Summary: In a world where Uncle Bartlett went too far, Sookie Stackhouse decides to embrace herself rather than bend to the townfolk's perception of normal. Years later, she saves a dense vampire from two drainers. Slowburn Sookie/Eric.
In the rush of movement when Bill's emotional speech ended, Dawson managed to slip under Sookie's radar. He was a sly one, and he knew how her gift worked. She couldn't search him out with her telepathy in such a crowded area. It would put a damper on Gran's evening if she suddenly passed out from a gushing nosebleed - and she liked her dress better without blood stains.
Looking around the small church for a familiar mop of wild brown hair, Sookie ran through a list of everything she'd said to Dawson. Because of Gran, she had acted less seethingly sarcastic to him than she ever had before. During Bill's speech, Sookie had been too busy puzzling over Jason's behaviour and feeling a grudging sympathy for the dark-haired vampire to be snide.
Once more, Sookie scanned the crowd. Arlene was standing with her kids, talking to Rene, tossing nervous looks over to Bill. Cody caught sight of her and waved happily. Sookie winked and blew him a kiss, earning a sunny beam. In a reversal of the natural order of things; Tara was talking to Sam while Jason looked at her longingly. Her Gran was standing with Bill. As she watched, Terry embraced him like a brother - a brother in arms.
A dozen voices washed over Sookie but her shields were holding strong. A sense of disquiet creeped up on her. Her instincts prickled insistantly, growing edgier with each moment she stood alone, crowd watching. There was something in the air, dark and brooding, like iron on her tongue. It tasted like blood, a sickly warning.
"Maudlin," she told herself, mussing her hair absently. Deciding to track Dawson down tomorrow, Sookie pushed off the wall she had been leaning against and weaved gracefully through the crowd towards Bill and her Gran.
"Howdy."
"Oh, Sookie," Gran exclaimed, smiling at her warmly, lovingly. Her Southern accent was strong but held a note of class to it. "Wasn't Mister Compton's speech lovely?"
"It was." The tone of genuine sincerity in her voice took Bill by surprise. Sookie was tempted to follow the comment up with a sarcastic jab, but she kept herself in check. It couldn't have been easy for Bill to recount those awful memories in front of people who resembled salivating jackals on the best of days. She felt grateful that he had done so as a favour to her.
"I'm glad," Bill began, staring at her intently, head bowed slightly like an old fashioned gentleman, "That you enjoyed - "
"Sookie," Sam said abruptly, appearing at her side. His eyes were flinty, his jaw tight, body language stiff but not violent. His hazy mind was frantic with fear and protective fury, boring into her senses like a drill. "I need to talk to you."
Dimly aware of her Gran's disapproving expression at his forceful tone, Sookie looked at him for a long moment before her eyes flickered back to her Gran. She kissed her on the cheek, bright grin returning as she backed away, dipping her knees in a playful curtsy, "The boss calls."
Her elbow bumped into Sam's arm, the surprise caused her smile to falter, but it was enough warning to stall her panicked instincts from reacting when Sam clamped a hand around her arm and started herding her through the crowd.
Not feeling particularly concerned, Sookie matched his pace easily. Her unconcerned, if amused, expression and their level paces diverted attention away from their forms, preventing mouths from running with scandal.
"You really want that sexual harrassment lawsuit, huh?" Sookie asked, quirking an eyebrow. Her good humor bounced off Sam's tense expression, not denting his mood even slightly. "I'm sensing you have a problem with me."
"You're damn right I have a problem," Sam hissed.
Sookie patted his hand soothingly, adopting a soft expression. "It's good you can admit these things."
"What? Damnit, Sookie." Sam opened the door to the kitchen and pulled her into the small room, closing the door behind him. "Be serious for once in your fucking life!"
"I prefer to fuck life, than to be fucked by life," Sookie remarked in an overly zen voice. She watched as Sam paced passed in front of her, figure blurred by the low light, though his tension clung to every inch of him.
"You've always been so reckless!" Sam exclaimed, fear and anger boiling through his words. "Always mouthing off to whoever looked at you twice, always saying whatever the hell pops into your head, always pushing at people until they snap - like it's a game, like you're invincible."
"Well, what am I supposed to do?" she spat, riffled up, feeling the faint sting of hurt that even Sam thought she should stop being herself. "Just lay back and take it like a good little woman? Like what a bunch of dumb rednecks think a good Southern woman should be like? Meek and weaker than kitten? I'd rather have my ass kicked."
"No!" Sam shouted, whirling around to face her. His eyes blazed. "Goddamnit, Sookie - it doesn't have to be like that, one way or the other! You can be yourself without pissing off all of Bon Temps! You can be kind without putting yourself in the firing line!" Sam's anger was cooled by fear, and his voice softened, pained and grave. "What the hell are you thinkin', Sookie? Are you even thinking at all? Saving Bill from a bunch of drainers is one thing, but going to a vampire bar - being friendly with a damned Were - are you trying to get yourself killed?"
A bright spark of realization spread through Sookie's body, and her relaxed posture straightened up, expression becoming interested. Usually Sam was very guarded about what he said but today, he had slipped. It was the first time he had let on about his supernatural nature.
"Well, that crosses a Were of some kind off the list," said Sookie casually.
Sam was taken aback by her comment, and his face screwed up with confusion. "What?"
"I know you aren't human." Sookie took a step closer to Sam as his face went slack in panic. Her heart softened at the terror appearing in his eyes. She liked him as a friend, and he wasn't a bad boss, just a little too interested in her. "It's okay." She ducked her head to look at him from under her hair, arching her eyebrows sardonically. "I can hardly throw stones, now, can I?"
Sam swallowed, expression still bleached with fear, but the tension reluctantly eased a little at her gentle expression. "What - what are you talking about?"
Sookie pointed at her temple, a shade of her usual smirk returning to her mouth. "You ain't like regular folk up here, and you could tell what Dawson was when most people never think beyond vampires - never think about what else could be out there. And you were always acceptin' of my little problem. What are you?"
Sam stared at her, astonishment replacing the panic on his face. "I'm - I'm a shapeshifter."
"Shapeshifter," Sookie repeated, narrowing her eyes with thought. Dawson hadn't told her much about shifters. Then her expression smoothed out. "Not like a skin walker, you can only change into animals - and don't you need a template or something?"
Still shocked, Sam nodded dumbly.
"For all animals?" Sookie leaned back against the table, bracing herself with her hands, crossing one tanned leg over the other. She felt satisfied with her discovery, and there was something warming about Sam's expression, the dawning hope and happiness.
"Birds are the hardest. I'm good with dogs - people like dogs. I - you aren't - " Sam broke off, staring at her like Bill had while she rescued him from the drainers. Or how he and Bill had looked at her while she pinned Mac Rattary to her car. Sookie was starting to get real fond of that look.
"What, shrieking in outrage?" Sookie smiled at him. "Since we haven't shared a sacred daisy chain of honesty, I think I can get over you having a secret like everybody else in the world. Including me."
Sam moved closer until he was standing directly in front of her, making her skin prickle. "Most people wouldn't just shrug off their boss turning out to be a shapeshifter."
"Hi," Sookie said sarcastically, gesturing pointedly at herself.
"Still, are you - are you sure you're okay with this?"
Sookie studied his face with her dark eyes, reading his laugh lines and frown lines and his solid, dependable eyes. Sam looked down at her, misunderstanding her expressive eyebrows and her soft mouth and the fierce fire that burned in her eyes. He cupped her face, and kissed her.
With a clinical detachment, Sookie noticed how soft his lips were, how gentle his kiss was, and how he didn't have dog breath. There was no spark, no fire, no bright sudden flare of heat. It was just a mouth against hers.
Sookie leaned back, breaking the contact. Sam hovered close to her, and then his hand dropped from her face.
"Sam," Sookie said, mentally running through some believable rejections she hadn't used so far. "I'm about ten different kinds of crazy all at once."
"I don't care about your mind reading, Sookie. I know you can't help that."
"Sweet," Sookie commended, awkwardly sliding across the table and getting to her feet. "And mostly true. But not the issue."
"Sookie, if you aren't interested in me than just say so," Sam said heatedly.
"I'm not interested in you," Sookie said automatically. She flinched in horror at herself, grimacing in sincere apology at Sam's hurt expression. "Oh, shoot - I didn't mean - well, I did but I didn't mean to - I'm not interested in anyone." Remorseful, she hesitated a moment, trying to think of a way to make things better. "I'm so sorry, Sam. I'll leave - before I manage to kill a puppy."
"Wait!" Sam called as she turned and made a move towards the door. Reluctantly, she twirled around, giving him an almost pained look of curiosity. "I know you can take care of yourself - "
"And any stray drug dealers hanging around your bar?" Sookie joked.
Sam knew enough about her to ignore her undertone comments. He stared at her with a vehement glow in his eyes. "But Werewolves are dangerous and vicious creatures, and vampires ain't no different. They're both a whole lot stronger than you, Sookie. If - "
Sookie stiffened, spine straightening, trying to ignore her anger. "I've known Tray Dawson since I was fourteen, Sam. If you're gonna bad mouth him, you better have some damn good proof. Maybe you're right about vampires, I'm guessin' you've met more than I have, but I won't just group them all together."
Sam held his hands up defensively. "I wasn't tryin' to upset you, Chere."
"Because calling my friend a dangerous, vicious creature could have any other effect." Sookie nodded sagely. Sam looked away with a sigh. She knew his intentions were protective but his lack of trust in her judgement stung. Worse of all, he could be right about her. "I trust Dawson - "
"But not Bill?" Sam interjected in an attempt to catch her off guard.
It didn't work.
"But I know," Sookie continued, her voice darkening, "that human beings aren't lilly white and daisy fresh, either. People can be just as ugly and nasty and vicious. They just aren't as good at it. And I think you know that too."
Sam looked up sharply as Sookie walked out of the kitchen, the truth of her words ringing grimly in the air.
Sookie slipped out of the church and walked out into the parking lot. Dozens of thoughts swirled around her head, like wasps. She was incapable of holding a grudge against Sam. Being angry was too draining for her. Why would she choose petty anger over laughter?
Her heels tapped lightly against the concrete side walk, a breeze brushed across her face, and she looked up. Her heels stopped as she halted, eyes widening, eyebrows moving upwards. "Are you fucking kiddin' me?" she said incredulously.
There was a hooker red corvette in the parking lot. Eric Northman was leaning against the car door, blonde hair glowing in the moonlight, eyes fixed on her. He was - surprise, surprise - smirking like an arrogant jerk. He lifted his hand and beckoned her to him with a movement of his long fingers, exactly as he had done last night.
"You need to stop doing that," Sookie commented, not bothering to raise her voice as she strolled - slowly - over to him. "One of these days, I'm not going to be able to stop myself from responding in the way I'd like to, and then you'll have to kill me."
Eric arched a single eyebrow, increasing his aura of menace and power. "So you are capable of caution." He slid his eyes down her form as she approached, dress swinging lightly around her knees, drawing attention to her tanned skin. "You look lovely, though I do have a preference for your earlier attire..."
"Thank you," she said politely, only half out of the urge to surprise him, absently smoothing down her dress. "So do you," she added. "I should have said that back at my house, what, two hours ago?" Point made, she raised an eyebrow. "Are you here for a reason or are you just that desperate for me to sign on the dotted line?"
Eric smiled, looking for all the world like a (beautiful) lion, prepared to pounce, baring his teeth. He stepped into her personal bubble, looming over her, using his intimidating height to full advantage. Discomfort itched at Sookie's spine, urging her to lower her eyes, to back away. She shut the instinct down hard.
"Hmm, interesting. It was remiss of me to let you off so lightly last night."
Sookie stiffened warily. But Eric continued, low rasp of a voice swiftly silencing her thoughts, "You have yet to tell me much about your gift."
"Curse," she corrected him absently, regretting it instantly as Eric's eyes flared with the new information, like she had given him her cup size rather than a simple word. Still, it seemed to be a simple enough request, but adding Eric to anything seemed to add a hint of spicy Do Or Die. "What do you want to know?"
"Your cup size," Eric said without missing a beat.
"Wouldn't you prefer to find that out for yourself?" Sookie wanted to know, giving him a sultry look.
"Very much," Eric answered unblinkingly. "But if you are the type of woman to let me fuck you outside a church, I have seriously misjudged you."
Sookie laughed, flashing a bright, teasing grin at him. "Maybe you're just that gorgeous?"
Eric grinned in amusement before the expression settled down into an aloof smirk. "There is no maybe."
There was no way Sookie could argue with that. "Well, at the risk of inflating your ego, you didn't misjudge me."
"I'm disappointed," he remarked, not sounding so. He turned to open the car door, holding it open. "Come."
Biting abruptly down on her tongue to stop that's what she said from escaping her mouth, Sookie took a moment to digest his words. "Yeah, I really don't think so."
"Afraid for your life?" Eric inquired cockily.
"My virtue, maybe," Sookie fired back, not being entirely truth.
"A valid concern. Get in the car, Miss Stackhouse," Eric drawled, raising a single blonde eyebrow at her. "I could easily kill everyone in this miserable town and take you if I had the slightest inclination. The longer you play coy and pretend you are unaware of this, the more inclined I grow."
Despite her perpetual irritation with half of the townfolk, the threat hit Sookie hard. Her eyes widened fractionally but she uttered a feeble protest, "My car - "
Eric's patience was clearly running thin; his smirk was becoming a snarl. "Will be returned to your home."
"Without the keys?"
Eric stared at her with lidded eyes, a thousand years of bloodshed in his blue eyes. Worry in the pit of her stomach, Sookie caved, brushing past him to climb into his car.
"So you do know how to heel," Eric remarked, a taunt in his voice as he zipped around the car and sat beside her.
"I bite better," she retorted.
Eric turned his head to look her directly in the eye. His eyes were more hypnotizing than a glamour. His fangs snapped down with a click, white and sharp, catching the light. "As do I."
Sookie tried to stare at him coldly or turn her face away in a huff but her mouth split in a grin despite her best efforts to control it.
Sookie climbed out of Eric's car, heels hitting the pavement as her head whipped around, taking in the streets. Instead of driving her to Fangtasia as she had half expected, Eric had taken her somewhere else in Shreveport. It was neutral ground to them both. Eric zipped to her side, and she looked up at him.
"Walk with me," he commanded.
"You threatened me with a bluff to get me in your car, so you could drive us to Shreveport for a walk?" Sookie said incredulously.
Eric gazed around the street. "I assure you it was no bluff," he said carelessly. "I would have no difficulty dispatching everyone in your quaint little town."
Sookie wondered, slightly uneasy, how many people Eric had slaughtered. He didn't strike her as a senseless idiotic killer, ripping out throats for the simple pleasure of it. Eric could be a brutal, violent monster, but she doubted he was stupid about it.
"People would notice if everyone in Bon Temps ended up dead," Sookie pointed out. "It would be impossible to ignore. It would be a stupid move. One you are way too smart to pull, especially over some girl stalling for an excuse."
"It seems I have misjudged you," Eric stated, surprising her by admitting error.
"Most people do because of my telepathy," Sookie told him, drawing their conversation back on the rails. Eric started to walk, and Sookie reluctantly folled him. He slowed his stride, allowing her to catch up until they were even with each other. It was unexpectedly polite, and she appreciated it.
"How long have you been able to read minds?"
Relieved that he was asking questions since she wasn't entirely sure how to start, Sookie answered promptly, "For as long as I can remember. Let me tell you something, there are some aspects of your teachers and parents' lives that only a lobotomy can erase."
Eric looked darkly amused, but Sookie frowned at the memories. She'd known far more about sex and other things a little kid shouldn't know - like how her third grade teacher was thinking about killing herself, or that her mama was terrified of what Sookie couldn't control, or that her high school teacher liked to look at her.
On the plus side, ignoring the panic attacks that lesson had given her, she had passed that class.
"I had no idea how to control it back then," she said absently. "I learned, eventually, but even now, it's hardly a walk in the park."
"Telepathy comes effortlessly to you?" Eric questioned. His smirk was gone. He seemed to be reading her memories off her face.
"It's not gettin' into people's heads that's the problem, it's staying out."
"How far is your range?"
"Never tested it, and I never plan to. I've heard bad things about aneurysms."
"How do you control your...curse?" he wanted to know, handling the descriptive word like he disagreed with it.
Sookie hesitated, toying with several ways of phrasing. "To be honest," she said finally, "I'm not really sure."
"Excuse me?" Eric said, raising a singular eyebrow.
"I'm not being a deliberate pain in the ass for once," Sookie told him honestly. "I can't explain how I filter people out. I have to concentrate on ignoring the thoughts all of the time, but sometimes I mess up."
Her shields were like spinning plates, and sometimes she did drop a plate but it was usually in incredibly rare situations. She had intentionally made her telepathy seem weaker and more untrained than it was. She kept being able to pick up on certain hot words with her shields up at will entirely to herself. Sookie wasn't about to spill everything to Eric.
"Are you capable of reading any non-human thoughts, like your shifter boss and the werewolf?"
Sookie looked at him with curiosity in her eyes. His knowledge of her was another trick of his, like looming over her with his staggering height, but the disgust in his voice made her wonder what he had against Weres and shifters.
"They don't think like humans do," Sookie answered. "Their minds are clouded and hazy. If the emotion is strong enough I can get whole thoughts out of them but most of the time, random words and a headache to put a layer of hell to shame. Before you ask again, I get even less from vampire minds than a unanimated corpse."
Eric stopped, bringing her to a halt, and walked around to stand before her. "You aren't very tactful."
Sookie felt her cheeks heating up, shame stirring in her stomach as she remembered Sam's expression to her reflexive put-down but nothing could kill her sarcasm. "Eric, do you need me to be tactful?" she asked tenderly.
Eric looked at her with a very masculine desire that made Sookie feel hot sparks shooting through her body. His blue eyes blazed in the dark as he lowered his head to look her nearly in the eye. "Tact is far from what I desire from you."
There was the mental equivalent of a leer from close by - they look like they're about to start fucking - maybe they will - no one around - I should just tear the fanger's throat out before he can sink his teeth in hers. The mind had a red haze to it; Were.
Sookie felt her eyes widening in alarm, and Eric bared his human teeth in a knowing smirk. He knew. How long ago had he smelled the Were? Scratch that; three Weres, and a really old jerkass vampire with one not-human girl. If she wasn't accidentally crushed to death, she might drown in the testosterone.
"Did you plan this?" Sookie asked fiercely, panic triggering an adrenaline rush as the Weres readied themselves.
Eric grinned rougishly, a fierce blood lust darkening his eyes. Sookie was forcefully reminded that Eric was an very old, very brutal warrior. "I assure you, this is a happy accident."
As three snarls hit the air, hitting the animal part of her brain with the force of a baseball bat, Sookie gave him a dark look. "After these three finish choking on hairballs, you're driving me home. Provided you have all of your limbs."
"Have faith, Sookie," Eric said, his cold, blood-hungry eyes dancing with a chilling glee. "I will not be bested by werewolves."
Sookie swallowed her retort nervously as one of the wolves took offense to his jeer and let out a thunderous howl of rage. A pair of glowing orange eyes appeared in the mouth of an alley. It was like something out of a vivid nightmare.
Eric's fangs clicked down as he released his own hissing snarl, a louder and far more impressive sound. It was the green light for the Weres. Faster than Sookie could follow, two of them were bursting out from the (thankfully empty) street and racing towards Eric.
Eric crouched, a sinster laugh ringing in the air, and then he was a blur to her eyes, lunging at the wolf before him. There was a pained yelp as Eric hurled the gray wolf across the street, whirling to deliver a vicious, jaw-breaking kick to the black wolf's face as it tried to attack his back.
Sookie watched anxiously, ready to provide a distraction if Eric needed one. It wasn't in her nature to stand back and let someone - anyone - be hurt. Considering how vulnerable she was compared to vampires and werewolves, it was lucky Eric showed no sign of needing her help. Especially since the third Were was unaccounted for.
There was a sound behind her, one that put every nerve on her body on edge; the sound of a shift. Sookie twisted around, sucking in a deep breath, her brown eyes wide and doe-like.
A kid stood behind her. Just a kid, a few years younger than herself with light-coloured hair. Eric's roars and snarls, and the Were's pained yelps echoed in her ears. It killed her to stand by and watch.
"It's okay," he said, slowly raising his hands, reassurance in his face. Glamoured - damn fanger - "I'm not gonna hurt you." He offered a hand.
The Were thought he was rescuing a victim from a bloodthirsty vampire. She glanced at Eric just in time to see him - a tall blur - sending the two werewolves sprawling like rag dolls with one swing, a look of fierce enjoyment about him. Sookie looked back at the kid, and gingerly took his hand.
Then she leaned back before swinging forward, packing all her strength and the gathered momentum into one punch. The Were's head snapped back and he staggered blindly, skin split from her knuckles, blood running into his eyes. Dimly aware of the sharp shock of pain shooting up her arm, Sookie let herself fall forward a little before regaining her balance, and smashing her elbow into the Were's temple on the back swing.
Without letting either of them recover, Sookie kicked out at his groin, and brought him crashing to his knees like a stack of bricks, his howl of agony ringing through the street. She kicked his shoulder next, knocking him to the floor, and carefully resting her foot on her neck, applying light pressure. If she didn't finish before he collected himself, he would shift into his stronger form and her chances of survival would shrink to zero.
"He wasn't glamourin' me!" Sookie snapped down at him, accent thickening withstress. She glanced over her shoulder at Eric. There was only one Were still capable of standing up, the other was in human form and hopefully just unconscious. "You need to get out of here before he stops being coy!"
After Sookie anxiously moved her foot, the Were stared up at her in astonishment.
"Now! Go!"
For a moment longer, the Were hesitated before turning tail and taking off, changing back into his wolf form to run faster. There was a thump behind her as another Were hit the floor, and Sookie turned around, flinching in surprise to find Eric directedly in front of her. There was a wet spray of blood on his cheek, stark on his pale skin, and red painted his hands but not his mouth.
Eric stared down at her from unusually close, the blazing, unreal blue of his eyes devoured by his dark pupils. His fangs glinted with saliva, and his long, blonde hair was dishevelled by the fight. His air of power had been uncoiled. He lowered his head, eyes burning with a feral light of lust, reaching out to grasp the back of her neck possessively. Sookie's feet were rooted to the floor, and Eric pulled her up, ducking himself down to meet her lips.
A volt of sheer crackling electricity was sent straight down to her clit, making her flinch in surprise at the intensity. Her hands went to Eric's broad shoulders, feeling the taunt muscles under her palms, needing to ground herself. Eric snarled into her mouth, hauling her closer until she was pressed up against his torso. His tongue ravished her mouth, tasting every inch of her hungrily as his arms curled around her, one hand fisted her hair brutally while the other curled at the base of her spine.
Some instincts were too integrated to ever truly fade. As a Viking, Eric's instincts seemed to be pretty intent on taking his spoils of war (or more honestly, snit-fit with a bunch of werewolves).
"Eric," Sookie gasped into his mouth, more of a protest than a moan. Stop him - pull away - pull away - now - c'mon, Stackhouse -
Eric's fist clenched in her hair, his chest rumbling against her breasts with a growl, and Sookie pushed her hands into his shoulders, shoving herself away from him. She backed away, lips red and flushed, eyes dilated, feeling herself burning hotly with lust, and shook her head at him firmly. "No, no. Nah-uh. No way, no how."
Eric retracted his fangs with a click and straightened to his full, imposing height. His eyes remained dark, ravenously fixed to her form. "Very well...Sookie."
A shiver of lust writhed down her spine. "What was that about?"
"You do not belong in a small-minded town with God-fearing hypocrites and xenophobic rednecks," Eric said darkly, speaking the words with a stark honesty that could have unhinged a more sensitive woman.
"So you kissed me?"
His eyes dropped pointedly to her hand, and Sookie realized some of the Were's blood was on her hand, dripping to the floor. "Oh! For the record; eww."
As he drove, Eric thought about Sookie Stackhouse. Her eyes glowed with good humor, an unpredictable one that swung from odd to delightfully sardonic, and her smile beamed with unashamed zest for life. Her figure was lush, curved beautifully, all tanned skin and blonde curls and dark, wicked eyes in a modest sundress.
She was a marvel. A fuckable one with a skill for violence and a mouth like honey.
Her blood smelt exquisite, as honeyed as her mouth but with an edge of sex, but he was faintly surprised to find it less fascinating than the girl with it pumping through her veins. Her sass was refreshing, so unlike the vermin begging and crawling for his attention.
It had taken more restraint than she would ever know not to fuck her in the middle of the street when she reeked of sinful arousal, and him, and a fight. What other tiny human woman could beat two psycho's on vampire blood into the ground? And disarm a Were so thoroughly?
Would she be as much as a hellcat in bed as she was out of it? Fierce and unyielding under him, above him? He could picture her riding him vividly, her head flung back, pink lips parted in a moan, a sheen of sweat on her breasts as she finally - fucking finally - was at a loss for words.
Eric could feel his dick throbbing angrily against his zipper, demanding Sookie Stackhouse. Anyone else would be a consolation prize. He was used to getting what he wanted, but he had a feeling she would not yield to him easily. No other woman had ever pushed him away.
"Turn left," Sookie told him, her golden head propped up on her hand. Her scent was blown around wildly by the wind. She grinned at him brightly. "And follow the yellow brick road, my dear vampire."
Her neck should be snapped for the audacity of laying claim to him, however flippantly, but the idea of causing her lively eyes to dim was a distasteful one. Eric appreciated strength in any form, and the tiny telepath possessed much of it. She was a rare individual. Pam would be disgusted by the idea.
"Yours, my tiny human?" Eric purred, delighted by the sound of her heartbeat stuttering.
"I figured you would prefer that to Toto, and you're no cowardly lion," Sookie told him sardonically, a smile lurked at the corners of her mouth. As he drove up her driveway, Eric tried not to curse at the numerous potholes, jaw clenching in irritation.
At the sound of her laughter, his eyes snapped to her and stared at her coldly. He was amused by her and he wanted to have her, but he would not take mockery from her. He wasn't Compton, too obsessed with what her dress hid to retain his pride.
"I'm sorry," Sookie said around a shit-eating grin. "But judging by the look on your face, if you were in a grave, you would've been spinnin'."
"Indeed," he said coolly, parking outside her house. He raised an eyebrow as she climbed out of his car, catching a delightful glimpse of her tanned legs. "No kiss?"
Sookie twisted around to look at him, bracing her hands on the side of his corvette. "You've already had one," she told him sternly before relaxing into a sultry grin that made his dick twitch. She would be smiling like that as he entered her. "But since you braved my drive way, I'll give you something better." She pointed at her cleavage. "34B."
That size was too small, Eric decided, not needing to refresh his memory but looking anyway.
"Miss Stackhouse, I never took you for a liar."
Sookie laughed again as she bounced up her porch steps, fishing her keys out and unlocking the door. Her laughter choked off into silence, and the strong smell of cooling blood hit Eric's advanced nose. It was a large amount of blood, pints and pints of it. Potent enough for Sookie to smell. Eric's fangs snapped down instinctively, hunger stirring...
And then he recognized the two scents. Eric lunged thoughtlessly out of the car, reaching Sookie's porch just as light flooded her blood-splattered kitchen and she saw everything.
Two scents. A cliffhanger, a game changer. A S/E kiss. A doubtlessly awful Eric POV scene. I write his words better than his thoughts. I should avoid writing from his eyes in the future, yes?
Reviews are the cure to cliffhangers.