STEAMPUNK ROMANCE: An Innovative Clockwork Steampunk World Adventure: The Complete Collection Boxed Set (Mystery Suspense Romance Short Stories)

by Haven, Rose

  “Thank you,” she said, smiling at his enthusiasm. “It smells wonderful.”

  “It’s been a long time since I used my pots and pans. They’ve been going to waste.”

  “So you don’t eat? You know…solid food?”

  “We can, and it can sometimes even provide a substitute for blood, although a poor one. Our bodies aren’t living in a traditional sense, so we don’t need much in the way of nutrition. We don’t even need to feed very often. A vampire can live on a once a month feeding.”

  “What about me?” she asked with a cringe. “Will I need to…feed?”

  “No, although you might have the urge to. You’ll also find that as a half-dead, you won’t need as much food, sleep, or water.”

  Eliza opened the door to the fridge—kind of on instinct. She always wandered to the fridge in the morning. She couldn’t help but turn her nose up in disgust. She wasn’t sure what she expected, but even bottles of blood might have been more normal than what she saw. He had a large chunk of bloody beef, and nothing else.

  “I guess that’s what you use as a substitute? Bloody meat?’

  He nodded. “I know it seems bizarre, but I’ve been doing it for a long time now. I’ve forgotten what it was like to crave human food.”

  She ran her hands through her hair, which had tripled in size since the night before. “I’m sorry you have to see my hair like this. I actually have to spend a lot of time straightening it.”

  He chuckled. “Don’t be ridiculous. Women used to be much more natural than they are today, and I prefer them that way.”

  He looked up at her with a mischievous grin, making him look far younger than three hundred years old, not just because of his smooth skin, but because of his demeanor. He looked like he was trying to hold back a smile, almost giddy. Seeing him so happy made her smile too.

  “You’re probably not as hungry as you usually are in the morning,” he said. “I had actually hoped on coming back up stairs to help you build up an appetite first.”

  “Is that so?” Despite being so thoroughly satisfied just the night before, she felt a little rush in her tummy that made her know that she was ready again. She may not feel that hungry for food, but she seemed to have an endless appetite for him.

  She took the spatula out of his hand and pressed her half-naked body against him, tugging on the elastic of his flannel pajama pants. She pulled his pants down just enough for her to get full view of the “V” on his lower abdomen. She ran her fingers along the indentations in his muscles and he stiffened under his pajamas.

  She tilted her head up so she could kiss him while he slid his own hands into her panties and felt the curves of her backside. Even though she wanted to move onto making love as soon as possible, she thought she could kiss him for a long time. He tasted like a winter rain or fresh cold spring water.

  Eliza used her new strength to hoist herself on to the counter—much more gracefully than she would have been able to do before. She didn’t even have to think about it. She instinctively knew where she needed to be so he could enter her at the right angle.

  He didn’t take his opportunity right away. He pressed his abdomen between her hips so his erection rubbed her through the cloth of their respective clothing. Perhaps less patient than him, she pulled back slightly so she could pull off her panties. Then she pulled down the elastic of his pants, releasing his erection. This time, she guided him in right away. She leaned back and moaned, letting the pleasure wipe her mind once again.

  She had forgotten all about her upcoming midterms. She had forgotten about the electric bill that needed paying. And she had certainly forgotten about her ten-year life plan. None if it seemed to matter more than this moment. She could sustain herself on pleasure alone.

  Eliza ended up staying with Levi for forty eight hours before she even considered going home. She lost count of how many times they made love, but somewhere between the moments of blissful emptiness; she remembered Rachelle and her father. If she didn’t love people in the human world, she might not have ever gone back. She no longer cared about school or any mundane detail, but her love for her family hadn’t diminished.

  And now after 48 hours missing, they had probably called the police. Once she realized this, she started to feel guilty. This wasn’t like her, and they knew that, which meant they probably thought she was in serious trouble.

  After a long, lingering kiss goodbye that seemed to make time move slower, Levi played bodyguard as they dashed to her car. She saw a few vampires step out of their homes as she emerged, but as Levi had said, they hadn’t hovered in the street waiting for her to come out for 48 hours so they had an opportunity to dash.

  Although she no longer believed she was hallucinating, she let him drive, just in case her car accident…and two subsequent vampire attacks…had caused more harm that she realized. As they pulled on the highway, via phantom on-ramp 152, Levi reached over and grabbed her hand, as if entering the human world might be as frightening as entering the Gate World.

  “So you really saw Miles David and Thelonious Monk perform live?” she asked.

  “I did.”

  “Wow. Sometime, you’re going to have to tell me everything.”

  “Sure.”

  “It’s funny, I always thought college guys were too immature for me. But I had no idea that I should be shopping in the 300 plus set. Maybe 100 or 200 years old…but 300?”

  He chuckled and glanced at her fondly.

  She had to admit that entering the real world again, did give her a chill. Even though only two days had passed, her entire world seemed different. Everything she had once believed, thought, and wanted was now askew. She was a new person…and maybe not even a person at all. However, as long as Levi was a part of this new reality, she thought it would be worth living.

  THE END

  Vampire Romance

  Crimson and Cold

  Secret Blood Gate World Series Book Two

  Natalia Hunter

  Vampire Romance: Crimson and Cold

  Chapter One

  When Levi pulled Eliza’s car into her apartment complex, her pulse moved so quickly that her veins seemed to hum. Lately, her heart had been beating like that quite a bit. Levi had that effect on her. Although since she was now part vampire—her heart was actually beating slower. But it didn’t feel that way. Levi made her feel more alive, even though technically—she was more dead.

  As if he could sense her nerves, he turned up Mamie Smith’s Crazy Blues on the radio, and Eliza closed her eyes and tried to let the melody calm her. Levi shared Eliza’s passion for vintage blues and jazz, but unlike Eliza, he had a perfectly good reason for liking older music. He was old enough to have actually heard some of the greats play. But at three hundred years old, he didn’t look a day over thirty.

  “Are you sure you don’t want me to go in with you?” Levi asked.

  “I really don’t see how that would help. What would I say? ‘Hey sis, I know I disappeared from the hospital and called you and told you I was in trouble and then didn’t show up again for two days…and this is the guy I was banging while you worried.’”

  After he pulled into a parking spot he reached over and tucked a piece of Eliza’s frizzy hair behind her ear. She hadn’t put on make-up or straightened her hair in days. How could he look at her with such adoration? On the other hand, he looked perfect at all times. Vampires had less pigment than the living and his hair and skin were both light, but his hazel eyes made up for the otherwise cold appearance. Undead or not, his eyes overflowed with life and warmth.

  She smiled back at him, biting her lip as she tried to keep herself from crawling on top of him again as they sat in the parking lot. She was a grown woman with desires, but they had never been this insatiable. Before Levi, sex had consisted of a few moments of pleasure but was mostly just sweaty and awkward. She spent most of her time wondering how much longer it would take and about all the things she would have to do afterward.

  With
Levi it had been nearly the opposite. She had been so engrossed in the present that she had forgotten things far more important than the petty things she used to worry about during sex. It went from, “I wonder what I’ll make for breakfast tomorrow?” and “Did I forget to turn in lab notes?” to forgetting to call her sister and father for two days—two days mostly spent naked with her legs wrapped around Levi.

  “I just need to get it over with,” Eliza said. “Maybe she’ll understand. She falls in love with a new guy every weekend and usually ditches me to go home with him, so she should understand. Really, considering this is the only time I’ve done it to her, it shouldn’t be a big deal.”

  “I’m sorry,” Levi said. “I should have reminded you to call home. I just…wasn’t thinking about that.”

  “Yeah, me neither.”

  Levi leaned in and kissed her, holding her jaw gently in his strong hand. Their lips fit so perfectly together that kissing was as easy as breathing…probably easier than breathing, at least when she was around him. He sucked her bottom lip gently before pulling back and Eliza felt a little rush in her abdomen. She’d made Rachelle wait this long, what were a few more minutes? She could lean his seat back down and crawl on top of him. Then only a few layers of clothes would stand between him and her. She could have him inside her within thirty seconds if she was determined.

  No! Pull yourself together, Eliza.

  Eliza let out a long breath. Her cheeks burned hot and she adjusted her bra against her alert nipples. She put her hand on the door handle and then paused.

  “I know it sounds silly,” she said. “But I’m still a little worried that you’re some kind of brain damage delusion. If I go back into the real world…what if I can’t find you again? Maybe I wandered into the Gate World by accident and I won’t be able to find by way back?”

  “I doubt that,” he said, leaning close enough that a tingle went up her ear. “But if you can’t find me…I’ll find you.”

  “That’s sweet.”

  “I know your scent, so I can track you.”

  “And…now it’s creepy,” she said nudging him with her elbow playfully. “Okay. Okay. Okay. I really am leaving now. I’ll see you soon.”

  She wanted to kiss him one more time but didn’t trust herself to get out of the car if she did. So instead she gave his cold hand one final squeeze and jumped out of the car without looking back.

  Chapter Two

  Rachelle opened the door before Eliza could even reach for her keys. Although one hundred percent human, it seemed like Rachelle could smell her too. As twins, they’d had a “sixth sense” about each other for their whole lives. Even still, Eliza doubted that Rachelle had “sensed” anything about where she had been the past few days. No human could ever guess that.

  Before Eliza could say anything, Rachelle flung herself at her and wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug. Eliza winced. As a half-dead, her bones healed quickly, but she had still been in a major car accident and survived multiple vampire attacks. Her poor ribs had already been broken and healed a few too many times.

  Rachelle sobbed into Eliza’s ear, which made her feel even guiltier than she already did.

  “Thank you, God. Thank you, God,” Rachelle repeated.

  Rachelle finally released Eliza so she could examine her, but they continued to clasp forearms. In comparison to Levi’s whitest of white skin, the transformation hadn’t been as noticeable, but now she could see how much she had changed. With their arms pressed together, Eliza could see how much darker Rachelle’s skin was than hers. They had shared the same café au lait skin tone before the accident, but now a heaping dose of extra milk had been added to Eliza’s. Even vampires with dark skin looked lighter than their human counterparts.

  Fortunately, Rachelle didn’t seem to notice the strange transformation, or if she did she attributed it to the mystery illness that had made her sister lose her mind. Rachelle seemed to be examining every inch of Eliza’s skin, or at least it felt that way to the nervous Eliza. Rachelle even brushed Eliza’s hair off her neck revealing the skin that had been ripped apart by a vampire only days ago. Her half-dead powers of healing had saved her from bleeding to death, and had turned the gaping wound into nothing but a thin pink scar.

  “What happened to you?” Rachelle asked in a breathy tone. “I thought you were dead.” Her voice cracked on the last word and she brought her hands to her mouth to catch a sob.

  Well, you’re half right.

  “I’m so sorry,” Eliza said, meaning every syllable. “I shouldn’t have made you worry.”

  “I don’t understand. Where were you?”

  Rachelle took her hand and pulled her inside. Eliza suddenly felt oddly empty handed and she remembered that she was still wearing the change of clothes her sister had brought her at the hospital. She hadn’t seen her toiletry bag or even a change in underwear for days. Fortunately, she hadn’t been wearing her underwear much lately, so it didn’t really matter…

  Eliza sat down on the couch and Rachelle sat with her, still holding her hand. Rachelle’s hand felt so warm compared to Levi’s, and Eliza knew that her skin was cold too. Would Rachelle notice? And if she did notice, what the hell would she say? All Eliza knew was that she didn’t want to go back to the hospital.

  “Where were you, Lizzie?” she asked again.

  “Well, I told you how I got lost, and that guy was helping me. I’ve been with him.”

  Rachelle gaped at her as if waiting for more explanation.

  “His name is Levi,” Eliza added…as if that would help.

  “What do you mean? Do you understand that it’s been two days since we talked? Did he drug you or something?”

  “No.”

  “Did you dye your hair?” Rachelle frowned and cocked her head at her, as was she considering this strangest of developments. She dropped Eliza’s hand and reached toward her hairband, presumably to release the frizz explosion.

  Eliza swatted her hand away gently, but Rachelle didn’t appreciate the gesture. She scrunched her nose up at her. And Eliza understood why.

  Just this morning, Eliza had been lamenting the loss of her hair color. She had her mother’s African hair mixed with her father’s Irish red. It was unique and multi-dimensional, and she loved it. Her and Rachelle were not identical twins, but they did share the same coloring. Or they used to…

  “So…let me see if I’ve got this straight,” Rachelle said, shifting away from her. “You spent the last two days just hanging out in some random stranger’s house. But somewhere along the way, you found the time to stop at the salon and get highlights? Seriously, what the fuck, Liz?”

  “I want to explain,” Eliza said, and so she did. Ever since they had been kids, Rachelle and Eliza shared everything. When it came to romance, Rachelle had a lot more to share, but Eliza shared her infrequent conquests as well. Every crush. Every kiss. She loved her sister in a deep, enduring way that she doubted any man would ever top. And now she had just met the most amazing man she had ever known, and had experiences that made the rest of her life seem dull and colorless. Not telling her sister every detail went against every instinct she had.

  “I guess I fell in love,” Eliza said. “Well, it might be too soon to say love. But I definitely fell for him. Hard.”

  “What are you saying?”

  Eliza thought she was being pretty clear. “It was…you know…love at first sight.” She wasn’t explaining this well enough. How could she? “So I just stayed with him. I was so engrossed that I didn’t realize how much time had passed. I didn’t mean to make you worry.”

  “I thought you were dead,” Rachelle said again, but this time her voice didn’t break on “dead”. Instead her tone became hard and the word “dead” hit Eliza like a punch to the gut. “And your excuse is that you fell in love? Is he the one who convinced you to ruin your hair?”

  Even though Eliza didn’t appreciate the involuntary lightening either, she had to admit that stung.

  “T
his isn’t like you,” Rachelle continued. “It sounds more like something I would do. But you know what…I wouldn’t. I might become infatuated too fast and run off with guys, but I don’t pull stunts like this. No matter what guys come along, this is the most important thing.” When she said “this” she gestured back and forth between the two of them. “How could you do this to me? Oh my God, and Dad! I have to call Dad.”

  Yes, she became infatuated with a guy and forgot to call. Yes, she was insensitive. Yes, she majorly screwed up. But there were also vampires staked out around the house ready to strike as soon as she walked out the door. She had been brutally attacked and would be dead if she had still been full human. Eliza’s eyes burned with tears, while Rachelle seemed to grow colder. She kept shifting away from Eliza more and more, and the look of hurt and disgust on her face was painful.

  “I love you, Rachelle. This is the most important thing. You and Dad. It’s just…complicated. And weird. I don’t even know how to explain. I really want to tell you everything.”

  Rachelle stood up and threw her hands in the air. The gesture reminded Eliza of their mother even though she hadn’t seen her in a long time. Eliza had vague memories of her mother throwing her hands up like that when the girls were being bad.

  “I still don’t get it, Eliza. If you want to tell me everything, then tell me everything! That’s what sisters do. Honestly, I would love to hear something that makes this whole stupid thing make sense. Please explain it to me.”

  Eliza rubbed the tears off her cheek and swallowed. How was her face so wet but her throat so dry? “Okay,” Eliza said. “I’ll tell you.”

  Rachelle’s green eyes looked like they were about to shoot flames as she waited for Eliza to continue.

  “There is no good way to explain this…so I’ll just start talking. After the accident, I changed. My senses became heightened, and I can heal faster. I can also see things that other people can’t. There is this whole other world right on top of our own. They call it the Gate World. The empty fields by the side of the highway are actually filled with houses and people. You just can’t see them.” Wow. This explanation was not sounding very sane. “The only way to gain access to the Gate World is to taste vampire blood. I don’t know when or how that happened, but it must have, because I was infected. I’m not a vampire…it’s called being a half-dead. It means I’m infected with vampirism but I didn’t become a full vampire because I never actually died. Levi is a full vampire.”