Have no fear. I’m only here to enjoy a film, just like you, he whispered to the mind of the male vampire.
Eamon settled the addled minds of the vampires around him and then looked at Amelie. She remained unaware, like any human would be, of the stir his presence caused. Tampa’s large vampire population continued to surprise him. For the most part they did an above average job of assimilating with humans. Their makers had taught them well and they had the potential to survive for a long time.
“It’s kind of crowded. We don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” Amelie said. She took Eamon’s hand and shook it playfully.
“Why would you think that I didn’t want to stay?”
“I don’t know. You’re watching the crowd like you’re picking out potential muggers or something.” She gathered her long dark hair in to a ponytail and fanned herself.
Eamon laughed. “I’m just people watching. I enjoy it.” Two of the Goth fledglings circled close to him in an effort to gain his attention. He looked over at them and they bowed to him. Eamon shot them a terse glance, which discouraged their show of respect. They backed away but not before Amelie noticed them skulking away.
“Do you know them?” she asked. The two linked back with the vampire who didn’t approach Eamon and she frowned.
“No. Do you?”
“No, but they kind of looked like they bowed to you.”
He wrapped his arm around her. “I’m sure it was sarcastic. Perhaps they know me from my business or maybe I remind them of their parents. I don’t know.”
Amelie wrinkled her nose. “That’s weird.”
“I can’t say, darling.” He shrugged his shoulders, stepped up to the ticket booth and bought their tickets. He handed one to Amelie. “There are things in the world that are weird or hard to understand.” Eamon kissed her. “That’s what makes life interesting.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
We’re Just Human
Amelie stroked the black, plush “feathers” of the stuffed Emperor penguin she got at the aquarium earlier in the evening. Eamon adopted six penguins in her name after their VIP tour of the penguin habitat. She hugged the fuzzy bird and smiled at Eamon.
“Thank you for tonight. I don’t know how you did it, but I loved it. I mean, going to the benefit was phenomenal, but then seeing the penguins up close like that was just beyond amazing.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. I saw how much you liked those silly birds last week at the benefit and thought you should see them up close.”
“And now I’m the mom of six of them!” She danced the stuffed toy in her lap and laughed.
“Congratulations.”
“You shouldn’t have done that. I know it was super expensive.”
He shrugged his shoulders. “Darling, it was nothing.” The total he’d spent tonight, thirty thousand dollars, was marginal. The expression on her face as the birds waddled up to her was priceless. The delight he saw in her eyes filled him with a feeling he hadn’t experienced in years.
She placed the penguin on her coffee table and leaned against him. “Can I get you something to drink or eat?”
“No, thank you.” He was hungry but he’d have to wait.
“How come you don’t ever talk about Lauryl?”
Eamon’s jaw clenched momentarily at the unexpected question. Why on earth would she ask something like that? “Why would I?”
“Did I say something wrong?”
He put his arm around her shoulder. “No. The timing is odd, that’s all.”
“I’m sorry. I was only curious. Most guys talk about their exes.” Amelie sank in deep against him. “You never do and I wondered if you might want to.”
“I never thought about discussing her with you.” He sighed and she stiffened some “I don’t want to bore you with her.”
“I just wondered what happened between you two. Were you together long?”
Eamon hesitated a moment, pondering how to approach this and decided that it was best to tell the truth up to a certain point. “We were together about a year.”
“Boy, you guys got married in a hurry.”
“It seemed the thing to do at the time,” Eamon replied diplomatically.
“What happened?” She stretched across his lap and looked up at him.
He glanced around her living room for a moment. “We just were two different personality types,” he said after a minute. “She couldn’t adjust to life with me.”
“Why?”
“I suppose my lifestyle was too constricting. Certain aspects of our life together were offensive to her. And she said she couldn’t stand me.”
“Wow.”
“I haven’t heard from her in months. She disappeared one night while she and I were in London,” Eamon said. It still sounded unbelievable to him.
“Disappeared? Really? How’d she do that?”
He chuckled. “Honestly, I don’t know. That’s too dramatic of a word. She’s here in Tampa, but I don’t know where. I believe she’s living with her former psychiatrist.”
Amelie’s brown eyes widened. “Eww. That’s like a major ethical breech.”
“Yes, I know. I don’t like the man. I never have. Even before I found out about this.” Despised would have been a more appropriate description.
“What are you going to do?”
What could he do? She had already turned the idiot doctor, and he was a vampire of his line. Killing him would be out of the question. Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t because he still had no idea where he or Lauryl were.
“I suppose I’ll just have to let it go,” he said, resigned to the inevitable.
“What’s she like?”
“Beautiful and exasperating. She lives to annoy and defy me.”
“Why did she stop dancing?”
“That I don’t know,” he lied. “Maybe she wanted to concentrate on being a wife.” He started to laugh. The lie was ridiculous. The more he thought about it, the harder he laughed.
“I guess she gave up,” Amelie said.
“I guess. She has a very short attention span. It’s amazing that she was the caliber of dancer that she was. Her focus is quite limited.”
“It sounds like she has selective attention.”
“Perhaps. She’s not like you at all.”
“What do you mean?” She raised her head up to him.
“You two have completely different personalities. You’re calm and composed. You tend to reflect on things, more like me. Lauryl is restless and impulsive. She has a temper and she loses it often.”
“You two don’t seem very compatible.”
“If only I’d seen that back then. I thought she’d become what I wanted.”
“Maybe you were over optimistic. You should have known you can’t change someone.”
“Over optimistic? You’re being kind. I was egotistical and unwilling to see anything beyond what I wanted.” Eamon hated saying those things about himself, even if they were true.
“Being kind of hard on yourself, aren’t you?” She watched at his foot tapping an irritable beat on her floor.
“No,” he said with a sigh. “Just honest.” He took her hand in his and squeezed it. “Thank you.”
“What for?”
“For letting me be honest. It’s rare to be able to share my weaknesses.”
Amelie kissed his hand. “You’re welcome. I still think you’re being too hard on yourself, though.”
“I think your affection for me lets you be more forgiving of my faults.” Her soft lips on his skin eased his mind and his shoulders relaxed.
“Eamon, we all have faults. What you think is a fault is also a strength. You’re self-confident and determined. I’m sure that’s how you’ve been so successful.”
“My methods haven’t been all together honorable.”
She sighed and traced her finger over his palm a few times. “I’d be naïve if I thought they had been. You’re not a saint. Neither am I. We’re just human.”
“Perhaps.”
“You don’t sound too sure about it. What else could you be?”
Eamon closed his eyes for a moment and waited for the urge to tell her the truth to pass. Before it slipped away completely, he opened his eyes and smiled. “I’m a vampire.” He studied her face with interest. At first she appeared confused but then she poked him in the ribs.
“Well, you yourself said we’d make excellent vampires,” Eamon said.
She returned his smile. “I did say that, didn’t I?”
“You did.” With a heavy sigh, he shrugged. “Well, so much for being vampires.”
“We can always play vampire.”
“But wouldn’t it be wonderful if it wasn’t just play?” Eamon brushed his fingertips over her neck, eliciting a subtle shiver from her. His hunger nudged him and obliged him to be aware of every part of her body in contact with his. He took a quiet breath in, concentrating on her scent. Her floral perfume stoked his hunger. As he concentrated, not only could he feel her heart beating, he could hear it as well. Her blood pulsed through her body and he wanted it.
“Yes, it would,” she said, ruffling his hair between her fingers. “We’ll just have to be satisfied with playing.”
Eamon turned his face to her inner forearm as she touched his hair and listened to her pulse throb. As he kissed the soft skin over the veins he imagined the complex flavor of her blood. His tongue skimmed over her wrist and he reined in his growing desire to take her blood. He needed someone’s blood soon, but not hers.
“How do you do that?”
“What?” she asked.
“How do you manage to captivate me by doing absolutely nothing?”
Her cheeks pinked up and she gave him a shy smile. “It’s you. There’s something about you that must bring it out of me.”
“I doubt that I have anything to do with it. You’re divine. It’s as simple as that.”
“You say things to me that no one else has ever said. Sometimes I feel like we’re the only ones in the world.”
His phone vibrated in his pocket, but he ignored it. “I wish we were.”
She giggled and fished out the phone. She looked at the screen and saw that it was Marta. “Marta.”
“Hmm. She can wait.” He clicked the ignore button and slid the phone back in his pocket.
“You could have taken that. I don’t care.”
He shook his head. “Like I said, she can wait. I don’t want anyone interrupting our evening, especially since you’re going out of town tomorrow.”
“I’m not sure I want to go now.” Amelie straddled his legs and put her arms around his neck. “I’ll miss you too much.”
“Oh no. You’re going. You need to get out and see your friends and I know you’re looking forward to this. I don’t understand what it is you’re doing, but I know you want to go.”
Amelie laughed. “I’m going to Gainesville for Growl tomorrow night and then to the football game on Saturday. It’s homecoming.”
“What is Growl?” His eyebrows drew together and he frowned in confusion.
“Gator Growl. It’s like a big, outdoor skit show concert performance thing for homecoming. It’s fun.” She bounced on his lap a couple of times.
Eamon remained unclear of what she was trying to describe, but suspected that it was some sort of tradition her university had. “It sounds like a college party.”
“A big one. Go Gators.”
“See? You need to go.”
She rested her head on his shoulder. “I’m still going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you as well, but think of how wonderful it will be when we see each other Sunday evening.” The phone vibrated in his pocket again.
“Answer it.”
With a scowl, he pulled the phone out. “Yes?”
“Did I interrupt something?” Marta asked.
“Yes,” Eamon replied with an edge in his voice.
“By your short tone, I’m guessing that you’re with Amelie. I apologize. Call me when you are free.”
The line went dead and he stuck the phone back in his pocket. He kissed Amelie and touched his forehead to hers. “I’m sorry.”
“That was the shortest conversation ever.”
“Marta realized I was with you.”
She nodded her head. “Gotcha.”
Eamon detected the slightest trace of suspicion in her voice. At last, he thought, a bit of female curiosity. In her deep brown eyes, he noticed tiny flecks of gold mixed in with the brown. They sparkled with a new fire, the fire of budding jealousy. “Nice that even a distant relation can read between the lines.”
“Distant relation?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
“Yes, Marta is a cousin several times removed. I didn’t realize it until she pointed it out.”
“Ah.”
“I think you’d like her girlfriend. She’s about your age.”
“We should all get together.”
“We will.” He hugged her and stroked her back. “Soon.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Get the Highest Ranking Vampire Up Here
Marta placed Eamon’s scotch next to him and then sat down in the chair across from him. “I’m sorry your girlfriend is ill this evening, Eamon. However, I’m thrilled that you’ve come to see us.” Her grey eyes turned to the doorway where a young blonde woman stood like a well-dressed statue. Marta smiled, nodded toward Eamon, and the woman padded over to him.
“Eamon, this is my human companion Isabelle,” Marta said.
He started to rise out of courtesy. Before he could, the girl dropped down to her knees.
“Oh no, please don’t get up.” Isabelle placed her hand on his knee.
Eamon looked over at Marta, who nodded her approval. Isabelle was a beautiful offering. She had the same noble features as Marta, but not the same bearing. He took Isabelle’s hand in his.
“You can get up. While you are beautiful, I’ll have to pass.”
Isabelle turned back to Marta, whose expression had turned to confusion. “Don’t you want—”
“I’m sorry, Eamon. Have I offended you?” Marta was on her feet.
Eamon pulled Isabelle onto the sofa next to him. “Marta, I appreciate your efforts, but they aren’t necessary.” He caressed Isabelle’s hand a moment and lowered his head close to her ear. “Why don’t you go sit with Marta?” He gave her a gentle nudge and sent her back to Marta.
“You’ll have to forgive me, Eamon.”
“There isn’t anything to forgive.” He looked at Isabelle, resting at Marta’s feet.
“You’re very kind.”
“You wanted to discuss the possibility of forming some sort of governing body for our kind?”
Marta’s hand glided through Isabelle’s hair. Isabelle melted into Marta’s touch, stretching like a cat to meet it. “Yes, I had been giving it some thought. Even before you came to Tampa.”
“You yourself said that things seemed to run smoothly without any sort of governance.”
“True, I did. That’s always surprised me. I’m the Elder of the Tampa Bay area and have never had any problems. The young vampires respect me.”
“Most vampires are solitary and spread out geographically. Tampa is an anomaly.”
“I’ve been here for about one hundred years now. I’ve seen the population of our kind grow. I’m not sure why there are so many here.”
“I would have thought that you would prefer a more cosmopolitan area,” Eamon said.
Marta laughed. “It’s not as bad as you think. You just need to discover more of our lovely city. The large Hispanic population reminds me of home. It gives me a sense of peace.”
Eamon took a long swallow of his drink and returned to Marta’s idea. He wasn’t sure how to approach this. The idea did have merit. As the vampire population increased everywhere, there would have to be a system of control and government. The young ones would adapt easily, but he wondered about the older ones. “How many
older vampires do you know well enough to discuss this with?”
“Oh.” She dropped her head back in thought. “Three. One is one hundred years older, one is about my age, and the other is a bit over two hundred.”
“Where are they?”
“One is in Austin. The older one is in Chicago and the other, the one close to my age, is in Los Angeles. They’re the Elders of their cities.” Marta laced her hand into Isabelle’s.
“Have you ever discussed this idea with any of them?” He drained his glass and walked over to the console to refill it.
“Once or twice. Nothing in depth or serious.”
“How did they feel about the idea?”
“The same as you do. I think it’s just in my nature to want to make sure things are controlled and monitored.” Isabelle leaned against Marta. Marta kissed her shoulder.
Eamon resumed his position across from the women. “It certainly is in your genetics. I, too, prefer to keep things controlled and monitored. However, I’m not sure how our kind will react to being subject to control and monitoring. The younger vampires should come to it quite easily. They have different ideas of what it is like to be a vampire.”
“Agreed. But we won’t know until we try,” she said with a smile.
“Have you considered the idea of being governed won’t be well received?”
“That’s why I think you should be involved in this. I would think that your word would be law.”
Eamon laughed. “Marta, lately that’s not the case.”
“I meant that by your age and status—”
He stopped laughing and shook his head. “I know what you meant. This is a very large undertaking, Marta. It’s going to take planning and diplomacy. I have no doubt that you’re sincere in you desires, but I need to think about this.”
Wonderful, he thought. Another complicated situation for him to deal with. It struck him as odd that all of his problems involved or stemmed from women, his women.
Life in Moonlight: The Primigenio Tales: Book 1 Page 18