Shaking off the bitter thoughts of the past, I step out of my front door when the warm scent of Sam reaches me.
His hair is brushed back from his face. This is the first time I’ve seen him cleaned up, and he doesn’t disappoint. Dark jeans and a crisp white button-down make him look every bit the dashing suitor. He stops and stares. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you. You are very handsome.” I meet him halfway down the walkway to my door.
“I would have knocked.” He nods toward the door.
Shrugging, I say, “I caught your scent and figured I would save you the trouble.”
In his hand is a picnic basket. He offers his other arm. He guides me around my house, past the construction, and into the cemetery. “Do you like how I smell?”
If I told him the entire truth, he might not want to continue. “Your scent is very pleasing.”
“I’m glad to hear it, but you hesitated. That makes me think you were going to say something else.” Steering us around headstones, we make our way to the conservation area.
I let out a breath. Lies are something I despise. “I haven’t been on a date in a long time. I don’t want it to end before it’s begun, and if I tell you too much truth, I think this date will be over.”
“Why don’t you take a leap of faith, Mari?” He slips my hand from the crook of his arm and into his hand as if it’s the most normal thing to walk hand in hand through the woods with me.
Stopping our progress, I pull my hand free. I wait until he faces me and let the moment build. “I was forced to do many terrible things in my life. It took me a lifetime to break free from the one who made me. Once I was free, I decided never to feed on humans again. You make me want to break that vow. I can hear the blood rushing through your veins, and I long to taste it. I want things with you that I have no business wanting. Even this date is a mistake, but I couldn’t help myself.”
Stepping close, he brushes my hair away from my face. “I’m not human, and neither is my blood.” Taking my hand, he presses his lips to the inside of my wrist, then continues toward the river.
I follow in a kind of trance. He should have been horrified and walked or run away. “You understand I wish to bite you and drink your blood?”
“Yes. I also believe you won’t do so without my permission.” He turns toward the falls, and when the water grows louder, he stops. “Or am I wrong?”
My mouth goes dry. “It’s intimate. I would… I mean… I don’t know how to answer that.”
The way he smiles is both wicked and sexy. He places the basket under a large oak and spreads a blanket that’s big enough for both of us to sit on while he pulls two glasses and a bottle of wine out. “Will you sit?”
Shyness is a human trait that I haven’t succumbed to in so long that I barely recognize it. “I’m sorry I didn’t explain myself better.” I take a glass of red wine and sip the deep Merlot. “This is very good. Thank you.”
In his hand, the glass looks like it’s for a child. He sips, then looks me in the eyes. “I gather that you believe that biting me would be sexual. I also think so.”
“Have you been with a vampire before?” Jealousy courses through me. I have no right to it, but it’s there just the same.
Shaking his head, he laughs. “No, but I told you that I knew a vampire in Belgium. He and I were friends, and he mentioned that being a blood host was pleasurable.”
“It can be.” I spit it out before I have a chance to make my tone neutral.
All joy washes from his face. “Someone hurt you? This vampire who sired you, or was it someone else?”
I drink the wine and consider whether or not to answer. “We should speak of nicer things, Sam. The past is riddled with difficulties that I’d rather not share yet.”
“I hope at some point you’ll change your mind and share those things with me.” He leans his back against the thick trunk of the tree and closes his eyes.
It might be the first time since I became a monster that anyone has relaxed in my presence.
Chapter Four
Sam
Mari may be avoiding me since our date. I’m not certain why. From my perspective, it went well. I could be imagining things. I’ve been in her yard every day, and she hasn’t come outside at all. I heard her singing once, but she stopped abruptly.
It’s Friday, and I’ve finished the wall. I still have work to do on the meditation tower, but I can put it off until next week. Rather than let her hide, if that’s what she’s doing, I knock on the back door before I leave.
Summer is coming, and the days are getting longer. It’s hot. I probably smell like something that’s been buried for a week and just realized it’s dead. My shower is calling me, but I’m not giving up on my vampire.
