I moisten my lips and slowly tip my head up, watching as his gaze lowers and he looks at me intently. Boldly, I use my other hand to fist his tee shirt at his chest and close what little distance remains between us.
His lips brush against mine and the strangest sensation sweeps through me. It is like butterflies are trying to escape from inside of me. Something is strange about him. I’m nervous and fluttery. Ignoring the sensation, I push forward.
Our lips meet again, only without hesitation this time. His kiss is hungry and needy. It feels so strong, I have to remind myself that this is just a mere human. The kiss softens and his tongue gently explores the recesses of my mouth.
When I pull away, I’m breathing hard and my feelings are all over the place. This is unnerving. That’s when he gasps and I instantly know what has happened. My violet eyes have become more intense and bright. I have to get him out of here before my control slips.
Leaning forward again, I shout in his ear. “Let’s get out of here!”
Chase smiles and begins to tug me towards the exit. A sigh of relief that this is almost over, escapes my lips. Needing my fix, my perfect composure is waning. I can’t afford to let my human features slide.
Vampires have brightly colored eyes that glow when we are feeding. We have to be careful about being seen, so our feedings require privacy. In my case, my violet eyes glow a bright purple and people would definitely notice.
Once we exit the warmth of the club, I enjoy the soft breeze outside. Keeping my hand wrapped in his, we move further away from the noise.
“Do you live close by?” I ask breathily.
“Yeah, just two blocks over.”
“Good,” I say into his mouth as my lips land on his and tug his bottom lip gently. He lets a small moan escape.
“Let’s go before I have my way with you in this alley.”
The thought sends chills across my bare skin. Could I do it? I’ve never indulged with a human but something about Chase is so different, it makes me curious.
Truthfully, I’ve never indulged with anyone. Female vampires, especially royals, are coveted. Besides not being able to leave our city alone, we’re forced to wait until we have finished the mating process.
We must remain pure until our mating night. Then the breeding begins. Vampires don’t believe in birth control because it’s hard enough for a vampire to conceive. Every life is a blessing when it comes to our kind.
The blood ball will be the first time I’m actually allowed to begin the mating selection. Since we mate for life, my goal is to take my time and choose right, on my own terms. That doesn’t mean I don’t lust after hot guys, it’s just never been a human before.
Coming off of my tangent and trying to refocus on my present situation is hard, but I can’t afford to lose track of myself. Knowing that doesn’t necessarily make my mind stop thinking about Chase.
All my thoughts on the walk to his place circle around how he will taste as his blood spills into my mouth. Will it be sweet or metallic? Maybe it will be bitter and I won’t really enjoy it. Trying to calm myself down, my primary focus is not let my features slip. Showing him my fangs would definitely scare him away.
I hope that he tastes every bit as good as he looks. I’ve never seen anyone more gorgeous. It’s almost a shame he’s human and won’t remember this. The thought makes me uneasy but is quickly brushed away once again.
We walk in a comfortable silence, hand in hand. It takes only a few minutes to reach his apartment building. Chase unlocks the outer door and tugs me up the stairs to the third floor.
After he opens the door and we step inside, I take in the scene before me. I’m not expecting this. Usually a single male’s apartment is all modern and cold. They are always so impersonal, making it all the easier to do my job.
This place is warm and lived in. Pictures hang on the walls and the furniture is worn but not too much. Everything looks cozy. It’s better get to this before I do anything to make me regret this night.
I flash him a come hither smile and pull him to the couch. Once he is seated, I waste no time lifting the hem of my dress and straddling him. It’s all part of my calculated process. His eyes are now the size of half dollars as he drinks me in.
Leaning forward, his hands slide up my legs and settle on my backside. He pulls me closer and I’m now nose to nose with him. My control is almost completely severed and my next move is to lean in and kiss him.
After an appropriate amount of time, my kisses change into soft and gentle ones. As I move to kiss his jawline and his ear, he groans in pleasure and anticipation. I almost feel bad for my deceit.
Needing to press on, my focus is to lowering my lips on the spot just below the ear. My kisses slowly trail down his neck until my mouth finds the artery I’m looking for. I kiss the spot and gently lick it. His eyes are closed and his head is tilted back in ecstasy.
Before there can be any hesitation, I stop just long enough to take in the sweet scent of his blood calling to me. My fangs descend and press down on contact. They slice through his skin like butter as they pierce the surface of his neck.
I take a Moment to let the euphoria settle into Chase, wanting him to enjoy it. It can be a very sexual experience with the right person. It’s a good thing I’m just with a human. As soon as he gasps and his grip tightens, he moves up to my waist and pulls me closer in his excitement.
Now is the time. I know my eyes are bright so I close them to avoid questions. I bring myself back down to his neck and drink the blood that has welled up in the puncture marks my fangs made. My bloody lips let out a small moan while savoring the sweet and metallic taste of his blood.
Chase tastes amazing. No, scratch that. He tastes like nothing I have had the pleasure of encountering before. He might just ruin me for future hunting.
Letting the blood lust take over, I began to drink greedily. It isn’t until his pulse starts to slow that I manage to stop myself. Pulling my fangs back out and gently licking his wounds to seal the puncture marks, they heal instantly.
Then, licking the remaining blood off of my lips, my attention returns to him. My hands pull his face to me until we’re looking each other in the eyes. A gasp escapes him as he notices the inhuman flash of violet in my eyes. It can’t be helped; I need to erase his memories.
“You will go to sleep once I leave and remember nothing of this night. My presence will be wiped from your memory. You came home from the club alone. As soon as you hear the door shut behind me, you will forget.”
I can’t resist so I steal one last soft kiss before sliding off his lap and fixing my dress. Then it’s time to open his front door and leave.
I’m high on his blood and grinning like an idiot. The euphoria my feeding brought on is like nothing else in the world. Cloud nine floats above me and the walk is spent remembering how perfect his blood tasted on my tongue as I drank ravenously.
By the time I reached the car, Jane is leaning against it. She is picking her nails, a sure sign that she is bored and has been waiting a while. It’s my turn to hurry up and mumble an apology. Looking at my watch, I realize that it’s five after midnight. Oops.
“Girl, where have you been? I’ve been waiting here for ten minutes. My night finished a few minutes early.”
“I was a few blocks from here. It was a little bit of a longer walk than I remembered on the way there.”
“Whatever Callie, let’s just get the hell out of here. I’m riding my blood high and want to get back so I can actually enjoy it.”
I get in the car and wait for Jane to start the purr of the engine. Then she bolts out of the parking lot and down the street like a bat out of hell. It only takes a Moment to roll the window down now that the night is over and I can enjoy the wind blowing through my hair. Closing my eyes, the nights’ events replayed.
We don’t speak much on the way home, as we both soak in the euphoria of the blood high. The feeling of peace and happiness flutters through me. It seems like I can do any
thing at this point. Instead, I’ll settle for going home.
Nathan, the security guard at the entrance of our town property, checks our passes and lets us in. Jane slows to a crawl as she makes her way down the street. She pulls in my driveway and shifts into park, leaving the car running.
“I had a blast, as usual. I hope you had half as good a night as I did.” She chuckles.
“I had an amazing night,” I reply dreamily.
Jane doesn’t respond or interrogate me, just raises an eyebrow in suspicion. I laugh and she gives me a wave. Then she puts the car back in drive and takes off.
It’s early and Mom will want to know what happened. She always does. I think she lives vicariously through me. She’s mated and, therefore, can’t feed off sexy guys anymore. My father would kill her, figuratively, of course.
I open the door to find my Mom on the couch, reading a book.
“Hi, Mom. How was your evening?”
“Oh, it was good, sweetheart. I trust you and Jane had fun on your night out on the town.”
“Yeah, it was kind of a strange night.”
“Sit down, honey. Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” I say and then change my mind. “Yes.”
I plop down on the other end of the couch and cover myself with a blanket before pulling my knees up. “Ugh, you are going to think I am crazy. Do you promise not to tell anyone?”
Mom is one of my best friends. She never judges and she always listens. I know that I’m lucky to have her in my life. Mom nods and I take a deep breath before recounting the night’s events.
“Have you ever felt for a human?”
“No! It’s forbidden. But can it happen, yes. It just hasn’t happened to me.”
“It was so weird. I had this attraction to a guy and his blood smelled better than anything else I have ever encountered. He was different from other humans but I don’t know why.”
“Callie, listen to me. This is serious. Tell me you didn’t do anything stupid.”
“Relax, Mom. Nothing happened. I took him back to his apartment and fed. Then I erased his memories before leaving. The problem is that I didn’t want to. For some reason I wanted him to remember me.”
“Oh, honey. At least you did the right thing. Just be careful from now on when you are out hunting with Jane. Don’t give yourself that opportunity again. Stick to safe.”
“Ugh, Mom. It was just so unreal. I felt this weird sensation the minute my hand touched his. It was so different from anything else I’ve encountered.”
Mom put her arm on my shoulder and smiled. “Lucky for you, we have the blood ball tomorrow night. You get your pick of available men. Tell you what, meet me at sunset when you get up and we will go out to get our nails done before we have to get ready for the ball. I think it will be fun. What do you say?”
It’s always hard telling my Mom no to anything. She knows that. I easily give in when her eyes meet mine. “That sounds great, Mom. I’ll see you then. It’s been an exhausting night, so I’m going to go on up to my room for the night. I want to spend some time alone listening to music and painting.”
“I love you, dear. I’ll see you then. Have fun painting,” she says before standing up and exiting the room.
Making my way upstairs, I pull my shoes off and carry them. My feet definitely thank me for the gesture. My body can’t wait to get out of this dress and into something more comfortable. Tomorrow will be even worse with the blood ball. My dress is extravagant.
I open my bedroom door and shut it behind me. After plugging my iPod into the small set of speakers on my desk, I collapse on the bed and listen to the beats. The blood high is still in full force and my mind wanders as I lay there.
Chase will not leave my thoughts. I’m intrigued by him. Even though my common sense understands that he’s a mere human and nothing I should concern myself with, my mind can’t stop going there. It is some kind of personal hell to have him invade my thoughts like this because I can’t figure out what is so different about him.
If there was a way to wish the thoughts away, I would. I definitely should try. Rules are rules for a reason. The humans can’t find out about us. If they did, we would be in utter chaos. It would become a witch hunt. It makes me shudder at the idea of being hunted like we hunt the humans.
I can’t deny the way it felt when we touched or kissed. My stomach is fluttering like a million caged butterflies just thinking about it. The feeling when we kissed had a strange kind of intensity. It makes me wonder what it will feel like when I find my mate. Hopefully, it is way better.
In an attempt to forget him, I force myself up off the bed and rummage through my dresser drawers until I find an old tank and shorts to paint in. As nice as it would be to lie in bed, it is no way to spend my night.
I start by placing a new canvas on my easel and mixing my paints until there’s a variety of bold pinks, blues, purples and yellows. My desire right now is to create something intense and emotional. Driven by the blood high, I take a deep breath and the brush makes its first stroke on the canvas in a thick yellow line.
Impressionism is, by far, my favorite style of art. I love the brush strokes and how they bring the painting together to make a whole scene. It has always been a wish of mine to have been alive when impressionism was at its peak.
Shaking off my musings, I refocus on my work. The song has changed and the melody washes over me. I begin to paint a scene with one stroke, and then another, until I have some semblance of an idea what I’m painting.
My creative side is always stronger during a blood high, so that’s when my painting is the best. Using a varying method of brush strokes, I’m rewarded with an amazing piece.
I’ve painted a little girl picking a daisy out of a never ending field of white daisies. Her face is so innocent. The sun is bright and the flowers are beautiful. Stepping back, I admire my work. Satisfied, I find an empty spot on my wall and hang it up amongst my other works of art.
My walls are covered from floor to ceiling with my better works. One could get lost in a sea of colorful, impressionist art. Sometimes, I sit for hours and take in the memories associated with each work and why it’s special to me. It never fails to give me perspective.
Still feeling a little keyed up, I pull out my yoga mat and begin to stretch my lean muscles. I’ve been doing yoga since I was coordinated enough to accomplish it. It’s practically second nature for me, but it gives me a certain level of peace that I can’t find anywhere else.
It’s hard not to wonder what Jane would say if I had confided in her about tonight. Would she freak out, or admonish me for even thinking about breaking the rules? Maybe she would just lend me a supportive shoulder to lean on.
As much as I’m dying to tell her everything, my Mom’s reaction stops me. I couldn’t drag Jane into anything that suggested danger. It was not even safe to gossip about things like that. The whole thing could be misconstrued and I could end up in front of the council for it.
Because I’m royalty, I have a more important duty to my fellow vampires. They turn to us for leadership. We set the example for our whole community, as well as the cities outside our walls. All those vampires see me as a role model. Since I’m female, that makes me even more coveted and will help ensure our race continues.
I know it seems like a lot of pressure, but I’ve grown up in this environment. Politics are a dinner conversation, with no breaks in duties. Mom makes me hold many seats in charities and various functions. It is all part of being royalty. I could, someday, rule this race, even though I’m like third in line for the throne.
After feeling thoroughly stretched, I slip downstairs for another blood infusion. Even though Chase just fed me and it recharges me for the week, I still need our special mixture to maintain my strength. My eyes glow purple as I’m indulging in the blood. It may not be enjoyable, but the vampire in me still needs the blood like humans need water. It’s 80 percent of our makeup and we would go into stasis without it.<
br />
Our race is immortal but our hearts still beat. We have to pump all that blood through somehow. It also keeps us from looking like zombies and having our flesh rot. We’re still paler than humans due to the volume of blood in our system.
Just because we are immortal doesn’t mean we can’t be killed. We could be put in stasis and staked or beheaded, just like anyone else. Being captured is always a fear in our community so that’s why it’s so important for us to remain a secret. The humans must remain ignorant of our existence.
With that final thought, I finish my infusion and turn my thoughts to the blood ball. My internal thoughts don’t have long to muse over things, though, because my Mom rushes in, looking excited. Uh oh, that’s never a good sign.
“There you are Callie. I just went up to your room to look for you.”
“I’m right here Mom. What’s up?”
“The Gregorias have invited us to their bar for cocktails tomorrow before the blood ball. I told them that we would love to attend. I think the Lucias are going to be there, too.”
I groan a little too loudly. “Do we have to? I’ll see Cody and Thayer at the blood ball as eligible bachelors. I don’t need to see them before, too,” I whine.
Cody is very attractive with ear length, blonde hair and stunning, hazel eyes. Any girl would be lucky to catch his attention. Too bad I’m not just any girl. I just don’t have interest in dating any of them. It’s nothing personal. Cody is a great catch, but more suited for someone like Jane. She is actually buying into this whole coming out thing.
Thayer, on the other hand, is just obnoxious. He always has been. He spent his younger years razzing all the girls until many of us threatened him within an inch of his life. That subdued him, but didn’t stop him altogether. He’s handsome enough with green eyes and shaggy, brown hair, but he’s still stuck with boyish looks instead of those of a mature, male vamp.
“Come on, Callie. It won’t hurt you to be polite for an hour before the ball. Cody and Thayer can’t be that bad. I know Thayer was a little wild in your earlier years, but I’ve heard he’s really grown up. This is a coming out party; you need to see the males. They also need to see you. Don’t hide like you usually do. I expect you to participate in this event. “
Devour Page 2