by Jada Turner
Damien bristled. “Did I say there was a problem? I just think you should keep it to yourselves for a while.”
“And why is that?” Ashleigh demanded. “I’ll be nineteen in June!”
“I know that,” Damien said peevishly. “It’s bad timing that’s all. I’ve got the economic summit coming up and all that. It’s just not a good time.”“Gee, Dad,” Sebastian drawled. “When will be a good time? Leigh’s pregnant!”
Ashleigh gasped and clutched her stomach. “And you were going to tell me when?”
Damien couldn’t help laughing. “Look, kids. I’m not unhappy you’re married. I just want to keep it quiet until we get the summit taken care of. Then you can play happy families and I’ll be the first one to congratulate you.”
“Then what?”
“How about a honeymoon? Extended of course.”
It was all too much for Ashleigh. She slid to the floor and wouldn’t get up. Sebastian knelt beside her, glaring at his father. “Now look what you’ve done!”
Damien didn’t flinch. “You can go to Transylvania. Stay in the castle for as long as you like.”
Sebastian wiped his wife’s face and brow. “What do you think, love?”
Ashleigh nodded. “Whatever.” She held up her hand. “Help me to the bathroom. I’m going to be sick.” Her husband picked her up and ran to the bathroom. She would spend the rest of the evening hunched over the bowl. “I suppose I have nine months of this.”
“Not really. It’s supposed to go away after the fifth month.”
“Fifth month?” she groaned miserably. “So much for birth control.”
“I’m not sorry.”
“Good,” she gasped once she could breathe. “Because you’ll be changing all the diapers.”
“Leigh,” Sebastian soothed. “It’s okay. Dad’s not angry.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know if I’m ready to be a mother. I just became a wife.”
Sebastian kissed her cheek. “You’ll do fine. I’ll help you.”
“You better.” She didn’t want to get up, but Sebastian insisted. He carried her to bed and undressed her. “Where’s Dad?”
“He went downstairs for coffee. I think he’s feeling guilty.”
Ashleigh sighed. “So what’s the castle like?”
“Cold and drafty. You’ll love it.”
She patted the bed beside her. “Come here.”
Sebastian stretched out and took his wife in his arms. “Do you want to know what we’re having?”
“No,” she murmured drowsily. “I want to be surprised.”
He grinned and kissed her hair. “Okay.”
Damien came back and found his children in bed, arms wrapped lovingly about the other.
He sat back and chuckled to himself, wondering if he should tell Kate. But he thought better of it. “I’ll let the baby tell her for me.” He stayed until morning and let them see him off.
Later when Kate gazed upon their first grandchild, Damien saw her eyes were wet with tears.
“I thought you were happy for them,” he admonished gently.
“I am,” she laughed. “I am.”
Blood Lust
A Paranormal Vampire Romance
Chapter One
Loretta knew she was being followed. The person was sticking to the shadows and hoping that she wouldn’t notice but they moved clumsily. Probably a low level mugger who was hoping to get the drop on her. The snow kicked up around her feet as she walked. The sky was dark and heavy, threatening to drop a blizzard on top of the city. Loretta was in no mood to deal with a mugger. Her hands tightened around her keys, positioning them so she could lash out when the person made their move.
She turned to the right quickly, leading whoever it was away from her car. The sidewalk was empty. It was the middle of the night. Loretta could hear the footsteps behind her. As they walked faster towards her, she gripped the keys tighter. Fingers grabbed her wrist as Loretta spun around on her heel, ready to slash the keys across the mugger’s face.
But suddenly there was a blur of color. The mugger soared through the air and hit the ground with a thud. A figure dressed in all black was on top of the man.
“Stop!” Loretta cried, going to yank the figure off the unconscious man.
The figure went still and moved swiftly off of the mugger. Her heart beat quickly as the man stepped forward into the streetlight. His skin was pale and his eyes dark – and his fangs extended.
“What do you want?” Loretta said, crossing her arms.
“I heard you were putting the word out that you wanted someone to Turn you,” the vampire said, “And you pay handsomely for it.”
“Yeah, that’s right. But are we actually going to discuss this here? I just left my friend’s party and now you knocked out this guy on the street.”
“He was going to mug you.” The vampire said stiffly.
“Sorry, not interested in you being the one to Turn me. Thanks anyway.”
The vampire mumbled something under his breath as Loretta walked past him, heading back towards her car. She sighed. What a mess. Yes, she wanted vampires to speak to her about turning her into one of them but no, she didn’t want it to turn into a big fuss in the middle of the street. Loretta couldn’t wait to get home and crawl into bed and try to forget the entire night. The party had been a wash, like she knew it would be, and then the mugger on top of the vampire. She had the worst luck.
Loretta was actively looking to be turned into a vampire. For years, she had dreamed of it. She was born into a family of Guardians. Ever since she was a kid her father had explained to her that their family were protectors of the supernatural – the guardians tasked to make sure the regular world didn’t find out about the supernatural world.
But Loretta didn’t want to just be a Guardian. She wanted to be a vampire. Ageless and forever, she admired their world from afar. Why did she need to guard their secrets and only stare from the outside? Her parents had been proud of their bookshelves boasting all their knowledge. They were gate keepers of all things supernatural. But as Loretta grew older and found out more about this life chosen for her, she realized she wanted more than that.
She wanted to become one of the supernatural.
After her parents passed away, Loretta put her feelers out, trying to find a vampire who would be suitable enough to be her Maker. Sadly, all her feelers had turned up, so far, was a bunch of weirdo vampires hoping that turning her meant they would have someone to sleep with for the rest of their lives. She had a couple show up just to try to talk her out of it, to tell her that she would regret her choice.
But Loretta knew she wouldn’t. She wanted to be part of that world and she would make sure she would get it.
As she pulled up into her apartment complex on the outskirts of the city, exhaustion settled in. Her friend’s birthday party had been boring and endless. If Loretta had been a vampire she would have been able to take care of that mugger by herself.
Eyes closing with exhaustion, Loretta walked up the steps to the second floor of her building. She yawned and fumbled for her keys. When she opened her eyes, she saw someone waiting outside her apartment and froze.
He was clearly a vampire, but he had a different aura from the others. He was tall with eyes that were a stormy blue. His features looked as if they were cut from fine marble and he was wearing a jacket, trying to blend in with the other humans, as if he truly felt the cold. Loretta found herself entranced at his eyes – she hadn’t seen a color like that on a vampire before.
He was fit and well built. She knew he would be strong enough to take anything who may attack him. The power emanating from him made Loretta think that this was a very old, very ancient vampire. His handsome and severe features made her palms itch.
“Uhm. Hi. Let me guess. You’re here because of my ad.”
The man nodded, “That is right.” His voice was smooth and had a light accent to it that
Loretta couldn’t pinpoint.
“I’m exhausted,” She said walking up to him, sliding her key in the lock, “Can we meet tomorrow night?”
“I’m busy tomorrow night.”
“Then another night.”
“I’m busy the rest of the nights.”
Loretta let out a sigh and turned to look at him, feeling tired and annoyed, “Listen, I get it. You’re a super old vampire. Probably really imposing to literally everyone else you run into. But I’ve seen them all, okay? And if you’re here about the ad, you obviously are interested in what you get in return so spare me the notion that you are too busy to ever come back.”
The corners of his mouth quirked upwards, “I suppose you got me there.”
He looked down at her and their eyes locked. Loretta felt a shiver run through her and goose bumps pop up all over her skin. Even though his body gave off no heat, Loretta had to suppress the urge to move closer to him, as if for warmth.
“So come back tomorrow, okay? We can talk then. And don’t try to glamor me. It won’t work.”
“I know. You’re one of the guardians, aren’t you? Rare for one of them to want to be one of us.”
“Don’t try to psycho analyze me either.” Loretta mumbled and tore her eyes away from his, hopping the front door to her apartment.
“Tomorrow night then.” The vampire said, his voice like silk.
Loretta nodded and shut the door. Her heart was beating quickly. She was used to seeing vampires from all different walks of life but something about this one was different. The strength he exuded…he was ancient. It was rare for Loretta to find an ancient vampire.
With a sigh, she padded over to her bedroom. Her cat meowed at her, almost questioning why she had been out so late. She didn’t bother to undress. Loretta flopped into bed and closed her eyes, ready to fall fast asleep.
Chapter Two
Loretta didn’t mean to but she found herself checking the clock often the next day. She spent the day working from home – guarding the secrets of the paranormal world wasn’t exactly an office job. She woke up late in the afternoon and tried to focus on her work. Currently she was translating an old scroll from a werewolf who was paying her to translate. But it was dry, dull work and Loretta found her mind wandering.
She couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen after the sun went down. Would the ancient vampire show up right away? Would he wait until the dead of night? And would he change her tonight? Loretta hoped he’d give her at least another night of getting her affairs in order. She knew enough to know that once she was bitten, she wouldn’t be good to do much except lay buried in the dirt somewhere, hoping to be reborn correctly.
Sun set came and went. Loretta tried to keep herself busy but ended up giving up on trying to translate the scroll. The words seem to lodge into her head like stones. Instead, she found herself in bed, watching TV. Waiting.
It was a little past midnight when she heard the knock on the door. Loretta almost leapt out of her skin with excitement. She opened and the door –
And there he was. He was wearing all white, which seemed to blend in with his pale skin. His blue eyes jumped out at her, almost an electrifying blue tonight. His hair was messy, as if he run through the snow. Yet he wore no jacket to blend in. His sole purpose was coming here to see her.
“Hey.” Loretta said, unsure why her heart was beating so quickly.
“Hello again. May I come in?”
“What’s your name?”
“Atlas.”
“Going to guess that wasn’t the name you were born with.”
“No. The name I was born with is now part of a dead language.”
Older than she had thought, Loretta mused, before taking a step back.
“I formally invite you in, Atlas.”
He nodded at her and stepped inside slowly, almost afraid he would burst into flames. When nothing happened, his features seemed to relax.
“I’d offer you something to drink but…”
“Funny.” Atlas replied although his facial expression didn’t change.
“Would you like to have a seat? So we can discuss this properly?”
Altas sat down on her couch. He looked out of place among her things. He seemed uneasy in her home. She wondered if he was so ancient that the world and all of its new wonders were too much for him.
“So,” Loretta said, sitting on the chair across from him, “You understand the ad then?”
His blue eyes fell back on her and Loretta felt a shiver go up her spine, “Yes.”
“Do you have any questions?”
“You are a guardian, are you not? And now you wish to join our world…do you know what that entails?”
“Yes. You bite me and bury me underground for three days. At the end of the three days, I either come back as a vampire or I’m dead.”
But Atlas was shaking his head and Loretta trailed off, now feeling unsure.
“What?” She prompted.
“Do you know what the most important thing is?”
“Uhm. The bite?”
There was a flash of pure white and suddenly Atlas was crouched down in front of her. His speed was almost terrifying. She had never seen anything like it before. In all her years of dealing with vampires, none had ever moved quite like that. It took the breath out of her.
Loretta was now staring directly into his eyes. They were so close that goose bumps prickled up along her skin.
“The most important thing is a connection,” He whispered so low that Loretta felt almost dazed by his voice, “It is important that you and I have a connection. Or it won’t work.”
“What do you mean,” Loretta replied, trying to keep her tone light, “Like you want me to have sex with you?”
“Nothing so crass.”
Altas leaned forward and his lips were on her neck. The touch was electric. It felt as if ever sense came alive inside of her. Loretta suddenly shifted away from him, afraid of her reaction to his slight touch.
“What are you doing?”
“If you can’t handle my lips against your neck, how will you handle the bite?”
“We haven’t even agreed that we are going to do this, so why don’t you slow your roll.”
“Slow my…what?”
Loretta gently tried to push him away but she might as well been trying to shove an entire marble wall back. She could feel tight and well-formed muscles underneath his shirt.
“Tell me what you want out of this.”
“I don’t want anything.” He moved away from her now, back towards the couch, and once again it felt like an interview.
“That’s a lie.”
“How so?”
“Because every other vampire that has come to you is a child. They want money, or sex, or one of your artifacts. I am after something different than that.”
“What are you after?”
“Your blood.”
Loretta frowned, “My blood? Isn’t sucking people’s blood what you do? You realize the ad called for more than just you to turn me into a vampire, right? You would be my Maker. You’d have to train me and teach me anything I don’t already know from being a guardian.”
“Yes, I know. I am thousands of years old. I have been a Maker plenty of times.”
Loretta crossed her arms, eying him now slowly, “I don’t understand you.”
“Do you need to?”
“Yes, seeing as you want to become my Maker.”
“I told you – the connection is the most powerful thing. And I feel it with you.”
Loretta shifted and was about to say something when there was a flash of white again. This time Atlas had moved behind her, his hands running over the back of her chair. Loretta went still, feeling him nearby her made her heart pound for some reason.
His hands rested on her shoulders. She closed her eyes as she felt his lips on her neck again. Her mind felt cloudy, as if she couldn’t thin
k straight while Atlas touched her. If he became her Maker, would it always be like this?
“Do you feel it?” It was a soft whisper, a promise of things to come.
Loretta tried to move away from him but most of her didn’t want to. She knew that she wasn’t under any control of his. Guardians couldn’t fall prey to anything that vampires did to regular humans. What she was feeling was completely on her own and was brought to life by Atlas. There was no breath on her neck from him but she could feel him, close to her neck, promising her a million things without actually touching her.
“Why do you want my blood?” She finally said, trying to get the conversation away from their connection.
Atlas moved away from her. Loretta realized she was disappointed he had moved away from her. She liked being so close to him. The whole thing was madness – she had just met him. Was this the connection he had been talking about?
“Guardian blood is not normal blood. Knowledge of what the blood is and what it can do to my kind has been lost for generations,” His blue eyes flashed and he smiled, “But I am generations old. I know things the new children have forgotten. Guardian blood grants you such strength that has not been seen in thousands of years.”
“I don’t believe you. I would know about this if it were true.”
“No. You would not. Like I said, this information was lost over time. Their blood tastes the best – the forbidden blood. Biting a guardian without their consent meant you would be staked. My kind eventually got too nervous to attempt it.”
“You still haven’t told me what my blood apparently does.”
Atlas moved towards her, at a normal speed, a grin going across his face. He looked angelic, like someone who would promise you everything before stabbing you in the back. Loretta’s heart pounded.
“It grants me the ability to walk in sunlight.”
Chapter Three
Loretta’s mouth went slack. She looked up at Atlas as if he was insane. What if he decided just to drain her right here in her apartment? And she had been feeling some sort of connection to him – madness.
