“I don’t know. Maybe you’re too stubborn,” he muttered. He grabbed the bags and stepped inside the room, clearly finished with the conversation.
Her eyes narrowed at his halfhearted answer. “You’re still lying to me,” she accused as she followed him into the room. He stopped suddenly, his shoulders stiffening, but he didn’t turn around and look at her. She continued, “I’m not stupid. I know that I didn’t resist some kind of supernatural power because of my stubbornness. And I can tell that you’re hiding something from me. What’s so bad that you can’t tell me, now? I already know that you’re a vampire. What could be harder to tell me than that? I want the truth, Kallias.”
He dropped the bags onto the king-sized bed in the center of the room. “The truth is…I don’t know. I’m sorry if that is not good enough for you.”
She didn’t believe him. He hadn’t even bothered to look at her when he said it. A clear sign of guilt. “Look, I just want you to…” she trailed off as she suddenly swept her gaze around the spacious hotel room. Bright red, plush carpet that looked a bit cliché, in Rose’s opinion, covered every inch of the floor with the exception of the white-tiled bathroom. Obscure paintings and artwork covered the white walls. Furniture—a desk, a dining table, a sofa, a counter with a mini-fridge and a coffee station, a king-sized bed covered in red, plush bedding that matched the color of the carpet—filled a room that was probably three times larger than her entire apartment. “This room is huge. Who needs a room this big?”
“It’s a honeymoon suite. So, I would assume…newlyweds,” he said.
“Ha. Ha,” she muttered sarcastically, but even as she said it, she smiled…because honestly, she would’ve given him the same smart-aleck answer if he’d asked her that question. “I’m just saying…I’ve gone on study trips and stayed in the same room with four or five other women…for weeks at time, sometimes, and our hotel rooms were barely a quarter of the size of this one.”
Kallias crossed his arms as he leaned against the counter, next to the stainless steel mini-fridge. “Yes, but I would assume that you and those four or five other women were not having mindless, passionate sex on every surface of the room during your hotel stay,” he pointed out casually, as if that kind of comment would fit in a normal, casual conversation. Then, misinterpreting the look on her face, he tilted his head to the side and added, “Unless you were?”
She blinked. “Did you just ask me if I had an orgy with five women?”
His lips twitched. “Not in so many words.”
She stared at him blankly, her mouth ajar. “Do I seem like the kind of person that gets involved in those kind of…extracurricular activities?”
He grinned. “I try not to make assumptions about people.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Of course you do,” she grumbled with bitter sarcasm. She tossed her bags on the bed and turned toward him, crossing her arms. “It was a study trip, so we studied. It’s a revolutionary idea, I know.”
Kallias laughed at her sarcasm. “That sounds like so much fun.”
“I happen to enjoy studying, so it was, actually,” Rose informed him.
He nodded and pushed away from the counter. Rose frowned as he walked toward her, crossing the floor in a few steps, his body suddenly pressing hers against the hard, wooden footboard of the bedframe. His lips quirked up at the corners as he leaned closer to her. “Speaking of fun,” he said lowly.
She blinked up at him. “Uh…what are you doing?” she sputtered.
He reached behind him and pulled something out of his pocket. He held up the small, worn horror novel she’d been reading and grinned. “I was just giving you back your book,” he said with a smirk. “What did you think I was doing?”
Her eyes narrowed at him, and she snatched the novel out of his hand. “What? Are you suddenly incapable of reaching across more than an inch of space?” she sassed, gesturing at the nonexistent space between their bodies.
“Well,” he teased, grinning playfully at her, “I was injured last night.”
“But you’re not anymore!” she objected.
Kallias started laughing and, raising his hands in a show of surrender, he took a step back. Just one step. Not nearly enough for comfort. Rose rolled her eyes at him as she set the novel on the bed. She frowned. The bed. One bed.
Her eyes widened. “Uh, Kallias? I just realized…there’s only one bed.”
His lips curved lazily into a lopsided, cocky grin that somehow managed to irritate her and turn her on at the same time. “Don’t worry. I don’t bite,” he teased. He slid his tongue over his fangs and laughed, “Oh, yeah. I do, don’t I?”
She rolled her eyes again. “You’re hilarious,” she muttered sarcastically. She glanced down at the bed. “Well, just so you know, I’m not sleeping in that bed.”
Kallias scowled at her. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he grumbled. “If it makes you that uncomfortable, you can sleep in the bed, and I’ll sleep on the sofa.”
“You’re like three times the length of that sofa,” Rose argued.
He snorted, “I’m tall, yes, but I’m not eighteen feet tall.”
“It makes more sense for me to sleep on the sofa since my body might actually fit on it,” she insisted. “Besides, people have had sex on that bed.”
Kallias started laughing, “What does that have to do with anything?”
She shrugged. “It’s kind of gross when you think about it.”
He couldn’t seem to stop laughing. His normally golden skin had taken on a reddish tint. “And you don’t think that people have had sex on the sofa?”
Rose scowled. “Fine. I guess I’ll have to sleep in the floor, then.”
“I’m sure they’ve used the floor as well,” he snorted.
She grimaced at the floor, as if it were contaminated. “I guess I can take some blankets into the bathroom and sleep in the bathtub. It looks big enough,” she sighed, glancing at the spacious, cream-colored bathtub in the center of the bathroom. When she turned back toward Kallias, she found him staring at her, his lips pulled into a tight smile, as if he were trying not to laugh. “Oh, come on, not the bathtub. Surely not. It’s slippery. That doesn’t even sound safe.”
He laughed and shook his head in disbelief. “Rose, people have been having sex in bathtubs since the first bathtub was invented. I consummated my marriage with Phoebe in a type of bathtub, and that was in Ancient Greece.”
“I didn’t need to know that,” she said matter-of-factly.
He shrugged. “You’re the one who keeps talking about sex.”
“No,” she said, “I’m pretty sure you’re the one who usually brings it up.”
He flashed that flirty grin at her again. “It must be a sign from destiny or God or whatever,” he teased. “You believe in that kind of bullshit, right?”
Her eyes narrowed at his cruel cynicism. “Don’t insult my religion if you don’t want me to insult your lack of one,” she snarled, shrugging away from him.
He straightened, and his eyes widened in surprise. He watched as she walked away from him to stand beside the table, instead. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that would offend you,” he sputtered. “But I guess I should have.”
Rose stared at him, stunned by how genuinely remorseful he looked. His shoulders dropped, and his eyes looked wide and sad. Puppy-dog eyes, Rose thought with amusement. The dangerous vampire was giving her puppy-dog eyes. “Why does it bother you so much for people to believe in something?” she asked.
“I think that people get hurt when they believe in things,” he answered.
She frowned. “And…you don’t want me to get hurt?” she guessed.
He suddenly looked uncomfortable. “I…” he stammered. “I don’t care.”
She suppressed a smile. He was lying again. He did care. She sighed as her mind returned to their earlier conversation. She trusted him, against all reason, but she needed some assurance that he wouldn’t use mind-control on her. “About what we were talking about
earlier…how can I trust you not to do that again?”
His brows furrowed. “What? Fuck a woman in the bathtub?”
For a full minute, Rose stood there, gaping at him, her eyes wide and her mouth ajar. Finally, she closed her mouth and remembered how to form words. “No. That is not what I meant. That is so far from what I meant. So, so far.”
“Oh,” he said. “It did seem like a pretty strange question.”
“How can I trust you not to use your mind-control on me?” she clarified.
He stared at her for a moment, his brows creased, but then, something behind her seemed to catch his attention. Anxiety flickered in his eyes. He sighed and stepped toward the bed, unzipping his duffel bag in one quick, fluid motion. He fished out a roll of black tape from the bag and turned back toward her.
“Uh…” Rose sputtered, frowning. “Why do you need tape?”
His lips twitched. “To tape your mouth, of course. You talk too much.”
Her eyes widened. “W-what?” she stammered.
Kallias scowled at her. “I’m joking. Obviously,” he told her, his eyebrows lifting in disbelief. He shook his head as he walked past her, over to the double-window along the farthest wall. He pulled the darkening shade over the window and then taped the edges to the wall so that no light could enter the room.
“Right. Sunrise equals crispy vampire,” she reminded herself. “Kallias, has anyone ever told you that your sense of humor is a bit…inappropriate?”
He shrugged. “Usually, they just call me an asshole.”
Rose laughed at that. “And that doesn’t bother you?”
“Nope,” he answered as he finished taping the window.
When he was sure that the window was secure, he turned back toward her. For a moment, he just stared at her thoughtfully. Then, finally, he sighed, “I don’t know how to answer your question. I won’t ask you to trust me. I don’t need you to trust me. I don’t even care if you trust me. Actually, as I have said in the past, I would prefer that you didn’t. And maybe you were right about what you said in the restaurant. Maybe the reason that I don’t want you to trust me is that I don’t trust myself. But there is a reason I don’t trust myself, Rose. I know how easily a vampire can lose control. All it takes is a little blood, a little rage. I’m an animal. A dangerous animal. For your sake, I can never let either of us forget that. When you’re with me, you are always just one step away from death.”
She stared into his brown eyes, studying the way his eyes flickered with concern. “If you feel that way, then, why would you insist that I come with you?”
“Because with me, there is still that one step. You still have a chance,” he sighed. “Without me, you’re dead. Those vampires won’t hesitate to kill you.”
She nodded. She was well aware of that, by now. “But, Kallias, why don’t you just let them kill me? At least then, you wouldn’t have to risk accidentally killing me yourself. Then, if I died, you wouldn’t have to feel any guilt over it.”
His eyes narrowed. “How could you even think that?” he asked. He sounded hurt by her suggestion. “Do you honestly think that I wouldn’t feel terrible if I let you die? Doing nothing would be as evil as committing the murder myself.”
She stared at him. “You follow a code of ethics,” she realized.
He scowled at that familiar tone of hers. “That doesn’t mean I’m good.”
She sighed at his continuous refusal to acknowledge the truth: that he wasn’t as terrible as he feared he was. “I feel safe with you,” she admitted quietly.
Pain flashed in his eyes. “Feelings lie.”
“Maybe,” she sighed. “Look, I’m not looking for anything extreme here. I just need to know that you won’t try to control my mind. Just tell me you won’t.”
“How would that prove anything?” he asked. “I could be lying.”
“Or you could be telling the truth,” she countered. “I’d trust your word.”
He shook his head in frustration. “That’s stupid. People lie. Trust me. I would know. I have spent centuries in other people’s minds. People think one thing and say another. You should never believe anything without proof.”
“Life requires a degree of faith,” she tried to tell him.
“People will take advantage of your trust, Rose,” Kallias warned.
“Why do you care if they take advantage of me?” Rose asked.
“Because…” he trailed off, looking away in frustration. “I don’t.”
She eyed him skeptically. “I just need to know you won’t try to make me do something that I don’t want to do. Will you not assure me of that?”
He looked at her, then. She thought he looked hurt for a moment, hurt that she would even entertain the possibility, but he quickly hid whatever emotion she’d seen. “You can trust me not to use telepathic control on you,” he said, “not because of anything that I say to you, but because even if I did, it wouldn’t work.”
She frowned. “How could you possibly know that?”
He shrugged. “Because I have already tried, and you resisted.”
“Yes, but that could have just been a fluke,” Rose suggested.
Kallias crossed his arms, the fabric of his shirt pulling tight against his skin as he did. A faint smile tugged at his lips. “You’re right. We should test it.”
Startled, she nearly fell over sideways. “T-test? No, I don’t think so.”
His grin widened, and Rose soon realized that his wide, mischievous grin was contagious. He moved closer to her, his warm breath falling against her face as he spoke. “Ah, come on, baby,” he teased playfully. “Aren’t you curious?”
She pursed her lips. “Hey, now, that’s not fair. I’m always curious,” she complained. “It’s a personality trait. You’re just preying on my weaknesses now.”
He laughed. “One command?” he pleaded, pressing his hands together.
She couldn’t help but laugh at the sight he made, pleading with her like that. She threw her hands up. “Fine. So, how does this work? Like Simon Says?”
His brows furrowed. “Who is Simon?”
“Simon Says? The kid’s game?” she offered. “Never mind.”
Kallias ran his hand through his hair, the brown strands falling around his fingers, and his eyes grew distant and thoughtful. “Imagine the mind as layered, and each layer is guarded by a wall,” he explained, spreading his hands. “On the surface, you find conscious thoughts: inner monologue, pictures, sounds, etc. That is the easiest part of the mind for a telepath to access. It’s…as if the wall guarding it is made of paper. You walk through it without even realizing it.”
“You walk through paper walls without realizing it?” Rose interrupted.
“Deeper in the mind, guarded by much stronger walls, you find the will,” he continued, ignoring her remark. “It requires much more concentration and power to break into that part of the mind. When I finally reach the person’s will, I bend their will to mine. I make them want to do what I want them to do.”
She nodded. “And that’s what you’re going to do to me?”
“That’s the idea,” he agreed. “But if my theory is correct, I will find that your will is too strong to bend, which means that you will resist my command.”
“My stubbornness,” she realized, nodding. “Okay. I’m ready.”
Kallias shook his head. “No, you’re not.”
She scowled at him. “How am I not?”
“At any given time, a person’s will can become stronger or weaker. And one only has to spend five seconds around you before they realize that you are the most strong-willed when you’re angry,” Kallias explained, smiling as he saw her eyes narrow at him. “In order to really test this, I need you to be angry.”
Rose crossed her arms. “Well, you’re in luck because one only has to spend five seconds around you in order to get angry,” she countered.
He laughed. “That’s great. But I need you angrier than this.”
“Well, w
hat do you want me to do? I can’t just hulk out at will,” she said.
His brows furrowed. “Hulk out?” he repeated.
“The big green guy? ‘You won’t like me when I’m angry’?” she prompted with a disapproving scowl. “Haven’t you ever read a comic book?”
His brown eyes lightened suddenly. “I have an idea.”
“I agree. You should read comic books,” Rose said, nodding.
He frowned. “No. I mean, yes, if you really want me to read something, I will, but that wasn’t my idea. What I meant was: I know how to make you angry.”
She raised her eyebrow. “Oh, believe me. I’ve noticed.”
He grinned at her. “Look at me.”
“I am looking at you,” she said dismissively. “Also, I’m not angry yet.”
“Don’t worry. I will take care of that part,” he assured her.
“That was supposed to make me not worry?” she asked, frowning.
Kallias stepped closer to her, too close, so close that she could feel his body heat and smell the dust on his skin. He placed his hand under her chin and tipped her head back. His thumb traced her jaw. “Look at me,” he said softly.
Rose shuddered as she looked up, meeting his intense, heated gaze. His touch, combined with his closeness, sent waves of heat through her body, and staring into his brown eyes certainly didn’t help matters. “Uh…is that required?”
He shook his head, still staring at her. “No, but it helps me concentrate.”
“Oh,” she squeaked. She blushed at the way her voice sounded. She noticed a smile tugging at the edges of his lips, that hint of a smile making it clear that he had noticed the effect he had on her, even if he didn’t say anything about it. Her head began to spin. “My head feels funny. Why does my head feel funny?”
“You can feel me in your mind,” Kallias realized, his eyes widening in surprise. “That’s interesting. Most people can’t,” he added under his breath.
“Oh,” she mumbled. “Would you just hurry up and do it already?”
“If you insist,” he said, smiling. “Rose, take off your clothes.”
Her jaw dropped, and without thinking, she hit him. Hard. Too hard, she realized, as she winced at the pain in her knuckles. “Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to do that! No, wait. Yes, I did! Because you’re a jerk! But I really didn’t because I’m not a violent person. But I’m going to pretend that I did because you’re a jerk,” she rambled. “What the heck were you thinking?!”
The Stone of the Eklektos Page 42