Dark Survivor Awakened

by I. T. Lucas

“I’m going upstairs to change into another shirt.”

  Eva nodded. “Good thinking. You don’t go to a woman's house for dinner wearing this.” She grimaced as she waved her hand over his clothes. “I would suggest that you put on some dress slacks as well.”

  Bossy women.

  Eva was his employer, which gave her the right to boss him around during work hours, but not when he was off the clock. And Sharon had no right at all.

  “I draw the line at the shirt.”

  Eva shook her head. “Suit yourself.” She waddled away toward the kitchen.

  Not trusting Sharon’s instructions, after changing his shirt, Nick did a quick internet search. Apparently, it was in the codebook of dating that a guy had to bring at least one of the three items she’d mentioned when invited for the first time to his girlfriend’s house for dinner.

  Well, why not. Anything to make Ruthie happy and put her in the right mood.

  On the way to her place, he stopped at the supermarket to get the wine, and the chocolates, as well as the flowers—the biggest damn bouquet the store had to offer.

  The bigger, the better, right?

  The question was whether he should grab a box of condoms too, and if yes, what size.

  Had he been reading the signs right? Was Ruth ready for the next step?

  It had started with the night at her house and their first session of heavy necking while watching that porn movie. A brilliant move on his part if he said so himself. It had worked much better than Nick had expected. Who would’ve suspected that Ruthie would get so horny from watching porn?

  Certainly not him.

  The most he’d hoped for was getting her interested in giving necking a try. Boy, had she gone for it. She’d been like a different woman.

  Then yesterday, at the café, when he’d come in for his usual breakfast and lunch, she’d kept sending coy smiles his way. He hadn’t seen her in the evening because she had been invited to Sylvia’s. Which, by the way, wasn’t cool with him.

  He should’ve been invited too. After all, he and Ruthie were an item.

  Ruth had mumbled something about Roni inviting a guy from work, and that she was there as a cook more than a guest.

  Which irked him too.

  Why should Ruth cook for Roni and Sylvia?

  Now he wasn’t sure if Ruthie had invited him for dinner at her place because she felt bad about him not having been invited yesterday, or because she was interested in more snogging.

  Or if he were incredibly lucky, maybe even more than that.

  Hence the condoms.

  Eh, what the hell. He grabbed several boxes, each in a different size.

  As he put everything on the checkout counter, the cashier dude gave him a knowing nod, the equivalent of one bro telling another good luck. The guy swiped Nick’s credit card, then put everything other than the flowers in a brown paper bag.

  “Thank you.” Nick took the bag and the flowers and made a hasty exit.

  The cashier was a guy his age, and Nick hadn’t minded the nod. But everyone standing in line behind him had no doubt guessed his plans for tonight as well.

  Damn it, he should have bought the condoms at a pharmacy.

  Whatever. What was done was done.

  He didn’t do grocery shopping at that supermarket anyway. At least he’d done one thing right.

  Looking left and right to make sure the drivers of the cars parked next to him were not sitting inside them, Nick pulled the three boxes of condoms out of the bag. It wasn’t as if he could walk into Ruth’s house with a paper bag full of condoms.

  After unwrapping the cellophane covers, he opened the boxes and pulled out one packet from each.

  In the movies, guys always had a condom in their wallets, but he doubted all three packets would fit in his.

  Should he try them on for size in the car?

  Nah, even he wasn’t that crazy.

  He would have to choose one. Nick decided to bet on the large. The medium was probably too small, and thinking he needed an extra-large was a bit optimistic on his part.

  But what if he messed it up and the thing tore?

  Just to be safe, he stuffed two more in his back pocket.

  Damn, it was so stupid of him not to think of practicing with putting on rubbers before.

  46

  Ruth

  “Oh, my goodness! What’s all that?” Ruth took the box of chocolates and the bottle of wine, leaving Nick to hold the enormous bouquet.

  “Isn’t it customary for a guy to get his girl flowers and the other stuff when she invites him for dinner?”

  If he were embarrassed, she couldn’t tell because his face was hidden behind the ginormous bouquet, and she couldn’t smell his emotions either, because the smell of flowers was overwhelming.

  “Follow me to the kitchen. I don’t think I have a vase big enough for that.”

  “Too big, eh?” Nick chuckled.

  Knowing her guy, he was probably biting the inside of his cheek not to add a that’s-what-she-said.

  Silly boy, she loved his stupid jokes, even those no one else laughed at. Crude humor was better than no humor, and Ruth had discovered that she liked to laugh.

  Not that anyone knew that about her. Most of the time she was too shy to laugh out loud, opting to smirk quietly while hiding her face.

  Not with Nick, though, not when they were alone. He didn’t mind that her laughter sounded like that of a rabid hyena. In fact, he loved it because it made him laugh too.

  “How about that?” She pulled out her biggest pot.

  “Are you going to cook them or sniff them? And speaking of sniffing, what’s that delicious smell? I can’t see anything from behind these damn flowers.”

  “Give ’em.” She took the bouquet, dumped it in the pot and took it to the sink to fill with water.

  “You’re stronger than you look,” Nick said as she carried the pot to the living room. “But you should’ve let me do it.”

  Oops. Small slips like that were exactly why relationships between immortals and humans were not a good idea. It was hard to monitor every move and make sure she didn’t do anything weird.

  “It’s all the weeding I do in my garden. You have no idea how hard it is to pull those suckers out. It's a better workout than lifting weights. ” She put the pot on the floor next to the front door.

  When she turned around, Nick was no longer behind her. Instead, he was in the kitchen lifting lids off the various pots and pans and peeking inside.

  “You cooked enough for twelve people, Ruthie. Are you expecting more guests?”

  She didn’t need immortal super senses to know Nick hoped to be the only one she planned on entertaining tonight.

  “No, it’s just you and me.”

  The truth was that Ruth always cooked too much when she was nervous. It calmed her down. But this time even that hadn’t been enough.

  After deciding that tonight was the night she was taking Nick to her bed, she’d been a nervous wreck.

  First and foremost, because if it turned out to be as bad an experience as she’d had before, it would ruin the good thing she and Nick had.

  He would be so disappointed.

  But she wasn’t going to let it happen no matter what. If need be, she would fake an orgasm. Nick had nothing to compare her to, so he wouldn’t even know the difference. She could moan and pant like the actress in that porn movie.

  So what if it was dishonest.

  She wasn’t going to lose the best thing in her life because of her inability to enjoy intercourse. As Nick had shown her the night before last, there were plenty of other ways to enjoy intimacy. They could spend most of the time touching and caressing and licking each other for pleasure, and dedicate only a little bit of time to the act itself.

  But that wasn’t the only reason for her nervousness.

  While watching the movie, Ruth had realized something that had confused her. The part that had turned her on the most was the one Nick had been sur
e would scare her off.

  It hadn’t been the actor’s impressive size, she could’ve done without seeing that. Body parts didn’t excite her, the situation did. When the professor took charge, pushing the student face down on the desk, that was when Ruth had nearly orgasmed.

  As someone who’d had a bad experience, that should’ve turned her off, scared her, not turned her on. And yet, her body had reacted most unexpectedly. Maybe the difference was seeing the actress so aroused and responsive. It had been enviable.

  Did she want Nick to be more assertive with her and take charge?

  Ruth wasn’t sure.

  And if she did, could he do it?

  Nick was a confident guy as far as his smarts and his skills went. So he had it in him. If she were less of a scaredy cat, he might have been less hesitant. But then she probably would’ve freaked out.

  Confusing? You bet.

  Where was the balance? How could she reconcile her need for a dominant lover and her fears?

  How could she expect poor Nick to know what to do when she herself didn’t know what she wanted?

  Ugh, she needed help. Maybe she should find a human sex therapist, preferably in a different city, a female of course, and ask her to explain how two such conflicting feelings could coexist, and what could she do about them.

  Nick came out of the kitchen, rubbing his washboard abs. “If everything tastes as good as it smells, you’ll have to roll me out of here.”

  “Or I’ll feed you more until you can’t fit through the door. You’ll be trapped here forever.” She led him to the dining room. “Take a seat and prepare to get pampered.”

  Nick laughed as he shook out the napkin and put it over his lap. “Why does it sound like a threat instead of a promise?”

  “Because it is.” She leaned over him from behind and kissed his forehead. “I’m going to seduce you with my gourmet cooking and never let you go.”

  “Oh, baby, you could feed me dog food for all I care, and I wouldn’t want to leave.”

  She slapped his bicep playfully. “If you call my famous roast dog food, I’m going to kick you out, close the door, and never invite you again.”

  “Oh, no!” He cupped his cheeks in mock horror. “Anything but that. I will stand outside your door and howl until you let me in.” He demonstrated. Loudly.

  “Stop it. The neighbors will think I have a wolf in here.”

  Nick smirked. “A very hungry wolf.”

  “Don’t worry.” She patted his shoulder. “If by the time you finish eating, you’re not ready to admit that this was the best meal you’ve ever had, I’ll know you’re lying.”

  47

  Nick

  Nick patted his stomach. “It’s the best meal I’ve ever had.” And he wasn’t lying or exaggerating.

  Ruth had the touch.

  It was like magic. With the perfect blend of seasoning and the ideal combination of flavors, she’d transformed ordinary dishes into something special.

  “Thank you.” Ruth bowed her head.

  He rose to his feet and started collecting the dishes. “I’ll clean up.”

  “Let’s do it together, so it will go faster.” She blushed.

  What was going on?

  All during dinner he’d made her laugh with his ridiculous stories and his dumb jokes. Ruthie had seemed happy and relaxed. Now she looked anxious again.

  Was she afraid he was going to initiate something?

  The truth was that this was exactly what he’d had in mind, but if that made her so nervous, he would have to change his plans.

  Regrettably.

  Nick had been hoping that after tonight, he would finally be a virgin no more.

  When they were done with the cleanup, Ruth took his hand and led him out, but instead of taking him to the living-room couch, she took him down the hallway to her bedroom.

  No way, it was actually happening, he was going to get laid.

  I’m such a moron. It’s not like some random chick is doing me a favor. This is Ruthie, the girl I love.

  “I think it’s time,” Ruth said as she looked into his eyes. “I love you, Nicki. And I know you love me.”

  “I do.” He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her gently, running small circles on her back over and over again because he had no idea what to do next.

  “You’ll have to tell me what to do, Ruthie,” he whispered in her ear.

  She smiled up at him, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “After watching so much porn, I thought you knew everything there was to know.”

  “I do. But I doubt you want me to treat you like a porn star.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Why not?”

  “Because, because.” Suddenly he was stuttering. “Because you’re not. You’re shy.”

  She leaned her forehead on his chest. “What if I’m tired of being shy? What if I want to be confident and assertive like the girl in the movie?”

  He chuckled. “That girl is probably a grandma by now.”

  For some reason that made her giggle.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “Nothing. It’s just hard to imagine her as an older woman.” Ruth giggled again.

  She was either nervous or drunk on the wine they’d had with dinner. Hell, he was nervous too.

  “I have an idea,” Ruth murmured into his chest. “Since we are both kind of nervous and don’t know what to do. How about we role-play? We can reenact that movie.” As she lifted her face to him, her lower lip was caught between her teeth.

  She looked so adorable he could eat her up. Hey, maybe he would. Later, after they did the scene from the movie.

  Nick liked the idea, a lot. This was familiar territory, and he knew what to do. Besides, the movie had made Ruthie horny as hell.

  “Works for me. Who do you want to be, the student or the professor?”

  “The professor.”

  He’d asked it as a joke. Ruth’s choice had taken him by complete surprise. “Really?”

  “But with a twist,” she added with a sly smile.

  “That I can’t wait to hear.” He sat on the bed and pulled her down onto his lap. “Tell me.”

  “Since you’re the virgin and I’m the more experienced, older woman, I think it makes more sense for me to play the professor and you the naughty student who lusts after his bookish and yet sexy teacher.”

  “Perfect. Go on.”

  Ruthie’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “I’m a divorcee who hasn’t been with anyone for years. I’m practically a virgin again. I have this very sexy student I’ve had my eye on since the beginning of the year, but he is way too young for me. I did my best not to let him see how much he affected me, but he figured it out. He comes to my office after hours on the pretext of needing my help with a difficult subject.”

  Talking fast as if afraid to lose her nerve, Ruth had run out of breath. It seemed as if she had it rehearsed. How long had she been planning the scene? Since they’d watched the movie?

  “That’s it. That’s all I’ve got. Can you take it from there?” She looked at him with hopeful eyes.

  “I definitely can.” He glanced around her bedroom. “Do you have a room with a desk?”

  A look of uncertainty crossed her eyes. “My sister’s room. She moved out several months ago.”

  That’s right. Sylvia, Ruth’s sister, was living with her boyfriend now. “She wouldn’t mind?”

  “I'm not going to tell her. Are you?”

  48

  Ruth

  Sitting behind the desk in Sylvia’s old room, Ruth waited for Nick’s knock on the door with part apprehension and part excitement.

  Somehow the role-playing made everything seem lighter. It was so different from before, and Nick was the complete opposite of Sylvia’s father. With his humor and his playfulness and his gentle nature, Nick was everything the other guy hadn’t been, and Ruth had a much easier time separating the two experiences in her head.

  Perhaps she was going to have fun this t
ime. Yes, that was how she needed to think. Positive attitude was half the journey to success. And who knew? Maybe after tonight she would join the other immortal females in obsessing about sex. In a good way.

  Ruth chuckled. Way to get carried away.

  If she survived tonight without sustaining or inflicting new emotional scars, she would count it as a huge success.

  “Knock, knock,” Nick said as he opened the door. “Can I come in?”

  She waved a hand. “Please do. How can I help you, Nickolas?”

  Nick sucked in a breath. “I’ve never liked my full name until I heard it coming from your luscious lips, Professor.” He sauntered toward her and sat on a corner of her desk. “You can call me Nickolas whenever you want.”

  “That’s most inappropriate behavior for a student, Nickolas. Please remove your backside from my desk.”

  He leaned forward, his face hovering a couple of inches away from hers. “On one condition. You change my grade from a C to an A.”

  Getting into the role, Ruth leaned away from him and crossed her arms over her chest. “Not going to happen, Nickolas. Please take a seat, in a chair, and tell me what you need help with.”

  Instead of giving her more lip, Nick dropped to the floor and knelt at her feet. “Please, Professor. You’ve tortured me enough.”

  He put his hands on her knees and pushed her pencil skirt a little up. “You come to class with those nerdy narrow skirts, and those nerdy thick glasses, and those pouty pink lips, and you scramble my brain. I have such a gargantuan crush on you.”

  Ruth stifled a smile. She’d never worn glasses, but she liked knee-length pencil skirts. They weren’t nerdy, though.

  As he slid her skirt a couple of inches higher, his warm hand on her thighs creating heat somewhere else, Nick looked up at her with puppy eyes. “Please, have mercy on me. Let me kiss you. Just one kiss.” He lifted a finger.

  “Well, it’s highly inappropriate, but I guess one kiss would do no harm.”

  “Thank you.” He clasped her hands and kissed both backs. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”