Always the Love Songs

He silently opened the door for Charlie, and followed her as she walked into the living room.

She plopped down on the sofa, kicked off her shoes and threw her vest on the other side of the couch.

Josef sat down next to her. Looking at her intently, he was silent for a moment before asking, "Why did you go into the restroom with Beth?"

"Two things," Charlie began, half smiling, "one, to keep y'all on your toes, and two, if I was able to hold it together alone with her, I figured Mick might relax enough to let everyone enjoy themselves."

"And did you, enjoy yourself, I mean?" Josef asked.

"Yeah. Beth gave me her number. She's pretty great. I think I would have been friends with her even if she weren't the only girl I've seen since becoming undead," Charlie said yawning. "Mick seems nice too. A little over-protective, but then I guess I would be too if I was with a human."

Josef smiled at her apt assessment of Mick. "He liked you too, said Beth was gonna call you to see if you want to go out sometime. You know without the lame old guys."

"That would be so much more fun," she said with a smile. "Speaking of old men and bloodlust, I'm gonna go get a real drink, you want one?"

"Yeah," Josef nodded. He sat there for a moment, waiting, and when she didn't immediately return, he decided to go after her.

He got into the kitchen, and Charlie had her back to him. He could smell the blood, and his fangs came down in approval. He tapped her on the shoulder.

Apparently, she was truly surprised, because as she turned to face him, fangs out, she bit her own lip. The blood began to drip slowly down her chin, and he saw a perfectly formed drop hit the floor.

Without thought for his actions or even a word of warning, he closed the distance between them and took her face in his hands. Licking her chin, he began to kiss her passionately.

She held very still at first, and then kissed him back just as fiercely. Her heart soared, finally acknowledging to herself that this was what she'd hoped for all along. Mirroring his posture, she put one hand in his hair and one on his hip.

With that hand, he hoisted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. At her movement, he growled lowly, and pressed her body against the wall before deciding to run faster than humanly possible up to their freezer.

If Charlie noticed the change in venue, she didn't comment. That might have been because her lips never left his skin, trailing with abandon over his face and neck and shoulders.

He slid her shirt off, and then his. She gave him a flirty smile, and slipped out of her jeans.

She sat down on the bed, and leaned back on her elbows. Giving him a come hither look, she made a motion that he should turn around.

With a wink, he did and began to take his pants off, slowly. Turning at the waist to give her a smoldering look, he threw them across the room, mimicking her earlier treatment of her vest.

Thus, in nothing but a pair of black boxers, he walked to the bed, and knelt above her. He began to trace the lines of her bra, with his mouth and tongue, and her panties with his hands.

After several minutes of this exquisite torture and no actual indication he was going to take it further, Charlie put her hands on his boxers, and quite efficiently tore them into pieces.

She flipped him onto his back, and with the sexiest, most in-control look he'd ever seen, she stroked her own shoulders, thus making her bra straps fall to rest on her arms. With her hands, she shook out her thick hair, fluffing it for a moment.

Then she reached back to unsnap her bra, letting it fall to Josef's stomach.

She again used her hands to caress it away, glorying in his perfectly formed abs, to its final resting place, the floor.

She stood up quickly, and Josef, so used to being the controlling force in romantic trysts, just sat back and enjoyed the view.

Turning away from him, she shimmied her panties off. At this Josef decided being a passive observer did not suit him past this point, and pinned her against the wall. He trailed a flame of kisses from her ear to her ribs.

"Charmed, I'm sure," Charlie said.

Long past daylight, they were still laying in each others arms.

She awoke that night to an empty freezer. She stretched languidly as she replayed the previous 24 hours. She smiled as she thought of how much better it was than she expected. She could only hoped it'd be just one in a long line of long nights.

She had the sudden urge to call a girlfriend and gossip, and since she couldn't easily explain the Josef thing to them, she called Beth instead.

"So, should I begin by saying, 'you were right'?" Charlie asked after they'd exchanged pleasantries.

"Of course. Always," Beth laughed, "But what was I right about this time?"

"Oh, you know, nothing much really, it's just that me and Josef hooked up last night, and I remember thinking you were crazy when you mentioned the possibility," Charlie said, nonchalantly.

"OH MY GOD!" Beth exclaimed. "I mean I knew I was good, but wow. Maybe I should start charging for my services."

"It's always nice to have an alternate revenue stream," Charlie agreed.

"So spill," Beth said.

"Well, I was getting us some blood, and I bit my lip. Josef started to lick the blood off my chin, and we kissed and then, well, you know," Charlie recapped, with a telling inflection on her last two words.

"Sexy and uniquely vampishly gross, all at the same time," said Beth, jokingly.

"Well if you were a vamp, you wouldn't have found it gross at all, I can promise you," Charlie said honestly.

"Yeah," Beth sighed wistfully. "So what did he say when you guys woke up tonight?"

"Nothing, he went to work, I guess. I was still asleep,"Charlie replied. "I guess we'll talk tonight."

"Definitely call me afterward. I'd love to hear how Josef declares his undying love," Beth smiled.

"I'm sure. You better keep your hands on your own man," Charlie replied laughing.

"Whatever, like I didn't catch you checking out Mick's ass," Beth said with a chuckle.

"It's a nice ass," Charlie retorted.

"I know right. Hey, we should go out tomorrow night to celebrate my omniscience and your spectacular good fortune, how's Hyde at midnight?" Beth asked.

"That sounds great. I haven't been out in forever. But I gotta go, I hear Josef. See you then."

Always the Love Songs by Eli Young Band (This is their current single, so if you listen to country radio you may have heard it. I actually heard it the first time in concert, more recently in an IHOP in Humble, TX, when I was visiting my mom. :] )

It was always the love songs every time
Made everybody feel something inside
With the fire down low
Held your girl real close
Made you wanna love the one you were with
Gave you the courage for that first kiss
It was the love songs
Always the love songs