Regina picked idly at the cheese and cold meat platter. Her stomach was killing her, but the smell wafting through the kitchen was too delicious to gorge on cheddar cubes.
Twenty minutes had passed since Regina made her entrance into Hugo's lavish home. "Lawyers, huh?" she mumbled, twirling on her heels to sink in the lavishness. After seeing his indoor waterfall, the appearance of Antonio the Sleepy Chef didn't even cause her to bat an eyelash.
"Where are my manners?" Hugo asked rhetorically. He had been droning on about his old ex-girlfriend, specifically on how amazing she was in bed. It was getting old fast.
"Anything with alcohol," Regina said, plopping a piece of turkey into her mouth. "Please."
Hugo nodded, and left towards the kitchen, where Chef Antonio diligently worked on a the decadent Italian meal.
"Aren't you under the age of consumption?"
Regina grinned wildly, making a raspberry noise with her mouth. "And don't tell me you're not! Drinking red wine all night like it's no big deal… That's total hypocrisy."
She had tried not to eye Hugo's younger brother all night. Really, she had tried. But with Hugo incessantly babbling over the shape of his ex-girlfriend's earlobes, and a mysterious hunk-muffin brooding in the corner, she couldn't really blame herself for her wandering eyes. She had been quite surprised with the lack of true attention from Hugo, considering the way his hands had lingered on their last date. He seemed jumpy this time, like he was in a rush to keep her busy.
And now that she had the attention of such a beautiful specimen, damned if she was going to let his attention wander.
"What have you been reading all night?"
"Oh, just a volume concerning mythical creatures."
"Is it for one of your college courses?"
"Yes, exactly." He smiled, and Regina's heart caught in her throat, feeling her own smile spread across her cheeks along with a slight blush. "Regina, am I correct?"
He stood and crossed over the living room to shake her hand, but stopped mid-step and put his hand away. Raising one eyebrow, Regina nodded. "And you're Godric?"
The man in question was backing away, and Regina was about to stand and force him to shake her hand when Hugo returned.
"So, I see you've met me bo-b-brother!" Hugo stumbled on his words, placing a cup with amber liquid in front of her.
"Yeah, seems like a bit of a nerd," Regina responded, flipping her hair over her shoulder to look at Godric. He clenched his jaw – oops, guess he didn't exactly appreciate that joke. "Only kidding of course," she winked, "I do like my men educated."
The Italian chef waltzed into the living room. "And dinner is served! We will be having an organic baby spinach salad with julienne slices of pears with a light Sardinian pecorino cheese, and Risotto al Nero di Seppie."
On a square, porcelain plate sat a small portion of green spinach with white slices of what I assumed were the pears. I grinned, and took a bite, happy to have a real plate of food in front of me, but as soon as my mouth tasted the cheese, I grimaced and nearly spit the salad back onto the plate. I swallowed heavily and waited until Antonio had retreated back to the kitchen to tell Hugo what I thought of the appetizer.
"This shit sucks."
Hugo opened his mouth like a fish, a goop of green mush in the middle. I scrunched up my nose, and he seemed to realize himself and swallowed. "You don't like it? Antonio is the most reputable Italian chef in all of Texas."
"The cheese is… um, too strong."
"Well then pick it out or-"
"I'll have Antonio fix up a plate for you sans formaggio right away," Godric said, his mouth a hard line.
"Oh you don't have to…" Regina began, but trailed off as she realized he wasn't even in the room with them anymore. "I think I've made a bad impression on your brother. He doesn't really seem to like me."
"He's always like that," Hugo mumbled, taking another bite.
Regina took a sip of her drink, a hummed in contentment. "How did you know Captain and Coke was my favorite?"
Hugo looked alarmed for a moment, but easily melted into a smile. "It's mine, as well."
She grinned back, but the moment was quickly ruined.
Antonio came out of the kitchen in a huff, nearly tossing a plate of salad at Regina without even looking at her.
"And how about Senior Italiano?" she mumbled.
Regina didn't find her mood lifting as the night progressed, although the Captain and Cokes were endless. Apparently, Risotto al Nero di Seppie meant rice cooked with seafood, which would have been fine, "Except it's fucking black. Like squid ink black!"
"That's because, Signorina Regina, it is made with squid ink!" The chef exclaimed, throwing his arms up into the air and knocking off his glasses in the process. "Bonta mia, I feeling like I have not slept in days… excuse me, I must lie down before I finish the desert."
Regina pushed the heel of her palm into her lips, stifling a giggle.
Hugo frowned, "I hope you like the dessert – you need to get some food in with that alcohol."
She flipped a hand, "Whatever, my tolerance is to like," she put her hand above her head, swaying, "here."
"Well you aren't going to drive yourself home tonight, in fact-"
Godric cut Hugo off with an insistent glance, "I will."
"Wh-yes, yes, Godric will. I have a hearing to attend to early in the morning. My apologies," he smiled enigmatically.
Chef Antonio returned to the living room, looking as if he had slept all night, and placed a large dish on the dining table. Hugo's frown returned, "Chocolate cake? Didn't Is-Godric inform you that I was allergic?"
Antonio didn't even respond, walking as if in a daze back to the kitchen. Regina blinked in surprise, "What a rude little man… but chocolate, finally, he's speaking my language!"
Grabbing a fork, Regina stabbed a large hunk of the multilayered chocolate cake, and moaned allowed at the first taste of the cream cheese frosting. "Oh, Hugo, this is delicious. And you're allergic? I don't think I can continue this relationship in good faith anymore – I'm having an affair with this fucking thing right here! And God, the sex is messy bu-" and she promptly fell face first into her chocolate boyfriend.
"Have you gotten the cake out of her hair yet, Isabel?" Godric called, sitting on the high backed chair inside of his bedroom.
Quickly after Regina face planted into her dessert, Hugo jumped from the table, demanding to know what was going on. Isabel shooed him from the house, demanding that he return in the evening for further debriefing, and promising that she would visit before the sun rose. A simple sedative was placed in the cake batter before Antonio was able to bake it, and a bit too much thanks to Stanley's heavy hand.
With the flick of her hair, Godric had finally determined where the smell originated – right within the locks of the white blonde hair that flowed down the strapless back of her dress.
"Isabel?" The lack of response gave Godric enough cause for concern. Gently pushing the door open, Godric quickly sprang into action once he comprehended the scene in front of him. Isabel had tilted Regina's neck to the side, and was lazily licking the blood which poured from the puncture wounds her fangs had created.
Faster than the eye could see, Godric pushed Isabel to the side, ignoring her hisses, and bit at the tip of thumb, running the resulting blood over Regina's minor wound. "Have you lost all of your senses?"
Isabel righted herself, pulling down her white pencil skirt. "You forget that I am only four-hundred and fifty-seven years old, Godric. It would take thousands of years to be able to resist such a temptation of being forced to wash her hair, being so close to the carotid artery. I will retire to my chamber. The sun is rising." She zipped out of the room.
He knew. Godric could feel the heat rising in the tips of his toes. Uncomfortable, but manageable. Looping an arm around her neck and knees, he brought her into his room, and laid her on his large bed. The satin rippled beneath her pale skin, and grew dark under her wet head. Her scent filled the room as if someone was pumping it through the ventilation system, and Godric had to force himself to stop taking in breaths, even going as far as forcing his jaw shut lest his tongue taste the smell.
The feeling had spread to his knees, and Godric knew he wouldn't have time to bring her home. Racing through the nest, he gathered the necessary supplies to inject a concentrated dose of the sleeping serum into Regina's arm, once again piercing his thumb to close the wound, and never daring once to take a breath.