He nodded.
“Wait a second.” I opened my mouth and touched my teeth. “I don’t have fangs. I can’t be a vampire.”
He raised his arm and bit himself.
“Slade?” I gasped, watching the blood bubble out of the wound. “What in the world?”
He held his arm toward me. “Here.”
My throat went dry as I stared at the red droplets.
“You know you want to taste it.”
My nostrils flared from its sweet, coppery scent. I stood transfixed and frightened.
“It’s part of who you are now. Give in to your hunger.”
I suddenly wanted to drag my tongue across his wrist and find out if it tasted as good as it smelled. But, the entire idea frightened me to the core. “This isn’t me. I’m not a… blood sucker.” I shook my head vehemently. “No, I won’t do it.”
“It’s okay.”
I bit my lower lip, hating how my stomach began to growl and the way my mouth was now watering. “No,” I repeated. “This isn’t happening.”
Sighing, he touched the blood and then rubbed it on my lips. “Lick your lips, Chelsey.”
Shaking, I did what he asked and then shuddered in delight.
Oh my God, I’m a vampire!
“Would you like more?” he asked, holding his arm out to me.
“No,” I lied backing away.
“It’s okay.”
“I don’t want… your blood,” I said tightly.
“Yes you do. Look at your teeth now, Chelsey. The hunger is alive. It knows exactly what it wants. You can’t run from it.”
I looked in the mirror and moaned, in dismay. I had fangs.
“IT’S GOING TO be okay, Chelsey,” said Slade as I lay under the covers, staring at the wall. I’d been that way for the last two days, afraid to leave my room, let alone my bed. Nobody could talk me out of it, either. Not Slade, Melody, or even Liam, who’d visited me, earlier that morning. None of them had been able to lift my spirits and truthfully, I didn’t want them to. I just wanted to wallow in my own self-pity. It was the one thing that I could control and something inside of me that was still… human. I wasn’t ready to give that up yet, as pathetic as it was. “You’re stronger than this.”
I didn’t say anything.
“You can’t stay in bed forever, you know.”
When I still didn’t respond, he grabbed the bedcovers, pulled them off of me, and tossed them onto the floor.
“Hey!” I hollered, glaring up at him.
“Hey, nothing! You can’t let this ruin your life, Chelsey! What’s done is done and you need to learn to live with it.”
“I didn’t want this!”
“Neither did I!” he hollered. “But when it happened to me, I chose not to give in to despair, which is what you’re doing!”
“So? It was different for you! You’re a guy!”
“That has nothing to do with it,” he said. “And you’re right, it was different, but only because I didn’t have anyone to help me get through it at the time. I didn’t know anything and had to learn it all on my own. But you have me, Chelsey, and I’m not going to let you do this to yourself.”
“Just leave me alone,” I said, lying back down. I turned away from him. “I don’t want your help.”
But Slade was stubborn when he wanted to be. He grabbed me around the waist and picked me up. “You’re getting it anyway.”
“Let me go!” I snapped, struggling to get away from him.
“Not until you’ve had a shower,” he said. “I love you, but… you’re smelling a little ripe.”
“Then let me go if you don’t like the way I smell!” I snapped. “Wait a second, did you just say you loved me?”
He carried me into the bathroom. “Damn right I did. Now, let’s get you in the shower so the maid can change your linen and my eyes stop watering.”
I wanted to be angry with Slade but a smile slipped out instead.
“Come on, Chelsey,” he said, staring into my eyes with tenderness. “Snap out of this funk. When I just said that I loved you, I meant it and I’m never giving up on you.”
“Do you even know how long never is?” I asked stiffly.
“Believe me, I know more than anyone,” he said, kissing my nose. “Our never is forever, which is what we now have… together.”
My eyes filled with tears. My poet. “I love you, too, you know.”
“I know.”
I laughed. “You knew?”
“Of course,” he said, turning on the shower.
“How?”
“Let me show you,” he said, undressing me.
WE STAYED IN the shower, together, for the next hour, and sure enough, Slade had me gasping out my love for him, several times. When we were both spent, he dried me off and carried me back into the bedchamber.
“You still haven’t proved how you knew that I loved you,” I teased.
“Nonsense. You made those same noises when we had sex the last time.”
“But I didn’t actually say that I loved you.”
“Your body did.”
I smirked. “My body did…”
“Why are we arguing about this?” he laughed, throwing me onto the bed. He crawled over and then got on top of me. “Do I need to prove myself?”
“You already have.”
He smiled and did it again.
AFTERWARD, SLADE AND I got dressed and headed downstairs. It was just after eight in the evening and we could hear laughter coming from the Dining Hall. When we stepped inside, all eyes were on us.
“Hi,” I said, smiling shyly as I looked at the group. Everyone was there, including Aiden’s brother and his guests, who I hadn’t formally met.
Melody stood up and ran to me. “Chelsey, thank goodness you’re up! I’ve missed you so much.”
“I missed you, too,” I said, hugging her back. It was then that I found myself enchanted by her scent and it frightened me.
“Come and eat,” she said, pulling me toward the table, unaware of the horror I was feeling inside.
“Actually, we have some things we need to do,” said Slade, noticing the way I’d stiffened up.
“Oh,” she replied, looking disappointed. “Okay, come to my room later, when you get back? We need to talk.”
“Uh, sure,” I said, knowing that I wouldn’t. I couldn’t.
“How are you feeling?” asked Aiden, his eyes watching me like a fox.
I licked my lips. “I’m okay.”
“It’s certainly good to see you up and about,” he answered and then looked at Slade. “You got this?”
“Of course.”
“Good, because you’re the expert and I don’t know the first thing about this stuff.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Melody, looking confused.
It was then that I realized she didn’t know.
“I’ll tell you later,” I said, forcing a smile.
“Okay,” said Melanie.
“Chelsey, before I forget, this is Caitlyn, Megan and Meredith,” said Aiden, pointing at the other guests. “I don’t think you’ve been properly introduced.”
“No, I haven’t. Nice to meet the three of you.”
“You as well,” said Meredith, an attractive woman in her thirties. She had longish black hair and bright blue eyes. Slade had mentioned briefly, while we were getting dressed, that Aiden had disappeared into her bed chamber more than once in the last couple of days.
“I’m so glad you’re feeling better,” said Megan, who was also very pretty. She had long red hair and a friendly smile.
“Yeah, we heard about what happened,” said Caitlyn, who looked like a younger version of Meredith, who was her grandmother. “Thank God, they found you.”
I grinned. “I know. I’m very grateful. Oh, and thank you Torin. I heard you were the one who hypnotized Dr. Shephard and somehow got the address out of him.”
Torin, who didn’t look anything at all like his brothers, but was
still incredibly handsome with his dark hair and shocking blue eyes, smiled. “You’re welcome. Lucian was sneaky but he wasn’t very… smart. Fortunately for us.”
“Well, I appreciate all of your help,” I replied shyly. Everyone, but Melody, seemed to be staring at me, as if I was a new species of animal and they weren’t quite sure what to make of me. It was unsettling.
“Just remember that we’re all glad to have you back,” said Aiden as the staff started serving dinner.
“And I’m really glad to be back,” I replied, staring at the food. Turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, and stuffing. All of the food that I usually enjoyed. Oddly enough, I found that I had absolutely no desire to eat any of it. I wanted to cry.
“Catch you later,” said Slade, leading me out of the dining room.
“Where are we going?” I asked, feeling miserable again.
He turned and grinned. “It’s a surprise.”
I sighed. “Okay.”
His smile fell. “We’re going to work through all of this, okay?”
I nodded.
“It’s not that bad. I mean, it is, when you’re alone, but you have me. Remember that.”
“And thank God for that.”
“Actually, you can thank Torin for that. Otherwise, you’d be Lucian’s concubine.”
“What’s that?”
“His love-slave.”
I rolled my eyes. “No way. I’d have killed him myself, eventually.”
He grinned. “I’m sure you would have. He was a definite wuss.”
“He was a sick bastard,” I said, remembering the way he’d touched me inappropriately. “Pretending to be my friend and then…”
“And then made you a vampire?”
I nodded. Slade didn’t need to know any more than that. Lucian was gone and it would only upset him to learn how I’d almost been raped by the jerk. “Enough about Lucian. I hate him.”
“I won’t bring him up again.”
“Thanks.”
We stepped outside and he turned to me. “Now that you’re one of us, you need to learn how to fly.”
“No, I don’t think that’s necessary,” I said, laughing nervously. “You know how much I hate heights.”
“Flying is fun, once you learn how to do it. I promise.”
“Different strokes for different folks.”
He smirked. “Seriously, you need to do this. It’s not only a gift, it could save your life one day.”
I thought about the Roamers and how frightened I’d been after Lucian had lied to me about how they’d killed Slade. I’d wanted a way to protect myself. Now that I was a vampire, it was a skill that I knew would come in handy, as much as I hated the idea.
I sighed. “Fine. What do I do?”
“Okay,” he said. “It’s… kind of hard to explain. Why don’t you just watch me and then try it for yourself. I’ll go slowly.”
“Okay.”
“There are different ways of doing it. I can go straight up, kind of like Superman,” he said, smiling. “Or I can start running and then go up.”
“Which is easier?”
“For me, either way. For you, I’d try running and then throwing yourself toward the sky.”
“Throwing myself into the sky?”
“Yeah, that’s the easiest way to describe it, I guess.”
“Okay, show me.”
Slade began to run and I watched in admiration as he went up and then disappeared into the darkness.
“And that’s how you do it,” he said, suddenly appearing next to me.
I jumped. “Oh my God, how did you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Appear out of thin air?”
He laughed. “I’m just freaky fast. Once you get the flying thing down, you can work on stealth. Anyway, give it a whirl.”
“Okay.”
He stood next to me, waiting.
“Go ahead,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.”
“Don’t rush me,” I said dryly.
He grunted.
Taking a deep breath, I began to run.
“Jump into the air!” he yelled, running next to me.
I did and came back down immediately.
“What if I can’t fly?”
“All vampires can fly.”
“Maybe I’m the exception.”
“No, you’re not.”
“How do you know?”
“I just do. Now, keep trying,” he prodded.
I did. Several times. Each time I ran and jumped, I came right back down without even a hover.
“This is ridiculous,” I told him, a few minutes later as I tried catching my breath. “You may as well put a big “F” on my forehead, for ‘failure’.”
“You’re not a failure.”
“I’m certainly not a flier.”
He sighed in frustration. “Don’t give up.”
“Easy for you to say. How many times did it take before you learned how to fly?”
“I learned pretty quickly, actually. I don’t even remember there being a problem with it.”
I frowned. “See. It’s me. I’m a dud.”
He laughed. “Sorry. You’re not a dud, you’re just afraid. I know that’s the problem.”
“I can’t help it. I’ve always been afraid of heights.”
“Try this – when you’re running, don’t think about anything but what’s above you. See those stars?”
I looked up at the glittering sky. “Yeah.”
“Imagine that you’re trying to get to them.”
“They’re too high.”
He sighed again. “Fine. Look at the hillside, over there then,” he pointed. “Imagine yourself wanting to get to the top by taking a shortcut through the sky.”
“Oh, okay. I think I can do that.”
“You will do that,” he said, as I prepared to run. “I have faith in you.”
“Glad someone does,” I said dryly before taking off. This time I ran as fast as I could, staring up at the hill, wanting to be there. This time when I leaped into the air, I stayed.
“You’re doing it!” hollered Slade.
My heart was beating madly as I went higher and higher. “Oh my God. I’m doing it.”
“Yes!” cried Slade from below me.
I relaxed and began to smile. It wasn’t bad. Not bad at all.
“Fun, huh?” called Slade, now flying next to me.
“Yes!” I yelled back, now smiling from ear-to-ear as I realized how right he was. It was fun.
“This way!” he said, flying away from me.
I followed him through the darkness, past the hillside, and over Grafton Street. I soon became giddy with joy as I learned how to shift my body and control my movements.
“This is incredible!” I squealed, as we circled high above the lights.
Suddenly, he was holding me in mid-air, his arms circling my waist. “You’re incredible,” he said, kissing me.
I closed my eyes and kissed him back, feeling as light as a feather as we hung in the air.
“Can I take you home with me?” he asked, when our lips parted.
“To
Romania?” I asked, surprised.
“Yes.”
“I’d love to,” I answered, excited to see his place.
Smiling, he grabbed my hand and we flew.
AN HOUR LATER, I stood in Slade’s kitchen. He’d just given me the grand tour of his condo, which wasn’t exactly what I’d expected. It was very posh and contemporary, but it just didn’t seem like Slade.
“What do you think?”
“It’s nice,” I said. “But…”
He grinned. “It’s not what you’d expected?”
“Not at all. It’s too… cold and uptight. I mean it’s very elegant and reminds me of something you’d see in a magazine, but it’s stifling.”
“Stifling?”
“Okay, stiff.”
He laughed. “Stiff?”
“I don’t know how to describe
it other than to say it’s not you.”
“I guess that’s a compliment, although I’ve been stiff before.”
I giggled. “You know what I mean.”
“Yes, I do. I’m thinking about remodeling it again.”
“Do you spend a lot of time here?”
“Not really.”
“Then why bother?’
“Because I probably would spend more time here if I felt more comfortable.”
“I guess that makes sense.”
“So, what did you think of flying?”
“It was so much better than I thought. I actually really enjoyed myself.”
“Good.” He grinned. “See, aren’t you glad you listened to me?”
“Yes.”
“Just remember, I’m always right.”
I snorted. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
He chuckled.
“So, what should we do now?” I asked.
“Anything we want.”
“What do vampires do when they’re just hanging out?”
“The same as what mortals do, except we have more freedom.”
“You mean life flying?”
“Exactly. We’re also stronger and can run like the wind.”
“I hadn’t noticed.”
“You will.”
“I’m so tired, I doubt I could run anywhere right now.”
“Let’s fix that.” Slade opened up the refrigerator and pulled out two plastic bags filled with red liquid.
“Blood?” I asked, frowning.
He nodded. “You need it to survive. This is how I usually get my meals.”
I read the label on one of the bags. “You get these from a blood bank?”
“That and sometimes I get them from the hospital. Mira, my housekeeper, provides me with what I need.”
“I didn’t know you had a housekeeper,” I replied.
He took out two wine glasses and set them in front of us. “Yes. She’s more like family, to be honest.”
“Where is she now?”
“I don’t know. She has some friends that she goes to dinner with sometimes.”
“Oh. Is she nice?”
“She’s amazing.”
“Great. I can’t wait to meet her.”
“You will. Soon.”
“So, do we microwave the blood?” I asked, watching him as he filled one of the glasses.
Toxic (Venom Series) Book Three Page 20