Blood Debt

I heard my phone ringing and groped for my nightstand, trying to make the ringing stop. We’d stayed out pretty late, and I had worked the last thirteen days in a row. Today was my only day off for a while, and I planned to spend it in bed. When I picked up my phone, I saw Brent’s smiling face staring back at me from the screen on my Droid, waiting for me to answer. I wanted to push “ignore.”

  It might be important. I could hear the gravel in my own voice, “This better be good, Brent.”

  “Good Morning, Drake. Sleep well?”

  “Why are you calling so early?”

  “Bianca and Camille decided they wanted to make a trip out on the water today. You up for it?”

  My blood froze. For a second it felt like it had turned to ice and my heart forgot how to push it through my veins. “Uh, I guess so. When?”

  “Camille and I are in the car now. We can pick you up in five minutes.”

  “Stop for coffee. Make it ten.” I pushed “end.” My palms were already sweating. I said to no one but myself – this is a seriously bad idea.

  When my dad told me that Bianca had chosen me, I didn’t think I could ever ask for anything more in my life. She was smart, educated, funny, beautiful, and she came from an honorable family. She had her pick of any eligible Centaur out there and had chosen me. I didn’t even know I was in the running. My best friend growing up had been in love with her since he was twelve, so in love that he took risks, chances he wasn’t supposed to take. None of our kind is allowed to date before betrothal, but he said he didn’t care. It was Bianca or no one for him. When she chose me, I didn’t know what to say to him. He called as soon as he heard, to tell me congratulations and wish me the best – but that was the last time I talked to him. He hadn’t called in over a month, and I assumed our friendship was now officially over.

  Bianca was the real deal. I could get a new best friend if it meant that my bloodline was secure. My parents were so proud you’d have thought I single-handedly brought peace to the Middle East. Last night was one of the first times Bianca and I had been together since her parents made the announcement. When I picked her up for Bruce and Hannah’s wedding, she was stunning. It was the first unsupervised conversation we’d had since the announcement was made. I had expected her father to accompany us, but her parents followed us in their car. During the car ride to the wedding, she mentioned that she wanted a longer-than-normal engagement. I was so star struck at the time, I think I would have agreed to wait until my deathbed if she had asked me to.

  One year. I thought a year would be a piece of cake. When I escorted her to the wedding, I knew that the most beautiful woman at the wedding wasn’t wearing white; she was holding my bicep, walking in lock step with me. We were milling around making small talk when she said, “I’m anxious to meet Camille Strayer. I hear she’s new to our kind. Tonight will be her first introduction to Centaur society.”

  I wanted to appear interested, but I couldn’t have cared less. “Who’s she?”

  “Apparently Will Strayer had a Centaur mistress. Camille is his daughter. I hope we get to meet her.”

  My interest was piqued. “A Centaur mistress? Really?”

  “Everyone’s talking about it. She just arrived this week and, from what I heard, knew nothing about us.”

  No sooner had Bianca’s words escaped than I saw Will escorting Camille from the house. She looked nervous, pre-occupied, as they stood on the porch and looked out into the crowd. My eyes locked on her, her blood called to me, screamed to me. She took her first step down the stairs and something in the distance caught her attention. I saw her take her second step and something wasn’t right, her footing looked wrong. I knew she would tumble if no one did anything. Will wasn’t paying attention. I could see Brent and Beau were much closer than I was, but neither was watching. I let Bianca’s hand go and sprinted to her, stretching both my hands out to catch her before she could miss the last step. She landed squarely in my arms, and I froze.

  She would have gone face first onto the ground had I not caught her in mid-air. Her body was light. I supported her with my right hand on her face and my left on her stomach. Time felt as if it had slowed down. I placed her carefully on her feet. In that single second it seemed as though we were the only two in the universe. As she stood there looking at me, I saw the most beautiful, milk-chocolate eyes staring at me. When she thanked me, it was hard to breath. I muttered something in reply, and she held her hand out to thank me. I was horrified. I knew our customs didn’t allow for the two of us to touch, and in that second I knew why. Bianca had chosen me. I was betrothed, promised, and I felt an irrational desire for Camille. I couldn’t explain it. I wanted to grab her in my arms and never let her go. Somehow my mind found the strength to override my heart’s urges.

  When I returned to Bianca, I expected her to be furious with me. Not only had I touched another woman, I had touched her in front of two hundred others. Bianca surprised me with a sweet smile and a gentle caress on my cheek. “Thanks so much for catching her. That was such a kind thing to do.” I was floored—she wasn’t upset in the least. Bianca caught me watching Camille several times through the ceremony. Never once did she show the slightest concern that I was so obviously captivated with the newcomer.

  After the ceremony, Bianca prodded me to pay attention to a conversation between William Strayer and Kyle Richardson. The conversation had been strained initially, then Camille said something hateful to Gage’s dad. Without thinking it through, I sprinted to her, gathered her in my arms, and ran as fast as my legs would take us. I stopped a mile away, set Camille on her feet, but didn’t back away from her. As I stood looking in those milk-chocolate eyes, I felt my world starting to unravel. I tried to tell myself that I would have done the same thing for any woman about to be attacked by a Centaur.

  Seconds later, Brent arrived and reminded me of Bianca waiting at the reception. I knew I had screwed up; there would be repercussions. I had touched a Centauride, twice, in front of my fiancé. Without another word, I ran back the way I had come, trying to think of a plausible excuse for my actions. Any other Centauride in the world would have threatened our engagement, or at the very least chastised me, but Bianca seemed both thrilled and approving of my stepping in to help Camille.

  Yesterday it had been easier to hide my interest in Camille where there were so many others. But today, on the boat, with Bianca, Camille, and Brent, it would be impossible to conceal. I needed to find a reason not to go, to keep away from Camille, to keep from losing Bianca.

  I heard the doorbell ring and knew I was out of time. I’d just let Brent know something had come up. I eased my front door open, fully prepared to tell Brent I couldn’t go when I looked down into those same captivating, milk-chocolate eyes.

  She wore a wide smile, “Hi, Drake. Brent’s on the phone, so I thought I’d let you know we’re here. I’m so glad you’re going with us today.”

  My heart leapt trying to escape from my chest, and all excuses I’d found to stay at my apartment evaporated. She stood there in a swimsuit covered by a see-through wrap that left nothing to the imagination. She seemed oblivious to the way she looked, standing an arm’s length away. In that moment I didn’t care about my bloodline, my engagement to Bianca, my parents, or anything I valued as a Centaur – I was filled with blind lust. My arms ached to pull her to me. I froze, unwilling to say or do anything – I didn’t trust myself.

  Camille waved her hand in front of my face with an enormous smile. “Hello? Are you feeling okay?”

  I could feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead. I was sure my heart had forgotten how to beat. When I hadn’t responded quickly enough for her, she placed her palm on my cheek, and whispered, “Drake, do you need to lie down?”

  Explosions went off in my head, and electric pulses raced through my body. I stepped away from her, nearly tripping over a pair of shoes patiently waiting by the door. I wasn’t at all in control of my motor functions but knew I couldn’t possibly trust myself to be near h
er.

  “You know, I think you guys might need to go without me today.” I could feel my face flushing bright red.

  “Are you sick? Do you need to go to the doctor?”

  “I’m sure it’s nothing. You have fun today.” I closed the door gently while she still stood there. I backed up against the wall and slid to the floor, trying to get a handle on myself. After just a few seconds, I realized I could breathe again, my pulse was slowing, and I squatted there with my back to the wall for support while my body came under control again. What in the hell just happened?

  “Drake, we aren’t leaving you,” Brent’s voice called through the closed door. “I’m giving you to the count of three, and I’m coming in.”

  I shook my head, knowing I could create a decent explanation for my absence to Brent. I opened the door and was fully in control. “Sorry, man, I can’t go today.”

  “Camille said you looked sick. You don’t look sick to me.” Brent furrowed his brows, his instincts telling him there was more going on than what his eyes saw.

  I made an effort to sound normal, “I’m fine. I just have a lot to do today.”

  “Hello-o-o-o, Bianca’s coming. Tell me you don’t want to see her on a deck chair! Grab your shorts; let’s go.”

  I should have punched him for his comment about my fiancé, but she wasn’t the one my eyes were interested in seeing, and I couldn’t bear for him to know that I didn’t trust myself around Camille. “Yeah, I don’t know how her father would feel about us out to sea without an escort.”

  “What are you, dense? Camille and I will be there. You have an escort. Let’s go.”

  “I’ve got a ton of work to do around here today. Maybe next time.”

  Brent knew something was up. He turned his head to the side, considering possibilities. “Drake, is there something you aren’t telling me?”

  “No, I’m just not a Strayer. I can’t go for a sail whenever the mood strikes me.”

  “Look, you know the rules as well as I do. I can’t take your fiancé out on the boat without you. Camille doesn’t have any friends, and Bianca was nice to her last night. Do this for me. None of us want Camille to go back to California. If she and Bianca hit it off, she’ll be less likely to leave. I promise you can hang out in one of the state rooms and do whatever work you need to. Just come along.”

  I wasn’t accustomed to deceit, but when Brent said it was possible Camille might go back to the west coast, I felt my heart lurch again. Even if she were never to be mine, I knew I would go through withdrawals with her so far away. That was all the coaxing I needed. “Give me two minutes.”

  Within an hour we had picked up Bianca, made it to the Yacht Club, and were out on blue water. Brent wasn’t kidding; Camille and Bianca were fast friends. Although Brent and I had never been extremely tight, he was fun to be around, and it was great to hang out with another guy since I’d lost my closest friend following the news of my engagement to his covert girlfriend. The ladies were tanning on the deck while we talked about the upcoming Clemson / Game Cocks seasons.

  “Hey, Drake,” Bianca called, “why don’t you two come and join us?”

  We were on the upper deck, and I waved down my acknowledgement, then said to Brent, “I guess duty calls.”

  “Maybe for you.” Brent said with a smirk.

  “You’re going down there with me.”

  “Who’s going to drive the boat, Dumb Ass.”

  I looked in all directions. We were easily five miles from shore with not another boat of any kind within sight. There was no way I was going down there by myself. “Just anchor it and come on.” Brent cut the engines, dropped anchor, and turned up the music as the waves rocked the boat gently in the breeze.

  The four of us made small talk for about thirty minutes. Then Bianca said, “So Camille, how are you holding up? This is all new for you.”

  Camille answered, “I love it here. I’m a little in awe of everything. A week ago I thought I was all alone in the world. I’m still a little surprised every morning that I wake up to find out I really do have a family, I’m living on the east coast, and . . . the other stuff.”

  “The other stuff, you mean – being a magical, mythical being?” Bianca, Brent and I couldn’t help but laugh, and Camille looked flustered. I felt bad for her. This was a pretty astronomical shock, but she seemed to be taking it all in stride.

  “Yeah, something like that.” Camille readjusted on her deck chair. When she did, she stretched her long tanned legs out, pointed her toes, and rested her head on her palms, soaking up every bit of the sun’s rays. In my mind I started fantasizing all sorts of things that were grossly inappropriate, and forced myself to look adoringly at Bianca. Although Bianca was absolutely beautiful with her pale blue eyes and blonde hair—my eyes continued to wander to Camille. I was ashamed of myself. I was acting like a hormone-filled teenager – not the way an engaged Centaur should behave.

  “Hey, Brent,” Bianca asked, “Do you have any video games on this thing?”

  “There’s an Xbox Kinect in one of the staterooms.”

  “Oh, I love those. I need to get out of the sun for a little while. Could we go play?”

  Brent looked at me as if it were my responsibility to object. I agreed. “We should all go.”

  “Don’t be silly! You stay up here and keep Camille company. She’s got the complexion of a Mayan Goddess. It’s good for her to keep working on her tan – she’s still got a man to find.”

  Brent stammered, “Bianca, I don’t think it’s such a great idea for us to be alone in a stateroom.”

  “Oh, do you have feelings for me, Brent?” she asked sarcastically.

  “No! I mean . . . it wouldn’t be appropriate. I mean, I don’t think Drake would. . .” Brent was stammering and looked like he needed a life preserver.

  Bianca’s angelic voice asked, “Drake, you don’t mind if Brent and I play the Xbox for a little while, do you?”

  “Uh, no, that’s okay with me.” I should have objected. I should have insisted we all go below deck together, but I didn’t.

  She squealed and leapt from her deck chair, “Great! Okay, here, keep Camille company,” she motioned for me to take the seat she had just vacated. Before I even had a chance to protest, she was through the cabin door with Brent reluctantly following her down the stairs.

  I was so nervous I thought I was going to get sea sick. I couldn’t think of anything clever to say, and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of Camille. She must have sensed my vibes because she didn’t seem comfortable making eye contact with me either. I knew I needed to say something before she realized how I ached for her.

  “So, do you miss California?”

  “I do, but not as bad as I thought I would. Gretchen and Will are pretty amazing. It’s a little like every day’s a vacation.”

  “I know it isn’t any of my business, but are you a full-blooded Centaur?” I knew from what Bianca had told me that she was, but I had to keep myself distracted. It was possible for a Centaur and human to marry and have a family, but those children were shunned from our community. Will would have never had Camille at Bruce’s wedding if she weren’t pureblood.

  “Yeah,” she answered with a chuckle, “but I think I’m a defective one.”

  “Defective?”

  “I’m told I’m supposed to be able to communicate with spirits. I can see my mom sometimes, but I can’t hear her. I’m supposed to be able to see the future, but I can’t even tell if that cloud over there is going to produce rain. I definitely can’t read minds either. Too bad I didn’t come with a receipt; Will might want to return me.”

  “I doubt that. I think all that just takes practice.”

  “I hope so.”

  “It’s all still new. Bianca told me you only found out about everything a week ago.”

  “Not even a week ago. I called Will Tuesday night and was on a plane a few hours later.”

  Her eyes were so kind and full of life. I envied her for not
having grown up like the rest of us. From the time I was a toddler, I knew what I was, knew that I had to hide my strength and speed from humans, deny who I was. I longed to touch her skin, feel the warmth of her flesh; I shook off my irrational desires and tried to stay on subject. “But you didn’t know you were a Centaur?”

  “Uh, no. I thought I’d found my long lost father. I wasn’t expecting any of this.”

  “Why didn’t your mom tell you, I mean, before. . .” I stopped in mid-sentence when I saw Camille was still sensitive about her mother’s death. Her eyes clouded right there in front of me, and she pursed her lips together. I’d struck a bad chord I didn’t mean to and wanted to comfort her. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. I’m not always such a head case. I just miss her.” Camille was in so much pain. I tried to reason that if I only had a single parent and lost her, then was tossed into all the complexities of our society, I didn’t think I would handle it as well as she was handling it.

  In a happier voice, Camille said, “Let me try to read your mind.”

  “Uh, no. That’s okay. I keep mine blocked all the time.” Panic swept me. I was able to keep my mind blocked, but I worried about my defenses if I got too close to her. I couldn’t let her know how she’d affected me, or how much I wanted her.

  Camille laughed, “Even better, so I can practice without worry of seeing some gross guy stuff.”

  I froze, “Uh, Camille, I don’t think that’s such a great idea.” She ignored me and looked into my eyes; mine refused to look away. I blocked my thoughts with more force than I’d ever used in my life.

  She looked a little frustrated with herself, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Camille confessed, “Huh, nothing. Let me try this.” She swung her legs over the side of the deck chair so we were seated facing each other. Camille put her hands on either side of my temples; our lips were mere inches apart. I heard the splashing of the waves, a seagull echoing a warning overhead, and breeze whipping the flag at the ship’s stern. I continued blocking my thoughts, refusing to let my wall crumble.

  Camille repositioned her hands from my temples, sliding them down, cradling my face in her palms. Her gentle touch threw me off guard. In that moment I didn’t care if she read every thought in my head. My mind’s wall disintegrated in front of both of us. Her eyes widened when she saw a glimpse of my desire for her. I knew I could control my impulses no matter how strong they were to take her in my arms and hold her body to mine. I had just filled her mind with images of the two of us, where I wanted to be and what I wanted to be doing with her: walking in a tall meadow, the sun bearing down; on a snowcapped mountain, the only heat from our intertwined bodies; swimming in the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean near a deserted cove. I savored each of these fantasies and shamelessly shared them with her, each more erotic than the previous.

  What I wasn’t expecting was her reaction to what was going through my mind. I expected her to slap me, to leap away and scream, to call me hundreds of names that I deserved – I never expected that her mouth would close the gap with mine in an instant.

  Her eyes closed, and I felt her soft lips press hard on to mine. My arms did the unthinkable and pulled her seated body off her deck chair and fully onto me. My veins, that last night felt like ice was coursing through them when I saw her, now had molten lava pumping through my body, and I had no recourse but to melt into her. Nothing else in the world mattered beyond the feel of her skin against me, the heat that generated between us, and her mouth on mine. We sat wrapped in each other for a short time before we both came to our senses and released.

  As I felt her body go tense, I sputtered out, “I’m so sorry, Camille, I didn’t mean for. . .I’m so sorry.”

  She shook her head, “I wasn’t expecting . . . the images.” I could see the turmoil on her face. “Drake,” she realized she was still wrapped around me and stood up, distancing herself from me, “we can’t.”

  With a heavy heart, threatening to slowly break in this moment, “I know.” I hung my head, unable to look into her brown eyes.

  “I mean, we can’t let that happen again, ever.”

  “I know.”

  “You’re engaged to Bianca.”

  “I know.”

  “If she ever finds out. . .”

  I looked up, purposely not making contact with her eyes, “She won’t. I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”

  Camille took the towel off of her deck chair, wrapped herself up in it and sat down. I knew I shouldn’t, but I felt a longing for Camille. The towel could have been made of kryptonite, and it wouldn’t have diminished my hunger. She stammered, “I should apologize to you. You told me not to try . . . you know . . . to read your mind.” Her face flushed a deep crimson, and I wondered if she had been reacting to my desire or if she had a yearning of her own.

  I knelt down beside her and rested my head on her knees, “I’m an idiot. I knew I shouldn’t have come.” She didn’t make a sound, and I didn’t have the courage to look at her. “I swear I didn’t plan this.”

  I felt Camille’s fingers running through my hair. Her words were quiet, “I think we should steer clear of each other.”

  “Yeah,” I wrapped my arms around her shins, still not able to let go, “I promise, Camille, I’ll never do something like that again. I’ll take it to the grave.”

  “Is Bianca going to, you know – know?”

  “Only if you think about it. Do you know how to block your thoughts?” She shook her head that she didn’t. Dammit! No matter how strongly I felt for Camille -I couldn’t risk my family’s bloodline. Camille looked horrified; hopefully her fear of being exposed would keep us both safe. Being this close to her was wrong; I had to let her go. I forced a smile, hoping she couldn’t see through it to the emptiness I felt as I moved away from her. I said, “Just don’t think about the kiss. If your mind starts to wander, think about a movie or something.”

  “Okay—think about something else, got it. Gretchen told me only the women Centaurs could read thoughts. You can’t read my mind, right?”

  I couldn’t help but smirk at her, “Technically, you should only be able to read the thoughts I’m not protecting. You caught me a little off guard when you touched me.”

  “Obviously,” she answered.

  I couldn’t help but laugh at her. I was mortified with my actions, and I knew she shared the same guilt. I could see it. I decided to change the subject before we had any kind of relapse, “I know this is all new to you. Did you find someone you liked last night?” She gave me the strangest look, and I felt the heat rising up again within me. “I mean at Bruce’s wedding, you met a bunch of Centaur men. Any of them contenders? You seemed to have hit it off with Gus.”

  “Ha, that’s the one good thing I have to look forward to. I don’t have to choose anyone for five years.”

  Her statement surprised me, and I looked up at her, “What do you mean?”

  “It’s a really long story, but I’m not going to choose anyone until I’m twenty-seven.”

  “Your father’s okay with that?”

  “Sure, why wouldn’t he be?”

  “I’ve just never heard of a Centauride waiting so long.”

  “Good things come to those who wait.”

  I nodded. I was a lucky man to be chosen by Bianca. I’d find a way to keep Camille out of my thoughts, too. I took Camille’s hand, telling myself to savor the few more seconds I had with her before this fantasy was over and my reality kicked back in. “Let’s go find Brent and Bianca.”

  As we walked toward the doorway to go to the lower deck, a large wave rocked the boat hard and Camille fell into me. Steadying her, my arms found her one more time. When I didn’t let go, I thought she’d chastise me, but she pulled me into the wall just to the left of the double doors, so no one could see us through the glass. I didn’t release her, I couldn’t. I could feel my hands shaking. She belonged in them.

  Her eyes were wide, her voice accusatory, “Never aga
in, right?”

  I couldn’t deny the lust I felt for her. My hands refused to release her. My body leaned into hers as I whispered, “Not after this one.” This time, it was me who closed the distance between us. I knew it was wrong. I knew if we were caught, we’d be screwed, and the shame we’d bring on our families would be unbearable, but I lost myself in Camille anyway. All the things I knew I should care about didn’t matter when she was in my arms. I told myself this would absolutely be the last time my arms were able to hold her, and I wanted to drink her in, to consume her, to cherish this memory for the rest of eternity. I didn’t hold back. In that moment, I shared every ravenous thought of her. When my eyes opened, I looked down into hers. I could see how she felt. She was torn exactly the same way I was. Our time was over. I confessed, “We always want what is exactly out of our reach.”

  I let her go and walked through the double doors. I found Brent and Bianca playing Xbox just as they had intended. It was an adventure game where they were jumping, ducking, leaning and—a bi-product of all the activity – laughing. The lightheartedness in the state room was a far cry from the heartbreak up on the deck. Camille never did come in to watch the video games. I was thankful for the separation. I knew it would take some effort before I could be in the same room with her and not have an overwhelming urge to hold her.

  Chapter 17

  Camille Benning – Charleston, SC – Sunday Afternoon