Chapter 16

I woke up to the feel of a cool hand making tiny circles across my back. I moaned softly and smiled, fluttering my eyes open. I turned in the giant hotel bed to face Eric, who flashed a grin at me.

"Good morning," I mumbled.

"I think it'd be more fitting to say, 'goodnight,'" he chuckled. I propped myself up on my elbows and peered over his shoulder at the clock on the nightstand. It was six o'clock in the evening.

"I guess I'm already running on vampire time," I mused.

"Of course you are, you're already practically vampire." He started to kiss my neck as he mumbled on, "You can't be glamoured, your mind is unreadable, and then your special abilities…" He trailed off as got distracted with kissing me. His lips on mine felt electric, and I couldn't help but move closer into him. I suddenly realized we were both naked as I pressed my body to his cold skin.

Eric paused for a moment and ran his hand down my bare back, causing me to shiver in anticipation.

"But I'm not a vampire," I told him with a seductive smirk.

"Mmm," he grumbled, the deep animalistic noise resonating from his chest. "Perhaps one day you will be." Without warning, his fangs were in my flesh before I knew it. There was no pain this time, though, only pleasure. I moaned and grinded myself against Eric's body, wanting more.

He pulled away too soon, and I longed for him to return to my neck. But he raised his head up to me, blood dripping from his skin and said, "You're different. What are you?"

I smiled and batted my eyes flirtatiously at him. I cupped my hand around his blood stained cheek and whispered, "Yours."

I woke up, startled. Another dream about Eric? What was wrong with me? I gagged and rubbed my eyes furiously, trying to rid myself of the dream.

It took me a moment to remember where I was. When I did, I slowly turned my head to peek over at the other side of the bed.

"Good morning," Eric grinned at me. "Or judging by the hour, I guess I should say goodnight?"

I screamed in horror as I scrambled out of bed. I fell off the mattress onto the carpeted floor, and before I could finish picking myself up, he was standing in front of me, wearing only his boxers. My eyes widened in fear and I eyed the door. I glanced back and forth from him to the door, trying to calculate my chance of escape. I was sure he saw this and caught onto my intentions, but I made a run for it anyway, sprinting across the room.

I managed to open the door a crack before a strong hand reached over me and shut it roughly. I leaned up against the wood and gasped for breath as I felt his body pressed against me. I gathered myself and turned to face him. He had me trapped between his arms.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Eric mused. He leaned in closer, for a kiss or maybe a bite, who knew? I wasn't taking my chances with either possibility. I ducked under his arm and fled towards the bathroom. Of course, he was in front of me in a flash. I backed up slowly towards the bedside table as he cornered me.

"Come on now, don't be like this," he said to me.

I backed up into the nightstand and was trapped as he closed in on me. I panicked and frantically grabbed a lamp and smashed it over his head without thinking. The lamp shattered, but Eric didn't even so much as blink.

"Well, that wasn't very kind," he said nonchalantly.

"You bit me," I snarled.

"I was thirsty," he shrugged.

"You put me to bed with you," I spat every word out with gritted teeth.

"I was tired."

I squinted my eyes at him. What game was this guy trying to play? Suddenly my mind ran to much more urgent thoughts.

"Umm…" I mumbled nervously. "Did we…?"

"Fuck?" He chuckled. "No, Alessandra we did not fuck." I sighed in relief before he took a step closer and caressed my cheek. "When we fuck, and lover, we will fuck, it won't be while you're unconscious. I don't need the vulnerability of the unwilling. You'll be fully aware and throwing yourself at me, begging for it. And you certainly won't forget the experience so soon."

I was at a loss for words. How could anyone be so arrogant and so cunning? I was so angry at Eric for what he did to me, yet his touch left me dazed. He stroked my cheek with his thumb for a few moments before he pulled away.

"Go shower and get dressed," he ordered. "We have a busy day ahead of us." Without another word, he walked out the door.

I sat on the bed and gave myself a moment to process. Then I figured a shower probably wasn't the worst idea and grabbed my stuff to take to the bathroom. I locked the bathroom door behind me in case a certain vampire came back and tried anything funny. I knew that if he really wanted to get in, he could easily just break the door down with his superhuman strength, but I held onto the hope that the cost for repairs he'd have to pay wouldn't be worth sneaking in with me. Especially now that he had to pay for that expensive looking lamp I smashed over his obnoxious blond head. I smiled to myself at this realization.

Showering was glorious. The shower had always been my happy place, and this one was no exception. The warm water streamed down my back as I took a moment to just stand there and appreciate the feel of the drops on my skin. I felt powerful and vulnerable at the same time. The water stripped away ever worry, every fear, and cleansed me of the memories of unwanted dreams. There was something about the water that made me feel more… more me.

I reluctantly got out of the shower, wrapped myself in a towel, and wrung out my long, wet hair. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and did a double take. I stepped closer as to see my reflection better, and sure enough two tiny marks adorned my skin from where Eric had bitten into and drank from me. I scoffed. I still couldn't believe he actually bit me. And then drank so much of my blood that I passed out so he could take me to bed with him without a fight. I raised my hand to my neck carefully and lightly brushed the bite. It didn't really hurt, but my main concern was how the hell I was going to cover this thing up.

I threw on a dark green blouse and some denim shorts. I dug around in my suitcase for something to cover up the marks. I made due with a black scarf; it was probably too hot out for a scarf, but I had little to work with.

I was fixing my hair when Eric came back, looking like he was on a mission. He walked over, grabbed me by the waist, and led me back out the door.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, where are we going?" I demanded.

"Relax," he said, bored. "We're meeting up with Bill and Sookie to speak with some friends of Godric."