by Lane Hart
“Oh, Kate. I’m sorry. It’s stupid for me to apologize after you did that with him behind my back, but he’s a jerk and I’m sorry he used you and hurt you. And I’m sorry about the stripper. I really didn’t mean for it to happen. As you now know, the blood and sex do go together, but I didn’t do anything to try and stop it.”
I felt bad when Kate’s tears started falling again and I wiped them away.
“No, it’s my fault. I regret what I did so much. I didn’t know if you’d ever talk to me again after you found out. He made it real clear that he couldn’t wait to tell you. Oh, and he told me he wanted me to come over here and have sex with him while you were home, so you shouldn’t feel bad about earlier. I could blame the chemistry or whatever, but I did it because I was mad at you. I should have stopped him. And if I’d just given you blood instead of making you leave, you wouldn’t have done that with someone else. But I was too scared and confused.”
“Was he telling the truth about ah, you coming twice?” I asked needing to know for some stupid ass reason.
“Yes, but we only had sex once. He um, fingered me at the beginning.”
“I hate that bastard so much.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Kate
Telling Sam everything that happened made me feel a little better and I think it helped him move on. Not knowing what he had done at the strip club had been killing me too.
“So, since I was honest with you, will you tell me what you did with the stripper?” The images and ideas of my imagination would continue to drive me crazy until he just told me.
Sam sighed. “Are you sure you want to hear this? She was just some random whore, who I don’t really remember much about.”
“I want to know.”
“If you’re sure. I hate having to tell you this and feel like such an asshole.” He took a deep breath before he finally started the story.
“I’d drunk an entire bottle of whiskey after I got home. I felt like shit after I left your apartment. By that time the spell had worked and Chris wanted to go out. He told me he couldn’t wait to find someone to fuck and I told him I needed some blood. Since I was drunk he drove us, and pulled up at the strip club.” Sam paused for a minute. “You know, thinking back he was probably trying to get me to cheat on you. Before we left the club one of the two girls he brought home asked me if I wanted to join the three of them and I said hell no. Then I’m pretty damn sure he encouraged one of them to come into my bedroom that night. And no, despite what he implied earlier I didn’t touch either of the two girls he brought home. When we got home I took a shower then crashed, when in walks one of his skanks, completely naked and asking if she could blow me. I kicked her out of my room and then listened to the three of them for hours until I had to get up and go to work. His door was closed the whole time and so was mine, so that was a complete fucking lie.”
“So what happened at the club?” I asked to get him back on track. I believed what he’d said about the girls Chris brought home.
“Oh, and just so you know he was fucking those two strippers all day before he borrowed my car and went to your apartment that afternoon.”
“I think you could’ve left that part out.”
“Anyway, so when we got to the club, Chris went off to the more expensive room where he knew he’d get more than a dance. That was a different stripper than the two he brought home. I found a stripper who looked high enough she wouldn’t remember me biting her. And her hair was almost the color of yours, that’s really all I remember about her. I gave her a hundred dollar bill and we went into a private room. She slurred something like she would throw in a little something extra, but I assumed she just said that to everyone.” Sam stopped and hesitated.
“Go on,” I told him.
He took another deep breath. “When we got into the room I sat on the couch and she was already naked when she climbed on my lap. I was thinking about you sitting on me the other night and how good it had felt. The next thing I know she’d unzipped my pants and was sitting on me. By then I didn’t feel like there was any point in stopping her, it was done, so I drank her disgusting drugged up blood, then sealed up the wounds before she walked out.”
“But how did Chris know you had sex with her?”
“Oh, he um, noticed my zipper was down when I came out and correctly assumed. He knew the two went together, and so there you have it.”
I relaxed a little. I didn’t like hearing the details of him with someone else but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d imagined.
“Was she pretty?”
“Oh fuck no! She was higher than a kite and just distantly reminded me of you. If I could get diseases she would have probably given me a dozen that night.”
Really, it didn’t seem all that bad. It wasn’t like he cared about her.
“I think I feel better now that I know,” I told him.
“Good. Now can we please forget it ever happened? If I thought there was a chance you’d want to see me again I wouldn’t have done it. I was devastated when you threw me out that night and I couldn’t figure out why, but you shed some light on that tonight while you were drunk.”
“I’m never drinking again. Do I even want to know what I said?”
“It wasn’t that bad. You said your dad had always told you men only want sex, that you thought the only reason I talked to you was to sleep with you, you were afraid of getting hurt when I stopped talking to you after we slept together or that I’d sleep with other women behind your back. Then after what Chris told you about the strip club you said it proved you were right about me.”
“Oh,” I said as I thought it over. “Drunk me pretty much summed up what I couldn’t quite figure out when I was sober.”
“But you don’t think that anymore, right?”
“I may have been somewhat insecure and misinformed.”
“And you do admit that you said you didn’t want to see me anymore which is why I went and did that, right?”
“Yes, but I wrongly assumed that if you cared about me that you wouldn’t immediately go and fuck someone else.”
“Hey now. You can’t have it both ways. But I get it because I felt the same way when you screwed him the next day. When you did that the day after telling me you didn’t want to see me I thought, why him and not me? What does he have that I don’t? But now I know you did it because of the pheromones mixed with being hurt by what I did.”
I exhaled. “Exactly.
“I’m sorry Kate, and I’m really glad that you’re here with me now.”
“I’m sorry too. I cried all night after he left, regretting what I’d done, hurt because I thought you didn’t care, and worried you’d never talk to me again. It was the worst feeling ever. I almost came over here right after he left. Maybe I should have so I could’ve told you what happened before he lied, but after the lies he told me I didn’t think you’d want to see me and I was scared you’d have someone else here,” I told Sam as I wrapped my arms around him, holding him tight.
“Let’s just forget any of that ever happened and get some sleep, okay?” Sam said as he pulled me to him and I nodded against his chest.
Chapter Twenty-Two
After Sam left a message at work, then locked his bedroom door, we slept wrapped up together well into the afternoon. We grabbed a late lunch then called and got one of the managers at Sin to let me come by and pick up my purse. I convinced Sam to stay with me tonight so he wouldn’t kill Chris. He brought his work clothes and a toothbrush with him so he could get ready and actually go to work in the morning, although it was going to be tough seeing him leave my bed.
As soon as we walked into the apartment I could tell Sam tensed up.
“Are you okay? We don’t have to stay here if you don’t want to.” I wouldn’t mind going back and staying with Sam, being with him with his door open again. I should feel bad about that but Chris deserved it. Sex with Sam was so much better than with him, and for whatever reason I didn’t mind Sam mak
ing his point to the lying asshole with us being together.
“I’m sorry. I just feel like this place is dirty now that Chris had been in it. With you. I need to get some anger management before I kill that jackass. He found out where you lived on my computer, then came over here knowing damn well what would happen if he did. In my fucking car!”
Sam stood in the entryway looking into the living room, clenching and unclenching his fists, taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself down.
“I’ll get a new one,” I told him, figuring he was upset about where we’d been together.
“I’m sorry, what?” he asked. Oh crap.
“Um. I just thought you were upset about the, ah, couch. Never mind,” I mumbled, probably only making things worse.
Sam looked away from the living room. “I’ll buy you a new couch. Soon. Like right now. I’ll go ahead and sit that one out on the curb for you now if you want.”
“Come on, we can just stay in the bedroom. You’re the only person who’s ever been in there,” I told him as I tried to lead him away by the hand. But he wasn’t budging.
“Kate, really, if you ever want me to come over here again then the couch has got to go.”
“Sam,” I started to protest but he cut me off.
“I’m serious. Please, for my sanity. I just can’t look at that fucking thing or be in the same apartment with it knowing you were with him,” he said, making me feel bad. “I’ll take you right now and find you another one.”
“Okay, fine! Give me a minute to get changed.”
We’d been to two furniture stores and were currently working on our third. I needed to find a couch similar to mine in case my dad visited, but at the same time I wanted something different to help Sam feel better. Finally, I gave up and decided on a nice white microfiber one. The color would be slightly different from the old cream one, but hopefully my dad wouldn’t notice the difference.
“Okay, this one I guess,” I finally gave in.
“Are you sure?” Sam asked and I sighed.
“I don’t know. Are you okay with this one?” I asked.
“Kate, I don’t care which one you pick, as long as it’s not the one he fucked you on.”
“I’m not asking you to get a new bed or mattress after you fucked hundreds of women on yours!” I responded, then realized the salesman had walked up behind us and probably heard our whole conversation. My face went instantly red.
“Baby, I’ve been through a lot of fucking mattresses, but the one you slept on last night is only a year old, so there haven’t been hundreds of women on it yet,” Sam said with a smile and a wink, knowing the salesman could hear him.
“Bastard,” I whispered under my breath.
“Hi,” the salesman cleared his throat, “Can I help you folks with anything today?” His face was a shade of red too, but he was determined to stick it out for a sale.
“Yes sir, my girlfriend and I would like to get this couch delivered and another one picked up today if possible,” Sam told him as he reached down and grabbed my hand.
“Oh well, sure. We can do that. Let’s head on up to the register and get everything set up. Was there anything else you needed help with today?”
“No, I think that’s it,” Sam said at the same time that I said, “I think my boyfriend could use a new mattress.”
“I’ll ah, just let you two look around and we’ll get you at the counter whenever you’re ready,” the salesman said as he walked quickly away.
“Kate, I told you the truth last night. I haven’t slept with anyone in that house in over five years. Can you really see me bringing home women when there’s an obnoxious talking cat running around? I’m not saying I haven’t been with anyone in five years, you know I have, just not in my house.”
“So how many women have you been with in the last five years?” I asked unable to let go of my curiosity.
“Ah. I hate these questions. There’s no good answer,” he said as he ran his hand through his hair.
“Just tell me the truth.”
“Fine,” he said as he rubbed the back of his neck in thought. “Um, maybe fifteen or sixteen. Other than no strings attached fucking I really haven’t tried to date much in the last few years, mostly because of the loud mouthed cat, but I just got tired of it all,” he said with a shrug.
“Why didn’t you ask me out?” I suddenly blurted out.
“I did ask you out.”
“No, you didn’t. Not at first. You were walking away that night when I stopped you and asked for your number,” I reminded him.
“Honestly, I didn’t think I had a chance in hell with you. I’d just been an inconsiderate asshole and asked you the time of the month question. I had no reason to think you were interested in me until you asked for my number. Shit, even then I wasn’t sure, but I still asked if you would have dinner with me because I wanted to spend more time with you.”
“Oh,” was all I could respond, as I thought back over to the first day we met.
“Why’d you think I asked you to meet me that night in the first place? I just used telling you the why of everything as a pretense to see you again. And you didn’t seem too enthusiastic about meeting me when I suggested it on the bus.”
“You’d just scared the shit out of me, and you were distracting,” I said with a smile.
“Oh baby, you don’t know distracting. I’ve only done maybe 1% of all the inappropriate things I imagined doing to you when I first saw you on that bus,” Sam said as he pulled me to him.
“So what are we standing around here for? Let’s get back to the other 99%,” I told him as I pulled his arm leading him to the counter.
“Hell yes,” he said with a smile.
Things with Sam started out hot and heavy as soon as we stepped foot out of the car, all the way to my apartment door, but it came to an abrupt halt when we stepped into my apartment.
“We’ve got plenty of time before the delivery men show up,” I tried to tempt Sam but it wasn’t working.
“I can’t wait to get this fucking couch out of my sight. In fact, let’s do that right now,” he said as he walked over and picked the entire couch up off the ground like it was as light as a feather.
“Sam! What will my neighbors think?” I didn’t want him blowing his cover, but he really was a big strong guy anyway.
“Won’t take but a second,” he said as he tilted the couch to fit it through the door frame and headed for the parking lot.
After Sam came back inside he told me he had to make a quick call. It was his vampire mom’s birthday, as strange as that was. He’d told me about her Friday night, just not the vampire part. She had been the only person to remember his birthday.
I sat on my bed and couldn’t help but feel jealous since I didn’t really know what their relationship was like. Sam had known her for fifty-eight years, and she’d been the one to save him all those years ago. I felt a little better when he put his phone on speakerphone as he walked around my apartment.
The phone started ringing and she answered right away.
“Hi, Sam!”
“Hey, Joselin. Happy Birthday!”
“Oh, you remembered! Thank you for calling. So how’ve you been? I haven’t talked to you in weeks,” she said.
“I’m good, no I’m great. How about you?” Sam asked her, smiling at me.
“Sam,” she said exasperatedly. “I really hope you won’t need me to track down some girl and erase memories of you again. This will be what, the fourth time?”
Sam laughed. “I hope it doesn’t come to that. I’m already falling for her, and she’s, God, she’s amazing,” he said still looking over at me and making me blush.
“Wow. Sam actually in love. Didn’t think I’d ever see the day, even though I’m practically immortal,” she said before she laughed.
“Enough about me. How have you been? You got any plans for your birthday?” he asked her as he walked around my bedroom.
“I’ve been good. Jus
t got back from a trip to Europe, still living in California. No big plans for the big two-six-zero.”
“Still looking for husband number … sorry, but I have no idea what number you’re on,” he said with a chuckle. He paused at the bookshelf in my room and pulled out one of the books. When he turned around he was smirking as he held up my copy of Twilight. I just smiled and shrugged.
“Shoot, I don’t either. Eleventh maybe? And nope, still looking. You don’t happen to know any decent older men around North Carolina do you?” she asked.
“Not a one, sorry, but I’ll keep my eye out,” Sam said with a grin as he put my book back on the shelf.
“Thanks, I appreciate that,” she said as she laughed.
“Well, I hope you have a good 260th birthday.”
“Thanks Sam. It’s good to hear from you and I’m glad you’ve finally found someone who makes you happy. You deserve it after all these years, and after all those idiot girls you’ve dated. But call me if you need any erasing or anything else. You know I’ll always help you out.”
“Thanks, Joselin.”
“And come to California and visit it me sometime. Bring your new girl with you too so I can meet her. The plane tickets will be on me whenever it suits you both.”
“Okay, we might do that.”
“Take care, Sam. Bye.”
Sam was still smiling when he hung up. “What?” he asked me as I watched him.
“She is like your mom, isn’t she?” I asked, not the least bit worried or jealous anymore.
“Well, yeah. Why? You’re not jealous of her, are you?” he asked as he climbed up on the bed and sat beside me.
“No, not after listening to your conversation. I didn’t know what kind of relationship the two of you had. Fifty-eight years is a long time to know someone.”