"No. She’s one of the most irresponsible, selfish people I know, and I have no desire to speak with her."
"Why not?" Spencer took off his coat and wrapped it around Ashleigh’s shoulders, watching her pull it tighter around her.
"She left my…" Ashleigh paused, her forehead wrinkling angrily as she fought back tears. "…dad." She turned forward, her voice gaining more strength. "For some rich asshole she was sleeping with. She abandoned me."
There was venom in her voice now. "She’d send me cards for every holiday, but she hardly came to visit. After my father died, my grandparents gained custody of me, and I never saw her again." Ashleigh paused. "I didn't want to see her, either. She just gave up on me. Signed me away without a second thought. Her new family was better than me. Kingston’s a big city, so I hope to never see her…ever."
"New family, huh?" Spencer sighed as he watched a group of people get turned away at the door. "Sounds like what you’re getting into."
"If Caleb’s with another girl, I’m not."
"Even if you dump Caleb, someone else from our circle will grab you."
"Like who? You?" A small laugh escaped her lips as she briefly looked over at Spencer. He wasn’t smiling, though, and didn’t find what she said funny.
"Hi." The bouncer at the door was huge, a headset in his ear and a large clipboard in his hand. He held his hand on the rope that cut off the entrance. Spencer sent him a giant smile, his fangs clearly showing. He wasn’t shy about proclaiming what he was and that made the bouncer smile too. "Go on in."
Spencer led Ashleigh inside. The whole club was loud and full of fast moving, colored lights. They had a DJ on stage mixing tracks, and the dance floor was packed with people. He said hi to a few people he knew as Ashleigh handed him back his jacket, trembling slightly.
Ashleigh turned in a quick circle as she looked around the crowded club. There was a lot of necking going on in this place. On closer inspection, she could see a few pained expressions on women’s faces, their screams most likely absorbed by the loud music. This was not a fun looking place, for non-vampires that was.
She spotted Charlotte, who was standing on the bar, easily. Sam wasn’t there and neither were the other band members, but Ashleigh thought Charlotte could help her find them. Weaseling away from Spencer while he was preoccupied, Ashleigh walked over to Charlotte.
Cupping her hands around her lips, Ashleigh screamed. "Char!"
Charlotte looked down at her, a slight confusion on her face as if Ashleigh was one of the last people she expected to see there. "Ashleigh?" She jumped off the bar, pulling at a few strands of hair that clung to her mouth. "What the hell are you doing here? You shouldn’t be here alone." Charlotte nervously put her hands on Ashleigh’s shoulders, walking her away from the bar. "Caleb doesn’t know you’re here, does he? It’s not safe."
"Where is Caleb?" Ashleigh’s face turned into a frown, despite how hard she was trying to keep up a smile.
"I don’t know." Charlotte had a very fake smile on her face as she motioned for Ashleigh to sit down. "I haven’t seen him."
"He won’t answer my calls." Ashleigh was shouting so Charlotte could hear, the stress on her voice making it sound angry. "Is he mad at me?"
"No, he broke his phone last night." Charlotte laughed as she sat down in a chair near her. "He was arguing with his dad and threw it. You know how Caleb is about his dad."
"Yeah."
"He tried to call you from Kris' phone, but you didn't answer." Charlotte grabbed a drink from the bartender, motioning for him to get the same for Ashleigh. "Why don’t you come hang up here with me for a while? Caleb’s probably just goofing off somewhere, like he always does." She took the next drink the bartender gave her, handing it over to Ashleigh. "He’ll show up for more beers soon."
Ashleigh looked over at Spencer, who glanced at her briefly then turned back to talking with his friend. She frowned as she scanned the crowded dance floor. Her hand stirred her drink with the small stick. "He’s not with another girl, is he?"
"Don’t worry about that honey." Charlotte took a sip, studying the man behind Ashleigh, who was peeking over her shoulder and checking out her breasts. "He’s a bad boy in every sense of the word, but he’s pretty faithful when it comes to his girlfriends. He’s not into the groupie thing. That's Kris, not Caleb. The worst he does is steal a little drink."
She saw the man go to flirt with Ashleigh and screamed at him. "She’s got a man, honey! Try the next one over!"
"Thanks for the reassurance, Charlotte."
"There they are."
Charlotte pointed across the room at Kris, who was trying to convince three girls to make out with each other. He looked very drunk, stumbling a little as he laughed and made motions with his hands. Caleb was hanging from the railing above him, talking to some people on the second floor. His sneakers were bright white with red trim, the bottom of his baggy jeans torn and ripped, attire that wasn’t allowed in the dress code.
"Those look like girls." Ashleigh frowned as she watched Caleb talk to the girls on the second floor, all of them blushing and speaking with over-exaggerated body movements. She could tell they were flirting, one of them even letting Caleb bite her wrist. It looked painful, but the girl gritted her teeth and let him do it.
After a minute or so, he stopped drinking from her and pushed her hand away. The girl held a napkin over the wound, a very fake smile on her face as she spoke, trying not to let him know how much his bite had hurt.
He was jumping up and down on the railing playfully now, briefly focusing on Kris when Kris motioned for Caleb to look down. Two girls near Kris were kissing, the third trying to get in on it by kissing the one woman’s neck.
Taking a bottle near him, Caleb edged over a little on the very thin railing, positioning himself over the girls. He tipped the bottle upside down, covering the girls in beer. They glared at him in disgust as they screamed, Kris laughing hysterically.
Charlotte was laughing as she watched, but Ashleigh only pretended to. Downing the rest of what was in the glass in her hand, Ashleigh switched it for a full one, her eyes never leaving the boys.
Sitting up in the balcony with the girls was Aiden. He leaned over the balcony and motioned for Caleb to get down. Caleb stuck his tongue out at him and started saying something to him in between laughs, jumping up and down on the railing and making it shake.
"You finishing out the tour with us?" Charlotte’s voice made Ashleigh turn around.
"I think so." Ashleigh slowly took a drink from her glass, her eyes scanning the crowd around her.
Ashleigh felt very rough hands grab her breasts. "Look at these nice titties." She was going to slap him, but she recognized who it was as she turned her head. Caleb’s hands slipped down to her hips as he pushed up against her, kissing her cheek. "I’m playing with those tonight."
Ashleigh laughed as he kissed her neck, his playful nature magnified by the alcohol he had consumed. "Did you miss me?"
"Yep." He turned her around, pushing apart her legs and slamming his body up against hers as he began kissing her.
"Aiden’s got three chicks up there." Kris walked up to the bar, squeezing behind Caleb and ordering some beers. "He says he’s willing to share if you use the stairs."
"Mmm…" Caleb pulled away from Ashleigh then looked at Kris. "Sounds good. You wanna come, babe?"
"I'm fine. I can stay with Char." Ashleigh smiled at him sweetly. "You can go."
"I talked to Aiden. He said everything went okay at the dinner." Caleb waited for her to answer. "Is that what happened? He behaved?"
Ashleigh briefly glanced at Spencer then forced a happy expression. "For the most part, I guess."
"Good." Caleb leaned into kiss her again. "Then, I won't have to kick his ass."
"Dude, come on. You have all night to make out with Ashleigh." Kris pointed to the balcony. "Let's go."
He gave Ashleigh a quick squeeze. "I’ll be right back, babe. How ’bout you go out to t
he car with Char and wait for us? When I’m done upstairs, we can go back to the hotel."
"Okay." Ashleigh nodded, Caleb giving her one last kiss before darting off after Kris.
"Let’s go, honey. We’ll meet up with the boys in a bit."
The girls walked outside, but two other men standing with Robert stopped Ashleigh. One of them motioned for her to come with him. Robert argued, but they outnumbered him, escorting her to a shiny black limo. There was a giant bird hood ornament on the very large, intimidating grill. It looked brand new.
The man held the door open for her, watching as she got inside and sat down. There was an older man sitting inside. He had aged well, his thick, black hair slicked back neatly. He was dressed in a suit, his eyes turning immediately to Ashleigh as she got inside.
"Hello, Miss Brown." There was a smoothness to his voice as he spoke eloquently with his hand. "It is nice to finally meet you instead of reading about you in magazines."
"It’s Ashleigh." She reached her hand out to shake his, a very nervous smile on her face. She could see Robert arguing with the older gentleman's bodyguard outside the door. "I’m afraid I don’t know who you are."
"Do not fear me, my dear." The man laughed, his thick fingers covered in expensive rings. Ashleigh noticed he was wearing a wedding ring, hopefully that meant he was friendly and not going to jump her like every other new vampire.
"I am here to help you. I have just spoken with one of our family hunters, and he has informed me of the ridiculous bet my son has going. I apologize for any of the inconvenience it may have given you."
He looked at Robert, who was now walking away from the car and going back into the club. Ashleigh nervously looked out the window. "I intend on speaking to Master Bristol on the matter tomorrow, but for now I would like to speak with you. My wife has informed me that our son's in love, and he's getting married. Nonsense. She may believe it, but I don't."
"Who’s your son?"
"Our younger generation seems to lack the discipline of their previous Elders. Caleb has done some very stupid things in the past, but marrying a romance author is ridiculous. No matter how much you wish it, or he thinks it, Caleb does not love you. He hasn’t even told me anything about you, the last I heard from him, he was dating that jean model he told me was just for…"
The next word hissed off his lips. "Sex, and he had no intention of ever taking a wife. He knows our ways—you don’t take a wife until she has gone through the proper ceremonies. Caleb hasn’t even told me about you, so he certainly isn’t serious about marrying you."
"So, you think I was just a bet?" Staring at her hands, Ashleigh’s voice was low.
He gazed out the window, a very calm expression on his face as he sighed. "Now that I and Master Bristol have gotten involved, we will put a stop to this." He looked back at her. "And you can go back to your regular life and forget you ever met a real vampire."
She stared out the window too, trying not to cry. She could see Robert walking back to the limo, but she turned her eyes from him. Even though she knew Caleb didn't get along with his father, his words still hurt. A lot.
Suddenly, the door to the limo burst open. "What the hell are you doing here!" Caleb, who was pretty drunk and riding the high of feeding, was irate. He turned sharply to Ashleigh. "Get in the limo with Charlotte, and go back to the hotel." He watched her scoot over and get out of the car before slamming the door on his fight with his dad.
Ashleigh reluctantly walked with Robert over to the band's limo. They went back to the hotel without Caleb.
Chapter Eleven
Ashleigh, who couldn’t sleep, was sitting up in bed furiously typing at her laptop. She often did this when she was nervous or upset, today being one of those days. Robert had retrieved her luggage from Spencer and had dropped it off in her room. She didn’t acknowledge Caleb when he came in, she just casually shut her laptop and slid it under the bed near her.
"I’m sorry about what happened with my dad. I promise I’ll never let him talk to you that way again." Caleb sounded slightly winded, a panicked tone to his fast words as he undid his pants and pulled them down. "He’s doesn’t understand anything, and—"
"He told me about your bet. I thought that was just a joke, but—" Staring at the sheets, Ashleigh pulled them over herself. She was wearing one of his band T-shirts, her long hair pulled up into a messy bun to keep it out of the way while she slept.
"I’m so sorry about that, Ashleigh. I promise. I love you." His voice was muffled as he pulled his shirt over his head and walked toward the bed. He was stumbling a little. Ashleigh turned over and lay down on her side. "I really do. And I want to marry you more than anything."
He wrapped his arms around her, holding her to him tightly. "You know that. And fuck the bet, it doesn’t mean anything. I was in love with you and wanted to find you—that's all it was."
Peering over her shoulder to see her expression, Caleb grinded his body up against hers as he caressed her hips."All that matters is I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life loving you." She turned around in his arms. "I want to see your face in the front row of every one of my concerts and in my bed every night."
"I can do that." Ashleigh smiled at him, her arms going around his shoulders as she leaned closer to kiss him.
He let her have one then moved away. "I have an idea."
"What kind of idea?" Ashleigh pulled the covers over her shoulders, the cool white fabric slipping over them smoothly.
"Let’s get married."
"What?" Ashleigh laughed as she reached over and stroked his cheek. "I thought we were."
"No, I mean let’s do it soon." Caleb laughed too, his smile showing his fangs. "We could plan it when I’m off in a few months. Then, I could give you your third bite…" Her smile melted a little at the word bite, a very slight tremble in her bottom lip that Caleb didn’t notice. "And maybe we could have a baby…or try for one at least."
"A baby? How can we have a baby? You’re busy all the time."
"He could go along with us. It’d be fine. We’ll name him Drake, like in your books." He leaned forward a little and gave her a kiss. "Everything will be fine once we get married, and you’re a full vampire."
"Do I have to be a full vampire? Can’t I just stay what I am?" She stared at his bare chest then at the roaring tiger tattoo on his arm.
"You can’t be with me if you aren’t." He lifted her chin with his finger, disappointment thick in his voice. He studied her sad expression, his thumb stroking the side of her chin. "Don’t you love me?"
"I do, but I’m scared. There’s no going back once I’m a full vampire."
"You can’t marry me if you don’t do it."
"I know, but…" She gazed into his eyes, heaviness in her eyelids that wouldn’t allow her to open them fully. "What happens once I become one? How do I feel? Do I have kill? How does it change me?"
"It won’t change you." Caleb’s hand slid down the curve of her neck and onto her bare shoulder. His voice took a serious tone, something that she didn’t hear much from him, especially in his drunken state. He was studying her features, but not meeting with her gaze. "It’ll change how you live. You won’t want blood, you’ll need it." His eyes found hers, his hand squeezing her shoulder, "You’ll need me."
"What do you mean? I’ll always need you."
"You won’t get fangs, so you’ll have to depend on me for every drink. That means…" His smile returned as he leaned closer to her face, planting a soft kiss on her lips. "You can never leave me." He kissed her again. "And we can never be apart."
He slowly sat up on one of his elbows. "Vampires are partners for life. Will you be mine forever?" He looked down on her from his superior position, the seriousness still showing in his intense eyes.
Ashleigh paused for a few seconds as she studied him. "Forever…" Above her was the man she loved, the man she couldn’t imagine being without. "Isn’t long enough." She sent him a smile, her breath quickening as the realiza
tion of her decision was setting in. This was it. There was no going back after this moment.
He studied her curiously for a few seconds, the tension growing between them. He was calm, but her fear was showing, her lip trembling as she anticipated the pain of his bite and the burden of taking up a vampire lifestyle.
Instead of biting her, he started kissing her—deep, passionate, open mouth kisses. She could taste the alcohol on his breath.
His hands scaled her body under the sheets that were now covering his back. He pushed her panties down, leaving them hanging at her knees as his kisses wandered down to her neck. He grabbed the ends of her shirt and shoved it up to reveal her bare breasts. His touches became rougher as he grabbed one of them firmly in his hand, his lips surrounding the nipple and nipping at it as his other hand scaled her torso roughly.
His nipping turned into biting, the scratching of his fangs on the delicate skin of her breasts making her whine. As if he couldn’t hear her cries for him to stop, Caleb started to bite, his fangs puncturing the surface of her skin.
When he tasted her blood, his grip on her tightened, and he sucked harder as he tried to catch the tiny drops of blood that seeped from the small wounds. When he couldn’t get anymore, he turned to her sharply, his breath quickening as he spoke. "Fuck tradition. I’m making you mine now."
The fear flashed in her light blue eyes, her hands reaching up to his shoulders and trying to push him off her. Her teeth chattered as she spoke in a rushed tone. "Stop, Caleb."
"I don’t want to stop." Hovering over her with a sinister grin, his head was cocked to the side as he looked down on her terrified expression.
"Caleb, you’re drunk." She turned her head to the side, avoiding the very dark look in his eyes as he licked his lips. She was still pushing up on his shoulders, making her arms shake because she couldn’t support his weight. "You’re not thinking clearly. You don’t want to—"
"Come on, baby." His voice was forced through his gritted teeth, Caleb’s eyes focused on her neck. He broke the defensive hold she had his shoulders, his hands grabbing hers and holding them firmly at her sides. "Let me bite you. I promise I’ll be gentle."
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