Rapid Pulse: A Limited Edition Spicy Romance Collection

by Gina Kincade

  As she thought over her decision, knowing she was finally doing it for all the right reasons, for herself, she wondered how the vampires would deal with her disappearance. Would she be listed as a missing person or would they stage her death? They wanted to seclude her for a time, so they planned something, but what? She would ask them this weekend.

  She began to wonder what this weekend would be like. Will said he looked forward to seeing her, which implied she wouldn’t be with Harry. But surely, they weren’t all going to take turns with her again. Shuddering, she knew she couldn’t handle another weekend like that.

  Her phone rang again, this time with the number for The Blue Moon House.

  “Hello?”

  “Julia? This is Jocelyn. We wanted to invite you for dinner tonight. Just dinner, and we understand if you already have plans. We considered that you might have some more questions for us, and you’ll sleep better if you get them off your chest.”

  She stared at her phone for a minute. “Are you able to read minds?” she asked very quietly.

  Jocelyn laughed loudly. “No! But I do remember what it was like. I was human just a few decades ago. I’m the youngest of us, for now.” Julia almost could hear her smile. She was looking forward to having someone else be the new vampire.

  “Well, I would like that. I do have a lot of questions, which of course, were just going through my head. I’ll see you in a little while.”

  Changing into something much dressier than she normally wore to the House, Julia made sure to ease herself into her seat properly this time. Her dark stockings hid the bruises on her legs but they were fading already. The ones on her bottom were much deeper and she was glad she couldn’t see them.

  When she arrived at the House, the door opened for her, Nicholas waiting on the other side in a suit and tie.

  “Good evening,” he said, smiling. “Don’t you look good enough to eat?”

  She laughed. “I hope that isn’t the plan for dinner. I haven’t had enough time to properly recover from the last time I was devoured.”

  He growled low. “Don’t tease,” he warned. “I will miss your flavor when it is gone.”

  She shivered a little, surprised how easily the memory had aroused the vampire. She had enjoyed the encounter very much, but didn’t realize how mutual the feeling was. The other six vampires were arranged around the table, Nicholas sliding into his seat as Harry rose to pull out her chair at the foot of the table. She lowered herself carefully again and Terrance cringed a little.

  “Not better yet?” he asked, shame-faced.

  She shook her head, “But much better than yesterday, thank you.” She smiled at him. Thanking him for the beating was not impossible, but thanking him for the consideration was easy. She realized she was actually doing both. “Are you sure I’m...” She gestured to her chair, indicating she didn’t think she deserved the spot.

  “Yes,” Will assured her. “That is exactly where you should be, where you can see all of us as we answer you.”

  Each vampire had a clean place setting in front of him or her, while Julia’s plate was covered. Each had a wine glass, though, seemingly filled with red wine. Julia wondered if it actually was blood. She lifted her own, a merlot.

  “What are you drinking?” she asked.

  Jocelyn laughed. “The same. It doesn’t do much for us, but we thought we should share something while you ate.” She sipped cautiously. “It does taste nice.”

  More glasses were raised and several vampires nodded in appreciation.

  Julia lifted the cover off her plate and found a rare steak and steamed broccoli as well as a potato with ample butter and sour cream. She smiled. “Trying to fatten me?”

  “Maybe a little,” Lynn admitted. “Also, we want to see how you like the steak. When you’ve finished we can explain why.”

  The steak was very rare, red, bloody juice oozing out. Julia didn’t mind it, though it wasn’t prepared as she would have preferred. She ate it all, her stomach empty, but thankfully not audible.

  As she ate, the vampires discussed their day, Jocelyn and Lynn had gone to work as well as Harry, though the others had stayed in House and they shared stories of their day with their submissives.

  Julia was surprised to be allowed to hear those. She decided to share her news, as well.

  “I gave my resignation today. My boss is appalled and panicking.” Julia chuckled as she ate her last bite of potato. “He has no idea what he’ll do without me, I’m sure.”

  The dining room went silent.

  “You did?” Harry asked from her right. “It’s final?” He seemed upset.

  “Yes, why? Are you not going to...” Had she misheard him last night? Misunderstood the purpose of this meeting? Did they not want her after all?

  “No,” Sophia reassured her. “We want to keep you, we just...” She licked her lips and looked around the table. “You might still change your mind. You can,” she emphasized, “and when you hear more of the process, you might want to.”

  The last words came out quietly and Julia knew Sophia hoped she didn’t.

  “So, tell me,” Julia said, setting her fork on her plate. “How do I become one of you?” She steepled her hands under her chin, looking around the table into set after set of brightly-colored eyes.

  “You must drink our blood as we drink yours,” Terrance told her.

  “That doesn’t sound so bad,” Julia admitted, looking at the traces left from her steak.

  “You must drink a lot,” Lynn added. “You must drink until we fade. One of us will watch you, stop you, but you must drink until we are nearly dead.”

  “It is very painful. Whomever you choose to drink from will be in agony the entire time,” Will added. “Your saliva doesn’t give us pleasure,” he reminded her.

  Julia was silent, sipping her wine while gazing at each of her would-be companions. “I would get to choose?”

  Harry smiled. “Of course. Perhaps there is one of us you’d like to pay back for recent treatments?” He smirked at Terrance, who sat very straight and didn’t meet Julia’s eyes.

  Julia smiled as well. “Well, I’ve already eaten Jocelyn,” she quipped, raising her glass to the vampire. She was answered with a quick, ‘ha!’

  “But, I think Will caused me easily as much or more pain than Terrance.” The dark man shifted slightly in his seat and cast his eyes down across the table.

  “There is another thing to consider,” Sophia interrupted. “Not which of us–we are all willing or we wouldn’t have offered. You will also need to choose your first human feed. After the... transformation,” she said the word with an air of unease, “you will rise desperately thirsty for blood. We are able to sate ourselves on small donations normally, but that first feed, you will be exceptionally dangerous and need to drink deeply. The submissive will need to be chosen in time to prepare.”

  “Speaking of the transformation,” Jocelyn piped in, “that is something else you need to know about, to prepare for. Who wants to tell her?” Jocelyn looked around the table. “Harry? Since she is closest to you?”

  He shifted nervously, as well. “You will die,” he said simply, taking her hand. “It will hurt as much as death can. Your insides will knot and twist, rearranging themselves. Your heart will seem to explode in your chest, ceasing to beat. Your lungs will fill with fluid and make breathing difficult and painful until you finally drown in it. It is a horrible death.” He petted the back of her hand as she trembled a little. “But it does pass. You will lie dead until the next sunset, and then rise, one of us.”

  “How else will I change?” She rushed right past the painful death. She would think about that later, alone. Now was for questions. “My eyes, I presume. What else? Will my figure change? Will I appear younger? Older?” She shuddered at that thought.

  They all smiled. “Your skin will pale further, becoming almost luminous,” Jocelyn, who had a similar complexion, told her.

  “Your eyes will appear to turn to ge
ms,” Sophia smiled, blinking her own sapphire blue ones.

  “Your hair may change a little, but it will be the same texture, the same style.” Nicholas, who sat on her left, pushed a lock away from her face. “It will also continue to grow, so you may dye and cut it as you choose.”

  “You will become even more sensitive,” Terrance told her. “What once felt like a pin-prick will feel like stabbing. What once was a tickle of pleasure...” He let the thought hang as her breath caught.

  “You will still be you,” Will assured her, “just a little bit like us.” He smiled warmly, welcoming. The way he had treated her had left her feeling so small and worthless, being welcomed, valued by him, meant a lot.

  “I will still be useless?” she asked, ribbing him.

  He looked down immediately, frowning slightly.

  “I’m teasing!” she told him quickly, rising and reaching across the table to touch his hand. “I mean it no more than you did.”

  He smiled again and covered her hand with his own.

  “What will you tell my family and friends?” she asked as she sat back down, wincing. That was her biggest question.

  “As you now know, I work at the University,” Jocelyn said. “We find it best not to leave unanswered disappearances. I can obtain a cadaver that will pass for you. You live in an apartment?” she asked.

  Julia nodded.

  “Cars are usually easiest, anyway,” Terrance added. “They burn very well, quite completely. Any identification will be difficult, but they will know it was your car and most likely you in it. We stage a crash...” Again he left his thought hanging.

  Julia nodded. It was all much as she had expected. She was glad her family wouldn’t spend years wondering what had happened to her.

  “You must be careful not to lead anyone to believe you know of your impending death. Sadly, your resignation is a bit of a tip off,” Nicholas added.

  “I’m having a coffee date with friends tomorrow night, but that’s not unusual, just a long time coming,” Julia told them. “Two weeks?” she asked.

  “There’s no rush,” Harry assured her. “A month, two months. You are going to be secluded for many years after this. Are you sure there aren’t some things you would like to enjoy before then?”

  Julia nodded. “I’m sure. I’ve experienced more in this House than I ever did outside of it.” She drained the last of her wine. “In fact, I’d like to do it sooner. Balance the resignation,” she said nodding to Nicholas. “Perhaps early next week?”

  “We can stage the crash then,” Jocelyn put in, looking around the table. “I know we have a suitable cadaver at the moment. She could still wait here for a little while, if you think she needs the time.”

  Julia frowned slightly. “I thought this was my choice.”

  The smiles they gave were a little sad. “It is, of course,” Sophia assured her. “We are ready when you are. We only worry that you haven’t had time to fully consider...”

  “It’s true, I haven’t had a lot of time, but weren’t each of you as eager?” She looked around the table, sure she’d guessed correctly. “Didn’t you see the chance to be everything you’d admired and leap? Why would you think I’m different? I actually have more reason. I’ve lived more than I would assume any of you did. Sophia, you are the oldest among them, but how old were you when you changed? Twenty?”

  “Nineteen,” she admitted. “A woman at that time.”

  The others were nodding.

  “I am starting to age. I could feel it this weekend even before the worst treatment. I’m not old, but I’m not young anymore, either. What you are offering me...” Julia couldn’t find words to explain what it meant to her.

  “Still, you’ve only had a few days,” Harry insisted.

  “You of all people should know how happy I would be to spend forever with you.” She leaned toward him and kissed him gently. He seemed to gasp as she pulled away. “And, I think I would like you to be the one who creates me.” She continued to hold his amber eyes.

  “Pay up,” Lynn said, smiling at the others.

  Julia grinned, too. “I also have an idea for my first human. Will,” she caught his attention and his black gleaming eyes. “Do you think Justin would be willing?”

  His smile was small. “I think he will. You will cost me a dear pet if you over feed. I will be watching,” he warned, shaking his finger. “But yes, I think the pain of your feeding is something he will greatly enjoy.” His smile turned slightly predatory, and Julia fought the urge to shiver.

  Of course, Justin would only wear that expression of ecstasy again for her if she caused him real pain. Could she do that? He had done it to her, but on an order. Could she do it without? If she knew it brought him his greatest pleasure? That thought steadied her. She wanted to see that look in his eyes and on his face again and would do almost anything to get it.

  Harry brought her out of her thoughts. “You’re sure? We would recommend a veteran of the House, which Justin is, but are you sure you wouldn’t like to get to know some of the others?”

  She shook her head. “I would like to get to know more of you,” she said, a little shyly. “You’ve seen and learned a lot about me, but I still know little beyond your names. I know Sophia is eldest and Jocelyn the youngest, but what of the rest of you? Has Blue Moon House always been here or do you move? Who made you, Sophia? Why aren’t you with them anymore?”

  “You chose too well, Harrold,” Sophia murmured. “She will be quizzing us for the next decade.”

  Harry’s grin was broad. He was proud of her for her curiosity. It shouldn’t surprise them, her curiosity was what led her to this community in the first place.

  Sophia started telling of her beginning as the only survivor of a group of vampires who fed to kill.

  Terrance excused himself. “I need to return to Hannah. She has slept enough.” He grinned as he planned how to continue training his newest submissive. He passed Julia’s chair, kissing her cheek. “Thank you for coming.”

  Sophia picked up her tale again. “I realized quickly, though, that we could feed without killing. I had to kill a few more,” her voice dipped as she admitted this, “until I found a group of sisters who would let me feed from them without exposing me. They enjoyed the pleasures I offered in exchange, as well as a variety of other services.” Sophia didn’t elaborate and seemed to hurry past that point. “However, as they married, I found myself alone again. I realized what I needed to do, but wasn’t sure I could trust anyone to feed from me without another vampire to stop them. I needn’t have worried. Several men tried and didn’t drink enough, each dying without rising.” She shook her head. “Finally, I found a brothel where I could fit in, and the men, if they noticed me biting, were too ashamed to say anything. I stayed there until my age became an issue, but by then, I had met Lynn.” She smiled at her friend and took her hand. “She was a fellow prostitute but often found herself in need of female company after the men had gone. She was also able to understand what was required to become like me. We opened our own brothel after that, and Blue Moon House was born.” The women shared a kiss then that warmed Julia more than she would have expected.

  “And I know Lynn found Harry, but I also know Nicholas was a vampire by that time,” Julia interjected when the silence stretched.

  “Another night,” Harry insisted. “You need sleep.”

  Julia set her jaw, unimpressed at being told to go to bed. Then she had to hold it to fight a yawn. It had been a long weekend and her nap today had been interrupted.

  “Can I come back on Thursday?” she asked.

  “You can come back any time you like, Julia,” Sophia insisted. “This is your home now.”

  Julia fought a squeal at the thought. Her home. “What will the rest of you do?” she asked as she rose. “You don’t sleep.”

  Smiles bloomed on several of the faces.

  “I have to return to Cheryl, but I’m sure the others can show you,” Sophia excused herself, came a
nd hugged Julia and kissed her on the mouth. “Welcome.”

  Julia’s gaze followed the woman for a moment as she left the room before she narrowed her eyes at the remaining vampires, most of whom worked in the morning. That would be why they didn’t have submissives tonight.

  Jocelyn broke the silence first, clapping her hands. “Oooh, come see.” She seized Julia’s wrist and pulled her down the hall that led to the stairs.

  Julia knew there was another floor to the large house, but had never been there.

  “This is our room,” Jocelyn explained as she unlocked the door.

  Julia’s eyes widened. The center of the room was filled with a massive bed. It couldn’t be a single mattress; it must have been several held together by the bedding. As Julia approached, mouth agape, she saw the sheet went all the way around, fitted to this special piece.

  “You...”

  “How else can you fit seven on a bed?” Lynn asked, starting to pull off her clothes. Julia turned to see the men doing the same.

  Jocelyn bounced on the mattress once before rushing up and kissing Julia. Then she pulled the human back to the bed with her. “Come, at least try it out. I know we can’t really enjoy anything tonight.” She muttered something else very rapidly under her breath, and Julia thought she heard ‘raping men.’ “But you can relax for a while.”

  Julia highly doubted she could as she watched Harry pull Lynn atop him, nibbling on her neck. Her throat tightened a little. “Another test?” she whispered to Jocelyn.

  “Oh?” Jocelyn turned to look. “I suppose. That wasn’t the intention.” Just then, Nicholas came behind Julia and ran his tongue up her neck.

  “A tiny taste?” he asked, turning her legs to jelly.

  “Oh, no, you don’t,” Harry called from the bed. “You have to share and she doesn’t have enough for all of us.”