I listened to the rhythmic beating of her heart, calm and steady. Her pulse began to slow down, the first sign she was slipping into slumber. I couldn’t even imagine the exhaustion she must be feeling to be able to fall asleep so easily, and lately, so often.
I kept one hand on her lower stomach, using my other to sweep her hair away from her face. She didn’t move a muscle; she was already deep asleep.
I studied her profile. Her pale complexion matched the creaminess of her eyelids. Her nose had a perfect slope, leading down to an adorable button nose. Her cheeks were contoured, the fullness angling down to her chin, creating a heart; her nose and chin were the center points, the beginning and end that bowed out to surround her full, rose-colored lips.
Through the bubbles, I watched her chest rise and fall in tempo. Her arms were flaccid, and her palms were resting on my legs. I smiled. She was beautiful. Even before her transformation, when she had more curves…I loved her. And though time has passed, I’d yet to actually define my love for her. It was indescribable; a passion - a pull - drawing me to her, forming an inseparable bond that could never be denied.
Whenever she was gone, my chest felt hollow and my gut stayed tense until the moment she fluttered back into the room. As soon as my eyes land on her, all my fears and worries disappear, and for a split second, my heart feels like it’s leaping out of my chest towards her. I couldn’t bear the thought of never feeling relief from seeing her every day; I couldn’t imagine the bleak idea of never laying eyes on her again or never being able to touch her. In some strange way, I felt for Kai. I knew he loved her, but I would never want to endure the torture of not being able to truly love her…mind, body and soul.
Lexi rolled onto her side, pressing harder into my chest. I slid one arm under her knees; the other cradled her shoulder. I hoisted her effortlessly into me as I stood. I grabbed a towel off the counter, awkwardly wrapping it around her with one hand, trying not to jostle her too much. I carried her into the bedroom. Pulling back the comforter, I gently laid her down. Immediately, she turned into the center of the bed, cuddling up against one of the pillows.
I pressed my lips to her shoulder and a drop of water trickled over her skin, landing on my mouth. With the towel lying beneath her, I carefully lifted it up, over her body. I lightly patted her dry, as best I could, before tucking the comforter over her shoulders and under her chin.
I returned to the bathroom and blew out all of the candles. Grabbing another towel from the linen closet, I dried off before throwing on a pair of old, worn, athletic shorts and a thin, black, V-neck. I checked on Lexi one last time before heading to the living room.
I picked up my phone off the kitchen island. As soon as I saw the message on the screen, I went over to my Mac Book on the computer desk and powered it on. I logged in to Skype, immediately answering the call that came in.
“What do you have?” I asked, focusing on the silhouette staring back at me.
I couldn’t make out too much about him. He looked to be about my height with a solid build. Based on the angles of the shadows and the way his clothes were framing him, if I had to guess, I would say he was wearing a leather jack and jeans.
“She was last spotted in Cape Town, South Africa,” his deep voice stated.
I pursed my lips. I wasn’t fond of traveling, especially in light of Lexi’s current condition. “What’s her schedule?”
“It’s encrypted; no access. You’d be going in blind.”
“How many are assigned there?”
“That’s unknown.”
I took a deep breath, my pulse skipping. “I’m lying low for now. Keep me updated.”
“Suit yourself,” the dark figure replied, immediately disconnecting the call.
I sighed and leaned back in the chair, pushing my tongue against my gums. They were aching from this new information. The vampire in me was screaming to go; my logical side, however, was keeping me planted here with Lexi. It wouldn’t do any good if I went off half-cocked. I had more than myself to think about now. I couldn’t be as careless as I was before.
***
Lexi
I yawned, stretching and rolling over. A cold breeze blew over me, startling me. I glanced down and found myself naked in bed; clearly the covers had clearly been over me sometime before I’d managed to twist myself beyond their hems.
I climbed out of bed, taking the towel with me and wrapping it around myself. I still felt a bit foggy. Although I was here, physically, my brain was slow to process things. I immediately headed for the closet to get dressed.
I shrieked, leaping into the air as Kellan’s lips connected with my skin.
He burst into a fit of laughter. “Sorry, babe.” He pulled me back into his arms. “Did you have a good nap?”
I nodded. “How long was I asleep?”
“About four hours.”
I scrunched my nose. “I’m not liking this whole sleep thing. How did I ever get anything done as a human?”
“Craig called. He and Mel wanted to see if you we were free to go to the movies tonight.” He gave me a pointed look. “Are you ready to tell them?”
“I know I have to.” I bit my bottom lip. He ran his thumb across it, forcing me to release my hold. “I just don’t think Mel is going to take it well.”
“You’re best friends. Do you really think she’s going to turn her back on you?”
“No. I’m more worried about her giving me the third degree.”
“I’ll be there with you. I’ll be your all-mighty protector.” He pumped his biceps, making a show of kissing them.
I playfully pushed his shoulder. “Go, so I can get dressed. Tell them to pick a movie and a time.”
I turned back to the row of clothes, unable to focus on them. I swallowed several times, my mouth watering and serum rising from the vision of a bowl of cold, vanilla ice cream, draped in strawberry, blood sauce with colorful sprinkles on top. It played out in my mind like a provocative commercial, each layer falling into place in slow motion, enticing me. I frowned. It was too soon for cravings, wasn’t it? I ran my tongue along the inside of my mouth, trying to chase away the desire.
If I concentrated hard enough, I swore I could even taste it. I whimpered. I didn’t like this feeling. The need for this specific food was so intense that my stomach growled.
“What do you want?”
My head snapped in the direction of his voice. I was surprised to find Kellan smirking at me, amusement lighting his eyes as he watched me from the doorframe of the closet.
“How did you know?” I gazed at him in wonder; I knew my eyes were wide.
“Because I know my baby.” He winked.
I sighed. “I didn’t think things would hit me like this…at least not this soon.”
“Just tell me what you want, and I’ll get it.”
I looked at him through veiled lashes, feeling my cheeks flush. The tempting images replayed in my mind, igniting a new wave of longing. “Vanilla ice cream with my strawberry, blood sauce and rainbow sprinkles on top.” I thought about it for another moment, the details of the images commanding my attention. Thick, gooey, sweet red jam cascading over frozen scoops of vanilla deliciousness. Delightfully, a new layer was added. I mentally watched fluffy clouds of fresh whipped cream being piled atop the layers of melting, melding goodness, and to top it off, a new layer of colorful sprinkles were scattered on top, as a final tasty embellishment. “Oh! With whipped cream too!” He grinned wide. “Please?” I flushed.
“I’m on it.” He gave me a military salute, immediately heading for the kitchen.
I knew my cheeks were still red. I was embarrassed to have such a human hankering. Humans craved food; vamps were supposed to crave blood. And I was a vampeen that survived off blood, not food.
When he returned with the heaping bowl, I was still standing there, contemplating my fate for the next nine months. He kissed my cheek, passing the dish to me. I inhaled deep, closing my eyes and moaning as the scent stimu
lated me.
“Go eat. I’ll pick an outfit out for you.” He turned me towards the bedroom.
I dug in, spooning a large bite into my mouth. The cold merriment of flavors was orgasmic. I sighed in bliss, enjoying the taste of vanilla and fruit accentuated by a creamy layer of whipped heaven. It melted down my throat, my serum disappearing with it. I munched on the sprinkles, shivering in delight.
“You are utterly adorable right now.” Kellan nestled into my neck.
He ushered me through the bedroom, as I shoveled another spoonful into my mouth. We crossed the threshold into the living room, and I saw that he had set out my clothes across the back of the sofa, although I stood in the middle of the living room, towel still swaddling me, and finished my icy treat. I licked the spoon before handing him the bowl.
He had a goofy grin on his face as he humbly accepted the dish.
I felt blushed again, finding myself in very unfamiliar territory since becoming a vamp. “It was good, thanks.”
He held up the empty bowl. “I noticed.”
I sauntered past him, dropping the towel when I was right in front of him. I quickly dressed in the outfit he’d chosen for me: a pair of white shorts with a navy blue silky cotton tank. I turned to head to the bathroom, running straight into Kellan’s hard body.
“That was not very nice.”
I stretched up and gave him a kiss. “I love you.”
“Uh huh.” He rolled his eyes.
I chuckled, pushing past him. I headed to the bathroom and found my same hair scrunchie from earlier on the bathroom counter. I brushed out my locks and pulled them back and up into a tight knot on top of my head.
Kellan changed into a pair of jeans, still wearing his black tee. He put on a pair of tennis shoes, also black, and I slid into my green Keds from earlier.
He held out an arm for me at the front door. “Let’s go, babe.”
I took a deep breath, sighing as I exhaled. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 5
The movie theater was busy considering it was after eleven at night. Mel and Craig met us in front of the box office.
“Hey, love,” Craig greeted me. “Hey, mate.” He and Kellan did a fancy handshake they invented when they were bored one day.
Mel yanked me into her, squeezing me tightly. “I’ve missed you,” she squealed.
“I’ve missed you too. How are things going?”
“Good. I passed the GED pre-test. Did you?” She linked our hands, drawing me towards the line with her.
I smiled. “Yup.”
“How’s business?”
“Steady. I have new orders pouring in every day, which is good, but it eats up several hours every day.” Bloody Bakes was doing incredibly well, considering I didn’t advertise. It was growing so much that I was certain I would need to hire help soon.
“Yay!” She tugged on my arm excitedly.
“How long do we have until the movie starts?” I looked to the guys for an answer.
“We’re squigglin’ in on the dopple,” Craig replied.
“I guess we’ll have to tell them after…”
Kellan nodded, flashing me a reassuring smile.
The movie lasted for two hours. It was an action flick that excited the guys in the room and kept the females perched on the edge of their seats. When you’re a vamp, most action movies lose their appeal when you realize that all the impossible moves, challenging stunts and crazy antics of the celebrity cast you once idolized were not only possible, but they were easy even without the ropes and safety precautions normally required behind the scenes. Not to mention, you’re essentially living an action movie all the time; at least I was.
“Is it me or did that movie have zero appeal? I mean it wasn’t even fun to watch the hunky lead fight off the gang alone since I could destroy them all in half the time.” Mel pouted, puckering her bottom lip.
“I totally feel you.”
She sighed, before pepping up. “You wanna go to the beach?”
I looked at the guys. They shrugged nonchalantly. “Sounds good to me. I need to talk to you and that’ll be as good a place as any.”
She eyed me suspiciously. “Why so secretive?”
“It’s not something I want to just blurt out.”
She narrowed her sapphire-blue eyes at me. When I didn’t immediately cave, she shrugged. “Alright, girl. I’ll bite.” Pursing her lips and smashing them together at the same time, she made an odd, fishy face. “But I am not happy about you teasing me here and then making me suffer the whole drive to the beach wondering what it could possibly be.”
I chuckled. “It’s not that bad.”
“Uh huh. Tell that to my curiosity, because she’s a cat trying to claw her way out of a paper bag right now.”
“The beach is fifteen minutes away.”
“Do you know what kind of damage a minx can do in that amount of time?”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ll see you in a few.”
“Meanie.” She stuck her tongue out at me.
She jutted her chin out, turned on her heel and dramatically stomped to Craig’s car. I knew she was playing, but she was always such a convincing actress. To anyone observing, she seemed pissed and was snubbing me.
Kellan held my hand on the drive to the beach. We easily found parking along the street given the time of night it was. He kissed the back of my hand before getting out and coming around to open my door for me.
I took off my shoes, tossing them on the passenger side floorboard. “I want to feel the sand.”
After hearing my declaration, he bent over and rolled up the legs of his jeans, making them Capri-length. He removed his shoes and threw them beside mine. Standing upright, he extended a hand towards me.
We crossed a small, wooden bridge that led to the sands of Folly Beach. Craig and Mel approached us from a few crossovers down. It seemed we all had the same idea; Craig’s jeans were rolled up like Kellan’s and Mel had taken off her shoes too. Her short, cotton sundress was clinging to her as a breeze blew through.
Mel started running over to us. She grabbed my free hand between both of hers as she faced me. “Okay. I’m ready. What do you have to tell me? Is it a wedding date? Did you finally set a date?” Her eyes widened with excitement.
“No.” I looked to Kellan for a moment. He squeezed my hand, reassuring me.
“What the flopples above then?” Craig raised a brow, studying me and Kellan with keen interest.
I swallowed hard. Taking a deep breath and pushing past the tight feeling in my chest. It felt like rabbles of butterflies were flying around in my stomach as I met Mel’s curious gaze. I opened and closed my mouth several times, struggling to push out those two words.
“Come on, Lex. I’m dying here!” She shook my hand.
“I’m. Pregnant.”
Her eyes widened and her head snapped back, like she’d been hit. All the excitement drained from her face. “Are you for real? Please tell me you’re joking.” There was a harsh bite, a desperate plea, in her tone.
Kellan tensed by my side. Unease swarmed me. I nibbled on my lip, trying to hold back my upset. I knew she wouldn’t be thrilled, but I didn’t expect the polar opposite.
“Holy spameezle. Blastic good news to me, mate. You rilen over it yet?” Craig slapped Kellan’s shoulder, flashing him a wolfish grin.
Kellan relaxed, his lips slowly lifting positively. “Yeah. It’s good. I’m happy.”
Mel flushed. She scrunched her forehead, considering me. “Are you happy, Lex?” Her voice was softer now.
“I am. I didn’t plan this. We were trying to be safe, but things don’t always work out the way you plan, you know?”
She dropped my hand and hugged me. “I’m sorry, Lex. If you’re okay with this, then so am I.”
I returned her embrace, appreciating her support. I needed her and I think she sensed that.
“Ooh! Do you know what this means?” She lit up, wiggling out of my arms to face me.
&n
bsp; “What?” I hesitated, given her abrupt change in disposition.
“Shopping! Now I have a whole new reason to go shopping again.” She danced in place. “Oh my gosh. Okay, so if it’s a girl, I heard pinks and browns are in. Or we could go timeless and do a black and white theme, which would go for either gender. Then, when you find out what you’re having, we can add a pop of bright color to signifying the baby’s gender. Like, hot pink or maybe teal for a girl and lime green or red for a boy.”
Kellan patted my upper arm empathetically. I whimpered as I looked at the men. “Somebody help me rein her in.” They threw their hands up in the air and backed away. I cut my eyes at them. “Traitors.”
Mel continued on her ramble, not catching anything I said to the guys. She’d reached the self-sustaining point in her enthusiasm. Basically, as long as I stood there and nodded from time to time, she would continue to answer her own questions and babble on for a while, until she came full circle, having figured out a plan, all on her own, about something that she was never assigned in the first place...typical Mel.
She finally asked her first question - well, a series of questions really - that she left open, allowing her to take a breath for the first time in at least five minutes. “Have you told Gabi? What about Kalel? Oh! What about Kai?”
“I told Kai today. He didn’t take it well at first but came around really quick. He took me baby shopping this afternoon and bought an outfit and a swing for the baby. I haven’t told the others yet.”
“Aww. That was actually really sweet of him. I have to admit, I’m a tad impressed.” She nodded her head towards Kellan. “Has he done anything for you yet?”
I smiled, remembering the flowers and the ice cream. I told her about them both.
She laughed heartily. “Oh, this is going to be so much fun!” She started walking down the beach but spun around abruptly. “Holy sugarplums, Lex. We get to pick out a baby name!”
“Eh hem.” Kellan finally decided to jump in. “I do believe it’s us who get to pick out a baby name, since, you know, we actually made the baby.”
Mel put her hands on her hips. “I’m allowed to help.”
5 Darkness Falls Page 3
