The link won’t lie to me. I nodded in appreciation.
Mei Wah opened the living room door and led me to Tony.
He sat in the wingchair looking sharp in a pair of black linen pants and a black sweater with a zipper neck. For easy access? His jewelry appeared to be platinum.
Mei Wah excused himself, and Tony stood.
”Is black all you wear?” I joked.
”It fits my mood most times.” He gestured to me. “You do that outfit more justice than the model did.”
I smiled. “Thanks. The entire wardrobe that you bought for me was a bit of a surprise.”
He took my hand and kissed the back of my fingers. I felt a surge of electricity coursing through me. Did this arrangement make us a couple? Well, I didn’t sign on for that. I would need more time before I went that route. I slipped my hand from his, and instead of sitting in the wingchair, I sat on the couch furthest from him.
I was more than a Third generation Vampire. I could handle a crucifix. I could say holy words. Tony and I weren’t the same. I wasn’t ready to confess that to him nor was I ready to jump head-over-heels into a romance. I wanted to play it close.
”So what is this about teaching me to deal with my hunger?” I asked.
He grinned. ”You will need to find a willing human donor.”
“Now?”
“The sooner the better. You seem to need blood at least every other day. You’ll need to start the selection process because it sometimes takes time to find the right people.”
I stood and paced. I so didn’t want to do this. Once the hunger was gone the idea of sucking on people’s necks lost its appeal. And besides, it was sexual for me. I mean, if I couldn’t go out and suck Brad Pitt’s neck or Morris Chestnut’s neck, it was all no better than a one night stand. Hell, satisfying a bloodlust was turning out to be no different than satisfying sexual lust. I don’t go out on the street looking for just anybody to scratch that itch with. How could I be expected to search for people for the purpose of sucking their blood?
”Kim.”
I looked over at him, putting aside my thoughts.
”Last night ...”
”Yes?”
He looked at me closely. ”You spoke a holy word. I know that you were gripped with the bloodlust and didn’t know what you were doing, but it almost didn’t seem to hurt you to say it.”
My mind worked quickly. “I didn’t look like I was in pain? Tony, I don’t know what hurt worse, saying ... the name or the hunger.”
He nodded. “We all do it in the beginning. Once. There is a belief among the Neratomay that Thirds cannot be trusted, and not just because they have no instinct. Some believe that certain Thirds can retain their human abilities. Meaning that if they are not restricted by the same abilities that Masters and Seconds are, then these special Thirds could be even more powerful than other Vampires.”
My head began to swim. “And what’s so bad about that?”
”Politics, baby, purely politics. Now ...” He stood and offered me his hand. “Shall we?”
”Where are we going?” I asked while placing my hand into his.
“I’m taking you out for dinner. ”He led me out of the house. This time there was a Jag waiting in the driveway. It was cream and chromed out. Very nice.
”Tony? How many cars do you have?” And how much money? And where/who did it come from?
He smirked.
Mei Wah opened the door for us and we drove--to all places—Club Midnight!
Instead of letting us off in front, Mei Wah let us out in the back of the club. There was a security guard waiting to greet us. I felt like a rock star! Tony led us up to VIP, and we were surrounded by local celebrities such as ballplayers and even a city councilman. I saw my favorite newscaster. I know Tony wasn’t going to let me choose him as a willing donor. He was too close to the public eye!
Many who saw me seemed to take a double-take. I had to ask Tony what was up. I mean, I think I’m cute, but I’m not worthy of all the attention.
Tony leaned in to me to whisper, “You’ve fed last night and the effects are still present. You haven’t learned how to mask it yet. Your eyes are golden rimmed.” He reached into his coat pocket and handed me a pair of black sunglasses.
Once I donned them, I felt a little more comfortable schmoozing.
Tony had said that my willing donor would also be my benefactor—sugar daddy, whatever you wanted to call it. I was still unsure of why someone would willingly give up his or her blood and money.
When we had a private moment I asked him.
”Humans will spend their last dime searching for the next high,” Tony said. “Add the fountain of youth to that and you have the best product money can buy.”
Kent had seemed to enjoy it. And Tony had gotten a powerful erection in a matter of seconds. I shivered, remembering him pressed against my body.
But first things first. It was time for work.
“Jackson Montague is an ex-ballplayer,” Tony whispered. “It might not be a bad idea to have him as a willing donor.”
”But isn’t he married?”
”So?”
”Well, I don’t want to take money from his wife and children.”
”Bring the wife in, too.”
”Ugh. That sounds kinda ménage-a-trois.”
Tony threw his head back and laughed. “Kim, I’m not telling you to go out and become the man’s mistress.”
”No,” I said, “just his drug dealer.”
”Baby, the drug you’re pushing is definitely not bad. He will love it.”
I looked at him. “Tell me about your donors.”
He leaned back. “Mei Wah is a donor, but I only use enough of his blood to keep him healthy. My real donors are Barb and Nancy. They’re two sisters who live together. Their father left them a large estate, and they help finance many of my business ventures.”
”You’re a businessman, Tony?”
”Yes. I’m a silent partner in several business ventures across the country, including this club. That’s how I keep myself in Jags and Benz’s.” He winked at me. “Then there’s Raymond, who is a college professor. Sophie and Bob are my accountants, and they also happen to be married. The last and newest member of my little donor family is Gigi. Her husband divorced her and ran off with his secretary. She made out like a bandit in divorce court. Since knowing me, she has only gotten better, and he has been trying his damndest to reconcile.”
”And how do you feel about Gigi reconciling with her husband?”
He shrugged. “If that happens, I’ll ask her if she wants me to bring him in. But knowing Gigi, she’s going to stay single and play the field.”
I flashed him a hot look. “Well, instead of buying me a new wardrobe, why don’t you just woo Gigi and make her your ... partner or mate or whatever you called it?”
He laughed.
I could have kicked him right in the face!
“Baby, Gigi is sixty-two years old. When I said she was new to my family, I meant Vampire new. I’ve known her eight years. I’ve been with others for more than fifty years.”
I chuckled. “So, you don’t have a physical relationship with your donors?”
Tony looked amused. “Two of them are men. Raymond is close to three hundred pounds. I’ve been trying to convince him to lose weight, but he knows that he’s going to live a long life because of me so he eats, drinks, and smokes to excess.” He sighed. “I choose my donors a bit older to avoid personal ‘entanglements.’ No, baby. I don’t need a young human hero-worshipping me and begging me to turn them so that I can be stuck with them forever. I don’t have a sexual relationship with any of my regulars ... although they would if I would.” He looked away.
”So, what are you not telling me?”
He ran his tongue over his lips. “Even though I have regular donors, it doesn’t mean that I don’t take blood from others. When someone appeals to me, then it’s sexual. Your donors will be with you for many, m
any years. I find it best to keep sex out of it.”
”Oh.”
“Our bite gives pleasure,” he whispered. “I’m used to taking, but it’s been a long time since someone’s fed from me. I almost forgot how much pleasure it brings.” I looked away, but Tony reached out and gripped my chin and turned me back to face him. ”I’m beginning to sense that you have a lot on your mind about last night ... and about me.”
” I am a little confused.”
”There’s a lot coming at you at once. I understand this. Just know that I’m going to take care of you until you no longer need me or want me to. And if you think you would want me for more than that—then know that I already want you.”
I could see myself leaping into his arms and telling him to carry me home, make love to me, and take care of me so that I could stop being scared. I wanted to be able to just accept all of this, but I couldn’t. There was something different about me, and I wasn’t accepting any of this until I understood what it was.
I only nodded, and that seemed to satisfy him—for now.
~***~
Tony schooled me on my approach. There were two ways to enter a human—visually and with a bite. I knew I had control of Kent before I’d even bitten him. All I’d have to do is to look into my donor’s eyes, and he would be under my influence.
I overruled the ex-ballplayer because of the guilt factor. The Council member Tony suggested didn’t appeal to me because of his age. I couldn’t think about putting my lips on his wrinkled neck. There was a female businesswoman there I almost chose, but I still wasn’t convinced that it wouldn’t be about sex, and I didn’t need that extra issue to deal with. I decided on a man in a nice suit who appeared to be alone.
He might have been in his mid-thirties—if that. He was fit, tanned, and good- looking with semi-messy blonde hair that he probably paid a stylist a pretty penny to create. Judging by the suit, I could tell that he was pulling in the big money.
”Okay. Here it goes.” Before I could rise Tony stopped me with a hand on my arm.
”You need to do this alone. Take Mei Wah and the car. He’ll make sure nothing happens to you. Just remember two things. Don’t take too much blood, and he must be able to make the choice to be yours of his own free will. If it’s against his beliefs, then he will lose his mind. Do you know what I mean?”
I nodded though I didn’t understand, but I would still do what he asked. I approached the man. He was sipping bourbon on the rocks. I glanced behind me, but Tony was already gone. I rubbed my hands down my legs and tried to convince myself that this was not the same as being a pusher.
I took off my glasses and sat next to him. “Hello.”
He smiled and nodded at me. Then he took a double-take. I willed him to speak freely and openly with me.
”What’s your name?” I asked.
He offered me his hand. “Paul. Paul Kininsky. And you are?”
”Kim.” I gave him my hand. “Are you here alone, Paul?”
”Yeah. I ... I’ve been trying to meet someone nice.” He blinked rapidly but then looked into my eyes and smiled.
”Really? You don’t have a wife or girlfriend?”
”A girlfriend. Amanda. But she doesn’t like this kind of music.” Paul blinked again. “I can’t believe I told you I had a girlfriend.”
I willed him to be comfortable and honest, and he smiled again. “Do you have any children?”
”No. I don’t want ... well ... maybe one day.”
”Do you love Amanda?”
Paul frowned.
I was about to will him to answer when he did it on his own.
”I do ... but. I don’t think I’m in love with her. Amanda’s a nice girl, don’t get me wrong. But she wants a home in the Hamptons and to vacation in Paris. I’m just a downhome boy. I mean, even this hairstyle is Amanda. Kim, I’m cool in just a baseball cap and jeans. Sometimes I just think she just wants me for the money. I’m young, I have a nice job.” He shrugged. “But I just don’t care about a summer home or French vacations..”
I decided then and there that I would choose Paul. And I understood something—I was willing Paul to talk, but I wasn’t controlling what Paul thought or felt. He was still Paul.
”Paul, would you like to go someplace private and talk?” I asked.
”Talk? We could get a hotel room and fu—”
”Paul,” I interrupted. “I have a proposition for you, and you might like it as much as fucking. Would you like to go somewhere to talk about it?”
He nodded with his mouth opened.
I looked for Mei Wah after leaving the club and saw him parked on the side of the building. I gestured that I was going to ride with Paul, and Mei Wah flashed his lights in acknowledgement.
I wouldn’t let Paul get a hotel for this conversation, and he didn’t want to go park somewhere, so we ended up at his place.
Pre-Vampire Kim wasn’t what you would call wealthy, but I wasn’t dirt poor either. I kinda saw myself as fair to middling. But after seeing how Tony and now Paul lived, I realized that I hadn’t been living anywhere close to large.
Paul had a loft apartment in an urban brick building in the heart of the city. He led me up a flight of concrete stairs and into the entranceway.
”Amanda’s not home, is she?” I asked.
”No. Amanda has her own place.”
Good.
We got into a rickety elevator, and he used a key to send the elevator to the top floor. The doors opened it was directly into the living space, but I couldn’t force myself out of the elevator.
Paul looked at me. “Come in,” he said.
It was just what I needed him to do. I was no longer paralyzed so I followed him inside. Being paralyzed creeped me out. I didn’t like it at all.
We walked into a large room that was breathtaking--but again with the floor to ceiling windows. Paul’s style was a hodgepodge of many different styles. He had vintage sports posters on his brick walls and a rickety bookshelf shoved to bursting with everything from trophies to books and magazines. He had a chromed-out desk with a state-of-the-art computer system and fax machine. An entertainment center took up the far wall. It made me think of something that NASA would have invented.
Paul’s home made me want to kick off my shoes and get comfortable. He had an oversized linen sofa that didn’t match the reclining chair next to it—and I loved it!
”Would you like something to drink?” He loosened his tie and tossed his jacket over the reclining chair.
”No. Maybe later.” If you go along with the program ...
He turned on the component system, and I heard the local retro radio channel.
”You have a nice home.”
”Thank you.”
I had been wondering how to approach the subject on the ride over. I hadn’t wanted to talk about it while we rode, so I asked him to tell me about himself. He told me that he was an only child. His parents were retired in Vegas. He was an investment banker who worked from home most days.
I decided to come right out and tell him. “Paul. I want to do something right now ... and if you like it, I want to know if you’d like to do it on a regular basis.”
”Yeah, I’ll do it! Yeah, I’d do it on a regular basis.”
”You don’t even know what it is yet.”
He stared at me wide-eyed. Was I making him say yes even before I had asked him? Tony had warned against that. This had to be his choice.
”You’re pretty,” Paul said. “Your eyes.”
”Shush!” I was getting annoyed but felt bad about being sharp with him. “Just be quiet. If you like what I do, you can tell me afterward. And Paul, keep your hands to yourself.”
I put my hand on Paul’s shoulders. He looked at me expectantly. I turned his head gently away. He smelled like soap, shampoo, and some nice cologne. I put my lips on his neck. My teeth hadn’t distended. I could hear Paul catch his breath in his chest.
I thought about it and willed my teeth t
o spring from my gums, but apparently wanting them to drop wasn’t the trigger to make it happen. I wasn’t hungry. I wasn’t in fear for my life. Here Paul was, all ready to be bitten, and I couldn’t perform.
Tony had brought my teeth out, but that was with pain. He had also made my teeth retract, and that was with a kiss.
I concentrated on Paul, on the food. Maybe that would do it. Even with how attractive Paul was, I wasn’t ready to start kissing strange men.
I caught the scent of his blood beneath his skin. It made my stomach twist. My mouth began to water, and I could feel the teeth lower. I nuzzled the food. It was beginning to smell delicious.
I could feel Paul transfer his weight from one foot to the next. I let my tongue glide along his salty skin and groaned deep down. Paul echoed the sound. I nibbled, and his hands sprung up but fell back down to his side.
I broke the skin at his neck, but Paul didn’t draw away from me. I buried my teeth in to the quickening pulse at his throat, and the blood gushed into my mouth causing me to shudder in pleasure. Paul’s hands stroked down between us, and I smacked them away. But I could understand his desire. I felt myself tingling down low. I pulled back. It hadn’t been a complete feeding but enough to make Paul understand.
His head was lolled back and his eyes were closed in ecstasy.
”Paul,” I purred. “Did you like that?”
”Oh. Yes.” He opened his eyes. “It’s not over is it?”
”For now.”
“But you said that we could do it again.”
”If you want.”
“God, yes.” I waited to feel a zap of pain. Nothing happened.
”Paul. You mustn’t say that word around my kind. Do you know why?”
”No. Why?”
“Because I’m a Vampire.”
“Oh. Kim?” He frowned at me. “I don’t believe in Vampires.”
”I can’t make you believe, but I know I am one. Is that good enough for you?”
He nodded. “When can I see you again?”
I thought about it. “Maybe tomorrow night. But Paul ... what I do for you isn’t free.”