Dark Desire – Chapter 8

Katy woke up just before 3 o'clock the next afternoon. She was laying almost at the edge of her full bed, another inch and she'd be on the floor. She could feel a big body behind her, spooning close around her. A big hand cupped her naked breast and a heavy leg was thrown across both of hers. It was Eric Northman, and she was surprised. The last thing she ever expected was to wake up and find the vampire next to her in bed. She thought they all had to sleep in coffins with dirt from their native soil, or something like that.

Oh, Christ! I'm in deep shit! She thought as she managed to wiggle carefully out from underneath his leg and onto the floor. It wasn't easy. The room was pitch black, so she turned on the lamp on the nightstand. She stood for a moment looking at the big male that took up most of her bed. He grunted and moved onto his back with both of his arms flung out to the side.

He is so beautiful! She thought, and he was too. His body was tall and powerfully built with well defined muscles in all the right places. He had a few old scars, but they didn't mar his perfection; they just made him seem more male. His chest was free of hair, but he had a thick, blonde curly thatch growing up toward his navel from the juncture of his groin.

His male organ was flaccid and lay across one leg. It was large, but only a small fraction of the size it was last night. She blushed as she thought how it felt deep inside her and how good it made her feel. On a whim, she reached one hand down and stroked it lightly with her fingernails. He flinched, cupped himself protectively and mumbled something she didn't understand.

She looked up at his face. In his sleep, his face seemed smooth and young. He didn't look like a powerful, authoritative alpha male' like he did when he was awake. She guessed he was mid to late twenties and was probably younger than she when he was turned. She wondered how long he had been a vampire.

Eric suddenly whispered her name, and her heart started to thrum loudly in response. Suddenly she stiffened and remembered her situation. She knew for certain that she had feelings for the male that lay before her; strong feelings, inappropriate feelings. Feelings that had grown stronger since the night she first met him. Feelings that she could not afford to have. Feelings that would probably cause both of them nothing but trouble. Feelings that she intended to nip in the bud tonight.

If she had only herself to worry about, she may have felt differently, but she was not the only one involved in her mess. Her aunt, Mathilda Rothschild, was in Witness Protection too, but in a different state. Aunt Mattie was visiting her in Los Angeles the evening Richard beat her and her boyfriend up outside her apartment building. That night, before she was discharged from the hospital, Katy told her aunt all about her father, Richard and Mr. Wakefield. She also told her how she had found Richard and her best friend, Tracy Coleman, in bed together that day. Her aunt was appalled and begged her to come and stay with her, but Katy knew that would only endanger her, so she contacted the FBI instead.

Less than a year after she went into the Witness Protection Program, Richard and James Wakefield tried to force her out into the open by threatening Aunt Mattie. She was living in Seattle when one of the nightly talk show programs on cable TV did an update on the story. A picture of Katy and her aunt at her parent's funeral was featured on the program. Katy was overcome by a fierce longing to talk to her beloved Aunt Mattie. She broke the rules and called her.

Her aunt picked up almost immediately; she was hysterical. Over the past few weeks, she had received several terrifying phone calls and threats from the Wakefields. It took a long time to calm her down.

Katy informed her Wit Sec handler, but since her aunt had no testimony to give, the FBI wasn't interested. Katy threatened not to testify if her aunt was not given protection. The feds finally did as she asked, but only grudgingly. They made no bones about the fact that if Katy didn't do exactly as they wanted, when they wanted, her aunt would be evicted from the program and left to fend for herself. Katy made a devil's bargain and went along with everything they wanted to protect her only living relative. The two women were kept separate. Today, she had no idea where her aunt was. She was told that it was safer for the both of them that way.

Since Miami, she had been forced to move in a hurry several times. Each time she had been told that the Wakefields or someone else found out where she or her aunt was, and they were both was in danger. On two occasions, people that she had become friendly with had been hurt badly when strange men came looking for her. That made her feel guilty and hesitant to form new friendships, but she she wasn't able to live without human contact, so she did.

She liked her job at the clinic and her quiet life. She liked the small home where she lived now. The house was old, but it was also the nicest one she had lived in since being in Witness Protection. Her life was so different from the life she had when she was married or when she was growing up: now there were no no mansions, expensive cars or clothing, no fancy vacations or expensive shopping trips, no fine dining, or opera or movie premiers. She had no cook or maids to clean the house. She had to take care of herself, but she liked it that way. In the past three months, she had began to feel a growing sense of stability as if she belonged here. She had made a couple of good friends, and she liked them a lot. She didn't want to endanger them. She didn't want to have to move again.

Over the years, she had learned to be very careful and look for the signs that she had been discovered: someone hanging around her job or her home; someone asking questions about her; a too nosy neighbor or co-worker; a picture snapped when she wasn't aware of it, or just simply a feeling of being watched. She lived as quietly as she could and avoided the limelight. Last week's charity function had been the first time that she had dressed in evening clothes in years.

Eric Northman was a very public persona; if she continued in a relationship with him, a picture of the two of them was bound to show up in the news somewhere. She would be discovered. If she was discovered, there was a good chance that her Aunt Mattie would be discovered too. There was also the chance that her aunt, or her other friends, or even Eric, might be hurt. No, she didn't want to involve him in her problems, so she decided to end it.

Nevertheless, she couldn't resist bending over and stroking his cheek; she was going to kiss him lightly before taking a shower. Two powerful hands reached up and grabbed her and pulled her down on top of him. He was still asleep, but two heavy arms and two heavy legs wrapped around her once more. He turned to the side with her still in his arms. She struggled to get up, but he only sighed, "No!" and held on tighter. She felt like a bird in a cage.

She struggled a moment more and realized the futility of that action. She lay still for a while, and sure enough, he started to relax. After a few more minutes, he turned again on his back with her on top of him; He relaxed his arms and legs. She had been waiting for the opportunity; she quickly scooted down and launched herself backward off the bed. She landed on the floor on her butt in a jumble of arms and legs. He automatically grabbed for her again; she had narrowly missed being caught in his arms once more.

"Hah! Gotcha! You're a real pain in the ass to share a bed with, do you know that?" She said, knowing her couldn't hear her. Yet, some part of him must have known she was talking to him. He made a huffy, soft growling sound, as if he were insulted. The sound was definitely non-threatening. He moaned and turned over on his side once more.

She stood far enough back from the bed so that his hands couldn't reach her and looked at him once more. The breeze from the air-conditioner moved the air over the bed; the bedroom smelled strongly of sex. "Whew!" I must reek, too." she said out loud and stepped into the bathroom to take a shower.

Once in the shower, she realized that she wasn't sore anywhere. After the vigorous sex they had this morning, her body should be achy, tender and sore for days. After toweling off, she examined herself closely in the mirror. She couldn't see any signs of their lovemaking. No hickeys or marks of any kind, not even on the throat where he had bitten her. She found that curious.

She dressed quickly and was eating her breakfast when the phone rang. It was Mary Lebron; a neighbor who lived about a half mile further down the road. Katy had attended the charity function with Mary and her husband, Gene. They had an older son, Mike, who had been killed in Afghanistan. They were big supporters of any organization that helped soldiers and other military personnel after they returned home from war.

The two women talked for a minuted, and Mary invited her to a pool party in her backyard that evening. "It's going to start at nine. Just bring your swimsuit and a couple of bottles of coke, if you can. Gene has invited a couple of guys that work on the oil rig with him. He wants to introduce you around."

They had tried to fix her up before several times. Katy groaned inwardly. She knew Mary was just trying to be friendly. She had fixed her up on a blind date with their handsome friend, Ralph Thompson, who was a high school buddy of Gene's. Katy didn't like blind dates, but to please Mary, she agreed. She went out to dinner with Ralph one Saturday night a few weeks ago.

Katy knew it was a mistake almost from the minute she met him at the restaurant. Ralph monopolized the conversation; it was clear that he thought himself to be quite a catch. That put her off immediately. In the parking lot after dinner, he tried to paw her before she got into her car. He seemed to expect payment for the meal.

She asked him to stop, but he didn't believe she meant it and persisted. When she refused his advances, he got angry and red in the face. At one point, she thought he was going to hit her. She realized then that Ralph Thomson was too much like Richard for her to ever like him. He had been bothering her to go out with him ever since. Katy never told Mary and Gene because he was such a good friend of theirs.

"I'm not sure I'll be able to make it, Mary. I have a guest; he stayed over last night." Katy replied. She had no intention of going to the party; she just didn't feel like it now.

"Someone interesting, I hope. Is he hot? You will have to tell me all about it." Mary made a leering snicker over the phone. Mary had told Katy quite a few times that she thought Katy was too serious for her own good and that she needed a good fuck now and then to lighten her up a little.

"You are too much, Mary." Katy laughed as she hung up.

Katy met Mary for the first time on the day after she moved to the New Orleans area three months ago. She had bumped into the older, vivacious brunette with her shopping cart on her first trip to the supermarket about a mile from her new home. Katy apologized profusely, but Mary just laughed. "You're new in the area, aren't you?" she asked. Katy nodded.

The two women started talking, and Katy found out that they both lived on the same dirt road that ran along side U.S. 23. Katy lived in a small two bedroom ranch on the side of the road that backed up to a large swamp. Mary, her husband and two kids, lived in a larger house about a mile further down on the side that backed up to the highway.

The neighborhood was definitely blue collar, but each house was fairly well maintained, had large front and back yards with flowerbeds and well maintained lawns. Most had a small above ground pool, a picnic table and chairs, and a big charcoal or gas grill in back. Katy had a small deck and grilled outside frequently.

Mary had an open, trusting face, a ready smile, and a lilting Cajun accent that Katy just loved. She was friendly and warm, and had a salty, earthy sense of humor that was infectious. In no time at all, the two women were fast friends. Her husband, Gene, was gone a lot because of his job on an oil rig off the coast, so the two women spent a lot of time together.

Katy sometimes babysat five year old Davy and eight year old Desiree when Mary went shopping or had an appointment. Katy tended to be much more reserved and more refined than Mary, but Mary was rubbing off on her a little. Fitting into a new place was hard for her, so Mary's friendship meant a lot to her.

Mary worked afternoons as a nurse in a walk-in clinic in Oakville. The clinic was in a poor neighborhood and served the needs of the community which mostly consisted of people eking out an existence on social security or on minimum wage jobs. One of the doctors working there had recently left for a better paying position at a hospital in New Orleans. The busy facility was looking for a replacement.

Katy applied the next day and started working immediately after the interview. The clinic was in a much different world from the one she had known before, but that was the whole point. Once she had been an up and coming ER doctor, working in a state of the art facility. Her patients were the wealthiest people in her small California town, including a few celebrities and movie stars.

Now she worked in a small neighborhood clinic that lacked the expensive new equipment and the resources that she was used to in California. Now she tended to the homeless, addicted, indigent and just plain poor blue collar workers and their families who lived in Oakville and the surrounding area.

She knew that the phony job references for the fictitious medical doctor known as Kathryn Jones would check out okay. Her new handler, Gwen Jameson, would see to that. Gwen had made her thoroughly memorize the details of her new identity which she had done with no effort. She had been through this several times before and knew the routine well.

As she sat eating, Katy berated herself for being so stupid as to tell Eric Northman she wanted to go out with him and then challenging him to find out who she was. This past week, she had been torn between the desire to see him again, and the fear that she would. She had regretted saying she wanted to go out with him almost immediately after she said it, but she didn't want him to know. That's why she wouldn't tell him her name.

For the last week, he had never once left her mind. Even though a part of her wanted to see him again, the other part didn't. She knew that seeing him again was just asking for trouble. She was so sure that he would not find her because she did not have practicing privileges at any of the local hospitals. She really didn't think he would even try. Why would he: the newspapers and TV and had frequently shown him escorting several different beautiful women around town; they were all young and gorgeous as gossip columns often speculated about who he was dating. He was with a beautiful small blonde the night she first saw him.

She was extremely surprised when he showed up this morning just in time to chase that creep, Ralph, away. She blamed herself for what happened after that. She was the one who kissed him. Now she had to try to get herself out of the hole she had dug for herself. She was determined to tell him she didn't want to see him again.

At dusk, Eric awoke and sat straight up as was his custom. He groaned as he recognized that he was in Katy Jones' bedroom, not his own. He quickly replayed the events of this morning over in his head, and he cursed himself for his foolishness. Sleeping with a strange woman in a strange house was beyond foolish; it was down right dangerous. Especially since that woman seemed to be living under a phony name. It was even worse than that because she had so easily made him forget himself. This has has to stop, right now! He told himself.

He remembered how much he wanted her this past week. He remembered the feelings he had as they made love and as he lay beside her this morning. He cursed himself again. He did not want to care about Katy Jones, and he was determined not to. The last thing that he needed was to get involved with another damn human woman. He made up his mind to glamour her and make her forget he was ever there, just like he did other human females in the past.

He showered quickly, dressed and stepped into the kitchen. Katy was folding laundry at the kitchen table. She was dressed in a T-shirt and cut-off jeans and flip flops. Without saying a word, she got up, took a True Blood out of the refrigerator, warmed it up and handed it to him. The two of them stood there looking at each other warily like two prize fighters in the ring while he drank. Each was waiting for the other to speak.

Eric finished the bottle quickly, set it down on the counter and walked over to her. Taking Katy's face firmly in his hand, he turned it up to his. Looking deeply into her eyes, he tried to glamour her. In a sultry, mesmerizing voice, he said, "Katy, you did not see me this morning. I was never here. You came home from work alone. You don't know me, you have never seen me before. You will not see me again. Do you understand?" Eric expected her eyes to dilate and then glaze over in that half-dazed way that vampire glamour always left humans, but Katy's eyes remained focused and clear. That shocked the old vampire.

Katy knew the moment he opened his mouth that he was trying to glamour her. The glamour wouldn't work on her, and she knew it. She had determined hours ago that it was best that they not see each other again, but still the fact that he apparently felt the same way really got under her skin. What made it even worse was that he had the gall to try and mess with her mind and to erase memories of events that actually happened. That infuriated her more than anything. No one had a right to do something like that to another person as far as she was concerned.

"What the hell do you think you are you doing, you arrogant jerk? What right do you have to try and mess with my head? You think you can erase my memory by trying to glamour me? I already told you I can't be glamoured or hypnotized. I know full well what happened this morning, and I'm not likely to forget. You don't have to worry about me; if you don't want to see me again, Mr. Northman, just be man enough to say so. I'm a big girl; I can take it." she said angrily.

Eric didn't apologize for his actions, far from it. He retorted, "I am a busy man. I just don't want to get involved with you, or any other human woman right now. I just don't want to see you again. I thought glamouring you to forget me would be simpler and better all the way around. It's what I do."

"Simpler and better for who? What did you think I was going to do: attach myself to your leg and beg you not to leave as you dragged me down the street. You are so full of yourself, you conceited ass. Frankly, I don't think you're all that big a deal." The words rushed out, white hot and angry. "You know, you are not the only one who thinks it's not a good idea for us to get involved with each other. I am too busy and my life is complicated enough right now. I don't need some arrogant asshole making matters worse. I was just going to tell you that I didn't want to see you again either, so I guess we're on the same page."

All of that was true, but her pride was hurt, and she lashed out at him. She knew she had no right to be angry because he didn't want to see her again, but he had even less right to try and mess with her head. He had no right to do that. No one did.

Eric and looked at her with astonishment and incredulity on his face. He started to get angry. Just a few short minutes ago, he didn't want to see her again, but he never expected her to feel the same way. That was the last thing he expected to hear, and that hurt his pride. He was the Vampire King of Louisiana. How dare this damn human woman tell him she didn't want to see him again! He felt extremely insulted.

Seconds later, the import of the fact that she couldn't be glamoured sank in. The only people who were immune to glamour were telepaths, fairies, witches and other supes. She didn't seem to be any of these. Just who and what the hell was this woman? What had she wanted with him in the first place, and why was she so eager to get rid of him now? He was determined to find out.

His eyes glittered in fury as he demanded, "Who are you; what are you? What the hell do you want from me? Are you some kind of a whore, or just a loose woman? You sure acted like one this morning and last week too." His words were deliberately insulting and nasty and intended to shock. Katy stiffened and fixed him with a glare that could have melted iron. She slapped him hard across the face. That astonished Eric even more, and his fangs came out, and he hissed loudly at her.

"What I am, or who I am is none of your business, and I don't want a damn thing from you, you conceited asshole. Right now I'd say you've made your feelings about me very clear. You think I'm a whore. You don't like me one little bit. Well that's just fine and dandy with me, because I don't like like you either. I think you should leave now. I sure as hell don't want to waste any more of my time on the likes of you." She yelled loudly at him and stalked passed him into the bedroom and started stripping the bed.

Eric wasn't at all satisfied with the way this was going. He wasn't used to being spoken to in such a manner by anyone, especially by a human female. He sure wasn't used to being slapped by one either. His temper flared white hot. He wanted some answers. He started to go after her, but his cell phone rang. It was Daniel Brady asking where he was.

"Boss ,where have you been? We have been looking all over for you? Please don't tell me you slept the day at that human woman's house. You don't know a thing about her. You know how dangerous and foolish that is. Besides, Bill, Sookie and Judith are still here. Aren't you supposed to meet with them tonight?" Daniel started going over the agenda he was supposed to handle tonight.

He was still talking to Daniel when Katy came out of the bedroom carrying the bedsheets. Ignoring him, she pulled open two louver doors to a large closet in the hallway. Behind the doors stood a washer and dryer. She loaded the sheets and added soap and turned on the machine . Without saying a word to him she walked back into the bedroom. Within minutes, the bed was made with fresh linen.

Eric just stood there waiting for her; he was determined to put this damn human woman in her place. By the time she came of of the bedroom, she had changed her clothes. She decided to take Mary up on her offer and go to the pool party afterall. She had on a colorful bikini. It wasn't a thong, and it more than covered what it should, but it still didn't leave much to the imagination. Over that, she wore an open front, sleeveless, short cotton lacy robe-like shirt that had no buttons/ She still had on her flip flops. The robe she had on was the kind of see-through thing you wear at the beach over a bathing suit.

Eric stopped talking to Daniel and just gaped at her with his mouth open. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. His body reacted and he started to get aroused, and that made him even angrier than ever.

"Geez, are you still here? I thought you were a busy man. Don't you have to go suck somebody's blood? Don't you have to go glamour somebody? Don't you have some vampire things to do?" she sarcastically said as she opened the pantry door, pulled out two large bottles of soda and put them in a cloth shopping bag with two large handles. She grabbed her car keys and purse and headed for the front door.

She gave an exaggerated shrug of her shoulders. "Well, stay if you must, asshole. Just shut door tight when you leave, and don't let any flies in the house. Bye." she added nastily.

He caught her on the front porch. "Where the hell do you think you are going dressed like that?" he demanded indignantly. He didn't want to see her again, but he sure as hell didn't want some other man seeing her dressed like that. His temper flared out of control. He was green with jealousy. The sight of her made him want her as badly as before. He could feel himself getting hard again. His fangs started to extend again.

His belligerent tone made Katy even more angry than she was. "It's none of your business where I am going, or what I am wearing, Mr. Northman. We are not seeing each other, and I don't have to answer to you!" she said icily as she tried to push past him. She didn't make it.

In a blur of motion, he had her backed up against the the front of the house. He was kissing her furiously. His fangs were fully extended. She winced a little in pain as his fangs nicked her tongue. His tongue probed deep in her mouth. His kiss was demanding and hard. He wasn't being soft or gentle this time. She could taste her own blood in her mouth.

He tasted it too, jerked and pushed her head to the side. He bit her on the neck, and lapped at it like he had done before. Once again she felt a sharp sensation like a lightning charge stab through her body from her neck to her crotch. In seconds, her whole body tensed tight like a rubber band getting ready to snap; then release. She felt the first of many small explosions deep inside as she orgasmed. Moisture pooled between her legs.

Her body's instinctive reaction to Eric's bite angered her and pushed her over the top. "You son of a bitch!" she snarled at him. This time, she pushed his shirt off his shoulder and without thinking, she bit him back very hard. She broke the skin. What's good for the goose is good for the gander! She thought. She could taste Eric's blood as it filled her mouth. She lapped and sucked at it, just like he had done moments before at her neck. His blood tasted rich and sweet and slightly coppery. It tasted so good, she bit him again harder than before and sucked some more.

She didn't know what to expect, but she didn't expect the reaction she got. Instead of telling at her to stop; he growled deep in the back of his throat and seemed to go into a frenzy of motion. He was everywhere; his hands and tongue moved so fast over her body, she could barely think straight from the tidal wave of hot erotic pleasure that ripped through her like a storm.

She barely had a chance to catch her breath when her bikini bottoms were on the floor of the porch. Eric was deep inside her moving fast. She began to shiver and tremble uncontrollably. She put her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs tightly around his hips as he hammered into her. An almost painful tension started building up lower in her body once more. She grabbed his hips and pulled him into her. She was kissing him back, smearing his blood all over his neck and face. His pelvis ground hard against hers making contact with her clit sending eddies of exquisite sensations rippling through her once more. She gasped softly as she ground her own body against him again and again, until they came together.

Finally, he pulled his mouth away from hers; his lips were drawn back; his fangs looked deadly and huge. With a feral snarl, he looked deep into her eyes and said. "None of my business, my ass! I am making it my business!" She was convinced that he meant it.

Earlier Katy sincerely had no intention of ever having sex with him again. She was angry at her body's reaction. She was confused by it. She felt betrayed by it. Did she want him, or not? Did he want her, or not? She moved her head and looked into his eyes. She could see the same confusion in his eyes, but she also saw amusement. She thought he was laughing at her. She knew immediately that he had known exactly how she would react. That made her madder than ever; her face flushed red hot, and her fists clenched into tight balls.

"You think this is funny, don't you?" she asked helplessly. She was ashamed of herself and how easy it was for him to arouse her. It was all he could do to keep himself from laughing out loud. It was all she could do to keep from slapping him silly.

"I think we both want each other, and I think we both know it. Don't we?" he said; he was so cocksure of himself, she wanted to spit.

She nodded. There was no escaping it, she did want him. "I guess that's true. One thing, though. Let's just enjoy this thing while it lasts. No promises of forever. No commitment. No pledges of undying love. When one of us wants to end it, we say goodbye, and that's that, okay? No fuss, no muss and no bother." she said firmly.

"You mean if I want to leave, you won't attach yourself to my leg and beg me not to leave as I drag you down the street?" For some reason, that sounded funny to him now, so he laughed. She nodded again, so he agreed. He picked her up and carried her back inside to the bedroom. He wasn't finished with her yet.

Through the cellphone in his hand, he could hear Daniel saying. "What the hell is going on, Eric? I can't believe this, after all the big fuss about finding her; after all you put us through, are you two fighting already?"

"Oh, shut up, Daniel. I've got better things to do than listen to you." he said, snapped the phone shut and threw it across the room.

He turned to Katy. She had removed her top and was trying to get his jeans off. Her hands were shaking so bad that she wasn't having much luck with his belt. Her earlier thoughts about not getting involved with him had flown completely out the window the minute he began to kiss her. She knew it; she also knew there was nothing she could do about it, except surrender to the emotions flooding her now. She cared about this man, but she didn't want him to know it. He had been ready to walk away, and she didn't want that kind of hurt. She was determined not to let her feelings get out of hand.

Hours later, after their passion was spent, they lay facing each other talking. The room was lit by the bedside lamp, and they could both see each other clearly. His previous intention to break it off with her was forgotten, at least temporarily.

Eric supported his head on one arm. The other arm lay along side his body. He was totally relaxed. He felt happy and content. He couldn't remember the last time he felt like this.

With the tips of her fingers, she began to explore his chest, upper abdomen and forearm. She traced the definition of his collar bone, breastbone and ribs, then each muscle in his abdomen in turn. She ran her fingernails lightly down his forearm and watched the soft blonde hair rise as it was stimulated. She smiled a little as the skin on his chest and arm prickled in tiny goosebumps at the contact of her fingertips. He shivered just a little each time she touched him.

As a vampire, Eric normally didn't like to be touched, except during sex, but he liked what she was doing to him. He had hundreds of thousands of lovers over his long lifetime, but he couldn't remember ever being touched like this. If he had, it certainly never made him feel this way. He liked watching her fascination with his body. He liked her soft hands touching him, being curious about him. It was if she was studying him and getting to know him better. He liked the thought of that a lot.

Her touch was soft and tender. It made him feel warm and good inside. She laid her cheek against the bare skin of his chest for a brief moment. "Your skin is so cool; it feels so good," she said. Myth said that vampires were dead; to her, he was cooler than a human male, but he wasn't cold like a corpse. His body sure didn't react like a corpse either. She leaned closer and inhaled deeply a couple of times. He sure didn't smell like a corpse. "You smell so good." she added as her fingers started exploring his face.

He caught her hand, kissed her palm and rubbed it against his cheek. "Why aren't you afraid of me? I could so easily kill you, don't you know that?" he said sharply. He was totally mystified by her lack of fear. He was baffled by her reaction to him. He didn't like either feeling.

"What do you mean? I know you aren't going to hurt me." she asked in surprise.

"Most humans can't stand to even be near a vampire, let alone touch us. They avoid us unless they are glamoured, a fangbanger, or addicted to our blood. They think we are too cold, and we frighten them. I think we remind them of death. Some unconscious survival instinct kicks in with most humans, and yet here you are. I don't understand you at all." He said almost plaintively. He really was perplexed.

"Yes, of course, I know you could kill me, but I know you won't. I know you don't want to. I can't speak for anyone else, but I like you the way you are. I like being with you like this, and I'm not afraid of you. Besides, I think..." She started to say she thought he was beautiful, but she thought she had already said too much. She was beginning to embarrass herself, and she didn't want to embarrass herself any further.

He was ready to press her for an answer, but her stomach growled loudly. She realized she hadn't eaten much today. "I'm hungry, she said, getting up from the bed. She was heading for the kitchen to fix a sandwich.

"Come on, get dressed. I'm taking you out to dinner." he said.