A/N: Apparently, if you actually take your Adderall, suddenly you can write again! :P CTD Chapter 9 is done and betaed (later this week) and SE21 is almost there (around this time next week). :D

Chapter 20

Eric put his elbows on the desk and his head in his hands, his fingers buried in his hair. Sookie was still sobbing in the bathroom. He could tell that she was trying to make as little noise as possible, but he could hear her anyway.

What in the fuck was the matter with him? She was right - she had made her expectations very clear. And he had agreed. Well, of course he had. They were vampires, for fuck's sakes.

And, after all of that, she had chosen not to have sex with the Were anyway. And then he'd made a complete ass of himself.

He tried to tell himself that it was because Alcide was a Were. That, no matter what Sookie thought about it, fucking Weres was just wrong. Unnatural. That humans were different. That he would have been fine with her spending some time alone with a fuck and feed. It was bullshit. Yes, Supes were territorial, and even more territorial when it came to other Supes. But he would have been just as out of his mind if it had been a human that she'd been holding and kissing in front of the house.

But the control. She should have been in bloodlust. Hell, based on physical criteria, she had been. And not only had she not attacked him, she had stood her ground, verbally eviscerated him, and then walked away. Even if she was fighting it so hard that she was shaking. At a week old. He wondered if she'd even known what it was. Of course, she hadn't even blinked standing next to a full-blooded fairy.

At least she hadn't tried to attack him. He was afraid that she would have gotten hurt. He wouldn't harm her on purpose, of course, but restraining a vampire in bloodlust was sometimes a difficult and dangerous proposition. For both.

He didn't know what to do except apologize. But that was something that he just didn't do. And he didn't think that it would be adequate, anyway. He was sure that insulting her Weres had been a much more egregious offense than insulting her would have been. But, of course, he had done that, too.

He sighed, got up, and went to the bedroom door. He could hear that she was still in the shower. Tentatively, he tried to open it, and it was unlocked. He wasn't so lucky with the bathroom.

He took a deep breath and knocked. He was nervous for fuck's sakes. How had she done this to him? And in only a week?

"Sookie, I'm sorry. I really am. But I saw you kiss him out the window, and I…"

Her voice was ice cold. "Oh, so you were spying on me, too?"

Eric closed his eyes in frustration. "I know that I agreed to your terms, and that I had no right to be angry with you. And I know that I should not have jumped to conclusions. But, Sookie. You're mine."

Her voice sounded surprisingly strong, despite the tears. "I was his first. And for longer. But I chose you, you stupid shit. I don't know if it's occured to you, but I could have gone back to them at any point in the past couple of nights. I even thought about it once or twice. Unlike some vampires, I don't need a lightproof place to rest. But I stayed with you. Because I love you. But after this shit? I'm half tempted to call Alcide so he can pick me up and take me back to New Orleans. My wolves would never treat me like that. Now fuck off. I'm tired of yelling through the fucking door. And if you break it down, I will leave. And I won't come back."

He believed her.

He tried to get back to work, but he just couldn't concentrate on anything. The shower and crying had both stopped some time before, but she hadn't left the bedroom. And he'd heard the bedroom door lock, too.

Close to dawn, he went into the spare bedroom and climbed into the coffin. He was somewhere between incredulous and amused. He was over one thousand years old. He was an experienced maker. He was a fierce warrior who had struck fear into the hearts of countless enemies. And he'd been shunned and berated and kicked out of his own bed by his one week old child. And he was taking it. He didn't know if Pam would have yelled at him or laughed at him.

...

Eric rose an hour before sunset. He was, of course, stuck inside the coffin until it was safe to get out. Sookie had been sitting on the floor leaning with her back against it for over an hour, waiting for the hole of his brain to wink into existence.

"I've been awake for hours. I was so sleepy, but I just couldn't sleep. I almost called Alcide a hundred times. I even punched in the number, but I couldn't go through with it." Her voice was rough and slightly muffled, but he could hear her easily. She sounded tired and defeated.

"I'm glad." He wanted to say more, but held himself back.

"You need to make a decision, Eric. Are you my master or are you my… my whatever this is?"

There was a long pause. "I don't understand."

"This isn't going to work if you're going to treat me like shit every time you get jealous or don't get your way. Especially if you tell me that I have to take it because you're the boss. I know that I need to listen to you when it comes to vampire things - I'm not an idiot - but when it's just you and me? I'm not going to be with you if you're going to put your foot down every time we disagree, or if you go back on your word and keep moving the goalposts, or if you disrespect me and my friends like that again."

Sookie swallowed, and then took a deep shaky breath. Her voice was thick with tears. "I hate this. This isn't who I am. Or at least who I was. I was dirt poor and lived with three werewolves crammed into a Volkswagen van like sardines, but we were always happy. I never had to worry about anything. Crazy or not, I thought my life was pretty much perfect. And part of me would give anything to get that back. I could probably come close right now. I could live off of just Alcide, Jake, and Maria-Star's blood. And I know they'd be more than happy to do it. I would need to sleep some during the day, but I could do that in the van. We even have curtains. And I'm sure that I could pass for human. Especially since I can walk around in the daylight. But everything has changed. I have. It wouldn't be the same. Not just because I'm a vampire, but because I love you. But, if you can't respect me, I will go back to New Orleans and give it a try."

After another long pause, he said, "I could command you to stay."

She snorted. "You could try. And, even if it worked, I would resent you for the rest of my... I would resent you forever. I would make you miserable as long as you made me stay. And I would never sleep with you again. Not willingly, at least."

"I do not tolerate rape."

"I didn't figure you would."

Neither one of them spoke for a few minutes. Finally, Sookie said, "I was jealous, too. I glamoured Dawn Green to forget that she'd slept with you. But that didn't hurt anybody."

He chuckled, and then sighed a few moments later. "I will do my best."

She let out a deep breath and nodded to herself. "Good. Well, then I'll do my best to stay."

When the sun set, Eric climbed out of the coffin. Sookie was sitting on the side of the bed, looking up at him. He stood in front of her and held out his hands. She hesitated, but then put her hands into his, and he pulled her up and wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face in his chest and took a shaky breath. He kissed the top of her head. "I am sorry."

"I know."

"I was very impressed with your dirty mouth." She could hear the smile in his voice.

"Thanks. I don't get mad often, but when I do... Look out."

He chuckled. "Yes, I noticed. I'll try to remember for next time."

"Well, hopefully there won't be too many of those."

She looked up at him and closed her eyes, and he leaned down and kissed her. She pulled up the bottom of his shirt, and he pulled it over his head and undressed himself and then her. She maneuvered him around so he was against the bed and pushed him down so he was sitting on the side. She climbed onto his lap facing him and slid down on his cock, burying her fingers in the hair on the back of his head. She wrapped her legs around his hips and kissed him.

She was rocking her hips and setting the pace, and he was caressing her back and ass, pushing up into her in rhythm. She bit his tongue hard, and he jerked, but then moaned as she sucked on it to get as much blood as she could. She pulled away after he'd stopped bleeding and looked him in the eyes. "I'm yours, but you're mine."

He nodded. "I am."

"Monogamy. For both of us."

He could almost hear Pam laughing at him. "Yes."

He nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck - the sunshine and spun sugar scent was so concentrated there - and wondered why he would even want to fuck anyone who didn't smell or taste or fuck like she did. Who didn't love like she did. He licked and kissed her neck before he bit.