A Mate for Lazarus

by Charlene Hartnady

  She doubted that as well. Aside from being really tall and built. More so than human guys, they were otherwise pretty much the same. They spoke a bit different and…she almost laughed again…they drank blood. That was probably the biggest difference that she had picked up on so far. Oh yes, they could die and come back from the dead as well.

  They walked up a set of stairs and into the main building. Alex had never been to this part of the castle before. The humans were not permitted into the vampire accommodations without an escort. They also needed a good reason to be here if uninvited.

  Lazarus slid his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer as they stepped through the threshold and into a large lobby which led to a spacious double, volume sitting room. It was huge and pretty busy with people…vampires coming and going. They all stopped mid-step to gape at her. The women were at least as pretty as Allison. Wow! The guys were also seriously impressive although not nearly as impressive as Lazarus. He was the biggest guy she’d seen so far.

  No one tried to approach them. One of the guys stared a little too long as they walked past him and Lazarus gave what sounded like a warning growl. The guy practically jumped in the opposite direction, his gaze firmly on his feet.

  “This way.” He pulled her in the direction of the stairs. There was an identical staircase on the other side of the lobby. Alex had thought that their human accommodations were up market and tasteful but this was pure opulence. Of course, she had been in the dining hall last night and from what she could see, the rest of the castle was much the same.

  “Sheesh! This place is too much.” She sighed. Even in the hallways there was no expense spared. The artwork was exquisite. She didn’t know too much about it but she was sure that the pieces were the real deal.

  “It needs to be big. Two of the covens joined together.”

  “Does everyone stay here then?”

  Lazarus shook his head. “The elite team. The guards. Other important members of the staff. Some of the general population resides within the walls but the rest all stay in the surrounding villages within our territory.” He stopped outside one of the doors and opened it. The door wasn’t locked.

  “Um…you’re very trusting.”

  He shrugged. “Vampires don’t steal from one another.”

  “You’re lucky.” Alex said as she walked through the door. The apartment was spacious. There was an open plan lounge, dining room and kitchen.

  Lazarus closed the door behind him. He shrugged his massive shoulders. “There is no need. We are a wealthy species. We own plenty of land and Brant has been highly successful with the stock markets. Our king is a genius, he has an uncanny ability to know what stocks to buy, when to hold on and when to sell. Zane inherited a large estate from his father.”

  “Okay. I take it that they are generous then?” She raised her brows.

  “Yes. As the second-in-command of the elite and first-in-command of the royal guard, I earn a really good salary. I don’t need the money since I am well provided for though. It just goes into an account. Should any of my people need the money, then it is available. We share and help one another, unlike most of the humans.”

  “It must be nice not to have to worry.” They walked deeper into the apartment. Alex noticed that it had a stunning view of the training grounds and the lake.

  “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “Sure…” Alex said. “Water would be great.” Her mouth was dry. Her eyes dropped to his fantastic ass as he walked towards the kitchen. She had to hold back a groan as he bent down to grab her a bottle.

  He pulled out a plastic exercise bottle for himself and popped the pull out top with his teeth. Then he walked towards her and handed the water to her. “Do you mind?” His brow was wrinkled in a tight frown. Lazarus held up the bottle in his hand.

  “Do I mind what?”

  “It’s filled with blood.” He shook the bottle and her stomach lurched. He smiled. “Don’t pull such a face. I’m the one that should be looking horrified. Not you.”

  She made a snorting sound. “How do you figure that? I’m the human. We don’t do blood.”

  “Vampires don’t enjoy cold, old blood. This has been treated with anticoagulants.” He grimaced. “It’s pretty nasty. It would be the same as you drinking milk that is busy turning sour. It’s still drinkable but would you actually want to drink it?”

  She put her hands in her back pockets. “So why are you drinking it then?”

  “No other choice.” He took a big sip. His jaw tensed as he swallowed. “It’s revolting.” His face took on a pinched look.

  “There’s always a choice, I mean…what would you normally do? Why do you have to drink that?”

  “What would I normally do?” His dark gaze locked with hers. “I would find a compatible female, rut and drink…simple.” His eyes heated.

  “Oh…I see and couldn’t you”—she licked her lips—“just drink from someone without having sex with them?”

  He looked at her like she’d lost her mind. “I’ve never just drank from someone…ever. Okay…when I was a kid but as soon as I hit puberty…” He shrugged. “That was it. I’m sure this would have been a part of your training. They would have warned you that drinking for a vampire is mostly sexual.”

  “So not always then?”

  He took a step towards her, his eyes on her mouth. “It is for me, Alexandra. Since we’re exclusive, I’m going to have to drink this.” He shook the bottle again.

  The thought of him with another woman didn’t sit right with her. They were pretend dating. If he ended up fucking around it would look bad. Shit…she didn’t like the idea of him messing around full stop. While they were sort of together, she didn’t want him fucking around. Once she left, different story but for now…no.

  “What are you thinking?” His voice was deep.

  “Um…just that…” She shrugged. “I guess I don’t like the idea of you…with…someone else.”

  He smiled. God but he was handsome when he did that. Too handsome. Especially shirtless. Those shoulders, those abs…oh lord. He cupped her chin, pulling her gaze back to his face. “If you keep looking at me like that, I might just take you up on your offer.”

  “What offer?”

  “You’re fucking me with your eyes. I’ll return the favor, Alexandra, but I assure you that it won’t stop at just eyes.” He licked his delicious looking lips. He’d just been drinking blood but she still wanted to kiss them. How fucked up was that? “I’m glad you don’t want me anywhere near other females. I don’t want other females. I want you and only you. The thing is though…” He paused and she had to work not to squirm under his intense gaze. His fingers were calloused against her jaw. So big, so warm, so manly…she almost stepped closer to him. “I’m not going to be able to live on this stuff for forever.”

  He broke the contact and shook the bottle. “I’m going to slowly weaken. My need for blood directly out of the vein will grow. It’s going to become an all-out need before very long. Your scent is fucking delicious.” His stare dropped to the pulse at her neck and then down to…between her legs.

  Oh hell! Thankfully, he quickly looked back up at her face. She wasn’t sure what he meant by scent, since she wasn’t wearing any perfume. Her cheeks heated when she remembered that she hadn’t even showered. Alex wasn’t really sure what it was that he smelled, but it couldn’t be that great even though he’d said it was delicious. Like he wanted to eat her. The thought of him between her thighs made her feel hot all over again and she had to stop herself from fanning her cheeks.

  “I need to shower.” His gaze drifted to one of the closed doors on the far side of the lounge area. “Make yourself at home.”

  “Okay.”

  Lazarus walked to the door and her gaze moved back to his ass. Leather pants should be banned from being on a guy like Lazarus. She even found herself taking a step towards the door he had just disappeared through.

  Okay, so he’d left the door wi
de open. Lazarus faced away from her. He was just opening his pants as he toed off his boots. Then he pulled off his socks one by one.

  Turn around Alex.

  Chapter 10

  An impossibility. He peeled his pants down his thighs, giving her the perfect view of that solid ass and in all of its naked glory. It was tanned, just like the rest of him.

  Alex couldn’t seem to make herself turn away. She was even hoping that he would turn around no matter that he would catch her staring. She wanted to see him…all of him.

  “You’re welcome to join me.” He threw her a grin over his shoulder and sauntered through another door which she assumed was the bathroom.

  Alex averted her eyes for a few seconds. Busted. Damn. In reality, she found that she truly didn’t care. The angle of the bathroom door was all wrong. She would have to go into the bedroom if she wanted to keep looking. How irritating!

  Alex sighed. She couldn’t be that brazen. Seeing Lazarus naked would be a really bad idea. She might just lose all hold on her sanity and do something really stupid like jump on him and ride him like a pony…better make that a stallion. It was really hard but she managed to make herself turn away. Only just.

  She took a minute or two to compose herself and then took a look around. The apartment was beautiful, just like the rest of the castle but it was also impersonal, like a hotel room rather than a home. There were no pictures, plants, or keepsakes of any kind. The view was just gorgeous. She watched swans and ducks drift on the surface of the large lake. There was a forest in the distance. There were still guys practicing in small groups on the field.

  Her stomach growled.

  Maybe she could grab something to eat while Lazarus was showering. It would take her mind off of the big naked vampire. He would probably take up the whole space in there. She could only imagine how magnificent he would look wet, lathered up in soap.

  No way.

  Not going there. She walked to the refrigerator and opened it, taking an immediate step back. Half the fridge was filled with blood bags. The kind you would find in a hospital. She swallowed hard. It put it all into perspective. Lazarus was not human. It should scare her, revolt her, but it didn’t. It intrigued her, just like she knew it would intrigue a lot of people.

  It was big news. She really needed to try and force herself to stay focused. To write everything down. She also needed to message her Uncle James. Let him know where she was, that she hadn’t signed a non-disclosure agreement and that she was working on the story.

  No, it would be better if she waited until she was definitely picked for the next round.

  There were three of the plastic bottles Lazarus had been drinking out of in the door. Alex took a deep breath and moved back to the opened fridge door. She picked up one of the blood bags. Interesting. The unit said AB negative. She checked the bags in the fridge. They were all AB negative. Same as her own blood type, which was rare.

  “When I said to make yourself at home, I didn’t expect to find you holding one of those. You’re most welcome to it, although I would recommend that you take from me instead…it’s more fun, I assure you.”

  Alex practically threw the bag back into the fridge.

  “Careful with those. They weren’t easy to find. I doubt I’ll get my hands on more any time soon.”

  Alex turned to face him and then wished she hadn’t. He killed the cargo pants he was wearing. The green shirt looked so damned good but she still wanted to rip it off of him because dammit, it should be illegal to cover a body as great as his. “I’ll bet.” She managed to squeeze out. Alex took a deep breath. “It’s the rarest blood type that there is. Don’t tell me that vampires are picky about the blood they drink. Do you guys have flavors? Do the different blood types taste different to you?”

  Lazarus nodded. “I’ve tried them all and this is my top choice. Each of the bags tastes different even though the blood types are the same. I prefer some more than others.”

  “Oh wow! Seriously?”

  He smiled and nodded. “I can’t help my tastes. The others are fine but this particular blood type works best for me.” He shrugged. “If I have to slum it by drinking old, cold blood…” He pulled a face again. “May as well pick the best of the blood groups. It’s just a pity that it’s so rare.”

  “It’s my blood type. Good to know that you have it on hand for just in case.”

  He looked excited for a second. “Why? Do you want to try some?”

  She made a pained noise. “No way. Just no! I’m talking about if I hurt myself and need a transfusion.”

  His jaw tensed, like the thought of her hurting herself was abhorrent to him. “You’re not going to hurt yourself, Alexandra. I’ll look after you. The guards are all here to ensure your protection as well.” His eyes turned really dark and his shoulders tensed. “If anything should happen, I will feed you my blood and it will help you to rejuvenate.”

  She gasped. “Would I become a vampire?”

  Lazarus looked amused. “I’m not sure where you got your information…maybe I should call it misinformation, but no, you would not become a vampire.”

  She breathed out a sigh of relief. Good to know. Not that she planned on drinking his blood or anything…that was never going to happen.

  “You look relieved.”

  “I would hate to have to depend on others for my survival. To feed off of others.” She shook her head. “I don’t like the idea.”

  “You are dependent on animals for your food source. It’s not so different, we are just more evolved.”

  She folded her arms. “You think so, huh?”

  Lazarus nodded. He stepped in next to her and the air seemed to thin. She could smell his clean just showered scent. It was yummy. Although she hadn’t been complaining earlier when he smelled of sweat either. There weren’t that many that could pull off being dirty and sweaty and still being incredibly attractive.

  “I take it that you are hungry,” Lazarus said.

  She nodded. “I’m starving.”

  “Me too,” he growled. His eyes were firmly on her neck.

  Alex felt heat rise in her face. “Can’t you drink from one of the guys?”

  Lazarus looked so horrified that she had to laugh. “It’s not fucking happening. I’m not into males. I have nothing against male on male action. What others do is up to them but it isn’t for me.”

  “You said that blood drinking is always sexual for you.”

  “It is,” a low growl.

  “Well”—she sucked in a lungful of air—“it wouldn’t be sexual if you drank from a guy.”

  “It’s always sexual for me, Alexandra. Fucking always. The last thing I want is to get a hard on for a guy. I drink and I fuck…there is no other way for me.”

  “Oh,” a squeak. Stuff clenched and puckered. Her lady bits did all the other things you read in those dirty, romance novels she loved. Her clit throbbed. Her nipples tightened. It all happened and all at once.

  Lazarus made a low growling noise. His nostrils flared and it sounded like he was sniffing the air. Then he stuck his head inside the refrigerator and pulled out the makings for a ham and cheese sandwich. “I’m going to feed you and then I’m going to make you come.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me, Alexandra.” Lazarus’ voice had turned gravelly.

  He grabbed some bread out of a cupboard and began lathering mayo onto some slices.

  “We should…” Definitely do that. Her heart raced. Her body continued to react to his body in the most inappropriate ways. “…talk a bit. You shouldn’t have touched me yesterday.”

  “Why the hell not?” He growled.

  “It gets in the way of conversation.” A ridiculous excuse but she couldn’t really think of any good ones. Not when her body was fully on board with his making her come plan.

  Lazarus spread mustard onto the bread. “We will talk while we eat. We are talking now. There is only so much talking we can do.” He slapped a slice of ham
down. “Besides”—he stopped what he was doing so that he could look at her—“you really need to come badly.”

  “No, I don’t.”

  He snorted. “You fucking do, now stop arguing. He handed her a plate, which she took from him.

  Lazarus gestured towards the table. “Let’s sit.” He took his own plate and followed her. “You can start by telling me what you do for a living.”

  Alex tripped on the rug. She grabbed the back of a chair to keep from falling. By some miracle, her sandwich didn’t go flying. Oh hell! She had known this question was coming. She was the one that continually harped on about getting to know one another. What had she expected, that he would keep talking about himself and not expect anything in return?

  Alex had decided to be honest. To stick to the facts as much as possible. “I’m such a klutz.” She said as she put down her plate and took a seat at the table. Lazarus did the same.

  “You were saying.” He took a big bite of his sandwich.

  “I’m a journalist. I write for the local Sweetwater paper.”

  He stopped mid chew. “Oh.” He nodded a few times, chewing furiously and then he swallowed. “That’s interesting. What all do you write about? I don’t think I’ve ever seen the paper. We tend to stay away from that sort of thing. Although, Brant has been taking a vested interest lately with all the publicity surrounding The Program.”

  “Yeah, I noticed the lack of media. No magazines, no television. You guys pretty much live in a bubble. If you want to get to know humans better, you should really look into that sort of thing.”

  Lazarus cocked his head. “You’re right. I will bring it up with my kings. It is certainly something to consider.”

  “Do you think your kings or a vampire representative would ever consider doing an interview?” A girl had to try.