Dreamwalker By Jassz : Chapter 1: The Bond (Caution: Sexually Explicit Content)

DREAMWALKER

Chapter 1: THE BOND

BY Juanita “JASSZ” Storms

            I was tired, but the view from my window drew me. I couldn’t see much, the street below, street lamps guttering, and a few cars out at this time of night. The building across from me was an older building, some of the windows were lit from other late-nighters. But I didn’t know if it was an apartment or office building. I was holding a warm cup of tea and leaning on the frame of the window, and my mind began wondering. Earlier that day I had been into the office, I work as a simple receptionist. Nothing too special, I answer the phone, file some papers, sit and read, drink a few pots of tea. I worked for a small law firm, but I knew nothing about law. I had sort of lost track of time at some point, and got into a bit of trouble. I like to daydream about a better life, such as fancy parties and nice dresses, and a hot guy. A woman had come in and had apparently asked me a question about 5 times, before I heard her. As I stood looking out the window, I remembered the daydream.

            I was dressed in a satin dress, light blue, almost the color of my eyes, my long black hair was piled atop my head, ringlets bouncing and framing my face. My shoes were a simple classic Maryjane style and I had a small clutch purse, both black. I was walking into a building, the lights were bright and at first I really couldn’t make anything out. As my eyes cleared it appeared to be a grand place, the ceiling was high above me, maybe 5 or 6 stories up. There were a series of steps before me, but every dozen or so it would plateau out and there was seating and people. The people were dressed to the nines, quite like I was, men in tuxedos and women in all sorts of finery. Part of me knew this wasn’t my scene, I didn’t belong amongst these people, but another part of me felt wonderful, and lucky.

I had no idea why I was here, or what I was attending, but judging by the flow of the crowd, we were entering a large theater. Was I alone at an event like this, how could that possibly be? I could never have afforded something as grand as this, and no one else was alone. I stopped and stepped aside, and began to scan the crowd. I was searching, for what I wasn’t sure, maybe a face I might recognize or perhaps just something that might catch my eye. I felt alone then, so alone in a vast sea of people, it was a little overwhelming. I closed my eyes for a minute to get my bearings and when I opened them I was standing in my efficiency apartment, staring out at the street below me.

I sighed, and set my cold cup of tea on the counter and walked across the area that served as a living room, and onto my couch that turned into a bed. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to find myself at an event like that, but more wonderful perhaps, would be if I had opened my eyes and found a man, gorgeous and mine.

The next morning was similar to every morning for me. I woke, made my bed back into a couch, showered, dressed and walked to the bus stop. I rode the bus, trying not to stare at any one person, and trying to stay out of other people’s way, and then got into the elevator and rode to the sixth floor and to my desk. Already there were a stack of files and folders to be put away and the phone was already ringing. It wasn’t even 8AM yet. I dealt with the humdrum of work and decided I might walk to the mall a few blocks over for lunch, and window shop.

The mall was crowded, which was usual, even for a Thursday. I like to watch people, more than window shop. I bought a hotdog from a vendor and walked around for a while. I was looking in a window of a shop selling outfits you might wear to a fancy club when I was bumped from behind. My first thought was to check my purse and pockets; you never know who might try to pick pocket someone here. Nothing was missing, but there was a business card in my left front pocket. I looked at it, and at first I saw nothing. It was blank. Why would someone go to the trouble to put a blank business card into my pocket?

I lifted it up to the light and for a second, I thought I saw something, but it faded quickly. My curiosity peaked at this, and I walked outside the mall and held the card up to the sunlight. There was a shimmer, like nothing I had ever seen before, something right out of a fantasy book, and there on the card was a name and number. Mr. Zacharia Foldwere 1-555-512-0201. I must have come to my senses then, because suddenly it occurred to me that I should be looking around for the suspicious person who dropped the card in the first place. I back tracked a little and came up empty. I was out of time and had to return to work. But for the rest of the day, I was preoccupied and withdrawn.

I couldn’t wait to get home. I grabbed my laptop and did a phone number reversal look up and discovered it was a local number, but there was no listing for a Zacharia Foldwere anywhere. Every search I did came up empty. I wondered several times if I should just call the number, or maybe I should throw the card away, or maybe I should go back to the mall and stand around the area I had been at and hope to catch a glimpse of….what? What would I find or hope to find, I was nowhere closer to an answer. I gave up finally and crawled onto my couch, forgetting to roll it out into bed form. I dreamt a strange dream that night…

My eyes were closed, and I knew that someone was standing in front of me. I wondered if this was my dream from earlier…but how could that be, I didn’t know where I was, and I was obviously awake to be thinking these thoughts. I opened my eyes and gasped…before me was a man, gorgeous, but was he mine? He was smiling and he held his arm out to me as if I should take it and walk with him. His eyes were a cool gray color, almost washed out and mysterious, he had a strong nose and a tight high jaw. His hair was dark, but had a light graying on the sides, sort of old fashioned in a way. He was clean shaven and dressed in a dark blue tuxedo, which went well against my own light blue gown. I was having deja vue now, but it was what I had dreamt about, and I wanted to see this to the end.

I took his arm and he took me into the theatre, and there was no one else there. The last time I had been in this scene there had been a crowd of people, and now that I thought about it, there hadn’t been anyone else out in the lobby either. He led me to a seat that wasn’t too near but neither too far from the stage and we sat. I don’t remember much about the ballet, I was too intrigued with watching him as he watched the production. When the performers would do something that prompted a smile, his eyes would crinkle as he smiled. And there was a glint of humor in his eyes as his mouth twitched up and he laughed. When it got sad, I would watch his mouth frown a little and his eyes get deep and his shoulders droop a little, and I wanted to sigh at the emotion he seemed unafraid to show. I might have fallen in love with him then, but that wasn’t the thoughts in my head at the time.

I don’t how many times I wanted to talk to him, ask him who he was, and beg him to just look at me. Oh how I wanted him to turn his head, look at me with those eyes and tell me his name. I was distracted once by the music and looked away, when I brought my attention back to him…he was gone. I sat there, dumbfounded and confused. How did I not see him get up, and how did he leave the whole auditorium without me being able to see him? Where did he go? I was frightened a little then too. I got up and tiptoed out, I looked everywhere I could, the other aisles, the lobby, many other nooks and crannies I could find and I came up empty. This was becoming a habit…searching and coming up empty. I put my hands over my eyes and felt the tears begin, but when I opened my eyes, I was on my couch, staring up at my ceiling. My face was wet from the tears I had had and my brain was suddenly overwhelmed with the feelings of confusion and fear.

Friday morning wasn’t a morning I wanted to face and drug myself through the day. I stayed away from the mall, and ate a small salad from the small diner in the building. I must have brought that card out a million times, wondering if there was a connection, and then reminding myself that my dream was nothing but a dream, a fantasy and that there was no way it could be connected to a strange card that just randomly appeared in my pocket. I rushed through the day in fear that I might run into him, and yet looking around every corner, and through every window, hoping I would. I went right home and put the card on the counter…I was uncertain and afraid. I had no idea why I was so consumed over a dream, but it felt so real, and I could remember him in such detail, I could even remember the smell of him. He had a light musty smell, as if the suit he has worn hadn’t been worn in a longtime, with a hint of soap and shampoo under as if he had showered minutes before meeting me.

I wasn’t really looking forward to going to sleep. What if I dreamt of him again, what if he took me to that ballet again, and then left me again, wondering and crying, thinking I had done something wrong. Part of me wanted to close my eyes and find him, and ask him all my questions, but the rejection was too close and the fear too palpable. I finally decided to call the number, but it took me nearly a dozen tries before I actually let it ring long enough for someone to answer. I sat there, holding my breath as it rang, once, twice, thrice…then a voice.

“Mr. Foldwere’s office.” He had a thick European accent, and he pronounced the name Folt-Where. He paused for a moment and then repeated himself. It jolted me.

“Um, my name is, um, is…Rebecca, I got a card with this, um number? I mean, yes, I got the card.” Oh how stupid could I sound. I waited wondering if he would hang up on me for sounding like such an idiot.

“Ah, yes, the girl with the ice blue eyes I believe?” his voice sounded older, older than I thought it should, maybe this wasn’t him, maybe this was his butler, or servant…or I was daydreaming that there could really be a connection…but I did have icy blue eyes.

“Um, yes. I don’t know why I got the card, but I figured I should find out. Can I help you with something?” I sounded better, a little more myself as I got more comfortable talking to a strange man over the phone from a number on a card I had no idea why I had in the first place. I almost hung up right then, what if he was some sort of ax murderer, or psycho who wanted to lure me away and kill me.

“Well, Miss Rebecca, my Lord would like to take you to dinner, at your leisure of course. Would tonight at 8pm be a good time for you? Please dress casually; he doesn’t want to frighten you. Mr. Foldwere is a bit eccentric, but he has a good heart.” I almost hung up again. What??? He doesn’t want to frighten me; like that comment alone wouldn’t help with the racing of my heartbeat as it already was. And eccentric? That made him sound old, or at the very least, strange. I was left a little dumb at that point and didn’t respond. “Miss….are you still there?” Oh…I laughed a little nervously out loud, and then realized he had to have heard me, I felt myself blush, what a fool I seemed to be making of myself.

“Um, yes…” why was I saying so many um’s, what was I, 5? “Yes, I mean yes, 8 is fine, and um where should I meet him?” And what do you consider casual, and how will I know him from all the other strange people there, and should I bring money, are we sharing the bill, and do I need to call my sister to tell her that I’m meeting a guy on a blind date and if she doesn’t hear from me in 3 hours to call the police and what do you mean by he doesn’t want to frighten me?

“A car shall be sent by your apartment at 8 to pick you up. It will take you to Mr. Foldwere and he will meet you at the door. You will know him when you see him. Have a nice evening Miss.” And he hung up. If that wasn’t more cryptic and unnerving I didn’t know what was. I looked at the clock, it was almost 630PM already. I had time for a shower, and what was I going to wear…casual my ass!

Nothing in my closet is anything like that lovely dress in my dream. I had a couple LBD’s, but those you wore to a club, to go dancing with your girlfriends, not to a blind date with someone who was turning out to be very frightening. I did have some nice slacks, the ones I sometimes wore for work, and nice blouses. I found the nicest that I had. The top was a sort of strawberry red, with a zigzaggy purple pattern. It was very eighties, but it was the nicest without dressing all in black. I decided to call my sister after all, but to try not to scare the crap out of her.

I got her machine. “Sarah, I’m going out on a date…a, ah, sort of blind date. Don’t ask, anyhow, I just wanted someone to know what was up. I promise to fill you in later. Just check on me tomorrow or something. Okay? Thanks, I love you.”

I was the oldest of 3, our brother had died when we were little, and we had become closer because of it. But even though she was my best friend and closest companion, I had never shared my daydreams with her. My last boyfriend had been a guy who had stopped by the office to drop off packages now and then. It ended alright, he wanted to go back to Arkansas to try to fix things with his wife, and I thought he needed to meet a frying pan with his head. It was amicable. I hadn’t really done any dating since then; almost 7 months had gone by. She would probably be dancing by her machine and smiling like a Cheshire cat. She was freer than I was, and she found a lot of things to smile about.

I wore simple flats and had my sweater and small purse and I went down to the doors to look for this prearranged car that should be coming to get me. When I opened the door a very nice, upscale 4 door sedan sat there. A man came out of it and around and opened the back door and even offered me his hand to get in. The interior was leather and smelled a little like him…the man in my dream, musty, with a touch of shampoo. My heart skipped a beat, I was beginning to realize that that dream, wasn’t so far-fetched at being connected to the card that was planted on my person. And I began to understand that cryptic message from the man on the phone, about knowing him when I saw him.

I couldn’t really see anything outside the windows, they were darkly tinted, and I wondered if you could see out of them in the broad daylight. I went to open the window and found there were no controls for it. There was a window between the front of the car to the back and I had to tap on it for the driver to open a small slide in it. I asked if there was a way to open the back windows and he informed me that the windows were un-openable. I felt a little claustrophobic, and muttered under my breath something about vampires and sunlight, the man closed the slide abruptly and I was left in the darkness. Since I couldn’t see out the windows, I had no idea where we might be headed. I tried to count the turns and lost count after I realized it was sort of futile. I could get lost on a spot if I didn’t have eyes to see with.

The car came to a slow gliding stop and I heard the man get out and then he opened the door, it took my eyes a moment to adjust to the light, even though it was just the street lamp light, it was still a bit of a shock after the darkness in the car. I took the hand that was held out to me thinking it was the driver and as I started to say thank you, I stuttered on the 'you' and almost fell back into the car. His hand tightened and he pulled me back up and placed his other hand on my shoulder and smiled. His eyes were that cool grey of the ocean on a foggy night, he was tanned nicely and the crinkles on his eyes peaked as he smiled at me. He smelled of the must with shampoo and his dark hair, greying on the sides was combed back. He wore a dark blue tuxedo, and then he had to hold me up again.

“Hello Rebecca.” His voice was deep, resonating and smooth. It was accented, but I wasn't sure from where. It flowed over my shoulders and down my spine and made my heart flutter and my knees grew weak. He pulled me up out of the car again, and put his arm around my shoulders as he steered me towards what appeared to be a restaurant. I couldn’t stop looking at him, I couldn’t stop comparing his perfection to the man in my dream, and I couldn’t get over the vibration of his voice. He stopped me and smiled the little smile that make his eyes crinkle and my heart stopped for a second. “Are you okay? Was the drive over comfortable?”

“Um, yeah...um, no it was dark, but it’s not now, and it’s okay…you look really familiar.” My voice got kind of quiet at the end of that sentence, like I was avoiding it and getting shy; I turned my eyes down and found I could breathe again. Ah, so the catch was that I just needed to not look at him for the rest of the evening and then I would be fine…sure, don’t look at the gorgeous man from my dreams…right.

His eyes got a little serious and I felt him turn from me a little, that brought me about quickly worrying that he would leave and disappear, like he did in the dream. I didn’t hear him say anything, but I saw the look on his drivers face. He was guilty and knew it, and nodded once and then got into the car and drove away. Well, here I was, alone, with a man I knew nothing about, except that he had some uncanny ability or coincidence to be in my dreams. When he didn’t leave me, and looked back at me, I started to have trouble breathing again.

“It’s alright Rebecca; I can answer your questions, inside. We will eat, and talk and I can finally get to know you.” Then he steered me into the restaurant. I followed his lead and allowed him to remove his arm from my shoulders. He took my jacket and placed it over my seat and then pulled the seat out for me. I was a little bewildered about this; it wasn’t something any guy really did anymore. Then he pushed it in under me as I sat. He whispered something to the waiter and then leaned forward.

“My name is Zacharia, I saw you first at a court hearing for a colleague. I have to confess; I asked about you and have been looking for a reason and a way to meet you. I promise I haven’t been stalking you, but your boss is a friend of mine and so it wasn’t too hard to have him help set me up with you. I assume you are wondering about the dream? I can answer that too, but first I want you to have an open mind, and trust me. Ask me anything, and I will answer you, openly and truthfully.”

Um…well, let’s see, what I should I ask him first, oh I don’t know… like what did his guy on the phone mean by 'didn’t want to frighten me', because he lied, I was pretty frightened. This sort of thing just doesn’t happen in the real world. It’s not the natural way of things. I must have looked a little like a fish for a moment as I started and restarted and then settled for taking a sip of the water that had just been placed in front of me by the waiter. I used the excuse of looking at the menu while I thought of a way to begin.

“I’m not sure how to start…OH MY GODDESS!” I had looked at the menu and realized that the appetizers cost more than the fancy shirt I was wearing. And everything seemed to be written in a foreign language, which shocked me a little more. I looked up at him, bewildered and realized he was smiling at my reaction, I felt myself blush again and I set the menu back onto the table and looking a bit sheepish I tried to continue, “Um, I’m not sure I’m cut out for this, this, whatever this is. I can’t afford these prices, and you, you’re gorgeous and you know about my dreams, because you were in them, obviously, and I’m not sure what or who you think I am, but I don’t think I should stay, I mean, this has to be another dream, this sort of thing doesn’t, you know, really happen….does it?” I looked him in the eyes then, and that cute crinkle at the edge of his eyes tightened and I realized he was trying not to laugh.

I was tempted to get up at that point, it was a little humiliating to have gotten all that out and then have him laugh at me. I wasn’t sure at all what was going on, but I knew I didn’t really want to continue here. But I also really wanted to hear his voice again, and feel my knees go to jelly, and maybe learn something.

“I’m sorry, I’m not really laughing at you, so please don’t get up just yet. It’s just that I sort of expected you to be less frightened. I did ask Michael to tell you that I didn’t want for you to be frightened. Let me order for you, it’s Greek, and I’m paying, so please don’t worry, just enjoy it all. And yes, things like this can happen, but you’re right, they aren’t normal. I did notice that you said ‘Goddess’ and that pleases me a lot. It means that you may have an open enough mind to accept this strange encounter. I’m what some people might call a Dreamwalker.”

I was quivering a little. His voice was like honey with an undertone of growl, and you just knew that if he was to whisper in your ear you might climax on the spot. I was trying to listen to what he was saying, but I was so very distracted. So instead I just nodded, and then cocked my head, “Wait, what? Did you say a Dreamwalker?” I’ve been a practicing Wiccan for nearly a decade. I wasn’t a write your own book, ride your broom and mix potions kind; I was the read a book, light some incense and talk to the trees kind. I knew a few things, but I also believed that many things were possible. It’s a little harder to accept the strange and supernatural though when you’re suddenly faced by the real thing.

“Yes, I did. Do you understand what it means?” The waiter came up and placed a plate of fresh baked bread with some oil and vinegar or soy sauce stuff. I followed his lead by pouring a small line of oil and then a small line of the other and eating it. It was strange, but it didn’t strike me as Greek. I didn’t say anything about it, I just chewed and nodded. Once I swallowed I answered him.

“Yeah a little, I think it means that you can enter another person’s dream and interact with them. Or at the very least make them think you are. Is that how you ended up in my dream….which makes me rethink your not stalking me a bit. I mean, I’ve been having that same dream-ish thing for a while now and I have never had an actually guy show up in there before. Not even a fantasy one.”

I drank more water, I wasn’t sure I liked the bread. I took a moment to look around for the first time, and realized this was a very upscale restaurant. There were maybe a baker’s dozen worth of tables and they were all given a wide berth of space to create the illusion of privacy. The lights were dimmed, but there were electric candles on each table and there seemed to be some other glow adding light that I couldn’t really find. The tables were each covered in a rich brown and red brocade that matched the curtains on the rich stained glass covered windows. The floor was an even grey with an underlying floral pattern in a darker grey and the walls were covered in wallpaper that complemented the table clothes, only in stripes. There was only a scattering of other people, and they were all dressed in very expensive clothes. I blinked as this soaked in.

“I stumbled on your daydream one day. I was in the office with your boss, going over a case. I heard you get reprimanded actually, and wondered if you would be open to a walking. I was ever so pleased when I found you. I wasn’t able to speak to you, sometimes I don’t have as much control as I would like. But you seemed happy to see me, and so I just stayed and let myself feel your emotions. I’m so sorry, that must have been very intrusive, and I really shouldn’t have done that without knowing you first.” His crinkles softened and his lips frowned a little, and I realized they were very full, and I wondered what it must be like to kiss them, and feel…but I had to hear what he was saying.

“Uh, yeah, right you should have introduced yourself to me before that, but it’s okay. I guess. I was kind of happy, I mean, anyways, but um, why did you want to meet me? I’m sure there are other girls out there, more in your league?” I wasn’t sure why I was putting myself down, but I didn’t really feel like I was worthy of this posh place and exquisite attention. I looked at him and saw his eyes smile again then frown again. He didn’t seem to like me saying I wasn’t good enough for him. And I could tell he was formulating a reply. “Not that I mind of course, it’s just that this seems a little extravagant for me. Anyhow, so you’ve met me and…oh, food. I guess we eat now. Um, thanks.” I smiled at the waiter who looked a little mystified to have been thanked. And I placed my attention onto the food. Whatever he ordered it was pretty good. I couldn’t describe it if I wanted to. But I finished the entire plate and lost all track of anything until I looked up to watch him watching me with that crinkly smile. I suddenly forgot what I was doing. I’m pretty sure he thought I was crazy.

He was just looking at me and I wasn’t sure if I liked being in his spotlight, of course I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to stop being there either. He was creating an amazing and strange set of sensations in me, and I couldn’t decide what I really wanted to do. I got a little nervous with his watching and began to fidget and not look at him, and finally ended up just drinking my water again. I think there was wine, but I am not much of a drinker, so it never crossed my mind to drink it.

“Do I make you nervous?” he said in that velvety voice. I nodded. “I don’t want to. The first time I saw you, I admit, it was your body language that caught my attention. You stood tall, and you knew what you were doing. Your eyes were bright and you seemed to be smiling without really smiling. I knew I wanted to meet you, but I too am cautious and shy at times. Although hearing me now you might not think so. However, my over talking might be a clue.” He chuckled…and it was deep in his throat, it vibrated, across the table, into my body and up my spine and if I could have melted, I might have. “If you’re finished, we could take a walk maybe. I don’t want to end the evening so soon. Would that be alright with you?”

All I could do was nod.

We left the restaurant, and he offered me his arm. I took it a little bashfully and we walked. The area we were in seemed residential, and the restaurant was one of those golden holes in the ruff. The houses were those uptown condo’s that seem like skinny apartments side by side. I think you might call them brownstones. There was a park across the street, and I guess he sensed my trepidation, because he chose to stay on the street and not take us into the park, where it might get darker and quieter.

“When I was a boy, this city was barely a village. The river was much bigger and there were many fields around here.” We were walking in uptown Indianapolis, and my brain stopped.

“Wait, when you were a boy? Um, you would have to be hundreds of years….um….” I pulled away from him and stopped walking. I was a little more scared now, and not sure I like the images floating in my head. “Okay, this may have gotten too weird, even for me. Um, I think I want to go home now.” His shoulders slumped and his eyes seemed to get a little darker. I was afraid he was getting angry when he nodded and lifted his arm. The car that had driven me to the restaurant pulled to the curb and the driver got out and opened the door for me.

“Take her home please Adam, and make sure she can see the city lights this time. I’m sorry if I have frightened you Rebecca. I perhaps should have been more cautious with my choice of words. Please, if you feel that you want to see me again, just call the number on my card.” He nodded his head like a nobleman might to a passing friend and then I got into the car and drove away. The windows were no longer so darkly tinted that I couldn’t see anything, and I watched the brownstones fade and the high-rises grow. My mind spiraled and I couldn’t figure things out at all. I was so confused.

When I got to my apartment I put on pajama’s and sat on my couch, I must have sat there for a long time, because I awoke with a start thinking I had heard something. I looked around and realized I wasn’t in my room. The room I was in was about the same size as my efficiency, but this had an older feeling. The floor was a hardwood paneling, with a cream and pink blush rug, there were two chairs of red mahogany with a tapestry of burgundy, cream and green floral covering. There was also a long matching couch, and they were all set before a large fireplace. The rest of the room was mostly empty, except for a scattering of some tall fern like plants and a couple of end tables. The walls were old fashioned panels from a magazine palace and again in those creams and burgundies. As I was looking around, I realized that Zacharia was sitting in the far chair looking at me. He had his hand in his lap and his face was neither stern nor happy, but he didn’t move or say anything.

“I remember you saying something about not always being able to control if you can talk. Is that what is happening now?” He nodded yes. “Did I upset you last night, err, this evening? Are you here to scare me into to seeing you again?” His eyes got big, astonished almost and he came half way out of the chair. He flailed his arms in a manner telling me, no, that wasn’t the case. He shook his head quickly no, and then slower as if to say, he didn’t know how to tell me what he wanted to tell me. “Can I control things in here? Such as helping you to speak? Or conjuring up a note pad and pencil?” I wasn’t sure why I wanted to figure this out, the fear I had felt before, it was as accented but I was almost aching to hear his voice. I willed him to be able to speak, I could see his lips moving, and then I heard it…the rich baritone, rumbling in my stomach and tingling my spine, I had to sit down.

“I wanted to apologize…oh; you’ve willed me my voice. Rebecca, that’s an amazing feat. You must have a very strong power. I am so sorry for frightening you. I’m not sure if you have reasoned it out, but I don’t want to lie to you, I don’t want to frighten you either, but I feel deeply that if you do not know the truth then I will lose any chance of getting to know you. I am Vampyre. But I am not like the stories, and the movies. Well, not entirely. Tell me now, can you try to accept that, and spend time with me? Or should I go, and never bother you again?”

He had stood up at the end of that, and his eyes were pleading, it was a deeper emotion than I had seen in them before. The storm clouds in them darkened and then saddened. I was dumbfounded; this was a fairytale, or a nightmare, which one I couldn’t decide. I stood up and walked over to him, I looked up into his face and I searched for something, I don’t know what, but I didn’t find anger, I didn’t see danger, but I saw something deeper. I reached up and I touched his face. “Somehow, that makes sense.” , was all I could say. Then he kissed me.

It was tentative at first. A brush of lips, and then a little more pressure. His lips were full, and they were cool to the touch, but they were soft, velvety like his voice, and once he put his hand behind my head and pulled me in closer I melted into it. I felt a fire, not the simple, new relationship fire, but something deeper, and closer. Our lips couldn’t seem to bring us close enough to each other, and I suddenly wanted more…I reached up and pulled him in as well. That was when he caught my arms and stepped back, breaking the kiss and flooding me with the cold air between us. The abrupt stop caused me to lose a beat and then I looked at him questioningly.

“No,” he said, his voice a little ragged, and his eyes no longer the deep grey I had come to admire, but tinged with red, “Not here, this is a dream, and what we feel is only phantom. And you have awoken my hunger. I must go, sate this. Please, does this mean you will see me again?” He half turned from me and dropped my arms.

All I could do was nod affirmative and then he vanished. No smoke, no bats, not even a cape for dramatic effect, he just was gone. I closed my eyes and willed myself awake. I was sitting on my couch, and I knew I didn’t have the energy to make the bed, so I curled up under a blanket and thought about that kiss, and what this was turning into. And wondering, what was I thinking?

The sun didn’t wake me as it usually did, but the ringing of my phone did. I finally got up and answered it, “Becca! You had a date! And a blind one at that, OH MY GOD! You have to tell me everything. Meet me at the corner book store; we’ll have mocha’s and gossip. Eee! Okay, in like 5, meaning now!” and she hung up. I took a deep breath, and got dressed and headed down to the street. The book store was almost half way between our 2 apartments. My sister was a photographer and was finishing her studies at the local university. She had a few offers for internship and was deciding which she would take, as two of them would have her leave state. Our folks had both died when we were children, and we were raised by our neighbor who we thought of and called Grama.

Sarah was my opposite in many ways, she had platinum blonde hair, and it was natural, her eyes were a deep brown and she always wore the latest in hip clothing. She drank a chai tea with peppermint, I had a cherry steamer. As I sat, she went into her usual spiel. “Grama sends her love and asks as usual when you plan to stop in for dinner. You don’t go enough, and she’s getting old and misses us. Timothy is still mooning over you and keeps asking if I have passed on the message that he wants to call on you, *giggle* and of course Sheila and I are doing great. You’ll never guess what she did, she told her boss that if I take one of the internships out of state that she wants a transfer so that she can go with me. I couldn’t ask for a better girlfriend. I’m so lucky. So, anyways, tell me about this guy! How did you meet him to set up this blind date, and where did you go?” She’s like a hyperactive Barbie doll sometimes, perfect in many ways, but bouncing as she goes.

“Um, he came to me in a dream? Not really,” a little nervous laugh as I realize there is a whole lot about him I cannot tell her, ever, “He saw me at my work; I guess he’s a lawyer or something, and he asked my boss to hook us up. He took me to a place called Mezeploi. And did Sheila really do that? That’s wonderful.” I tried to steer the conversation back to her, but I knew she wouldn’t fall for it.

As I suspected, she got that look on her face, with one eyebrow cocked and her head tilted a little. A little like a cat who knows you’re not as dumb as you look. “Ya, cool huh? So….Mezeploi? That place requires a club card and at least a 9 digit income. This lawyer, he got a name? Cause Oh My God sis, that’s not a cheap blind date. And look at you; you look torn up about something, Becca, what’s really going on?” What can I say, she knew me. I was like a book to her, one she had read at least a million times over and no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t pass the wool over her eyes.

“His name is Zacharia Foldwere, I don’t know much else, he was a little weird, and I cut the date a little short, but then later he kissed me and, um, I mean, Oh I don’t know what I mean. I think I dreamed he came over and kissed me, because I’m so confused right now. Sarah, he’s amazing, and kind of scary, and I don’t really know what I think. I think it might be too soon since Sam, you know?” I looked at her, and let her see the torment going on, and tried very hard to make her accept that it was just confusing and that I wasn’t really ready for this kind of thing anyways.

When someone knows you as well as Sarah knew me, it’s a lot harder to get them to accept anything that smells like a lie, but it also means that she’s connected and knows when to stop pushing, sometimes. “Honey, it’s been 7 months, let it go. He was an idiot! But I can see you need some time to figure this out. I know what, let’s do tacos at Grama’s and then hit The Spot. Maybe it’ll do good to dance off the stress.” That was her way of dealing with problems and her way of trying to fix mine. And some family time, you know, normal stuff might do me good. Because dating a vampire…or Vampyre, really wasn’t normal. Wait, was I dating him now? Oh, Goddess, what I have I got myself into?

Grama was a short fat Mexican woman. She was kind of old when she took us in. Mom and Dad died on an expedition with their archeology group, and we were staying with Rosita for the weekend. The courts couldn’t find any other family and when Rosita said she would like to keep us, it was just easier than putting us in the system. So she became Grama Rosie, and she raised us to mind our manners, respect our elders and believe in the faith of our heart. It was actually very nice to learn that you didn’t HAVE to be Christian just because you parents were, and that when your sister turns out to be gay, it’s nothing to be ashamed of. I was lucky to be raised like that, because I knew a lot of people who weren’t.

Grama still lived in the left side of an old duplex. It only had 2 rooms, so Sarah and Jason and I all shared a room till I was 13, which was when Jason fell in the ice on the river and drowned. He was only 6, and we had lost our parents only 2 years before that. Grama did the best she could to help us get through that, and the smell of her baking was always something that helped when I was down. When I walked in, I could smell cinnamon rolls, fresh from the oven and I could hear her humming some tune that she used to hum us to sleep with. I don’t know if it has words. Sarah went bounding into the kitchen and I could hear her whispering trying to fill Grama in before I got there. I pushed through the swinging door and looked at her. She opened her arms and I bent down and began to weep.

I don’t think Sarah thought it was bad enough for me to start crying, but her silence told me she was worried now. Grama set the table and told us to wash up, like we were 7 and 10 again. I dried my eyes and sat down. Grama may have taught us to find our inner religion, but she prayed over the food, because it’s what she believed in and we were taught to respect others and give them their space for such things. I listened to her words a little more closely this time.

“Lord, take our emptiness, and fill it with love and hope. May this food represent what you can give us, so that we might be full and healthy, and know only joy. Thank you Lord.” I ate mechanically. Grama makes homemade tacos, and the cinnamon rolls were melting in my hand, but I didn’t really taste anything. We sat after and talked a little about how she was, and how things were in our old neighborhood. She brought out the photo album, and we cried about Jason, and laughed at ourselves. When they both thought I was relaxed enough, Grama gave me that look. “Alright girlie, you’se gonna tell your Grama what’s goin on now. What’s this man done to make you cry already?”

A tear fell again, I took a breath, and “I don’t know how to explain. It’s like a fantasy from a book, it was all so amazing and unreal, only it was very, very real, and then he told me he was a…lawyer…um, who has standards I guess, and that his world and mine would clash, but he likes me, and he wants to see me again, but I’m so afraid that this is too unreal, too much like fantasy, and he makes me feel…so…Goddess.” I could tell they were both a little concerned about my hedging around a detail like that, but I could also tell they were a little confused. I was talking about a dream, someone who was fantasy like, isn’t that usually a good thing? I just shook my head to tell them I just didn’t know what I meant either.

They gave me some space, and I sat in Grama’s chair and watched the little part of her world go by out the window. The night came upon us and Sarah insisted we stick to the plan. She called Sheila and arranged to meet her at the club we liked, The Spot. We took a cab and once we were inside, you could see this was Sarah’s element. She vibrated good vibes, and every time she smiled at someone, it seemed they were unable to not smile back. I thought then about the power I seemed to have that allowed Zacharia to speak in the dream and wondered if maybe this was Sarah’s power, to break the ice and make a crowd feel great. It seemed to be part of why she was so good at photography; she could get the real person out and onto film.

I found a seat and watched the crowd, I didn’t drink, but Sarah knew that and brought me an energy drink of some sort. She spotted Sheila and the two of them flowed together. It seemed that Sarah’s life was going good. She had found a career that suited her, and person she could love and who loved her as she was, and she was still young with a long future ahead of her. Sheila was tall, black and very feminine, but next to Sarah, her exoticism was highlighted. I liked watching them sometimes, because you could see the love they had for each other, and it made you happy to know that did exist in this world. I was thinking on that idea when I felt the seat shift beside me, and I turner to look. Zacharia smiled at me.

He leaned in, and his smell wafted over me, making me breathe a little deeper. “Is that your sister? I can see the resemblance, she has the shape of your eyes and you share the same chin. She looks happy, but you do not. Am I the cause of this?” His smile didn’t waver, but his eyes did, and I couldn’t help myself, I leaned into him and felt better instantly.

“Yes and no.” was all I said, and I could tell he didn’t really understand. But he accepted it and put an arm around me and just sat there, allowing me to enjoy the nearness. At some point I lost track of Sarah, and when I scanned the crowd looking for her, I spotted Sheila looking at me. She gave me a look and hand movements asking if I was okay, and I nodded I was fine. Then she twirled into the crowd and I was alone with Zacharia. I turned my head and looked up at him, and he sensed my movement and turned to look at me, and the crinkle in the corner of his eyes deepened, and I knew he was smiling a little. I wanted to kiss him, but I was also afraid.

What was a Vampyre and what did that mean in today’s society? I mean, did he drink the blood of innocent people? Did garlic make him sick, would a cross burn his skin and sunlight melt him? I didn’t understand and that was the source of my consternation. His eyes flicked up and he began to pull away a little, and then I felt a tap on my shoulder. Sarah looked down at me, an eyebrow cocked and hip jutted out, and you could almost feel the foot tapping. She looked at Zacharia and then back to me, and I pulled the rest of the way out from under his arm. She sat on the edge of the bench and leaned in…”Zacharia?” was all she asked.

“Yes, I am. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Suddenly he was between our heads, and offering her his hand to shake. My thought was, how did he hear her over the music and the people when she whispered into my ear and what was I going to say now. Sarah took his hand, pumped it once and smiled a half smile. Then she stood and indicated we follow her. I look at him and shrugged as if to say, what can we do but follow, and then got up and followed her. I worried a little, what was she going to do, or say, she could be a little protective now and then, even over protective. We got to the door that took us out into a patio area where people went to smoke and get away from the noise. She whirled on him and I feared she would start yelling.

“Please forgive me, I know I have caused your sister some grief, but please understand, I never meant to hurt her, and that's why I’m here to try and help, and to talk.” Zacharia seemed to sense the same thing I did, because before Sarah got to say anything, he jumped feet first into the conversation. Sheila joined us at the tail end of that and looked between the three of us.

“Okay then, but I had to hold her while she cried; because she feels like you are too good to be true, and that by being a ‘lawyer’ is gonna make you feel out of her league or something. That’s bullshit by the way, she’s is way better than that or you, and if you make her cry again, I’ll hunt you down and chop off your head!” With that she grabbed Sheila’s arm kissed my cheek and left me out there with Zacharia. He looked at me and then finished watching her leave, “I’ll make sure not to tell her what that really means to me.” He winked as he looked back at me, and I realized the joke and smiled back. I was beginning to feel a little better.

“Zacharia, I can’t tell them that you’re a Vampyre, and I can’t lie to my sister, I had to say something to explain the turmoil and to be honest I still don’t understand why I’m so bothered by this.”

“Perhaps, it’s because this is so much like an urban legend, and wrapping your head around it is hard to do, especially when you feel an emotional attachment growing?” he said to me. I was floored, he hit it on the head and that was exactly my problem. I was caught up in the aspect of fantasy, and I couldn’t seem to get past the heat that grew in me every time I looked at him. I guess it would help to just get some things taken care of.

“Okay, you’re a vampire…you drink the blood of..innocents, villians, babies….um, cows? And you’re allergic to sunlight, crosses, garlic and getting your head chopped off. Um, and kissing me made you hungry, so you might need to..um, kill, someone if we, you know…and, um, well…how do I handle all of this?” I could see that crinkle again, and he had that lopsided grin going on and I realized he was laughing again. “What did I say?” I wasn’t certain if it was my choice of words, or maybe my hedging around words that amused him.

“No, no, please don’t take this the wrong way, but if we, ‘you know'; I’m pretty sure I won’t need to murder anyone. I’m Vampyre, the difference my dear is honor. I am bound by a blood oath to never kill for the blood I need. I am a lawyer who deals with black market organ transfers, and I often manage to get enough blood from the confiscated items, before it goes bad. They would dispose of it anyhow, so I ‘take care of it’. I’m not so much allergic to sunlight as it gives me a very bad headache, and I don’t sparkle.” His grin got wider and I felt a little foolish. “And I would very much like to kiss you now, in real life, not dream.” He stepped closer to me. My head was a little busy, catching up on what he said, and getting over the joke he made, and then smelling him as he drew me near, and feeling his body press against mine as I lifted on my toes and he bent and our lips met and just like in the dream, it was like heat sparking along my lips. My hands wrapped around his neck and tangled in his hair, and I discovered he had longer hair than I had known pulled back into a tail. One hand of his was on the small of my back, pulling me in tight, the other on my upper back, holding me up. I think my knees may have melted as his lips explored mine.

It was as if he felt the need to explore every millimeter of my mouth, he kissed me from left to right, and then his tongue flicked in and we pulled even tighter, and unlike in the dream, he didn’t pull away. He growled low in his throat, and his left hand went lower to cup my buttock, and his tongue began to explore my mouth. I felt a spark again, and when he pulled from my mouth and began kissing down my chin and toward my neck, my heart skipped and I tried to pull away for a moment. He held me tight and growled again, and kissed me harder, flicking his tongue in and out as if tasting me. Little sparks jumped at each tasting and my heart pounded in my chest. Then he pulled me in close and pull his lips from my throat, and held me, and whispered into my ear, “Rebecca, I would never hurt you, and I will never drink from you without permission, and certainly not until we know each other far better. But I want you, and you must know I am rarely denied what I want.”

He pushed me away, but not out of his arms and looked into my eyes, I could see a touch of red at the edges of his eyes, and I wondered if that meant he was hungry. Perhaps he could read my mind, or maybe he just had an idea of what I was thinking, but he smiled and showed me his teeth, and I didn’t see fangs. My eyes fluttered a little, maybe in relief. He kissed me more gently then, and pulled away, and part of me didn’t want it to stop. “Let us go back inside, your sister is waiting for you to come through the door, she wants to know you are okay. I presume you are okay?” He cocked an eyebrow at me. It was uncannily like my sisters eyebrow twitch I did a double take, and then nodded. I walked through the door, and she grabbed me…smiling again. She looked over my shoulder and gave a small frown and pulled me into the club and its music that was too loud and room with too many people that weren’t Zacharia.

“Where did he go?” she yelled through the music at me, and I looked behind me, all I could do was shrug.

They dropped me off at home and I made my bed and then showered. Part of me was aching and part of me nervous. It seemed too soon for this to go to the next step, but some guys won’t hang around if you don’t go to that step fast enough. And the way he made me feel, it was unreal and definitely out of a cheesy romance book. I climber into bed, half wanting him to show up on the fire escape and half wanting him to make love to me in our dream world. But instead I slept soundly, and woke to the sunlight filtering into my window. Sunday is usually my lazy day, but today, I was wired and wondering…what next?

The buzzer to the building sounded and there was a man with flowers for me behind it. I put them in a large plastic cup, and wondered how someone as rich, maybe old and refined like Zacharia could see in me. I lived in an efficiency for crying out loud. I could afford my bills, but not much else, and it wasn’t like I had found a career that sang to me like Sarah’s did. I had to put that lovely arrangement of red, yellow and pink roses into a cup rather than a vase. I began to have doubts. I was seriously thinking of crawling back into bed and hiding when the phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Rebecca, have dinner with me tonight, at my place. I’ll send a car for you around 630. Would that be alright?” I could have melted hearing his voice. I nodded, and the remembered he couldn’t see me, and said a quick yes. He told me he would see me then and hung up. Now I had a new dilemma, his house….meaning butlers and servants and all manner of other rich things that a hundreds year old Vampyre might have….oh Goddess, how old do you think he is?

I re-showered, maybe more to give me something to do, and then ran a few errands nearby, dropped my laundry off and found myself back home at 3pm and so much extra time I wanted to bite my nails off. So I painted them, and my toe nails, and then did my hair, and redid it, and redressed, and re did my hair again. I was finally tying a pair of boots on when the buzzer sounded. And my heart jumped. I went to the door box and answered. It was Adam, there to drive me over to Mr. Foldwere’s estate. Um, Estate….what if what I was wearing wasn’t good enough?

The drive over was uneventful. I could see out of the windows, and then we left the city behind. The country side is not great, it’s a little hilly here and there, but mostly flat and there were quite a few farms. We took a right onto a smaller road and followed it a ways and then took another right and climbed a small rise and went into a copse of trees. The house was an old Quaker style house. I had expected a mansion, with many rooms, and cars with too many garages, and maybe a place to ride horses or play golf or something. I had not expected a house. Adam helped me out of the car and I stood, standing in my nicer boots, a black skirt and a simple grey blouse. I looked like I was headed to a funeral or something. Zacharia stepped out onto the porch, and smiled his smile at me.

He was wearing jeans, and a blue polo shirt. He had an apron and by the stains it looked like he had been baking. I was a little unstable and just stood there; a fly might have landed on my tongue for all I knew. He was wiping his hands off with a tea towel, and he stepped down the steps and walked to me. “You look lovely, I hope you like ham. It’s an old family recipe, blood free, I promise.” He crinkled those eyes at me and I was able to unfreeze and walk with him up the steps. Here is a down to earth, home grown man, with great eyes, lips…and that ass in those jeans! I wasn’t sure what to make of all of it, but it sure looked good, the house was beautiful too.

We came in from the porch and into the living room; there was a place for coats and shoes on the right and a set of stairs going up. The living room was open and big, and attached to the dining area. There was a double door with swinging gates going to the kitchen. I could see 2 doors under the stairs and assumed one must go to a cellar or basement. He helped me with my sweater and waited as I removed my boots. I looked around and I began to see a long long history in the house. There were a few pictures on the walls, none that looked like old family, but with sceneries that looked like originals. The furniture was old, and similar to the furniture from the dream where he came to me and kissed me for the first time. It took me a moment, but he was giving me a tour and commentary as we walked. I had to start paying attention.

“The second door is a bathroom, and the back door leads into a wooded area. I have 3 bedrooms upstairs, it used to be 5, but I took 2 and made them into a receiving room at one point. I’m not as old as you might think, but I’m older than I look. I’ve been 35 for nearly 160 years. The house was my great great grandmothers, and it’s been in the family ever since. I was the only one in my family who was turned, and when I was able, I bought the house and the land and have managed to keep it under a fund program I created to help me move from generation to generation. Vampyre are turned for a reason. I was an artist of sorts; I could take any man or woman and teach them to be a lord or a lady. It was good for the war when you needed inside people high enough up to hear the right things. I’ve had plenty of time to learn new hobbies, such as cooking and poetry. Can I get you some lemonade?” I think I missed some of what he said, but I learned a great deal in that time.

We talked about little things. He wanted to know about me, and I told him what I could without making a fuss. He told me that there were vampires, and werewolves and fairies even, but that they stayed away from the normal population, as to keep themselves mostly hidden. And then he swore me to secrecy, lest he should have to kill me, all of this with a smile on his face. A part of me wondered if he had ever had to be serious about that. I asked him how many women he had lured into his home like a spider, he got serious for a moment and confessed to me, that a true Vampyre only loves once. He had met intriguing men and woman, but never anyone that drew him as I did.

He made a ham roast and baked potatoes and a vegetable medley. It was amazing and I was certain I could enjoy a life if he cooked all the time. He took me out the back door where the trees where, and we sat in a couple of old fashioned lawn chairs and watched the sun set behind the trees. He showed me that he didn’t burst into flames, but I could tell it was uncomfortable for him. I got up to refill my glass and when I came back he pulled me into him and kissed me. I had been wondering when he would do that, but I hadn’t wanted to push myself onto him. Plus it was a splendid evening, and so different from what I think I had psyched myself up for. His kiss was gentle and sweet and then he just held me and the sun sank and then the darkness was completed. He turned us a little and surprised me, there was a small lake down the hill, and there were fireflies all over the area. It looked as if tiny glittering fairies were dancing about the surface, sending their reflection to add to the beauty.

I didn’t want the evening to end, and I wanted more, but I was getting tired, and I had to be to work the next day. I told him how much I wanted to stay longer, and he reminded me that in this generation, he was a lawyer, and he has to be at work as well. I wondered how he worked a normal day, in the city, without raising suspicion. But Adam was driving me home before I thought to ask. I rested my head against the back of the seat, and touched my lips, remembering the velvety feel of his lips pressed against mine. I seemed also to remember that he growled softly, and I’m sure he said “mine” while he did so.

The week passed by, I was in a constant state of distraction, I wanted to see him and hold him and kiss him. But he didn’t let me suffer completely, he would call me in the evenings, and we would talk. About life and death, and lives before. He sent me flowers again, and chocolates. My birthday was coming, and I wondered if he knew somehow, as he had known so many other things about me. Friday couldn’t come soon enough. We had made plans to meet for dinner, only this time I wanted him to come to a place I liked, and I warned him, it wasn’t fancy. But after seeing him at his home and how laid back he could be, I felt confident that he would adapt and enjoy it. A small Chinese restaurant hidden in amongst some malls and museums, it was kind of like a hide away, but with really great food. The woman there was used to my face, and smiled when she saw me. “Oh, Beeka, Come seet seet.” She’d say.

Zacharia was in a suit and tie, but not the fancy tuxedo. We sat and he took off the jacket, and we ordered. It was amazing to sit there, like a normal couple, knowing there was really nothing normal about all this, but just loving every minute of it. I can honestly say that after a week of ‘dating’, I was falling for him. He told me he loved the place, and Adam drove me home, but this time I got to sit in there with Zacharia. He held me close and kissed me before I got out, and he asked me if he could bring dinner to me, to my place. I was afraid then. I live in an efficiency. It’s basically one big room, and a bathroom. But I guess eventually he would need to see it. So I said yes, and he said he would see my around 7. That night I barely slept a wink. I got on my knees and I scrubbed every inch of the floor and the walls and made it shine.

I fell asleep around 2am, and got myself a little gussied up in time for his arrival. He buzzed to be let in, and took far less time coming up the stairs than a normal person, and I thought, that must be a side effect of Vampyrism. He came in and looked around quietly. I cringed a little, thinking about his big, used to be 5 bedroom house in the middle of nowhere, and my small one room crammed in tight into a building of more one rooms. But he said nothing, he just kissed the top of my head and proceeded to take over my kitchen and cook. I watched him first, and the smells were wonderful, it was some kind of roast beef and mashed potatoes and gravy, and another vegetable medley. I wondered if he ate because I ate, or if he needed to eat normal food, or if he could even taste it, and belatedly realized I had asked that out loud.

He stopped briefly and looked at my, crinkling up his eyes and smiling. “I can taste, in fact that’s the reason I learned to cook. I may not need the food itself, but I enjoy the sensations and tastes. It took me a few decades to figure out that I could do so. And I have never regretted it.” I smiled back, it was kind of fun to learn about him. We ate and he asked if I had a television. I said I did not, but had an old almost obsolete laptop. He laughed a little but I didn’t feel that my little bit of almost nothing was so bad after all. He pulled me in close while we sat on the couch. I turned into him, fully expecting him to kiss me, but instead he just held me until I fell asleep.

I opened my eyes and found myself in that room. He sat in the same chair nearest the fireplace. He looked at me and smiled his smile and I came to him and wrapped my arms around him. I went to kiss him, but he touched my lips with his finger and stilled. “I want you Rebecca, but if we get as close as we both seem to want, there may come a moment where I might frighten you. I need you to know I would never hurt you, but if you would let me drink from you, I could create a bond. It would mean that I would never love another, and that I would know when you needed me, no matter where you might be.” I didn’t really know what to say. We had been having such a great time; I had almost forgotten that he was different.

I stood up and away from him. “What would this entail? What kind of bond? Zacharia, I’m afraid.” He tried to pull me in again, but my fear was enough that I pulled away. He growled low in his throat and I pulled farther away.

“Rebecca please, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to frighten you. Please don’t pull away.” He held out his hand and I took it, and he just held it, not pulling me in. Giving me space and time and not pushing me too hard was something he seemed to know instinctively. “There are levels to the bond. If I drink from you, I basically pull your life essence into me and it entwines with mine. Then when you feel fear, or joy, worry or excitement, I would feel it too. You could call my name and I would feel the need. I could come to you. Being with me could be dangerous sometimes, there are enemies. But I have managed to live a long time and most of mine are either dead, or have lost track of me. Adam and Michael are bonded to me, but their bond is stronger. I can speak to them, telepathically…” I pulled away again and walked around the chairs away from him.

“What?! We have been dating for a week, granted that isn’t much time, but you have shared so much with me, and you didn’t think to tell me you had this bond with others. Did you have sex with them?” I guess the part about him speaking to them with his mind wasn’t the big issue for me, but how do you set priorities with something like this. I just looked at him, and I waited for him to answer me. He didn’t seem upset, but I still worried, I had never seen him upset, or angry. How did one deal with their angry Vampyre boyfriend.

He shook his head, and stepped toward me, I did my best not to step away again, “No, it doesn’t work like that, it can, with you, but no. When Michael came to me I had been Vampyre merely 30 years, he had worked for another Vampyre and was aware of the risks, and benefits. His previous master had been killed, and he came to me, offering me a tier 3. That means I drank 3 times, from his wrist. 3 times gives the bitten prolonged life. I think he might be older than I am, one more bite and a drink of some of my blood and he could be turned. A normal vampire is made from being drained completely and then forced to drink the blood. Vampyre are conditioned, like Michael. I will likely turn him before the year ends. Adam is a tier 2; I can speak with him telepathically. I want to bond with you; I want you, all of you. Rebecca I need you.”

I watched his body language; he was irritated at having to explain. But he was afraid of losing me. I hadn’t thought I would ever find that in someone. I had dated my share of creeps and idiots, but no one had ever told me they needed me. His eyes were getting that red tint, and I just blurted it out before I thought. “Does your eyes like that mean you need to go eat someone…I know, I mean the stuff you have that you get. Oh, I’m all mixed up and sound stupid, I don’t know Zach, it’s hard. This is a lot to take in. I thought we were getting to know each other and now all this. Its…it’s a lot.” In the blink of an eye he had taken the two steps between us and pulled me into his arms, I fell into them, not realizing how much I needed that right then. We may be broaching a touchy subject, but we needed each other to help the other stand, and stay stable. “Yes.” I looked up into his eyes, and reached up on my tip toes and kissed him.

“My eyes like this mean I’m a little stressed emotionally, and feeding might help. But look now.” I looked closely, and saw his eyes had gone back to their misty grey. No blood on their edges. He kissed me again and mumbled into my lips that this was what he truly needed…just me. Then he pulled away and told me to close my eyes.

I opened them and found him cradling me in his lap, on my couch. He leaned in and kissed me softly, and I opened up to him. Somehow, his speed and strength were fast enough; he pulled the couch down into the bed and then laid me on it. First he laid beside me, kissing me, and held me close. I anticipated the bite, but he told me to relax, he said he wanted to love me first, and his kisses went over my chin and down my neck. His hand went before his lips, leaving a trail that he kissed over, and causing goose bumps. He gently cupped my breast and growled low when he heard the soft moan come from my throat. Outside the material he nipped the nipple that pressed through, and gripped it tighter. His hand then found its way under my shirt, and the touch of his cool skin against my heated skin was shocking.

He came back to my lips, and my own became a little frantic. I wanted to taste more and feel more, and his hands began to undress me. The air was chilled, or his hands were chilled more, I don’t know which, but my whole body began to shiver. He kissed me deeper and his hands began to explore more of me. My breasts became his as first his hands then his teeth found their way down there. I gasped when his teeth pinch the nipple and again he growled low, causing me to tighten. My hands got tangled in his hair and pulled it from its tie. I had come to love the rare times when his hair was let loose and would flow down his back and frame his face. It made him seem so mysterious and handsome.

He kissed my belly button, and slipped his tongue into the area, and slowly, terribly slowly pulled my pants down. The chills made me shiver again, and this time I swear he chuckled. His hands went back up to my breasts and kneaded them, and tweaked the nipples and pulled on them, and each gasp I made, made him continue. He growled into the curve of my hip, sending vibrations cascading down into my nether parts. He came back up kissing back along my belly, and under each breast. Stopping long enough to breathe on each nipple and watch me inhale. His eyes crinkled and then tightened as he used his mouth to pull the nipple up and long. I writhed beneath him and gasped.

I felt a small pain and then my body glowed, his mouth pulled again, and the nipple hardened, making my body quiver. I felt coolness over the nipple for a moment, and then he was kissing my mouth and I could taste something coppery. His hand moved lower, and softly caressed my hips and down into my panty and then his hand softly touched my lower lips. As soon as his fingers gently parted my lips I was glowing with hope for more, and then his fingers pushed inside me, slowly and with a long drag, then he pulled out and pulled on my nipple as his fingers came out of me. I could feel the hardness of him pressing against my legs as his mouth began to kiss down my body again.

He pulled my panty down and kissed over my hips, licking me in strokes, and all the while his fingers pushed in, long and slow, and pulled out again. I was wet, and ready, and I couldn’t stop moaning, whimpering in hope and longing. As his mouth got closer he pulled his fingers out and then spread my legs and all I could do was cry out as his tongue reached inside me, stroking me. He would find that spot that made my squirm and grip the blankets, using his tongue in small quick shots, then thrust deep into me and growl. Every time he growled I could feel the vibration, creating another sensation inside of me.

He pushed his fingers inside me and tackled that nub that made me crazy, and I felt the warmth and glow and I also felt him. He was hard, and eager, his body ached and wanted to feel me enveloping him. He wanted to climb on top of me and thrust in deeply and make me scream his name for the entire city to hear. But he held back, because he wanted to watch me squirm, and loved to see me pant as his tongue tickled my nub and his fingers stroked me. I could sense his need grow, and then there was a small sharp pain, and I cried out but it was overridden quickly and accelerated my climax. He sucked on me, pulling out and up, and his fingers rubbed and stroked and my body lifted as I shuddered through the peak.

But he didn’t stop, he kept sucking and pulling and pushing and then his other hand began to tease my nipple and my body began to climb again. And his feelings grew; I felt the sensation of what he might feel while in me, the hardness of his penis rubbing me, and the warmth of my body surrounding him, holding him. It made the suckling, rubbing and pinching sensations rise, and I crested again, panting almost unable to breath. He came up above me and I sucked my breath in as I saw a small bit of blood on his mouth, and then he was inside me, pushing deep. I wondered if this would never end, as he pushed, slowly going in and holding for a second, he kissed my mouth and pulled out and then thrust in deep causing me to arch up to meet his body. Our hips met and all I could do was gasp as I felt the tingling of his movements and the tight warmth of myself around him. I wondered if he felt this, felt both of us, felt my climax and his need. At the same time.

Then in his power, he found a way to do it all, I could feel his tongue wrap around my nipple, and rub against my nub, pulsing in and out of me. I felt his fingers pinch, pull and push, rub and caress, I felt him thrust deeply into me, sucking, and nibbling, the sensation, and it was like there were a dozen of him, all of them licking, sucking, rubbing and thrusting. I was rising, and rising and I could feel him rising with me, and I felt close but he sucked a bit harder and teased and licked and I screamed and writhed and felt so much I didn’t know where he began and where I ended.

We both shouted as we crested that climax together.

He held himself above me, still hard, still leaving a sensation of shivers going through me. I was breathing so hard I wondered if I might ever breathe normal again. He smiled at me, and I knew he planned to do more. We redid the whole thing several times and I began to wonder if I could keep up with him. When we were both completely finished he held me close and I fell asleep, sated like I had never been before. I dreamed that night, but not about him, I dreamt about my brother and the night he died, but it had a different ending in my dream.