by Nadia Heaton
“I’m going to give you the cliff notes, of course, as not to waste time. I’m sure that if you choose to stay at my side, you will surely hear the details of my life, if you so choose to, and I would happily divulge any information that you seek.”
“Thank you,” Marianne replied. She was more thankful that he was still giving her the option to back out of it all. There was no remorse in the way he spoke, nor did he attempt to goad her into believing that this life would be good for her. He was merely talking to her as a person, teaching her of his past and letting her decide if she wanted to be a part of his future. The consideration made her blush, turning away and sipping at her drink again, this time hitting the rocks and ready for another. With two fingers across the bar, the waitress knew she was ready for her next and would bring it post haste.
“I learned how to use my weapons as best I could. I was a young boy then, no older than fifteen at the time, but already showed promise as a warrior and a fighter. Those who ran the training facilities saw and sent word through the chain of command to Dracula himself. I believe that this happened under special instruction because what came next was a rather interesting turn of events.”
“Do go on,” Marianne said.
“I was approached one night, nearing my eighteenth, or maybe nineteenth birthday, a few weeks after a glorious victory on the battlefield where I stood at Dracula’s side to fight off those who came before us. Though we never shared the same space, I fought on and so did he, I believe he must have been watching me. You see, the man who approached me was not human, and just by the way he walked and the way he talked, I could tell there was something off about him. This man was a vampire.” Cedric turned away, looking on at his glass almost longingly.
“The vampire, my master it later turned out, gave me instruction to meet with Dracula in his home and I did so without consideration or fear. This was the best decision I could have made, being introduced to the ways of those who lived a life eternal. He, much like I am with you, gave me time to think on it and make sure that it would be something I could live with. Had he been certain that he could live forever and not feel the weight of endless turmoil on his shoulders; he would have done so I’m sure. But alas, I took the time to consider my options and decided to give in, becoming one of his special guard the Dracul. We fought many battles together, the Dracul family and I. We served under Vladimir Tepes until his death and continued fighting side by side for many a year after that. We disbanded the brotherhood somewhere near the seventeenth century when I parted ways to come to America, other’s fled to Africa, some to the United Kingdom and so on, to lead the lives we believed best for us.”
Marianne couldn’t get enough information about Cedric’s history. His long explanations might have made others bored of listening, but she was captivated and needed to know everything. And so her questions to keep the story flowing continued. “And how are they doing now?”
“Out of the eighty-four members of the Dracul guard, only seven remain.” A visible note of sadness struck in Cedric’s voice.
“I’m so sorry,” Marianne replied, but Cedric brushed it off with a wave of the hand and came back to reality from his distant memory long ago.
“That’s all behind us now anyway. But now it’s my turn.”
“Your turn for what?” Marianne asked.
“To ask a question, isn’t that how the game’s played?” Cedric cocked a brow.
“I mean, I guess so? What do you want to know?”
“What’s your interest in being the bride of a vampire?”
Here it comes, she thought, knowing that it was inevitable that she would have to state her intentions. Something along the lines of I’ve loved supernatural shit since I was a kid wouldn’t cut it. But she thought about it, she considered her story long before the pair of them even came into the same room together. Why did she want this? What was she really going for? The bride of a monster had a nice ring to it, but she was going to die someday and he would go on without her.
She even considered Beth in the run-up to the question. She was young once and wanted to find the same life as Marianne was looking for. If this was the case, then when she was older, would Cedric just forget about her and move on? That didn’t seem like the right thing to do, and yet what else was there to do? She was certain they wouldn’t be able to have children and most importantly, mortality would get in their way.
So was she just going to be a companion for the rest of her life and when she was gone it was all for nothing anyway?
A strange string of thoughts, she considered, taking the drink from the waitress who stood there holding it in front of her for far longer than she should have before Marianne realized it.
“I’ve thought about the questions long and hard. I knew it was going to come up at some point and I’ve thought about every conceivable answer that I could give you, and you know what, Mr. King, I have absolutely no idea.”
Marianne turned away, somehow believing that was going to be the nail in the coffin that would chase him away.
“So you’re not afraid to be around me, you know that you want this – not that I’m saying you want it with me – but you have no idea why?”
“Correct.”
“That’s why I’m happy to let you think about it all before you even consider an answer.” Cedric looked around the room. “But I would highly recommend that if you do pursue this venture, you take strong heed in which you choose as a suitor. Very few are willing to give you the same comfort as I am, and most will take you under force.”
“What do you mean?”
“Not everyone is good in this world, Marianne; I believe you know this as well as I do. Vampires can be the most charming and greatest people you’ll ever meet, or they will be those monsters and demons that you read about in your fairy tale stories. No two are alike, like snowflakes and fingerprints.”
Cedric’s eyes lazily drifted off to the same man Marianne saw earlier that night at the jukebox. They remained locked in an uncomfortably long stare before the man across turned away.
“But enough about that, how are you enjoying your evening?” Cedric said suddenly, nearly making Marianne jump in her seat. Whatever that was felt uncomfortable, the one who looked back felt dangerous, but Marianne wasn’t sure if that was just because he was looking on at Cedric in jealousy or not.
“I’m having a great time,” she replied, blocking those thoughts out, “I’m having a few drinks with a handsome, charming man. What more could a girl ask for?”
Marianne chuckled, throwing a single hand forward and stroking his arm. It was a way to probe how he would react to her touching him. She was good at flirtation and banter, and she was the queen of an easy one night stand where necessary. Not that she expected it to go that far tonight, but she did want to make sure that they were somewhat compatible.
Cedric accepted and in his own wink and nod acknowledged her advances.
Good, she thought. “How are you enjoying your evening?”
“Considering that it’s the first time I’ve come on a date in a very long time, I really am enjoying myself,” Cedric replied.
“And why’s that? Because of Beth?” Another burning question left her lips. She wasn’t sure how Cedric would respond or react, knowing that if she was a past lover then maybe her leaving now would be a hard thing for him to deal with.
“Beth? Of course not.” He tilted his head a little. “Beth and I were never romantically inclined. She was something special to me, one that I wanted to have when I was younger but would never have me because of my vampirism. I never fought it. She helped me with my family, made life easier for us all. She was the best mother we could have all asked for.”
“Interesting,” Marianne replied, but at the end of it all, it did seem like he was trying to lead her to believe that he and Beth were connected somehow. Maybe it was to test her and see how she would react to it all, or maybe she skewed the signals herself, trying to put pieces of a puzzle togeth
er, that would just never fit.
“So why haven’t you dated then?” she asked.
“Don’t really have the time. Or didn’t for a while. There was a long going on within the community that needed tending to before I could try and find someone easy enough to settle down with. Things have changed and I’m a fairly free man now, I guess, so I’m looking to find a lover and a friend who I can go through life with.”
“Well, maybe we’re lucky and that’s me,” Marianne, after only spending this short time with him, knew that she wanted to be with him. Even if it was only for a short while, even if it was only pure carnal desires that roared through her; those which lingered inside her for years now, to be with a vampire or werewolf in some teenage dream.
“Maybe we are,” Cedric replied, making a move of his own by resting his hand on Marianne’s knee. A charming smile grew across his face and a teasing look that made her want to kiss him right there and then. If anything more happened, she would let it happen, but she fought the urge, knowing that it was probably just the whole situation and the vodka talking.
“So do you have anything else planned for the night?” Marianne asked.
“No,” Cedric replied. “I thought we could really get to know each other. Sit around here, have a few drinks and enjoy the night while we waited for the sun to come up.”
“Ah, that’s when you have to go, hey?”
“Not necessarily. As long as your curtains block light out, I guess I can spend my day there.” Cedric’s charming smile was replaced with a wicked grin.
“That was really smooth,” Marianne replied.
“Thank you, I rehearsed it all day.”
“I somehow believe that you’re telling me the truth,” Marianne finished her drink.
“Why would I ever lie, not much reason to do so,” he winked.
“You don’t know these twenty-first century men. They’ll say and do anything to get into a woman’s pants. Especially when what lies beneath is as good as mine.” Marianne returned the wink.
“Chivalry is dead.” Cedric pursed his lips nodding. “But I wouldn’t be going along with that whole honest thing I was talking about earlier if I didn’t say I’ve already checked out all your… assets.”
“Another one you’ve been rehearsing all day?”
“Of course.” Cedric laughed. “Do you really think I’d be that witty on the spot?”
“You never know, most of you handsome types usually are.”
“Most of us handsome types usually read books about the game and how to play girls. So that’s a downside.” Both Cedric and Marianne couldn’t help but laugh at his comment. It was true and they both knew it. Men were animals. Especially men in modern society.
“It must be hard for you to come from a time where real men existed and now you have to deal with these bunch of pansies,” Marianne said.
“It was a very slow decline in masculinity to where we are now. So I guess I never realized how bad it was until now,” Cedric replied.
“Well, it must have been nice while it lasted anyway,” she said.
The conversation died there for a moment. Again, Marianne got caught up in her own head, wondering if she killed the mood by breaking away from them flirting to talk about how society was lacking in true alpha males and bringing some strange political agenda into what wasn’t meant to be more than a joke. Not that she really thought that way. But picking apart everything, it became uncomfortable for her. She looked at him, and he back at her and both were smiling. Her cheeks were hot with how hard she was blushing but he seemed unphased by the entire situation.
Why was this so awkward?
Maybe it wasn’t and this was meant to be a content silence. That’s what it could have been, content. But her mind was an oddly strange place to be in under any scrutiny at all. He brought his whiskey back up to his lips and sipped another small drop.
“I need to go pee,” she said suddenly. Why didn’t I say go to the bathroom, she thought, blushing up again.
“I’ll be waiting here,” Cedric replied.
Marianne hopped to her feet, grabbed her purse and rushed towards the ladies room at the other end of the bar. While she walked, more seductively than she would have in any other situation, she threw her eyes over her shoulder to see if Cedric was looking at her.
Of course he was. His eyes were fixed on her frame as she stepped, probably enjoying the view of her ass, throwing his eyes up nervously as she turned around. Marianne winked at him, before turning back to allow his ogling to continue without her interruption.
Things still weren’t awkward, she thought, walking onward.
3
Cedric
“Quite a pretty bird you got yourself there, Cedric.” The voice came from behind. It was a thick, British accent, somewhere from the North but not quite Scotland, not that any of that mattered to Cedric. He knew the man who stood behind him, the man that had been leering over at the pair all night, the six foot five brute of a vampire; Jericho.
“She is rather lovely, isn’t she?” Cedric replied, not turning back to face the vampire that stood behind him. Not that he was afraid to do so, no Jericho was a young blood and would never have much chance standing toe to toe against Cedric, but because he knew that the young blood was a hot-headed mess and would rush to a fight no matter how small the inconvenience.
That’s what Cedric was more afraid of. Jericho was happy to expose himself before all these people, Cedric was not.
“What do you want, Jericho?”
“Well, I know her little secret. She’s looking for a strong vampire to mate with.” A low growl rumbled through Cedric.
“She’s looking for a partner. Not a mate,” he replied.
“What’s the difference?”
“The fact that you have to ask that means you’re not ready for this kind of thing. Now I would suggest you leave before she return,” Cedric replied.
“Or else what?”
“Or else I will hunt you down while you skulk the alleyways near the docks looking for your next meal, and I will make you suffer in ways that are unimaginable. You are not going to lay a hand on Marianne, nor are any of the others in your band of misfit rats. Do you understand me?”
“I get ya’,” Jericho replied, but Cedric knew that this was not going to be last he saw of the man. Jericho was a fool, one that felt stronger than he was and with the backing of a few friends thought that he could do and say whatever he thought was right. Much like the male population, Cedric thought, he was a blinded fool that lost his way.
“So push on then, Jericho. I do believe she will be here shortly,” Cedric said, and the lumbering brute left. He went so far as to leave the building altogether, which surprised Cedric. Knowing that pack rat, he would have stuck around just to try and seem intimidating.
“Who was that?” Marianne asked, catching Cedric by surprise. Because of the rude intrusion, he hadn’t spotted her coming, and he really didn’t want to get into that conversation, as was the reason he wanted Jericho to be gone before she arrived, now he was stuck in it.
“That was Jericho. Remember when I said there are a lot out there that won’t be much good for you? Well, he’s at the top of that chain.”
“Let’s be fair, I think I’ve already made a fairly good decision in meeting with you here tonight,” she said, a smile brimming from ear to ear.
Cedric gestured that she take her seat again, and Marianne did.
“That might just be because I’m more charming than you thought I would be. I mean, looks can really only get you so far if it’s for anything more serious than a night, you know,” Cedric replied, extending his hand back to her leg. This time she placed her own hand on his, squeezing softly.
“That may definitely be the case but let’s be fair here, if you weren’t handsome, and extremely charming, I probably still wouldn’t have taken you home tonight,” Marianne replied.
“A girl who knows what she wants, ‘ey?”
; “That’s me,” she brought her glass back up to her lips, swallowing half the contents before putting it back down. Cedric did the same but finished his ordering one more. He wasn’t going to get drunk tonight, not that it was very easy to as a vampire. The alcohol worked differently and often times took more than ten times the normal man. His intake was purely for the enjoyment of the drink rather than feeling the effects.
But, and it seemed like she was, if Marianne attempted to keep up with him he would slow her down. He didn’t want the night to go on to where she was so drunk she couldn’t coherently stand let alone make a decision of sleeping with him. Everything needed to be comfortable and organic, within sober minds and more.
This was what she wanted to be he needed to be extremely sure.
A gentleman beyond the word.
“Do you maybe want to get out of here after this drink? That whole situation put me in a bit of a fuss and I think a walk around Central Park might clear my head.”
“That sounds pretty great to me. I love night time walks. Don’t really do them that often anymore because of all that’s been happening lately,” Marianne said.
“What’s been going on lately?”
“Crime mostly. Don’t you know about any of that?”
“I suppose I do,” he said suddenly. “I don’t really think about crime all that much though. It’s not really something that scares me, I guess. But that’s because I’ve got many natural defences against anyone that would come after me.”
“Well a petite, sexy girl like myself that could even make baggy pants and a sweatshirt somehow look hot doesn’t really have that same kind of advantage.” She laughed.
And how her laugh made what remained of Cedric’s heart warm up. He had done his due diligence on Marianne and with everything he learned, he believed that he could fall madly in love with her. She was brave, she was smart, she was different than the modern women who sat on their cell phone’s Instagramming their lunch or tweeting a picture of their coffee. She was a real person, who made him want her all the more, and when he finally got to this point, when he finally got to meet her – all his expectations were abolished. She was everything that he’d found out about her and more. She was perfect in her own way and he wanted to have that perfection at his side.
