A Special Gift

by Alice Brown

  It seemed that Richard had showed up on the O’Rourke’s doorstep three nights ago for the sole purpose of asking Stephanie if he could escort her to the dance being held tonight. Although Stephanie had declined, of course, stating she had already accepted another invitation, it still made Marshall seethe with anger to know she had never mentioned this to him.

  And if that wasn’t enough, it seemed his visit a few nights ago wasn’t the first one. The kid had already asked her a few weeks ago, and she had turned him down. On top of all that, after Stephanie nicely but firmly turned him down, he’d had the balls to inform her that he was attending the ball with the sole intent to try to sweep her off her feet. This was after Stephanie had made it abundantly clear that she was engaged, and who her mate was. This should get interesting, Marshall mused to himself as he checked the mirror a final time. He hadn’t put that rock on her finger for nothing. He knew Stephanie would never go for someone like Richard Moore, but just the thought of the slimeball giving him trouble tonight had him seething. Maybe that was why Stephanie failed to mention it. She knew it would anger him.

  As Marshall walked out his front door, he shook his head. Why was he getting so upset over this? Stephanie had never paid any attention to the numerous vampires and half-vampires in their society who had tried to catch her attention. For that matter, she had never given any male, human or vampire, the time of day. Mr. Atkins had assured Marshall that he had pulled Richard aside and told him Stephanie was engaged to Marshall, and the little weasel had still showed up on her doorstep.

  Marshall tried to clear his head before he arrived at the O’Rourke household. It would do him no good to walk in and greet his date with a scowl. Kevin met him at the door when he arrived, stating the women were still upstairs getting ready.

  “Want a drink?” Kevin asked solicitously as he walked over to the bar and poured himself one.

  “Sure,” Marshall replied smoothly. Why not, he thought. It might help to smooth his ruffled feathers.

  “Just want you to know I know what old Atkins told you about Moore,” Kevin’s voice brought Marshall out of his musings and back to the present. He could contemplate how to wring Richard’s neck later.

  “You have to know by now she is in love with you. I think this kid is just trying to cause trouble. Personally, I can’t stand him. He and his family are very ‘kiss-butt’ type—not my cup of tea at all. Your best bet would be for you and Stephanie to steer clear of him tonight. Don’t give him a reason to start trouble.”

  Erica and Stephanie came down the stairs just moments later, and Kevin immediately went to meet Erica at the foot of the stairs. “You, my dear, look absolutely beautiful,” he quietly stated as he drank her in. “How is it that you only seem to get more stunning as time goes by?” he asked as he kissed her cheek.

  Marshall found himself staring at their daughter. Stephanie had chosen a bright blue strapless gown. A matching scarf around the base of her throat dangled tantalizingly behind her. Her long hair was done up on top of her head with curls cascading down her slim back. Marshall’s eyes were soon riveted on the necklace she was wearing, feeling a sense of pride as he recognized it to be the diamond he had given her. The diamond dangled from a black rope chain choker, and the diamond now sat directly on top of the scarf at the base of her throat, glistening in the light for all to see.

  She smiled as Marshall found himself moving in her direction, his feet and legs moving of their own accord. “Wow,” he stated, as no other words seemed to be coming to mind when he reached her. “Did you happen to see Stephanie upstairs?” he teased, holding out his hand for her. “She usually wears jeans and a comfortable shirt.”

  “Silly,” she replied, standing on tiptoe to give him an affectionate kiss.

  “You do look beautiful tonight,” Marshall whispered in awe once he had her hand tucked safely in his. “How did I get lucky enough to take the prettiest gal in our society to the ball?” Marshall could just imagine what he was going to be going through trying to keep her to himself tonight.

  She looked over to him with a twinkle in her eye. “I don’t know about luck having anything to do with it. But the answer is, because you asked me.”

  “Ah, now she remembers.” Marshall continued teasing her as they headed for the elevator. The ball was already in full swing when they arrived. Because of his job with the VCTF, Marshall knew everyone in the room. Most he knew very well, having lived in the same community with them for many years. He now watched at least thirty pairs of male eyes turn to stare as the four of them entered the huge ballroom.

  It was impossible to know how many sets of eyes were on Erica, and how many were on Stephanie. Erica was one of the best-looking ladies in the society, and the fact that Stephanie seemed to inherit her mother’s looks had most of the young to middle-aged vampire males trying to gain Stephanie’s attention. The fact that she had a rock on her finger announcing her engagement didn’t seem to matter. Kevin’s parents were trailing directly behind the two couples, closely followed by Kate and Elizabeth. His coworker, Alec, had the honor of escorting two fine looking women this evening. He had both Kate and Elizabeth, one on each arm. Jennifer and Joshua were already present, and made their way over to greet the new arrivals. Scott and Julietta also joined the group; they, too, were an extension of the family, every bit as much as Marshall was.

  He stood next to his fiancée, talking with her family for a few minutes. As he chatted with them, he could feel the eyes on him and especially Stephanie. He inwardly smiled. Too late, you fools, she is all mine now. He tugged on Stephanie’s hand and cocked his head slightly toward the dance floor. The band struck up a new song, and he excused the two of them and headed for the dance floor, gently tugging his girl behind him.

  Nicholas and his wife, Renee, along with Victor and his wife, Angelene, were already out on the dance floor. Kevin and Erica gracefully glided past their daughter, as the young couple joined the others. Marshall decided that the best way of getting through the evening and enjoying himself was to keep Stephanie out on the dance floor as much as possible. He didn’t want anyone else interfering with his evening. Oh, he knew at some point Mr. Atkins, known as Pop Atkins to Stephanie, would want to dance with his adopted granddaughter. Marshall had no problem with that, but the young, unmated males that kept eyeing her was a different story.

  The music changed to a graceful waltz, and as they changed dance steps accordingly, Marshall spotted Richard Moore in the crowd. So, the little geek had showed up, hey? Richard reminded Marshall of a computer nerd college student. They were on their second round on the dance floor, when Marshall noticed the geek had walked up to the edge of the dance floor. As Marshall waltzed Stephanie by, Richard was close enough to reach out and throttle. Then, he suddenly heard the geek squeak loudly, “Hi, Stephanie, you look beautiful tonight.”

  Although Marshall was quickly reaching the boiling point, he was smart enough not to let it show. He was also lucky that when they had reached the point on the dance floor where Richard was standing, Stephanie had been turned in a way so it would be hard for her to acknowledge the geek unless she stopped dancing altogether, something Marshall was banking would not occur. Much to Marshall’s surprise, a glance at her face showed her irritation, and he wondered if he had just blown it with that dance move. Instead, she was angry with Richard.

  “I don’t believe he tried to speak to me when I am on the dance floor with someone else. Does he think I have been raised with no manners or class, and that I would be so rude to stop dancing with you just to acknowledge him?” Stephanie demanded.

  Marshall decided his best move was to play dumb and innocent. “Isn’t he the one that is opening the Mail Box, Etc. uptown? What is with him?”

  “I wish I knew. He showed up a few nights ago at my house to ask if he could escort me this evening. I told him no, that I had already accepted another offer, trying to be nice and decline gracefully,” Stephanie replied, blushing a bit at having to reveal this i
nformation. Now the truth comes to light, Marshall thought as he raised his eyebrow at her.

  “He politely informed me that he was coming to the dance alone, but that whoever I was coming with was just going to have to share me, because he wanted to get to know me better.” Marshall caught the shiver going down her spine as she finally caught on to how off-beat this entire situation was quickly getting. He was guessing that Kevin had not overheard the conversation, knowing he would have locked the kid up for the night just for spooking his daughter. And as far as ‘sharing her’? Only when the world stopped spinning.

  Marshall kept a keen eye on the geek. Stephanie was in no danger as long as he was with her, and the entire VCTF team was also in the building. Richard Moore might be a geek, but he would have to be utterly stupid to try something tonight. Marshall leaned down to whisper in Stephanie’s ear, “This guy seems a little off, but you’re safe with me tonight. Has he given you trouble before?” Marshall had always been protective when it came to his girl. That protectiveness did nothing but grow as she grew up.

  They were quickly approaching the side of the dance floor where Richard stood, waiting in the wings. This time around he waved to Stephanie as they passed like a three year old, and it was all Marshall could do to hold in the laughter. Nerd, yes, that name fit Richard Moore very well.

  Stephanie chose to ignore him, and as Marshall swung her back around so she was turned away from him, Marshall couldn’t suppress his smile when she mouthed “OMG!” to him. Judging by the redness in her face, she was extremely embarrassed by the geek’s behavior.

  Marshall glanced down at her as they continued to dance. “You never answered my question, love?”

  She looked up at him in confusion for a moment before remembering his question, and answered with a bit of a laugh. “I can’t say he has been a bother, he just seems a bit narrow-minded. Somehow, I don’t think he can help himself from acting a fool, do you?” It was obvious she made no attempt to be quiet as she answered, well aware of all the super hearing in the room. Marshall chuckled as he drew her closer in his arms. Evidently, he had worried over nothing. It seemed she already disliked this individual almost as much as he did.

  He kept Stephanie out on the dance floor for five songs. Kevin and Erica had even dropped off after four. He wondered if he should chance it with a sixth song, when Mr. Atkins motioned the young couple over.

  “Good evening, sir,” Marshall greeted him and shook his hand warmly. Mr. Atkins had played a major role in helping their society when the threat of war had been hanging over their heads. He had immediately “un-retired” himself to help the VCTF team wherever and whenever needed. His knowledge of both martial arts and military was put to good use in helping to train the Community Watchmen, the vampire equivalent of the human National Guard. While he worked with the VCTF team during that time, a friendship had developed between him and Marshall. Mr. Atkins shook Marshall’s hand as he stated, “Good to see you again, son. You clean up rather well.”

  His attention turned to Stephanie. “Do you remember you promised me a dance?” Stephanie smiled at him and stated that she had just been getting warmed up with Marshall, so she could really hit the dance floor with him. Marshall took her teasing in fun, knowing of her close relationship with the man she called ‘Pop.’

  Mrs. Jenkins stood silently next to Mr. Atkins, her eyes on Marshall. He frowned inwardly, knowing he was expected to do the gentlemanly thing and ask her to dance while Mr. Atkins had Stephanie.

  As Mr. Atkins started heading to the dance floor, he leaned over and very quietly assured Marshall, “I have watched the incidents and heard her comments. Rest assured that I will deliver her safely back to you when we are through.”

  Marshall smiled at his elderly friend and gave a brief nod as he watched him lead Stephanie to the dance floor. He glanced over to Mrs. Jenkins and asked her if she would like to dance, noting the genuine smile that immediately lit up her face. Two minutes later Marshall shook his head in disbelief as he watched Richard Moore actually try to cut in on Mr. Atkins for a dance. He assumed the geek had been afraid of asking for a dance while he had Stephanie out there, Marshall did tower over him considerably. The boy was a wimp. Now, watching him try to cut in on Mr. Atkins, it was all Marshall could do not to laugh out loud. He kept his eyes on Mrs. Jenkins as he led her across the dance floor, but he clearly overheard Mr. Atkins politely state to the boy that this was his adopted granddaughter, and that no one was allowed to cut in. “You tell him, Atkins,” Marshall cheered under his breath.

  True to his word, after two dances, Mr. Atkins delivered Stephanie back to Marshall. One look at the elderly man’s face showed his eyes dancing with merriment; he had enjoyed telling that little nerd off.

  Marshall steered Stephanie over to the fountain of blood set up for all to enjoy, and had just handed her a glass when Mr. Nerd strolled over. He purposely kept his back to Marshall as he began speaking to Stephanie. “Hey, Steph, want to hit the dance floor and show all them all how it is done?” Marshall caught himself rolling his eyes and glanced over to Stephanie, wondering if she had seen him. From the way she was biting her lower lip, Marshall guessed she was trying to keep from breaking into laughter, so looked like he was busted.

  “Um, not right now, Richard. I’ve been out on the dance floor for quite some time now and need a rest,” Stephanie replied with a sweet smile.

  It seemed Richard was not going to give up easily. He kept his back to Marshall as he asked, “Now, how am I supposed to get to know you better if you won’t dance with me?”

  Marshall wanted to butt in and inform the little weasel he would not be getting to know his fiancée at all, but he wisely kept quiet to see how Stephanie handled herself. If she showed any outward stress whatsoever, he was going to step in and mop the floor with Richard’s hair. “Richard, first of all, we have practically grown up together, and second, I told you a few days ago that I am engaged to be married. What part of that did you not understand?” She wasn’t giving him a sweet smile like she normally would. Stephanie’s irritation was growing, but she didn’t want to attract attention. Marshall decided to intervene before she totally lost her temper and decided to show Richard some of her hidden talent. He could just imagine her turning into her hideous monster persona in the middle of the ball.

  “Stephanie, love, allow me to escort you over to the seating area, so you can rest.” Marshall was well aware that Stephanie was fine, but he decided to play along with her ruse. He snaked his arm around her waist, and, knowing Richard was still standing right next to her, listening to every word, Marshall continued pouring on the honey. “Please forgive me, love, is there anything I can do to help you feel better?” He made sure the charm was dripping off him at this point, and by the sly look his girl was giving him, she knew what he was doing.

  She reached up and lightly grazed her fingertips down his cheek in an intimate caress. “No, love, it’s not you. Unfortunately, I wore new shoes tonight. I should have broken them in before trying to dance the night away in them.” Marshall wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her toward him so they could go sit down. Stephanie decided she needed to emphasize her point a bit more and added a pronounced limp to her walk, leaning on him heavily as they walked over to some empty chairs.

  When Marshall had Stephanie seated comfortably, he leaned over to her ear to whisper, “You, my love, have excellent acting skills.” She giggled as she gazed up at him with teasing eyes. “Please, I must rest this poor foot of mine,” she announced, popping the offending shoe off her foot. Marshall sat down next to her and brought her foot to his lap. Massaging her foot, Marshall found himself grinning when he saw the look of pure bliss on Stephanie’s face. He went back to his chore, taking time to memorize everything about her wee foot. She had a beautiful high arch, and long, delicate toes. Never before had he thought feet particularly sexy, but his woman had truly proved him wrong on that account.

  Marshall’s chuckle brought Stephanie out
of her bliss. She opened her eyes to see what she had been missing. Marshall’s attention was on the other side of the ballroom, near the front door, where her friend, Mary, was just arriving. It wasn’t until she spotted Richard Moore head straight up to Mary and ask her to dance that Stephanie realized what was going on. She shook her head; did he actually think she would be jealous? It was hard to miss the glare Richard sent them from the dance floor. Just what the hell was his problem?

  She leaned over to whisper, “That boy has some definite problems.”

  “Now, that we can agree on. So, have you had any time to think about what type of wedding you want?” Watching her eyes narrow as Richard hit the dance floor with his new partner, he decided a diversion was needed.

  “Not really. Mom and I did look up a few wedding dress styles, just so we could get ideas, but both she and Aunt Jennifer said they couldn’t do much until I decided what type of wedding I want.”

  “By the way, did your mother say anything the other day when she got home from shopping?” They had finished making love and had even had time to cuddle afterwards before they heard Erica’s car pull into the driveway. Both were dressed and greeted her at the door as if nothing had happened, all the while knowing that she would have smelled the sex on them.

  “Nope, she didn’t say a word.” Stephanie looked over to find Richard trying to paw Mary in the middle of the dance floor. Her friend was trying to be polite and stop his advances, but Richard looked determined. As if he knew he was being watched, he glanced over her way and cocked his eyebrow at her while throwing her a murderous look.

  She’d had enough of his little games. It was time he knew where she stood. She leaned over to Marshall and wrapped her arms around his neck. Very quietly, she asked him, “Just follow my lead, okay?”