A/N: As usual thank you for all your kind reviews and alerts. You are all so amazing and I'm truly grateful.
This is a pretty long chapter but it's one of my faves so far...
Charlaine Harris owns the rights to these characters.
I spent the drive home stealing quick glances at Eric. He was back and I was in a complete state of bliss. He looked intently at the road as he sped along but his hand was on my knee as his thumb stroked my knee absent-mindedly, the smallest touch sending impulses straight to my core. As we stopped at some lights, he looked across at me with a knowing smile and I realised then how much
I had missed the real him. Every smirk, every tease, everything that made him mine.
Pam had offered, or rather acquiesced after a stern look from Eric, to take Octavia and Amelia back to Bon Temps, so we were alone in the car as it pulled up outside his house. Fuelled by adrenaline, I decided it was time to play a little. We both need a little fun after the events of the last few days. I shifted in my seat to face him and leaned over slowly, placing one hand on his knee. He eyed me cautiously but I could see the corner of his mouth begin to turn up into a smirk.
"So spanking, huh? Is that something you want to do to me?" I teased playfully.
I felt his body stiffen slightly as he turned to face me with a leer, his lips dangerously close to mine. His fangs were down and I could feel his cool breath on my skin. "Sookie, I want to do everything to you," he replied, voice low, tucking a strand of hair gently behind my ear.
The temperature in the car seemed to soar instantly and somehow the tone of this conversation had gone from playful to intense in seconds. Eric's eyes were blazing at me and I couldn't even make eye contact with him as I murmured my reply. "I know how you feel. I want you to show me it all. I want to try everything with you. I've never felt like this before with anyone…" I felt my insides clench with heat at my revelation but I knew it was true.
Eric lifted my chin with his finger, raising my eyes to his and then nodded. He leaned forward slightly and I expected him to kiss me but instead he unbuckled my seatbelt. His nose nuzzled into my hair as he paused at my neck to inhale my scent and then put his mouth to my ear. "Let's go inside," he said quickly, firmly, pulling away from me and exiting the car in one graceful fluid movement. He was around to my side of the car before I could open the door and he lifted me out gently and carried me into the house.
I was suddenly very nervous. Never tease a horny vampire, I chided myself. What was he going to do? Would it hurt? I'd never done anything remotely like this before. Or at least I thought I hadn't. My thoughts briefly flitted to Bill before I buried them away for another time.
"We will do everything and anything you want, Sookie," Eric smiled while placing me gently on the bed. "But not tonight," he added with a smile. "It's not the right moment. You are tired and injured. Tonight I am going to care for you like you have been caring for me."
I felt a jolt of disappointment run through me, despite my nerves, which Eric immediately picked up on. "Don't worry lover," he added with a lascivious smile, pulling my dirty tank top over my head and unhooking my bra. "I still have a little game in mind for us."
Eric proceeded to slowly divest me of the rest of my dirty clothes until I was laid out on his huge bed, totally exposed. His eyes raked over my naked body as I shifted on the bed a little, yearning to be touched.
"Stay where you are, lover," Eric growled, voice commanding. "Do not move."
He left the room returning, a couple of minutes later, with a large bowl in his hand. He'd taken off his blood-stained shirt and cleaned up a little, pulling his hair back into a fresh ponytail. I suddenly felt very grimy in comparison. Along with a folded white wash cloth, Eric placed the bowl gently on the bedside table. The bowl was full of steaming scented water. I inhaled gently. Vanilla.
"This," he said gesturing to the bowl with a soft smile, "is the caring part of the game. And these," he added sexily, pulling out two patterned silk scarves from the back pocket of his jeans, "are the fun part…" Oh my.
"Put your hands above your head," Eric ordered, voice low. I complied immediately with a flirty smile. Normally I hated it when Eric was bossy and high-handed but right now it was turning me into liquid lust.
Deftly, Eric bound my hands together with one of the scarves, hooking it around the bedpost. I pulled slightly, testing my restraints; it wasn't uncomfortable but I could hardly move. Eric looked at me with a knowing grin that would have melted my panties, if I'd had any on, and ran his index finger along my cheek, down over my chest, stopping at my navel. I arched into his touch, every nerve ending under my skin starting to hum from the slightest contact. Eric reached for the other scarf and looked at me hungrily.
"What's that for?" I asked, voice full of excitement and just a tinge of nerves.
"This will make everything you feel more intense," he murmured with a fleeting smile.
Eric folded the scarf into a blindfold and tied it behind my head. Gently laying my head back on the pillow, he placed a brief chaste kiss on my lips and I instantly realised what he meant. Every other sense was intensified and I could feel so much more as his skin glanced across mine.
As he made his way to the end of the bed, I felt the mattress move as he sat between my legs. I shifted my position anxiously as I heard him dip the cloth into the bowl and ring out any excess water. My breathing hitched in anticipation as I waited for his next move.
Gently he lifted my right leg and ran the wash cloth along the bridge of my foot. The cloth was hot and rough against my bare skin and I flinched at the contact, squirming slightly from the ticklish feeling it gave me. Eric held me still and then, when I had calmed, began to plant cool soft kisses along the inside of my foot, following the path of the cloth.
He dipped the cloth into the water again, this time running it up my lower leg from ankle to knee, again following the cloth with gentle kisses of his own. The sensation of the warm friction of the cloth, followed by Eric's cool mouth, made my body writhe as he moved higher and higher up the inside of each leg to the apex of my thighs. He mirrored these actions across my navel and from my hips up my sides to the tips of my fingers but neglecting all the important areas of my body that, by now, were screaming to be touched.
Finally, I felt the cloth rub underneath my left breast and swirl roughly around my nipple and I lifted away from the bed at the contact, pulling at the scarf round my wrists.
"Please Eric," I moaned greedily. "More…"
I felt him smile into my skin as he followed the path of the cloth with his mouth, scraping his fangs across my sensitive nipple, pulling and elongating it with his lips. He repeated the process on the other breast and I thought I might explode with need.
"More…" I rasped as he dragged the cloth slowly down my stomach, further still between my legs, following the path with his mouth.
As he finally ran his tongue between my legs, I shuddered forcefully, and he let out a small groan.
"Jesus Sookie, you are so wet."
"Please Eric," I gasped, bucking wantonly against him. "I want you. Inside me. Please."
He swirled his tongue around my clit one last time and then I felt his weight move off the bed as he removed his jeans. I pulled at my restraints desperate to touch him again and then he was on me, pushing into me, slowly filling me at a pace that made me plead with him to go faster, harder. He gave me second to adjust to his size and then he complied, pounding into me, lifting my legs around his hips, burying himself inside me.
I smelt his blood as he lifted his open wrist to my mouth and lapped greedily as his blood trickled languidly down my throat. I was over the edge in seconds, feeling everything more intensely, revelling in the bond. Seconds later I felt the delectable sting of Eric's fangs in my neck prolonging my release, as Eric began to convulse inside me, coming hard with a loud groan.
Eric kissed my forehead gently as he removed the scarves around my eyes and wrists. "That was, just, yum," I said, rubbing my wrists as I snuggled into Eric.
"It certainly was," Eric agreed with a grin, pulling me into his chest. He stroked my hair, softly, running his fingers to check my head where I had been attacked.
"I was so worried," he confessed quietly. "One minute you were there smiling at us and the next minute you were slumped on the floor being dragged into the warehouse."
"Shhh, I'm fine now," I reassured him, stroking my fingers across his chest.
"Thank God for the bond, is all I can say."
"The bond?" I asked, slightly confused.
"I knew you were alive," he acknowledged with a sigh. "I stormed into the warehouse determined to make them pay but I knew you were alive." He pulled me tighter into his arms whispering into my hair, so softly, I could barely hear. "I won't lose you."
0-0-0-0-0
I awoke the next day, slightly disorientated in a pitch black room. I shifted slightly, realising that I was in Eric's huge bed with the leaden undead arm of a Viking vampire draped lazily over my middle. My eyes began to adjust, no doubt helped along with a healthy dose of vampire blood, and there was a small glow on the bedside table from the alarm clock. It was two thirty in the afternoon.
I eased myself out from the bed, deliciously sore in all the right places, although I noted, feeling the back of my scalp, that the gash to my head had totally healed.
I showered quickly and washed my hair, pulling on a cotton vest-top and some boyshorts. There wasn't much point getting fully dressed. I was only going to be hanging around the house and, let's face it, Eric would be up soon and I'd probably be getting undressed again pretty quickly. After a quick call to update Gran on my plans and check on my witches, I poured myself a large bowl of cereal. I sat cross-legged on Eric's huge couch, wolfing it down as I flicked through the TV channels, eventually settling on CNN.
The big news of the day was that the Vampire Rights Act had been passed. The correspondent was reporting outside a chapel in Vermont where preparations were being made for the first legal vampire human marriage at sundown today and, not for the first time, I marvelled at the fact that I had done it all before it was even legislated for. I smiled to myself; Eric and Pam were now full legal tax-paying citizens and that was cause to celebrate if ever there was. Well, I don't suppose they'd be that overjoyed at the tax-paying part but it did mean that I could transfer the bars back to them now with no fear of repercussion.
I pottered around Eric's house for the rest of the day, reading for a bit, watching TV. At some point I must have fallen asleep on Eric's couch because I was suddenly awoken by a huge vampire sidling onto the couch behind me.
"Eric?" I smiled sleepily, stretching out against his body.
"I didn't mean to wake you," he said with regret, "I thought we could snuggle for a bit before Pam gets here."
That woke me up. "Pam's coming?" I asked with surprise. This was news to me.
"Yes. I am afraid I have to go into Fangtasia tonight. Stamp my authority back on bar and kingdom business, catch up on outstanding matters that cropped up while I was… out of circulation. Pam has offered to take you shopping. You're going to need a fair bit of stuff for Vegas. Some evening wear, that kind of thing…"
He held me to him, burying his face into my neck. I could tell through the bond that he was cautious, waiting to see how I would react. Part of me wanted to tell him off for being so overbearing but the other part, the dominant part, was still so glad that Eric was back to his old ways, it didn't really matter. In any case, I did need to go shopping at some point and Pam would be a much better judge on what I'd need for vampire summit.
"Okay," I sighed, pulling myself out of his iron grip. "But if we're expecting visitors, I need to get dressed. That means no time for snuggling, or anything else for that matter."
Eric frowned irritably for a second. "Fine," he finally conceded.
"Okay then," I agreed, placing a quick peck on his forehead and running up the stairs to get dressed.
0-0-0-0-0
Pam and I were scouring through the racks of a designer boutique in Shreveport, which by all accounts stayed open late for Pam at her request. I had three dresses in my pile, waiting to be tried on; Pam had about twenty.
She pulled another dress off the rack, a pale blue cocktail dress and held it up to her neck in front of a long mirror. "So I saw on the news that the Vampire Rights Act has passed…" she remarked casually, fingering the beadwork on the dress with a small frown.
"Yes, I forgot to say Pam. Congratulations, you are now officially a U.S. citizen."
"Lucky me," she replied drolly turning back to look at herself. She tilted her head to one side and smiled, "Of course, the most interesting thing to come out of these new laws is that vampires and humans can now marry…"
Shit. I tried hard not to blush, guessing where she was going with this. "It's really lovely of you to offer Pam, but I don't think Eric would approve if we eloped," I replied facetiously.
Pam narrowed her eyes at me. "Come, come, Sookie, you can't fool me. You're a traditional girl at heart. Don't pretend you haven't thought about what this means for you and Eric."
Of course I had but I really didn't want to discuss this now, or ever really, with Pam.
"Not really Pam. You forget I've already been married to one vampire and that didn't exactly end well," I snapped. "Amelia, on the other hand, has never been married. Why don't you ask her if you're so desperate to further Area 5's vampire/human relations?"
She coolly picked another dress off the rack, a stunning pale peach evening dress, and lifted it up in front of her.
"Obviously, for me it will always be vampires first…" She looked at me with a smirk and I had to smile at that because, please, who was she kidding? "But, if you are going to be hanging around with us for a while… I would like to plan a bridal shower. I've read all about them in Dear Abby and you are my closest human friend."
"I'm your only human friend Pam," I replied exasperated. "And that's not exactly a stellar reason to get married is it?"
"Me thinks the telepath is protesting a little too much," Pam teased as she inspected the label on the gown.
"Pam, please," I pleaded with a sigh.
She shrugged off-handedly. "Fine, I'll be quiet. For now. Here," she said, handing me the dress, "this is your size and will look better with your tan."
"Fine," I said, grabbing the dress and heading to the fitting room, grateful this excruciating conversation was over. For now.
0-0-0-0-0
The next week or so flew by and it was soon time for us to go to the Nevada summit. Eric had decided that, as his second, Pam should stay in Louisiana and effectively govern in his absence. I was a little disappointed not to have her there with me for moral support but she had started making pointed remarks about marriage at almost every opportunity, sometimes even in front of Eric, so it was probably better this way. Eric chose instead to bring along Rasul, the new Sheriff of New Orleans, and Maxwell Lee and Thalia for security. He had also arranged for Patrick and Devon from Alcide's pack to meet us in Vegas. Ostensibly, this was to guard his royal person during the day while in a foreign territory but I wondered how much of it was really Eric's way of keeping a high-handed eye on me.
We were scheduled to leave for Nevada about an hour before sundown. Eric had gone to rest in what he termed "his travel coffin", a large fibreglass light-tight box that looked like something you'd put on top of the car to store surfboards. I sat in the living room, one hand absent-mindedly stroking the box, as I waited for the Anubis Air representatives to come and collect us. As they loaded Eric into the back of the vehicle, I noticed that there were three other travel coffins already in the back. I assumed it was Rasul, Thalia and Maxwell Lee.
There really were days when dating a vampire was just too surreal for words.
Eric and the others all rose about half an hour after the flight took off. The air stewardess immediately came out with bottles of TruBlood, handing them out to the hungry vampires, much to my relief. Maxwell Lee and Thalia both nodded to me, before bowing to Eric and taking their bloods to the back of the plane. Rasul, however, came and sat with us. I liked him instantly; he was laid-back and flirty, though never over-stepping the mark, with a sharp sense of humour. He actually reminded me a lot of Pam and I could see why Eric had chosen him as Sheriff.
Rasul told me that, although he had been turned centuries ago in what is now Syria, he had spent a lot of time in Las Vegas in the 1950s, running one of the casinos. He regaled me with stories of Sinatra and Dean Martin and I hooted with laughter at all his charming anecdotes as Eric looked on, bemusement evident on his face.
I'd been to Vegas once before, on a road trip with Tara and J.B. after we left high school, but it seemed even bigger and brighter this time around as we drove up the Strip in the limo. I looked out of the window taking it all in with a sense of wonder.
The Incubus casino dominated the northern end of the Strip, an intimidating black Gothic structure illuminated by red and silver spotlights. Huge red water fountains gushed in the elaborate night gardens, spewing forth "blood" like the Bellagio after a massacre. Eric informed me that the Incubus had been here since before the Great Revelation, but the vampire "motif" was now less of a theme and more of a reality. The top three floors were completely light-tight and reserved for vampire guests. Apparently, we had a suite on the top floor, alongside the King of Nevada, Felipe de Castro, and all the other visiting monarchs.
I noticed there were crowds of people standing outside the front of the hotel and, as we approached, I saw that they were protesters, picketing the Incubus in response to the Vampire Rights Act.
"The chapel at the Incubus has hosted dozens of vampire/human marriages since the Act passed," Rasul explained with an infectious grin. "Some people aren't as happy about that as others."
"I'm surprised the King doesn't just glamour them all," I muttered as we pulled up. The malicious thoughts of all the protesters were knocking at my shields, trying to get into my head. I kept them out but it was draining me. There were so many.
Eric looked at me with concern as the casino security opened the limo door and ushered us into the huge Gothic foyer. I immediately felt the peace of entering a vampire establishment. "Let's go find our suite," Eric suggested taking me by the hand, "then you can rest a while before we have to meet the King."
0-0-0-0-0
Our audience with Felipe de Castro was scheduled for 2 a.m. I got myself ready, slipping into one of the cocktail dresses I had found with Pam. It was royal blue silk, simple and fitted with a ruffle over one shoulder. I had matching pumps and small gold clutch bag to complete the look. It looked sexy but classy, I hoped, a fitting combination for the human bonded of a Vampire King.
"Is this alright?" I asked Eric nervously, doing a little twirl in the seating area of our sumptuous suite.
"You look perfect," he said with a smile. "I'll be the envy of the summit," he joked. "They'll all be wanting to knock me off so they can steal my human."
"Judging by our last meeting with Victor Madden, that may not be far from the truth," I ventured with a raised eyebrow.
"Indeed," Eric accepted. "But we shall manage his expectations tonight."
We made our way to the King's apartments as directed with Rasul and the others observing protocol and following a few paces behind Eric. We were ushered by de Castro's vampire guards into a large seating area, where about twenty vampires were milling around, sipping blood out of black champagne flutes.
There were a couple of humans seated in an area towards the back of the room. I read their minds quickly. Donors.
Victor Madden slithered towards us, materialising through the crowd, seemingly from out of nowhere. "Your majesty," he said, greeting Eric with a slight bow, "welcome to Nevada." He turned to me with a slimy smile. "Miss Stackhouse, you look as delicious as ever."
"Madden," Eric replied haughtily. He was in no mood for Victor's games tonight, I could feel his irritation through the bond.
The Vegas vamp led us through the mingling throng, as Eric nodded greetings to some of the vampires, leading us towards a seating area where two vampires were sitting side by side, deep in conversation. The male vampire was exceedingly good-looking. He reminded me a little of a young Jimmy Smits, with pale golden skin and long flowing black hair. He was dressed in what I could only describe as pirate chic; a white ruffled shirt was teamed black leather trousers and boots and he seemed to have some sort of extravagant cape draped over one shoulder. I managed to suppress my amusement; this had to be de Castro.
The woman was very small, more petite than even Sophie-Anne, but she had a presence about her that belied her power. Like her male counterpart, you could tell she'd had an olive complexion before she was turned. Her features were keen, striking but not pretty, and her hair was cut into an elegant dark bob. She looked me up and down with a careful gaze, giving nothing away.
Victor turned to Eric. "Your majesty, may I please introduce his royal highness Felipe de Castro, King of Nevada. I believe that you already know Queen Alexandria of New York," he added suggestively. "Master, this is Eric Northman, King of Louisiana."
"Your majesty. Thank you for inviting me to your kingdom," Eric replied formally.
"The pleasure is all mine," de Castro replied with a flamboyant bow. "And please call me Felipe."
"Lexi," Eric added with a smile to the Queen. "It's good to see you."
"It really is," she agreed with a warm smile. "God, how long has it been?"
"Nearly thirty years," Eric offered. "Pam and I came and stayed with you in '82 if I recall." I gave Victor a defiant glare at that. He flinched slightly and I could sense his disappointment.
The Queen feigned a shudder as if suddenly remembering the 80s and Eric laughed. I made myself an internal note to ask Pam for some photos of Eric back in the day.
"Felipe, Lexi, may I introduce my bonded, Miss Sookie Stackhouse." I managed a little curtsey, nodding politely at both monarchs. I'd really have to ask Eric to teach me what I was supposed to do in these situations.
"Meez Stackhouse," de Castro grabbed my hand and ghosted a kiss across my knuckles. He was smooth but not slimy like Victor. "I have heard a great deal about you but, I must say, the reports do not do you justice."
I bet they don't, I thought to myself, especially if they came from Giselle. As if by magic, I saw a flurry of red as the vampire in question made her way towards us, looking stunning in a deep burgundy cocktail dress and super high heels. "Eric," she squealed, jostling past me and ignoring me as expected. "You are finally here."
"Giselle," Eric said nodding at her curtly.
She linked her arm in his and twisted him away from me looking over towards the assembled vampires. "We have so much to catch up on and there are a number if people you need to meet. Come, come," she urged, pulling on his arm in the direction of the other guests. Felipe gave Eric a look that said "you try and stop her," and Eric followed her, still arm in arm, over to the others.
I looked after him, horror evident on my face. He left me. I was at a vampire summit in a room full of strangers and he fucking left me.
After a few minutes of awkward small talk, I managed to extricate myself from Felipe and the Queen with a shy smile and another curtsey and they immediately went back to their deep discussions. I looked around the room for Eric, bubbling with rage, and spotted him in the midst of a group of female vampires. He looked up briefly and smiled at me apologetically. I glared at him for a second and stomped off to find the others.
Rasul was talking to a pretty donor towards the back of the room but smiled at me warmly as I approached, dismissing her with a small nod. "Rasul, could you take me back to my suite please?" I asked quietly.
"I'm not sure Eric would approve..." he tried.
"Frankly Rasul, I couldn't give a rat's ass what Eric would approve of at this moment," I snapped quietly. "So please take me back or I'll go back myself."
"As you wish," he said with a bow and offered me his arm.
We walked back to suite in silence and as I put my key card in the door Rasul cleared his throat. "Don't think too badly of him, Sookie," he whispered. "Sometimes he must act like the Vampire King he is. To undermine that, is to risk us all."
"I know," I replied quietly, a solitary tea running down my cheek. "But it still hurts and it makes me feel worthless."
Rasul nodded compassionately and I let myself into the room. I crawled into bed alone and with a heavy heart, quiet tears streaming down my face until I fell asleep.
0-0-0-0-0
I awoke the next morning around eleven, my bladder crying out for attention. Eric had returned to the room at some point, managing to sneak an arm over me as I slept, and I shrugged out of his embrace like a petulant child. I was still fuming with him and knew I needed some time to myself to calm down. I got showered and dressed, thinking a day by the pool would be just what the doctor ordered, and headed down to breakfast, my grumbling stomach reminding me that while my head may be getting more and more used to vampire time, my stomach was still on catch-up. I said good morning to Devon and Patrick who were stood outside the door and Devon followed me down to the main casino lobby.
There was an elaborate buffet breakfast spread laid out in a room off the main foyer. Devon smiled at me, pulling a newspaper out from under his arm and indicating he'd be waiting on a sofa facing the entrance. Breakfast was open late to cater for human guests of the vampire clientèle but the room itself was small and there were only a limited number of tables set out, all crowded with bleary-eyed fangbangers.
I put my shields up immediately. I'd been to Fangtasia enough times to have a fairly good idea as to what they'd all be thinking about and I didn't need to hear that while I ate my breakfast.
I skipped the fruit and cereal and went straight for the hot options piling some bacon and scrambled eggs onto my plate and then making my way over to the sausage. Next to me, there was a man peering into the container holding grits. He had the metal lid in one hand and was looking at the food inside with a slight grimace.
"I'd avoid the grits if I were you," he said to me with a conspiratorial smile, "they look instant to me and they've definitely seen better days." He was a pleasant looking man, not too tall, with neat dark hair. He was dressed in jeans and a blue plaid shirt, refreshing in a room full of fangbangers, and his thick Texan accent immediately put me at ease.
I put my hand on my chest, feigning shock. "My goodness, my Grandmother would be horrified. I think I should write a letter of complaint on her behalf."
"We may have to start a campaign," he agreed with a friendly wink. "Start up the Society for the Protection of Grits in Nevada…" I nodded with a smile and he sauntered down the buffet table towards the drinks.
I did avoid the grits but piled some sausage and cornbread onto my plate before pouring myself a huge cup of coffee. When I got to then end of the line, I looked about the room hesitantly and I noticed blue plaid was doing the same. There was only one free table.
"We could share?" I suggested with a hopeful smile. I really didn't want to sit with any of the fangbangers. I made a mental note to order breakfast to the room tomorrow morning. Would Devon be reporting back to Eric that I was having breakfast with a strange man? Serves Eric right if he does, I yelled to myself indignantly. Yep, I was definitely still angry.
"That would be lovely," blue plaid agreed with a grin.
We wandered over to the table and, as I set down my breakfast, I introduced myself. "I'm Sookie Stackhouse by the way. Thanks so much for letting me share."
"You're quite welcome," he smirked, seemingly amused all of a sudden by some private joke. "It really is a pleasure to make your acquaintance Sookie. My name's Steve… Steve Newlin."
A/N: Dun! Dun! Dun! You didn't think I'd forgotten about the FOTS did you? Of course not! Please review – as always, I'm anxious to hear your thoughts.
Just a couple of chapters left folks but I've still got a couple of plot turns up my sleeve – don't you worry. I might also do a couple of out-takes as well – an Eric/Sookie hanky-spanky one comes to mind and maybe one with Pam and Amelia… Let me know what you think. Is there anything you'd like to see?
One last thing, I'm putting together an entry for the 7 Deadly Sins Contest (see http:/www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/u/2426932/7DeadlySinsContest for details) but I need a beta. If there's anyone out there kind enough to help me out, please PM me.