I really couldn’t see what all the fuss was about. “Aside from the blood thing then,” I said, strapping myself in. It became apparent that comment was not well received either. I felt a flair of irritation. “Look, I may need your help with vampires, but the average male I’m more than capable of handling myself, and if you’re like this with a fake human girlfriend I’d hate to see what you’re like with a real one.”
“Vampires do not make good partners, especially for humans,” he answered casually. He pulled out onto the road, no seatbelt on.
“Why not?” I asked, curious. The car didn’t ding like a standard car, warning its occupants to put their belts on, it must have been disabled.
“We are protective by nature and extremely possessive. We do not bond easily, but when we do it’s exceptionally hard for us to break it. And resisting the blood that courses through your veins is quite the challenge. A moment of rage or even lust . . .” He trails off. “It does not often end well.”
“Oh,” I said, concerned but determined not to show it. “So it’s like the movies, our blood is really that hard to resist?”
He gave me a dark look. “It’s like leaving a drug addict in a room full of heroin and telling him not to touch it.”
I gulped, suddenly intensely aware of our energies that lay heavy against the car walls. “Should I have flown home, then?”
“I have a willpower that’s stronger than most, you have no need for concern.” He reassured me. “Just do not flee in fear.”
“What. Why?”
“When humans are scared they emit adrenaline, we can smell it. It’s appealing to us and if you run you trigger our natural prey drive. It’s almost impossible to resist.” Despite the seriousness of his words his tone was deliberately calm and smooth. “If you’re ever threatened by a vampire, stand your ground, fight, but do not run.”
“Like a rabbit is to a greyhound?”
“A greyhound can be trained. It’s a little more like a lone fawn to a ravenous lion.”
“Good to know,” I mumbled, “lucky I don’t scare easily.”
His temper flared again. “You’d do well to remember you are dealing with predators, angering Monique was a very stupid thing to do. If I wasn’t there, she would have ripped your neck open in a heartbeat.”
“If you remember, Karson, she started it,” I said crisply. “And I refuse to be controlled by fear of human or vampire or—”Shadow Man.I didn’t finish the sentence.
We sat in silence for some time.
“The metaphor about time that Michael said to Monique. What did it mean?”
“One second is all it takes for a vampire’s teeth to sink into flesh. One second you are human, one second you are not. It’s a reminder to remember who she was before that second.”
“So the clock reference is to awaken human behaviors and suppress vampires?”
“Yes, if you like. And a reminder that in acting on impulse a second is all it takes to ruin your life. One second is the difference between life and death.”
“The men outside the diner, why did you choose to allow some random strangers’ thoughts to affect you? Listening must drive you insane.”
“That’s easy for someone who can’t read minds to say.”
“Yes, but if we all think the same, why get angry over it?”
He turned his head back to the road and said quietly, “Some of the things I hear would anger you too.”
I didn’t like to see him upset. I reached over and squeezed his arm with a look of compassion.
He stared down at my hand as if shocked. He swallowed and drew in a deep breath. “I much prefer to have you squeeze my arm like that, than have you digging your fingers right through to my bones.” He smiled, it reached his eyes and dazzled me.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You did not hurt me, Amelia,” he said softly, he murmured. He turned his head away and muttered something else under his breath, but I couldn’t hear what he said.
By the time we arrived home it was mid-afternoon, the trip had taken a little over six hours. Karson drove at speeds whichwould normally terrify me. But he was such a skilled driver I didn’t feel unsafe. The conversation had flowed effortlessly. There was no more talk of vampires or witches, blood, or death. I was not surprised to realize I really enjoyed his company and I almost forgot what he was. Almost.
Chapter 45
