The only other place she could think of was her apartment. She hadn’t given it up yet since she’d changed her mind about moving in with Roric. She could just imagine the fit he’d have if he knew she was inviting a bunch of new vampires over to her place. But she wasn’t going to let this minor setback stop her.
“Could I at least hang some signs in the waiting room?”
Alec winced and contemplated it for a long moment. “Okay, I suppose, but make sure it’s obvious that it’s a private meeting, not one sponsored by the clinic. Liability, you know.”
“Okay, I’ll figure it out and come back with some signs.” She wanted to ask him if he’d be willing to tell all the new vampires about it, but she had a feeling he’d say no. She stood up, eager to get going since Alec wasn’t going to help her much.
He stood up, too, ever the gentleman. “Sounds good, Caroline. I’m really glad you’re doing okay. Oh, and, keep an eye on Piper, will you? I’m worried she’s getting too interested in vampires. I’ve learned to accept what I am, but I don’t want that for my sister. I’m sure you understand.”
She gulped and nodded, feeling guilty. She’d done the opposite so far, inviting Piper into her world and keeping her secrets for her. But Piper was an adult, and it wasn’t Alec’s place to tell her what she could and couldn’t do. Was it a vampire thing or just a guy thing that made them want to control every aspect of their lives?
She hustled out of the clinic, not bothering to say goodbye to Natasha. She planned to be back soon, anyway. She went back to Roric’s house because she was almost certain he wouldn’t be home yet and because she wanted to use his computer.
His suite was the way she left it, with the scent of spaghetti, burnt garlic bread, and roses in the air. The abandoned table was a sad reminder of their not-so-romantic dinner. He’d tried, and she appreciated that, but she still wasn’t sure if he really loved her or if he just felt responsible for her and wanted to keep her close so he could make sure she didn’t cause any trouble. If she ever revealed the truth about how he’d turned her, he could lose everything — his job, his reputation, even his life.
She’d made a promise never to reveal the truth, no matter what happened between them, and she intended to keep it, but that didn’t mean she was going to let him boss her around.
She turned her back on the abandoned table and sat down at Roric’s desk. In a few minutes, she had a simple flyer made that advertised the first meeting of her new support group. Now all she had to do was get the word out. She printed out a dozen copies and found a roll of tape in Roric’s junk drawer then headed back down to her car. Dawn was coming, but she should have just enough time to get to the clinic before it closed for the morning.
Thankfully, Natasha was still at the front desk when she got there. Caroline glanced around to make sure Alec wasn’t in earshot then hurried over to Natasha.
“Hey, Alec said I could hang some signs. Would you make sure all the new vampires who come in hear about the meeting? Here’s some flyers you can hand out.” She handed over most of them.
Natasha took them with an eager smile. “This is so great, Caroline. I’m sure all the new vampires will really appreciate this, especially since we’re low on mentors.”
“Hey, speaking of that, did you see my new mentee, Houston, in here last night?”
“No, I—” Natasha’s eyes widened, and she clamped her lips shut, probably realizing she’d violated patient privacy by saying that.
Caroline wanted to ask Natasha to let her know if he came in, but she doubted the receptionist would be willing to break the rules for her. They weren’t that close yet.
A shadow of worry fell over her as she thought about Houston. Where had he gone last night if he hadn’t come here? Had he satisfied his thirst with a blood bag, or had he gone out looking for a vein?
Caroline taped a flyer front and center on the registration desk then taped a few more in conspicuous places around the clinic. Before she left, she headed over to the side of the clinic that offered blood bags. She needed to stock up if she was going to have a houseful of vampires soon.
Chapter 18
Piper closed the door behind Houston and slumped against it, her body a boneless sack of sparking nerve endings. She’d thought letting a vampire drink from her was intense, but having sex with one at the same time was so orgasmic, she felt like her whole body had been electrocuted. In a good way.
Her phone rang again, reminding her of her earlier missed call. She managed to drag her languid body over to the table where she’d left the phone, but not before the call went to voicemail. When she picked it up, she saw two missed calls from Davede.
She didn’t really need Davede anymore now that she had Houston, and he was probably too scared to see her again after Alec had yelled at him, but the fact that he’d called her twice was worrisome. Her phone beeped again, announcing a new voicemail. She quickly tapped on it and held it to her ear.
“Hey Piper, this is Davede. I noticed your name was in the system as a new volunteer. Is that… did you… was that a mistake? I didn’t think Alec would let you sign up. Anyway, I deleted it, just in case. I hope that’s okay. Sorry about what happened the other night. I never should’ve kissed you in public like that. I hope Alec wasn’t too mad at you. Call me when you get a chance, okay?”
Piper gave a small smile and dialed Davede’s number. He was a nice guy, and she appreciated that he was looking out for her. He picked up on the first ring, his voice eager.
“Piper! Hey, how are you? Did you get my message?”
“Hi Davede, yeah, I just got it.” She didn’t want to explain why she didn’t answer, so she hoped he wouldn’t press the issue.
“So, how did your name get in the system? Did you actually sign up?”
She walked over to the dining room and started tidying up her studio. It was still a mess from when she’d spilled her water earlier. “Yeah, I did. I decided that I didn’t care what Alec said. I can do what I want.”
“Did you feed someone last night, then?”
“Umm, yeah. It was the new guy that my friend Caroline brought in. He was in bad shape, and they didn’t have any other volunteers available.” She grabbed a roll of paper towels and sopped up more of the paint water that had soaked everything on the table and left a big stain on the dropcloth.
“Oh.” His voice was tight, cold. Was he jealous? He got quiet, and Piper wasn’t sure what else to say, either. Maybe he was expecting her loyalty, but she wasn’t willing to give it. The silence stretched between them, separating them even further. Finally, Davede spoke up.
“I called you earlier, but you didn’t answer. I was hoping maybe I could see you, but I guess you were busy tonight.”
She cringed. They weren’t exactly a couple, but she felt bad telling him that she’d been with another guy. She settled on a vague half-truth instead. “I was finishing a painting. I was really in the zone.”
Davede let out a loud breath, and his voice got lighter. “Oh, okay. Is it finished? I’d love to see it. Maybe we could go out tomorrow night. I could pick you up, and you could show me your painting.”
They’d never gone on a real date before, they’d only met in private so he could drink from her. What had changed? Was he jealous that she’d signed up to volunteer at the clinic and wanted to stake his claim on her?
Maybe that was the motivation he needed to step things up a notch. His eagerness sparked her attention. It wouldn’t hurt to go on one date with him. It wasn’t like she’d made a commitment to Houston, either.
“Okay, what time?”
She could practically hear his giant smile. “How about 8?”
The next night, she stood at her closet, once again debating what to wear. This time, she was going out, so something fancy would be okay, but how sexy did she want to go? She wasn’t even sure what message she wanted to send, let alone what outfit would do the best job of portraying it.
She finally settled on a little, black
dress that hugged her curves but wasn’t skin tight and didn’t show any thigh or cleavage. She twisted her hair up into a smooth knot that she held in place with a million bobby pins then played up her eyes with smoky eye shadow, mascara, and winged eyeliner.
She looked about as sexy as a button-nose teacher with curly, red hair could look, and yet she still looked demure enough that she wouldn’t be embarrassed if she ran into one of her students or their parents. That was always the tricky part. Now she had a professional reputation to protect. She figured the look would be perfect for a date with a guy like Davede who seemed worried about appearances, too.
She’d never been out with a vampire before. Davede didn’t have that dark, dangerous look that a lot of vampires had. Would people be able to tell? She kind of liked the thrill of people knowing she was dating a vampire, but it might not go over so well with parents.
The doorbell rang, and she scampered to the door to answer it. Her eyes widened at the sight of Davede. He was actually wearing black, for once! He was in snug dress pants and a short sleeve shirt that wasn’t a polo and was tight enough that she could see some muscle definition. Her fingers itched to explore the broad expanse.
His sandy brown hair was styled a little more casually than normal, and it stood out against his dark clothes. He looked hot. Hotter than she’d ever seen him before.
They took a few seconds to check out each other’s bodies before their eyes met. The look in his told her he liked what he saw, too. Piper grinned and stroked her sweaty palms down her hips. Davede’s eyes followed them over the curves.
“You look gorgeous, Piper.”
Wow. No one had ever called her gorgeous before. Cute, sure. Beautiful, maybe. But never gorgeous. And it didn’t come across as flippant, either. The way he was staring at her, it was obvious he really meant it. He earned a few more points for that one.
“You look really great, too.”
He curled his lip and glanced down at his outfit. “Really? My sister picked this out for me when she heard I had a date. I was going to wear a tie, but she told me not to, said it made me look like an investment banker.”
Piper chuckled. Kudos to the sister. How did she know Piper would prefer this? “No, no tie. I like this shirt. And the black makes you look… dangerous.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
“Girls who like safe don’t go out with vampires.” She couldn’t resist any longer. She reached out and stroked her hands across his pecs then trailed them down his abs. They rippled under her fingers as he sucked in a deep breath.
“Are you going to show me your paintings?” he asked, and she wasn’t sure if he was trying to distract her or move the action inside.
She was tempted to invite him in, ask him if he was hungry, and let him have a taste before they left, but they might never leave if she did that, and she wanted to go out. It had been too long since a guy had taken her out and treated her to a night on the town.
“I’ll show you afterwards. Let’s get out of here while we still can.” She grabbed her clutch off the console table then pulled the door shut behind her.
Davede’s car was clean and shiny. She didn’t know cars, but she liked the sleek lines, the chrome accents, and the dark finish. The tan leather seats were as soft as warm butter. He opened the door for her, and she slid in, savoring the scent of his cologne permeating the interior.
“I was thinking we could go to that steak restaurant up the street. Sound okay?” He turned the key, and the engine started with a purr. It wasn’t a hot rod, but it was definitely a cool car, and Piper was impressed he didn’t drive something more practical.
“Sounds great.”
She smiled at him, and he smiled back, bigger and broader than ever. “I’m really glad you said yes to this, Piper. I like you a lot. I wanted to spend time with you, but I felt bad about sneaking around behind your brother’s back.”
“He’s still gonna be mad, but I don’t care. He’s not the boss of me.” She cringed, remembering what Alec had said to Davede the other day when he saw him kiss her. “But he is your boss. This might screw things up for you at the clinic.”
Davede stared at her, an intense, passionate look in his eyes, like dark chocolate laced with cayenne. “You’re worth it, Piper.”
She gulped and quickly dropped her eyes to her lap, smoothing out invisible wrinkles in her dress. She didn’t understand why he thought that. Here he was, willing to risk his job for her, and she wasn’t even willing to see him exclusively. She felt like a tramp.
Why couldn’t they just have fun? Why did it have to be serious? She was only 22. Barely out of college, working her first real job and feeling like a pretend grown-up half the time.
They got to the restaurant a minute later, before her silence got too awkward. Davede jumped out and hurried around to her side to open the door for her then helped her out of the car. No one had ever done that for her before. It was kind of nice, especially since the seat was low, her heels were high, and her skirt was tight. She kept her hand in his while they walked inside, and that was kind of nice, too.
The restaurant was classy, not the kind of place where they throw peanut shells on the floor. She’d never been to a place like this on a date before. Usually, her dates consisted of hanging out in bars, maybe going to a movie.
Davede had made reservations, so they were seated right away in a high-walled, black leather booth with a shiny, lacquered tabletop and black cloth napkins. Low dangling pendant lights over each table were the only lighting, so the room was dark enough to seem romantic, but they gave off enough light she could easily see every detail of Davede’s face.
His look was too intense, so Piper busied herself with the menu, spending an inordinate amount of time debating between the sirloin and the ribeye.
“Can’t decide what you want?” Davede reached out and touched her hand, and she flinched and dropped the menu. Wasn’t that the truth? She wanted freedom and excitement, but romance and devotion sounded pretty good, too.
“It all looks so good. I don’t know what I’ll like the best.”
“Would you like to share the T-bone for two? I’ve always wanted to try it, but I can’t do it alone.”
“If we shared, we might have room for dessert, too.” Her eyes danced across the menu to the pictures of sweets.
He chuckled, and his eyes twinkled in the dim lighting. “Yeah, we can definitely still have dessert. We can share that, too, if you want.”
He was only talking about dinner, but it felt like so much more. “I’m willing to try it,” she whispered.
When the waiter came, Davede ordered for them, not in a bossy, controlling way, but like she was his queen, and his mission was to please her. He deferred to her on everything from how she wanted the steak cooked to what side dish she liked best. Piper had never had anyone pay that much attention to what she wanted before. She couldn’t understand why he cared so much about making her happy.
They made small talk while they waited for the food to come. She asked him some questions about how things were going at the blood clinic, and he asked her about her students and the projects they were working on, her friends, her family, her art. She dominated the conversation, but only because he peppered her with question after question, curious to know everything about her.
After the tenth question in a row, she put up her hands, laughing. “Davede, stop! You don’t have to learn everything there is to know about me tonight. You act like I’m the most interesting person you’ve ever met. I’m just a boring human!”
“You are the most interesting person I’ve ever met. I’ve spent my whole life around vampires; they’re all I know. But you’re the first human I’ve ever been on a date with. Everything about you is fascinating to me. You can go wherever you want, whenever you want. The whole world is at your fingertips. You can do anything, be anything. I’d give anything to be a human.” He glanced around the restaurant, examining the other customers with a look of longing.
She tilted her head and stared at him as she ran her fingertip around the rim of her wine glass. That explained a lot about him, why he acted so human. She was also a little relieved to know he wasn’t obsessed with her, specifically.
“I never thought of it that way. I always thought vampires were a lot more interesting than humans. I’ve fantasized about becoming one ever since I learned about them.”
He sputtered, choking on his wine, then set the glass down and wiped his mouth. “You want to be a vampire?”
She toyed with the crystal pendant on her necklace, sliding it back and forth along the gold chain. “Well, yeah. Why did you think I wanted to volunteer at the clinic?”
“I thought you were just curious about giving blood.”
She felt her cheeks get warm, and she reached for the drink menu to fan herself but stopped, knowing it would look even worse. “I like that part, too.”
Davede stretched his hands across the table and took hers, his voice and face serious. “Piper, are you serious about wanting to become a vampire? Are you going to apply to be changed?”
“I’d like to. But I doubt Alec would let me be approved, so it probably won’t ever happen. Unless I can find someone who’s willing to change me.” Her mind flicked back to Houston.
The waiter interrupted the moment, and Davede reluctantly let go of her hand so the waiter could set a giant plate of steak, mashed potatoes, and asparagus spears in between them.
Davede let the subject, and his interrogation, drop as they dug into the meal. It felt intimate, sharing a plate, and even more so when Davede sliced off a bite of steak, speared it with his fork, and held it out to her.
“Here, you take the first bite.”
She leaned closer and closed her lips around his fork. The flavor burst on her tongue — rich, salty, meaty, and moist. Davede cut another bite and dipped it in the pink juices pooling on the plate before popping it in his own mouth. Piper stared at the red center of the steak as he cut into it again, wondering what it would be like to drink blood.
Obsessed with the Vampire: A Paranormal Romance (Vampire Enforcement Agency Book 2) Page 13