until he had met her, discounting Godric.

"Don't miss me too much," He said as he released her.

"Don't long for me in the night more than necessary."

"I love you snarky."

"Someone has too. I love you too."

Pulling away, she gave him one more brief kiss.

"The time will go quick."

But she had the feeling that she was about to learn the meaning of eternity.

XXX

Louisiana, Present Day

For the second time that week, Jessica Hamby knew she was some where she should not really be. Yet when she had heard the news she had felt as if she had had to get out the palace.

When she had been a newly turned vamp, she had often told people that she hated Bill and that he was, in fact, the worse make in the world. In recent months, she had come to think she had got that wrong. Not only had the two of them got to be close in the end but she had thought he was the one person in the world she could trust to give her a grain of truth.

And so to find out that he had lied over some thing as big as his marriage to Pam hurt her like hell and she did not think she could put it in to words.

It was not only that she had lied to her, as well as to someone who was a friend to her. It was that she had so sure she had got something that resembled a family around her once more. Ok, so she had full well known Pam was never going to bake cookies with her and she knew she was never going to be the sort of mum who said something just to make her feel good.

In fact, she was pretty sure if she said she saw her as a mum she was just going to go crazy on her as well.

But she had grown so fond of the life the three of them had been living.

If she had been a human teenager she no doubt would have gone on about how her life had been a lie for the last few months and show she was never ever going to be able to forgive Bill...

Well, the truth was it was going to take her a damn long time before she was able to consider such an action. But she had grown up quite a lot in the last few months and she was beginning to understand that forever for her and Bill was going to be a very long time.

He was her maker and he had been a friend to her when she had needed him to be.

She was more pissed off than she had ever been at him before.

But the fact was her life over the past few months had not been a lie. For her and Pam, it had not been a lie.

And not that it made any thing any easier at that moment, she had been able to see the remorse Bill felt for what he had done all over his face.

The bloody tears he had cried when he had been saying sorry to her had been very genuine she was sure. Still, he was going to need a hell of a lot more than sorry when Pam found out what he had done. She was just going to rip his head off.

And Jess didn't blame her...

Nevertheless he had driven her back to the one place she knew she should not have gone back to.

To Hoyt. To comfort and security.

But maybe that was what she had needed after everything. Not to love, but to be sure she was loved. It was selfish. She knew she should not lead him on. Perhaps later she would glamour him to forget that they had even spent more than one night together that week.

But as he held on to her then she could not draw away. She just couldn't. All she could do was lay her head on his chest and enjoy the soothing sensation of him running his fingers through her long red hair.

If she could forget for just a moment, she was sure she would feel better.

XXX

Pam had known as soon as she had seen the ship that she was going to have a wonderful time on it.

She had boarded the night before they had been due to set sail and when she woke up at sea, Pam felt as if she was free. Not that she had not been free for a very long time.

"This is fantastic," she said as she held on to the arm of Mr. Haroldson. He had been a bore when they had all been in London and he was going to be a bore on the ship but. She was, however, sure she was going to be able to find someone to amuse her.

For the first time they were on the promenade. God, she knew he had been on a lot of ships in his time, but for the life of her she did not think she was ever going to be able to figure out why Eric had said he was not going come with her. She wished he was there with her and she did not mind sending him a message to let him know. A warm sensation flooded in to her as he told her how missed she was in return.

Separation was going to be part of their life... but it did hurt.

She looked up at the sky. It was part of every vampire's life to miss the sensation of the warmth of the sun on their skin. But honestly – the stars were so bright and beautiful and the night was ...

It made her understand there was more than one kind of magic in the world.

"As are you my dear," said the man at his side with smile and she felt her skin crawl. But she knew she had to play the little women to keep him sweet.

And to stay close to his pretty wife.

A smirked played on her lips.

Oh yes, she was going to enjoy being aboard the Titanic.

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