Conversion

by S. C. Stephens

Chapter 4 - Inappropriate Dinner Conversations

 

  Somehow, and I'm still not sure how, I managed to make it through the rest of dinner. I even managed to eat my meal, which was sinfully good. Imogen could cook as well as Teren, maybe better. I supposed she'd probably taught him or taught his mom, who taught him. After dinner, I yawned in exaggeration a couple of times, and was all but ushered upstairs to the bedroom by Alanna, who insisted that I rest, since we had plenty of time to chat this weekend. Real exhaustion swept over me as I stared at the king-sized behemoth of a bed before me in the "guest" room. The room was so large and elegantly decorated that it made my room back home seem about as nice as a pantry under the stairs.

  I plopped down on the satin sheets, closed my eyes and threw my arms over my head. I considered falling asleep like that, nearly buried in decorative pillows, when I heard a deep voice chuckle at me. I opened my eyes at Teren, who had closed the door and was pulling off his shirt. I sat up on my elbows and watched him undress. Normally, the sight would have had me biting my lip in anticipation of a rousing love fest. . . but I'd had a long night, and that really was the last thing on my mind. That and there was no way we were doing anything remotely intimate around super-hearing vampire ears.

  "So. . . what do you think?" he asked with a soft smile, as he slipped his jeans off.

  I sighed, not knowing where to start. "They aren't what I expected. They're very. . . welcoming. "

  "Of course they are. They want you to be here, Emma. " Once in his boxer briefs, he sat down on the side of the bed and put a hand on my knee. "I told you there was nothing to worry about. They like you. "

  I sighed and sat up. "Why are they all so young?"

  He cocked his head, looking like he wasn't sure how to answer that. "Great-Gran was turned at nineteen, so she'll always look nineteen. Mom and Gran. . . just don't show their age anymore, but none of them are exactly young. Mom's in her fifties, Gran is over seventy and Great-Gran is up in the nineties by now. "

  "Oh. . . why don't your mom and grandmother age? Isn't that kind of odd, since they're only partially vampire?"

  He looked away and quietly said, "At twenty-five we just. . . stop aging. We don't know why. "

  "Weird. " I put my arms around his shoulders and hugged him tight. "What about you. . . you're twenty-five. Have you stopped aging?"

  He grinned in an odd way as he looked back at me. "No. . . not today. " His eyes examined my body. "It's been a long day. We should go to bed. "

  "Yeah, you're right. " I stood and started undressing as he slipped under the covers. Glancing around the room, I asked him, "What's up with the honeymoon suite?"

  He laughed at me as I took my shirt and jeans off. "What do you mean?"

  "Well, the satin sheets, candles everywhere, fresh flowers on the nightstands, crackling fireplace. . . it just needs a little mood music, and I'd think you were trying to get fresh with me. " I gave him a suggestive look and he laughed again.

  Looking down he paused for a moment, then said, "All the rooms are like this. It's just my mom's style. "

  "Oh. . . " His expression was very odd as he chewed on his lip. "Are you okay, Teren?" I asked.

  Releasing his lip, he looked back up at me and smiled. "I'm fine. "

  He was silent after that, so I began rummaging in my bag for my pajamas. I found my favorite silky pajama shorts with a matching pink camisole-the boy was such a good packer. I quickly threw them on and found my toothbrush and cleanser. As I was walking towards the adjoining bathroom he softly asked me, "Did I freak you out with the cow's blood?"

  I turned back around to face him and inwardly sighed with relief that it was cow's blood. I regarded his worried expression for a minute, then I went back to the bed and sat next to him. "To be honest. . . yes, a little. I'm still getting used to this and that was a lot to take in. " I stroked his cheek while he frowned and stared at his hands in his lap. I moved his chin up so he'd look at me. "I will get used to it though. . . okay. Just give me a little absorption time. . . and maybe a heads up too. "

  He smiled. "Yeah, I can do that. Sorry, I should have been clearer about dinner. "

  I stood back up, then leaned over and gave him a light kiss. "Yes. . . yes, you should have. "

  I awoke early the next morning to a pale shaft of sunlight streaking across my eyes, and the undeniable aroma of bacon wafting through the door, even all the way up here. My stomach let out a loud rumble and I pressed a hand against it. I felt Teren laugh beside me and then he raised his jet-black head to gaze at me, blocking the light from my eyes in the process.

  "Hungry?" he asked, as he shifted in bed to turn towards me.

  I giggled as I massaged my belly. "I shouldn't be after that meal last night, but apparently, I am. " I sighed. My scale wasn't going to thank me for this. "I'm gonna gain ten pounds hanging around your family this weekend. "

  Teren stroked my hair in a soothing, repetitive pattern. "It's all part of our plan to fatten you up," he whispered. My eyes widened and he laughed at the look on my face. "I'm just kidding, Emma. "

  "Funny. "

  He smirked. "Your weight doesn't change the flavor of your blood anyway. "

  Offended, I smacked him on the shoulder over and over. He blocked a few hits, but that only made me try and hit him harder. In a defensive move, he brought the bulk of his body over mine. "Would you stop," his fangs slid out as he hovered inches from my face, "hitting me. "

  I instantly stopped provoking the vampire above me and held completely still. He cocked his head and stared at me in an inhuman way. Then, quicker than perceptible, he lunged for my neck. Before I could scream, he clamped onto my skin. As the sound of my terror bubbled up from my chest, I waited for the impending pain of my throat being sliced open.

  It didn't come.

  I stopped the approaching wail and struggled through my labored breathing to understand what was happening. It was then that I realized he was only kissing my neck, not sucking me dry. I had felt the tiniest prick of a fang, but he must have retracted them perfectly upon impact with my skin, and only his normal, much less threatening teeth were playfully nipping at my neck.

  My heart painfully stuttered, and I smacked his shoulder again and pushed him away from me. He gave me an impish grin while I took deep breaths. "Don't you ever do that again! You scared the life out of me!"

  Grunting, he shook his head. "Do you honestly think I'd do that?"

  Feeling calmer, I shrugged my shoulders. "You looked pretty convincing. . . "

  He leaned back in to kiss my neck. "Silly human," he breathed across my skin. "I keep telling you. . . I won't bite until you ask. "

  His lips across my throat were starting to do wonderful things to my body, and my breath quickened again for another reason. "Don't get your hopes up on that one," I muttered, as I closed my eyes and savored the feel of rough stubble, soft lips, and a warm tongue against my very sensitive skin.

  He shifted his position on top of me and pressed his hardening body against me. I made a soft, satisfied noise at the intimate sensation of our bodies touching each other, and ran my fingers up his bare back. His breath increased as well as he shifted his mouth to mine. A deep noise escaped his throat, thrilling me, and I eagerly kissed him. Wrapping my legs around his, I imagined him ripping my silky pajamas off and taking me on this oversized, satin bed. The oversized, satin bed that belonged to his family. His vampire family. . . with the uncanny hearing, that right now, was listening in on every moan, lip smack, heavy breath, and squeak of the bed, as if they were standing at the end of said bed.

  I immediately broke contact and pushed his shoulders back. "Get off, get off, get off!" I whispered intensely.

  He rolled over and looked confused. . . and disappointed. "What? I was just teasing about the whole neck biting thing. "

  I sat up and gathered the sheets around me, like his family was actually in the room. "I know. That's not why. . . We c
an't. . . I am not. . . " I didn't know how to explain it to him, without explaining it to everyone. Eventually I just whispered, "Super ears. "

  He looked at me confused for a minute more, and then he understood and started laughing. "Emma. " He couldn't say more than that since he was laughing so hard, so I got up and went to the bathroom to take a cold shower.

  After I had finished with my chilly shower, I went back to the bedroom, where Teren was still just lying on the bed. He started laughing again as I approached my bag on the dresser and I scowled at him. He made a concentrated effort to stop laughing and quieted to soft chuckles. Eventually, he sighed and held his arms open to me. I ignored him and rummaged through my bag for fresh clothes-faded jeans and a fitted, button-up shirt that looked very ranch-like. Teren could pack my bag from now on, I decided, since he was so good at it.

  Not letting me ignore him, he sat up on his knees and blindingly quick, removed my towel. I gasped at the sudden surprise of being naked, and at the cooler air swirling around my skin. I modestly tried to cover myself with my hands. "Teren!"

  He lay back on the bed and grinned at me. I couldn't even see where the towel went; he could have put it back in the bathroom and I wouldn't have seen it, he was so fast. He opened his arms for me again.

  I didn't ignore him this time. "No," I said firmly.

  He pouted. "Why not?"

  I threw on my bra and underwear before he could blur them away as well. After I was successful with that, I slid on my jeans. "I'm hungry," I said, sliding on my shirt.

  "So am I. "

  He grinned, and I rolled my eyes and pointed to the bathroom. "Go take a shower. . . now!"

  This time he rolled his eyes. "Fine. "

  I dried my hair and threw on some makeup essentials, mascara and lipstick, while Teren took his cooling shower. While he dried off, I lightly curled my hair with the provided curling iron. Not only did our fancy guest bathroom have a dual headed shower, a jetted tub, and a private room for the toilet, it came with a fully stocked vanity, complete with a plush, cream-colored, cushioned bench and a three-by-six foot mirror. I just might move into this bathroom, I mused.

  After toweling off from his shower, Teren dressed in his most lived-in pair of jeans with a blue button-up shirt that he left loose over the top of them. The jeans did wonderful things to his backside, and the shirt did wonderful things to his pale blue eyes. He slipped on a pair of work boots and I hoped that somewhere in his bag, he'd tucked in a cowboy hat; it just would have completed the outfit. He looked incredibly handsome. This life suited him.

  Hatless, he grabbed my hand and we made our way down the elaborate staircase to the foyer with the naked woman statue. We took the hallway to the right that led to the kitchen, and the smells of breakfast made my stomach rumble again. You'd think I hadn't eaten in years by my body's reaction to the amazing hickory and maple scented bacon that was filling my nose. We walked into the cheery, sunlit room and spotted Teren's dad reading the paper and sipping on a mug of coffee. He looked up at hearing our approach.

  "Good morning, kids. Sleep well?"

  I smiled as Teren answered, "Yeah. Thanks, Dad. "

  We sat across the table from him, and just as I was wondering if I should help out in the kitchen, Alanna came out with a tray full of food. She set it in the middle of the table and gave me a warm smile. "Good morning, dear. Hungry?"

  Knowing that every vampire in the house had probably heard my gurgling stomach. . . among other things. . . made my cheeks heat. I cringed as I answered. "Yes. . . thank you. "

  Alanna looked over at Teren with an odd glint in her eye. Teren looked away for a second, seeming almost embarrassed, but then he calmly returned her gaze. "Good morning, Mother. "

  She looked at him for a silent second, flicked a quick glance to me and then back to him. "Good morning, Son. " She smiled brightly and so did Teren.

  Alanna blurred back to the kitchen and returned almost instantly with plates, silverware, mugs and glasses. Disappearing again, she returned with milk, orange juice and a carafe. I ignored the carafe and eyed the overflowing platter of bacon, scrambled eggs and toast, with my mouth practically watering. Jack started helping himself and Alanna gave him a swift kiss before blurring out of the room. I figured it was all right to load up our own plates, so I grabbed a spoon resting in the eggs and started piling.

  Teren grabbed the carafe and I tried very hard not to notice. He held it out to me and I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. "Coffee?" he asked, as he grabbed a mug.

  "Coffee?" I asked quietly.

  He smiled. "Yes. . . just coffee this morning. "

  I relaxed and nodded as he filled my cup. I wondered where the rest of the vampires were in this huge house as Teren set down my steaming mug. I supposed they didn't need to eat breakfast, so there wasn't much point in them idly sitting at the table and watching the humans, and the mostly-human, eat regular food. As I watched Teren fill his plate with bacon, I wondered why he ate regular food and they didn't appear to. Maybe their more vampiric nature just made regular food not taste as good to them. Teren certainly appeared to be thoroughly enjoying the slice he'd popped in his mouth though. I stopped worrying about it and focused on the incredible meal before me. It tasted just fine to this one hundred percent human.

  Once breakfast was out of the way, Alanna lickety-split cleared the table. She removed almost everything while I went from a sitting to a standing position. I was instantly a little jealous; being super-fast was one vampire trait that I really wouldn't mind having. While she finished cleaning up, Teren held his hand out to me, to show me the rest of the expansive home.

  We walked through the five star kitchen, where Alanna was already washing the breakfast dishes. I marveled at the double oven, a walk-in freezer, the ceramic, smooth-top burner-less range on an island in the center of the room, that also had its own sink, and a refrigerator that was built right into the wall and resembled cabinets, until you looked closer and spotted the handles. All the countertops were thick, green-speckled granite and all the wood in the various cabinets and cupboards was a deep mahogany. For a home where only one person appeared to eat, they sure spared no expense on the kitchen.

  Walking through that room, we swung around to the living room that seemed to take up the entire back of the house. A wall of glass on one side of me had French doors that opened up to the foyer and the set of elegant staircases that led to the rooms upstairs. A wall of glass on the other side showed me that my earlier assumption was correct; a large swimming pool was nestled in-between the three buildings.

  The living room itself was an homage to a comfortable ski lodge. Plush chairs, throw rugs and ottomans were scattered in clusters around the massive room. A couch that looked as if you could live in it was opposite an antique, claw-footed coffee table, scattered with oversized books filled with glossy looking pages featuring ranches around the country. I wondered if this ranch was in one of those books and decided that if it wasn't, that was purely by the owner's choice-this spread was amazing.

  The couch and coffee table were in front of the single most impressive fireplace I had ever seen in my life. I stopped in front of it and just stared and shook my head at the innate beauty of it. It was large, taking up a good chunk of the wall it was positioned on, and it protruded into the room with a semi-circle ring of stones that commanded attention. But that was pretty standard for a fireplace of its size. What made it intrinsically breathtaking was the flue. It was shaped in a semi-circle, much like the hearth, and, like the outside of the home, river rocks in various sizes and colors were pressed into the wall. While that would have been impressive enough, it was the fact that the rocks were formed into what was clearly a flame design that had me still marveling.

  "Beautiful, isn't it?" Teren asked, as he watched me examining every flawlessly placed stone.

  I nodded as I looked over at him. "It's amazing. Your parents' home is pretty. . . impressiv
e. "

  He smiled nonchalantly and shrugged. "It's all right. "

  I laughed as he pulled me through the rest of the living room to the other side of the house. He showed me the mandatory "piano" room and explained that both his mother and grandmother enjoyed playing. He pulled me through a library packed with leather-bound editions of just about every classic novel the world had ever seen. He showed me the main bathroom downstairs; it rivaled the penthouse suite bathroom in any five star hotel in California, and, because I was a curious girl, I couldn't help but wonder if vampires even needed a bathroom?

  Next, he showed me the rest of the rooms upstairs, including the oasis his parents called a bedroom. It was about the size of my mother's entire house, and probably included all the same amenities. Everything was cream, gold, burnished reds and oranges. It reminded me of the sunrise painting downstairs. Fresh flowers were in every room and spaced evenly along the hallway, so that the entire upper floor smelled of freesia. There was nothing in this home that wasn't meticulous and magnificent.

  At the opposite end of the hallway from our room, Teren stopped in front of a closed, heavy-duty, white door. He softly knocked twice. A soft voice replied with something I couldn't make out through the thick door, and Teren gently opened it.

  We walked into a spacious room with thick, beaded curtains covering every window. The air was perfumed, and light vibrated and danced by the dozen or so lit candles. I felt like tiptoeing into the near sanctuary of this quiet place. Teren's grandmother was sitting on a padded, antique rocking chair, knitting at lightning speed. She gently rocked herself as she knitted, and the odd mixture of her slow moving feet with her quicker-than-humanly-possible hands was causing some small part of my brain to melt, I was sure.

  "Good morning, children. " It was a little disconcerting, to be referred to as a child from someone who looked younger than me, but I ignored it and smiled politely at her.

  "Good morning, Gran," Teren said. "I was just showing Emma the house. "

  Not stopping from her work, her young face beamed at her grandson. "That's good, dear. You could show her the ranch hand's home down the road as well, if you like? No one's staying there right now. " She crooked a smile as she raised an eyebrow.

  Teren coughed and looked around the room. "Yeah. Maybe we'll do that. . . later. "

  She stopped knitting for a moment and motioned to a plush chair beside her. "Have a seat. "

  Teren grabbed my hand as I was halfway to a seated position, and I straightened. "Maybe another time, Gran. I still have a lot to show Emma. " He smiled at her as he started leading me away.

  Imogen raised her lips slightly at the corners as she replied, "Yes, I suppose you do. We'll catch up this evening, I'm sure. "

  I waved goodbye as we exited her room, Teren shutting the heavy door behind him.

  Knowing there was only one vampire we hadn't seen this morning, I hesitantly asked him, "So. . . where's Halina?"

  Teren nodded at the floor. "Her rooms are in the basement levels. "

  "Oh. Will we be going down there?" I hoped my voice didn't betray my reluctance at that prospect. Entering her "lair" wasn't exactly an appealing thought to me.

  Teren's expression turned thoughtful. "She tends to sleep through most of the day. Waking her up really isn't. . . a good idea. "

  "Oh. . . okay. " I breathed the word in case she could hear it.

  He laughed at my attempt to be quiet. "She's asleep right now. She's actually the only vampire who can't hear you. And she's a pretty solid sleeper once she's down, so you don't need to worry about waking her up. "

  I relaxed. "Oh," I said again, but at normal volume. "So, she's. . . nocturnal?"

  He nodded, his eyes amused. "Yeah. . . it kind of goes with the whole vampire thing. "

  I twisted my lips and gave him a meaningful onceover. He laughed, understanding. "I'm mostly human, remember. "

  My mouth shifted into a wry smile. "Right. I don't know how I keep forgetting that. What about your mom and Imogen?"

  Grabbing my hand, he started leading me back down one side of the dual staircase. "They are more human in that respect. They sleep at night and are awake during the day, although sometimes Gran will stay up all night with Great-Gran, and sleep during the day as well. "

  "Oh. "

  The thought of a vampire roaming the halls while I obliviously slept didn't sit well with me, but I kept my irrational fear of that from Teren. He would just say that I had nothing to worry about and that his family wouldn't eat me. I had the sudden thought that everyone was going to keep reassuring me that I wouldn't get eaten, right up until the day I did. Hopefully, I would at least get an "oops" or "sorry" before I was completely consumed.

  He showed me around the side buildings that housed more guest rooms. I wasn't quite sure what they needed so many rooms for, maybe it just came with the spread, but there were two libraries, three offices, more bathrooms than I could count, a laundry room with the single largest washer and dryer I'd ever seen, an indoor greenhouse that smelled wonderfully of ripening tomatoes and made me damp with sweat before we left the room, a formal dining room that put the area by the kitchen to shame, and an informal lounging area with televisions, board games, a plethora of movies, including a slew of modern and classic vampire movies, which I found pretty amusing. There was even a three-hole putting green, because what self-respecting vampire doesn't like to practice their putt?

  Really, all it needed was an indoor bowling alley, and I'd have been convinced that Teren's family was some sort of vampire royalty.

  He ended the home tour by leading me to the courtyard out back. It took my breath away. The sun was approaching its zenith and its rays sparkled along the ripples of water in the Olympic-sized swimming pool basking below it. The entire family could swim laps and not bump into each other. A diving board on the far end indicated where the deep end was, and a few feet on the other side of that was the one thing I was actually really looking forward to. . . a hot tub-what looked like a twenty person hot tub, with jets everywhere and areas that conformed to a lying person's shape, so you could nearly nap in the slightly-below-boiling water.

  Flat river rocks formed a patio, stretching from the glass wall of the living room, all the way around the pool and hot tub, to a large area behind that, where covered tables and lounge chairs rested in the sunshine before a barbecue grilling station. That huge grill swept up out of the river rock floor so naturally, that you'd expect to come across its twin while hiking in the Grand Tetons.

  We walked across the flat stones while Teren pointed out various aspects of the land that we could see. The summit of Mount Diablo was positioned perfectly in the open area of the courtyard, creating a stunning backdrop for the already stunning view. These vampires sure knew how to pick a place.

  On the far side of the patio were granite steps that led to a granite pathway. We followed the pathway to some outbuildings at the base of the hill where the main home sat. I looked back and marveled again at the gleaming red tiles, white stucco, and gray rocked beauty that was the Adams' family home. When we approached the buildings that stored the farm equipment, some motorcycles, four wheelers, and a couple of jeeps with oversized tires, I noticed Jack screwing a cap back on one of the bikes.

  He looked up at the crunching sound of our approach. Walking into the sun, he squinted up at us and said, "Hey, Teren, Emma. I was just about to check out the cattle in the east pasture. You guys want to come along?"

  Teren looked back at me, and I nodded eagerly. I'd lived in the city my entire life and had never seen a cow up close. Teren smiled and led me to one of the jeeps. His dad hopped on a bike and started it while we slipped into the open-topped vehicle. We started out after Jack, who was zipping along at a pretty decent pace. I supposed that if you live your whole life with someone who could cross a room faster than you could say vampire, you learned to be speedy where you could. We bounced along behind him on faint trails th
at I could just barely make out in the rolling hillside. Teren had a grin on his face and his blue eyes sparkled in the sunshine. Boys did love their toys.

  We approached a long, white fence and slowed to park beside it. I could see a few cow heads poking up out of the amber grass and wondered if Teren could walk in there with them. Spike didn't seem to mind him, but surely a cow would have some innate sense of predacious danger and would run from him. But Teren followed his dad's lead and climbed the fence. He paused at the top and held his hand out to me. I gave him a wry look and scrambled up and over the fence by myself. He laughed once, then stood at the top of the suddenly narrow-looking fence and stepped off, landing the five feet to the ground as effortlessly as one steps off the front porch. Show off.

  We walked among the cows. They didn't move much from munching on their meals, and certainly had no fear of Teren, who walked close by a few and even ran a hand along the back of one. I patted the head of another one. She looked up at me with huge, vacant brown eyes and I giggled. I'd never imagined a month ago, when I ran into Teren with my coffee, that the future would have me at a ranch petting cattle. . . with a vampire.

  Jack inspected hooves or mouths or bellies of the beasts as we walked among them. I snuggled up to Teren's side as we strolled through the knee-high grass, watching for any fresh piles beneath us and listening for rattlers (I hate snakes). I looked around the pasture at the various brown and white cows, and then looked over to what I could see of the other pastures. I saw various bulks that must be more bovines, but nothing larger than that. I saw the building that must have been the ranch hand's house that Gran had mentioned, and beside it was an unmistakable building that could only be a massive barn.

  "Are the horses in there?" I pointed over to the long building as Teren and I walked along.

  Looking back at me, he shook his head. "No. We don't keep horses anymore. "

  I frowned. "That seems a little odd. Horses and ranches are kind of like peanut butter and jelly. . . they just go together. "

  He chuckled and kissed my head. "Are you hungry again?" I pinched his arm and he laughed again. "We had a hard time with them. . . falling ill, so we stopped bringing them in. "

  I eyed him suspiciously. "Falling ill?"

  He kicked at a rock in the grass as we walked by it. His dad up ahead was busy digging something out of one of the cow's hooves. Teren sighed. "That's what the hired hands believed. "

  "And the truth would be. . . ?"

  He looked over at me. "Well, horses are more naturally spooked by us than the cows, so training them to overcome their fear was really more effort than it was worth, especially since we move faster than them anyway. "

  I nodded, thinking that was perfectly understandable, but then he continued, "And Great-Gran has a taste for them. We couldn't keep her away from the few we did manage to train. We just couldn't keep any alive for long. . . "

  I stopped walking and stared at him, absorbing that. He stopped walking and shrugged. "After a few of those instances, we switched to bikes for the humans. "

  "Oh," was all I could think to say to that. . . so that's all I said.

  His dad pointed out a couple cows that were expecting as we reached the edge of the herd. I ran my hand along the extended belly and smiled as the tiny creature inside moved slightly at my touch. I giggled again and stood up as Teren shook his head at my enjoyment. I pointed back to the pregnant cows as we started heading back towards the jeep.

  "Do you ever name them?"

  Jack laughed, a hearty booming sound, and Teren patted a cow's back as we walked by it. "Sure. This one's Tuesday," Teren said merrily.

  I twisted my lips. "Nice. "

  Teren laughed with his dad. "We try not to personalize the food. It's not as enjoyable to eat, if it has a name. "

  "I'll keep that in mind," I muttered under my breath, and Teren grinned, so I knew he'd heard me.

  Jack didn't and added, "Teren used to name them when he was a boy. "

  Teren sighed. "Dad. "

  Jack laughed and ignored him. "He named half Geraldine and half Bessie. "

  I laughed with Jack this time as Teren scowled at the both of us. I nudged him in the ribs. "Well, weren't you cute?"

  Feeling more comfortable with Jack than say, Halina, I asked him, "What do you do with the cows the girls. . . eat?"

  Very matter-of-factly he answered, "We butcher them and sell the meat, well, the meat that we don't use for ourselves or for the guys that help us out a few times a year. Adams Ranch is well known for high quality beef, and our cows are highly sought after. " He smiled wide with pride. "We have the best steaks in three counties. "

  I smiled too. "Yes. Yes you do. "

  He gently patted me on the back as we reached the fence again. "I think you'll fit in just fine here, Emma. "

  After the tour, Jack cooked us some burgers and we ate on the back patio, enjoying the sunny day and the slight breeze. Alanna popped out with refreshing lemonades and stayed to sit in her husband's lap for a minute, making Teren roll his eyes in an adorable expression of embarrassment. Then she started shifting uncomfortably and excused herself, going back inside the house. I started wondering about this house of vampires, and what mythic rules applied to them, since they seemed to be ignoring all the rules I'd ever heard of. I thought about asking Teren, but he was enjoying a quiet conversation with his dad, so I figured I could ask him later.

  Jack needed to fix one of the Jeeps, so Teren volunteered to help him, after making sure I'd be fine by myself for awhile. I assured him I would be, and gave him a lingering kiss before pushing him away to bond with his father. He seemed to really enjoy the guy time, and I wondered why he didn't visit more often. In the four weeks we'd been together he hadn't come out here once, and by the sound of Alanna's greeting yesterday, his last visit had been quite some time before that.

  Back inside the house and wondering what I should do, I ran into Alanna at the stairs. "Alann. . . Mom, is there anything I can help you with today? Teren's fixing a Jeep. . . "

  She smiled, and for just the slightest second, her pale eyes were almost sad. The look was gone before I could be sure, though. She wrapped her arm around mine and we started walking up the stairs. "No, dear. You're a guest here, and we get everything done that needs to be. " She winked at me and grinned in a way that reminded me of her son. "Sometimes being really fast is very convenient. "

  I grinned too, as I thought about how much fun it would be to zip around on overdrive. She probably got more things done around the ranch before noon, all by herself, than a team of handymen could get done in a day. Girl power indeed.

  "Why don't you spend some time relaxing by the pool? It's quiet out there-you could read a book from the library?"

  That actually sounded quite pleasant, but I still felt a little guilty. "Would you like to join me?"

  She patted my arm again as we reached the top step. "I'm going to visit with Mom for a while. I'll join you later. " At the top of the stairs, she kissed my cheek with her cool lips and walked towards the heavy door at the opposite end of the hall from ours. Her long, loose hair swished across her back and her thick jeans rustled slightly, but that was the only noise she made.

  I changed into my bathing suit. Teren had packed my two skimpiest bikinis and for a second, I considered revoking his pack-master status. . . until I noticed that he'd also packed my favorite book, one I'd read so many times, the binding was falling apart, Where the Red Fern Grows. I shook my head and again marveled at his odd skill. Grabbing my dark-tinted, pink-framed sunglasses, I slabbed on a layer of SPF. Snatching a plush towel from the bathroom, I made my way down to the pool.

  My skimpy little black string bikini barely kept in all my curves, but the other one he'd chosen to bring was red, and for some reason, wearing that color made me feel a little like a walking all-you-can-eat buffet advertisement. I wasn't sure what he was thinking packing those to meet his family. Well, act
ually, I was pretty sure I knew exactly what he was thinking-I looked damn good in a bikini-but it wasn't the most appropriate thing to wear around potential in-laws.

  The house was quiet, and I didn't run into anyone else as I slipped through the massive living room and out the back door to the patio. I found a comfortable looking chair with full sun exposure and laid out on my stomach, stretching my legs out. If I only had a Mai Tai and a chiseled man, fanning me with a palm frond, I'd have thought I was in some exclusive resort on a tropical island. I cracked open my book and prepared myself for some classic childhood adventure, hunting wily raccoons with lovable and unwaveringly loyal coonhound pups. I promised myself that this time I wouldn't cry, knowing all too well that, of course I would. I did every time. It was an odd book for a girl to like, or so I'd been told, but I did. . . I loved it.

  I was halfway through the novel when I flipped over to my back. I started when I did.

  "Thirsty?"

  Alanna was standing at the foot of the chair, holding out a glass of lemonade. I hadn't even heard her approach. I took a deep breath and tried to calm my suddenly racing heart, all too aware that she could probably hear every wet, thumping pulse. I grabbed the glass and muttered a thank you before I took a long draw.

  "You're welcome. " She looked over my body and I tried not to blush at the oddity of what felt like an examination. She smiled with just one corner of her mouth and then looked up to the sky, where the sun was well below the halfway point, between high noon and horizon. "The boys should be done soon. " She looked back to me and laughed-a tinkling sound like silver bells. "Those two do enjoy their free time. I think they may have given up on the Jeep and gone fishing. " She pointed back towards a valley between two large hills. "They're over there. "

  Hmmm. . . that was another super power I wouldn't mind having. Knowing exactly where Teren was at all times. That could come in handy. Of course, it was a two way street, and that would be a little annoying if he always knew where I was too.

  She shook her head, her black hair rippling. "Jack sure loves having him here. I think he gets a little overwhelmed sometimes, being around so many girls. " She laughed again and sat in a chair beside me.

  I laughed too. "I bet. How long has Teren been away?"

  She sighed. "He's very good at calling us, but we haven't seen him in over four months. "

  Surprise washed through me. I couldn't imagine not seeing my mother and sister for that long. I got irritated at him for her, and it could clearly be heard in my voice. "Why has he been gone for so long? You don't live that far away. "

  She looked at me, and her pale eyes seemed to bore straight through me. I felt an uncontrollable shiver run down my spine and I held my breath. Breaking our intense eye contact, she looked at the river rock around her feet. "He has his reasons," she said quietly.

  Before I could respond, she patted my knee and gave me a warm smile. "I'll let you get back to your book. That's a good one, I always cry at the end. " She patted my knee one last time and stood. "Dinner's at dark," she said, as she turned to leave.

  I wanted to protest that she didn't have to go, that she could stay and chat with me, but I could only watch as she silently slinked back into the house.

  Teren and Jack came back just as the sun was hitting the highest hills. Jack was beaming at his son, who was holding a couple of large fish strung on a line. I wiped the inevitable tears from my cheeks as I closed my book and watched them finish walking up the path to the patio. Alanna flitted out from somewhere the second their feet hit the stones, and snatched the fish from Teren while giving him and then Jack a kiss on the cheek. She flitted away again and Jack laughed, watching her leave.

  "Always in a rush, that one. The trout will probably be filleted and fried by the time we get in there. " Amused, he shook his head at his wife.

  Teren laughed at his dad's comment and then leaned over my chair and gave me a kiss. I smiled at him and then noticed that his jeans were wet from the knees down. "Did you catch the fish with your hands?" I asked sarcastically.

  He grinned and winked at me, and my mouth dropped a little. Not answering me, he flicked his eyes down my body. "I like your suit. "

  I pursed my lips. "Yes. Interesting choice for your parents' house. "

  He leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Only showing off your. . . assets. " He blurred away from me just as my hand was swinging around to clap him on the shoulder; I only caught air instead. I frowned and he held his palm out for me. Rolling my eyes, I let him stand me up. "Just kidding," he said, as he pulled me in for a tight embrace.

  His mouth started distracting me as he brought his lips to mine. He was a fabulous kisser. I started getting swept away in the softness and stubble and wet warmth of it, when I felt his hand gently tug at one of the strings of my top.

  "I will stake you where you stand if you pull that string out," I muttered against his lips. Remembering where I was, I looked around the pool area, but sometime when we'd been kissing, Jack must have gone inside. I felt a teensy bit embarrassed about that.

  Teren chuckled. "I could sweep you upstairs, if you really aren't happy with that suit. " His laugh turned a little husky and he started kissing me again, running his hand up my back to gently grasp my neck.

  I started getting lost in him again, until I firmly remembered where I was, and what I had promised him at the beginning of this little journey. I playfully pushed him back from me. He was a little breathless, which made me grin. "Nope, you're cut off. Remember?"

  He gaped at me and then tried to bring his hands back to my body. "You weren't serious about that, were you?"

  I batted his hands away and giggled. I hadn't really been at the time, but with vampires around who could hear every delightful groan-I was serious now. "Yep. No treats for you, vamp boy. " He frowned as I wrapped the plush bathroom towel around me. I grabbed his hand. "Let's go get ready for dinner. Your fish is probably nearly done. " He pouted, but let me lead him to the glass doors to the living room.

  "We could go somewhere really far away. I run really fast," he grumbled under his breath.

  I shoved him through the door ahead of me. "Upstairs! Go change your wet clothes. . . . and maybe take another shower. " He grinned at me over his shoulder and we made our way to the stairs.

  Gran was walking down one set of stairs as we were walking up the other. She glanced over at us, sighed and then looked away. She seemed really sad. I watched her glide down the stairs and wondered what vampires got depressed about. Teren wasn't watching her and didn't appear to be too concerned over it. Once we were at the top of the stairs and heading down the hallway, I asked him if she was all right.

  Not looking at me, he said, "Yeah, she'll be fine. "

  "What's wrong with her?"

  "You know, I am feeling a little grimy after the long day. I think I will take a shower. " He kissed me on the cheek and then blurred into our room.

  He left the bedroom door open for me, but I'd felt the proverbial door slam shut right in my face on the conversation I'd been trying to have with him. It stung as much as an actual door would have. Forcing calmness into my body, I decided that he just didn't want to openly talk about her problems here, with super ears everywhere, but surely he would tell me later. A voice in the back of my head screamed that that didn't excuse the rudeness, but I tried very hard to ignore that voice as I changed back into my jeans and shirt.

  We came back down the stairs just as the final rays of sunlight were calling it quits for the evening. Teren led me to the kitchen, where all the women were talking around the table. They all stopped and looked over at us the second our feet entered the room.

  Halina had an eerie smile on her face. "Good evening, Emma. Did you enjoy the sunshine today?"

  I swallowed and made myself smile back at her. "Yes, very much. " I turned my head to Alanna. "Your home is very beautiful. "

  Alanna smiled and took my hand from Teren's. He
r much cooler hand led me to the chair I'd used last night. "Have a seat. Everything is ready. " She pulled out the chair, plopped me into it, and effortlessly tucked me under the table. Teren sat beside me and rested his hand on my thigh. Jack entered from the kitchen, licking his fingers, and Alanna smacked him on the shoulder, making an affronted noise.

  "Jacob Nathaniel Adams! You better not have been sampling that cake. That is dessert. " She smacked him again on the shoulder as he grinned and kissed her cheek. I tried to make the mental image of a vampire baking a cake, but I just couldn't quite get there.

  "I would never. . . " He gave her a wounded look and then grinned again, ". . . but if I had, it was wonderful, dear. "

  She shook her head with a soft smile on her lips and Teren chuckled beside me. Jack kissed her again on the cheek and she flitted into the kitchen. He took his place at the head of the table and Imogen and Halina sat in their respective seats across from me. Halina and Imogen talked in whispers while Imogen flicked glances at me. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but Teren was frowning and staring at the table in front of him. . . and I swear he was blushing. Curious, I tried to listen harder. Focusing more on trying to hear their quiet conversation than being courteous, I was blatantly staring at them. I stopped the moment Halina met my gaze. She looked very displeased. I thought I heard a low growl escape her throat. . . but maybe I was just hearing things.

  Alanna broke the tension in the room as she flitted in with the fresh fish the boys had caught earlier. She brought in large bowls of a cold pasta dish and a veggie-filled green salad. Everything looked cool and refreshing and wonderful. She set a glass of red wine in front of Jack and me, and gave us glasses of water as well. She heaped up plates for the humans and then brought out the obligatory carafe of blood for the vampires in the room. I immediately dug into my food and ignored what Teren and the women were doing. In my head I kept repeating-"It's just wine, really thick, red wine. " It was a little easier to stomach that way.

  When Teren finished his "thick wine", I looked over at him. I watched him smile in satisfaction, retract his fangs and dig into his fish. And just like that, he was a normal, human guy, enjoying food he himself had caught, quite possibly with his own hands. I smiled at him and, noticing me watching, he smiled back and squeezed the hand still on my thigh.

  His grandmother sighed and I looked over at her. Her fangs were out and her glass was still half-full, but she was looking at Teren and me so wistfully, that I didn't turn away from the sight of her. "The two of you remind me of my husband. " She sighed again. "He was the sweetest man. " I smiled at her recollection, until she continued. "And dumber than a box of rocks. "

  I sputtered a bit on the sip of wine I'd just taken and Imogen laughed at my reaction-a beautiful, rhythmic sound. "He never figured out what I was, and he never asked for an explanation. He thought I never showed my age because I had good genes, and I never ate because I watched my girlish figure. " She sighed again, as her wistful look returned. "He never asked about the teeth. He never asked about the blood. Maybe he was smarter than I give him credit for. Maybe he just loved me for me, and it just never mattered to him. "

  "What happened to him?" I asked hesitantly.

  Imogen smiled sadly and Halina, in a show of affection that I had yet to see, placed her hand around her daughter's shoulders. "He got real sick, not long before Teren was born. He didn't make it. . . "

  Imogen dabbed at her eyes with a napkin and my heart squeezed for her. Suddenly, I wasn't seeing a vampire with a red tongue and sharp fangs. I was seeing a human woman still in mourning over the loss of the man she had loved deeply. It was a heartbreaking realization, that she would mourn him much longer than the average human would mourn their spouse. . . quite possibly forever, I wasn't sure.

  "I'm so sorry, Imogen. . . Gran. "

  Collecting herself, she patted Alanna's knee. "Well, he gave me my daughter. . . before it was too late. " She said the last part oddly, and gave Teren a look that definitely meant something. He shifted in his seat and it seemed like he was stifling a sigh.

  "Teren. . . " she said in a pleading voice.

  Teren's face got tense and he said something to her in a language I didn't recognize. Whatever he was saying sounded a little heated, and I could only stare at him in shock, both for his tone to the sweet woman across from us, and for the fact that he was clearly fluent in another language.

  Imogen spoke back in the same language, her tone nearly matching his. Halina firmed her lips and nodded at whatever Imogen had said. Teren looked about to stand and shout at the two of them, when Alanna silenced the room.

  "Enough!" Alanna looked at Imogen and Halina, and then over to Teren. Jack continued to eat his fish, ignoring what was most definitely an argument. "Emma is a guest and you are all being rude. " She looked across the table at her husband. "Jack, how is the fish, dear?"

  He smiled at his wife. "It's perfect as always, love. "

  They gazed at each other in adoration and, feeling the tension slipping from the room-and wanting to change whatever the subject of the fight had been, which, I had a feeling was me-I asked Jack, "How long have the two of you been married?"

  He tilted his graying head and looked up at the ceiling. "Well, it's got to be over twenty-six years?" He looked back down at his wife with a clear question in his eyes.

  She smiled. "Twenty-seven years, three months, twenty-two days and forty-two minutes. "

  He laughed and shook his head before turning to me. "As you can see, vampires retain things a bit better than us humans. . . especially as we age. " He tapped his head and the entire table laughed, like this was really funny. I found myself laughing as well.

  Still chuckling I asked, "So, no one questions the fact that she looks. . . " I didn't quite know how to finish that question.

  Alanna did. "Half his age?" She giggled like a woman half his age. "We have a couple of other ranches across the country. We stay a decade or two in one, before moving to another, and although we try and keep to ourselves, when we came here, it was quite the scandal-the old man with his twenty-something wife and her sisters. " She indicated herself, Imogen and Halina. "Being siblings is the easiest way to explain how we look. I think some may have thought he had multiple young wives though. "

  Again the entire table laughed and I shook my head at the thought. When Jack's laughs settled down he added, "It's pretty humorous since she is older than I am. "

  Alanna made an affronted noise. "Only by two years. . . that's not so much. "

  Wondering at the oddity of her smiling at him so lovingly, with her fangs clearly extended as she sipped on her glass of blood, I asked a question that I probably shouldn't have. "It hasn't been difficult for you to be married to a human? You've never bitten him?"

  The entire room silenced, and I had the horrible feeling that I'd just asked something really, really inappropriate. Jack scratched his head and looked away, Teren fidgeted in his seat and Imogen grabbed her glass and took a long drink. Halina made no efforts to hide her glee-she openly laughed at me. Alanna shot her a look and she silenced.

  "It's all right to ask. You're new to this. I'm assuming what you're really asking, is if it's difficult to not kill him?"

  I felt heat rush into my face. "Yes. I was just wondering about the. . . thirst part of being a vampire. "

  Alanna smiled and laughed once. "Yes, we do seem to be portrayed as bloodthirsty savages who can barely control ourselves, don't we?" All the vampires laughed at that, and a shiver went down my spine. Alanna regarded me for a moment before answering. "Let me put this in human terms for you. If you're hungry and you go to a grocery store, would you lose all self-control and start shoveling food into your mouth?"

  I grimaced at the image. "No. "

  She smiled. "It's the same for us. " She looked over at him affectionately. "He may be astoundingly tasty, but I'm not about to end his life. I'd miss him too much. " Jack gave her a warm smi
le. I focused on my plate, giving them some privacy for the clear love fest that was going on, while at the same time, suppressing another shudder that wanted to run down my body.

  Imogen sighed, and I looked up to find her watching Alanna and Jack. Meeting my gaze, she said, very quietly, "Do you not find Teren attractive, dear?"

  I blinked and my mouth surely hit the table. Do I what?

  "Gran," Teren growled at her, and her youthful eyes regarded him before returning to mine.

  "We know he's trying, young one, but you seem to be rejecting him. We don't mean to eavesdrop, but. . . he's such a good looking boy, surely you feel some desire for him?"

  I could not even speak. Words could not fully describe the horror flashing through my body. I had no idea why my love life was being brought up at the dinner table, of all places, by Teren's grandmother, of all people. I didn't even know where to begin feeling offended. There was not one thing about the situation that seemed appropriate. Teren seemed to agree-he spat something wicked sounding to her in another language. Alanna looked upset, but I couldn't tell who she was upset with. Jack went back to studiously finishing his plate.

  "If she is not willing to lie with him, she must be replaced," Halina said, rather coldly. I turned to gape at her, and suddenly knew exactly where to begin feeling offended.

  "It's one weekend!" Teren switched back to English and sounded very exasperated as he glared at the both of them. "Back off!"

  Halina narrowed her pale eyes at him; her wild hair seemed to bristle with her words. "One less weekend, Teren. One less, and you have wasted so much time already. Have you even been with her yet?"

  I was ready to wake up from this absurd conversation. I was also ready to storm from the room in a huff. I think only sheer curiosity held me to my chair.

  "What would you have me do?" Teren nearly yelled that at her and I flinched.

  "Whatever it takes, boy!" she yelled back.

  "No!" He yelled something else in the other language and she snapped something back.

  I could barely keep my head from spinning right off my shoulders. Our enjoyable weekend at this dreamlike ranch with his, up until this point, pleasant family, was taking a turn for the worse. Everyone seemed to be angry that Teren and I weren't being intimate here, but that was just nuts. No family, not even a vampiric one, got angry because their son wasn't having sex under their roof. I must have been missing what the argument was really about. I wanted to defend my actions, I just wasn't quite sure what action I needed to defend. Maybe if they'd stop shouting in a language I didn't understand.

  Picking my jaw off the table, I focused my frustrations at Teren, since he was the one I was the most comfortable with. "Stop yelling gibberish, and tell me what the hell is going on, since it's clearly about me!" I yelled, and instantly felt bad for both yelling and swearing at Alanna's table.

  Everyone turned to stare at me, but Alanna was the one who responded. "They aren't speaking gibberish, dear, they are speaking Russian, and Teren is doing that, quite rudely, so you won't understand what he wants to keep from you. "

  My jaw dropped again as Teren turned his face to Alanna. "Mother. . . please. " His voice was quavering as he begged her. "You will ruin everything. "

  Halina scoffed. "Maybe, maybe not. Perhaps she will not be so reluctant if she knows. "

  "Knows what?" I whispered, feeling like a black hole of dread was opening up in my chest and was about to consume me whole.

  Still staring pleadingly at his mother, Teren said in a quavering tone that tore my heart, "I wasn't going to tell her this yet. It's too soon. "

  "Too soon. . . ? You're running out of time, Teren. " His grandmother's face was a mixture of sympathy and panic. "Tell her. . . "

  He sighed and ran a hand down his face.

  Silence fell over the room. Teren sat slumped in his chair, looking for all the world, like he was sorry he'd ever brought me here. Jack had stopped eating and was looking at his son sympathetically and maybe even a bit sadly. Halina and Imogen were flicking glances between Teren and me, and I got the feeling that if Teren didn't tell me whatever was going on, they would. Alanna slowly stretched a hand out to her son and squeezed his arm affectionately.

  Everyone in the room knew something. Everyone knew something that Teren didn't want me to know, something that he was speaking Russian, of all things, to keep from me. The dread in my stomach turned to fire as these facts settled in my head.

  "Tell me what?" My tone was heated, but something was being discussed around the table that I didn't know anything about, and I didn't like that feeling one tiny little bit. "Teren. . . tell me. "

  He let out a sigh that was heavy with reluctance, and ran his hand through his hair. I was positive he wasn't going to tell me. I was sure he was going to say, "It's nothing," and sweep it under the rug, so to speak. So he surprised me when he muttered, "Fine. . . but you're not going to like it. " He hung his head and I couldn't help but think that he looked utterly defeated, like somehow, he'd just lost everything. A chill went down my spine.

  "That doesn't mean I shouldn't hear it. It's pretty obvious your family thinks it's important. . . " I whispered, knowing they would almost all hear me.

  Teren looked up at me then and there was nothing about his visage that looked like he was even remotely joking. Very flatly he said, "I will be dead within six months. "