THE HEALING HEART

by Zelda Clemens

  “They’d never believe the truth, not in a thousand years.” She crossed the street and was about to enter the park, when a cab flashed its lights at her.

  “Oh, Adam. You didn’t…”

  He had.

  “What have you done with the driver this time?” she asked, leaning over to frown at her lover.

  “In the trunk.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

  “You can’t simply—”

  “Relax. He’s fine, and he won’t remember a thing.”

  “Is this the same cab you hijacked last week?”

  Adam shrugged. “It’s our one-week anniversary. I thought you might appreciate it.”

  Nicole smiled. “You’re so sweet and thoughtful.” She climbed into the back. “But promise me you’ll let him out of the trunk before you come into the apartment.”

  “I promise.”

  “Hello, lover,” Nicole said to Michael, who was already in the back.

  “Hello yourself.” He grinned, then kissed her lips.

  “Hey!” Adam cried. “No starting without me!”

  Nicole laughed. “Eyes on the road, driver.”

  “Yeah,” Michael added. “Mind your own business. Nicole can give me a blow job if she wants to. Mmm, that’s nice.” He faked a satisfied groan.

  “Hey!” Nicole slapped his arm and slid away from Michael.

  “Yeah, hey!” Adam mimicked Nicole’s squeal of protest. “We agreed, if this is going to work…”

  “I know, I know. No sneaky twosome trysts. But what if one of us is off hunting? Can I throw Nicole in the sack then?”

  “Stop that!” Nicole punched his arm hard. He barely flinched. “You promised not to hunt anymore.”

  “That’s right,” Adam confirmed. “And we don’t need to. Your blood satisfies all our needs.”

  “And then some,” Michael added. Nicole smiled. She’d earned the right to the title of trove with good reason. Her blood was unique in the city—as far as she knew. Her Bostonian heritage could be traced back to a small group of humans who’d survived a culling by vampire hordes. The monsters of 1783 feared her ancestor’s ability to resist them, and had taken drastic action.

  What a pity the arrogant vampires had overlooked the fact that her blood could not only satisfy their lusts, but also supercharge their dark souls. An added benefit was enhanced abilities for the human. Nicole’s thinking was clearer, her healing accelerated, and her energies almost unlimited. She only required two hours sleep, which was lucky, because the boys kept her up most of the night, pleasuring her and satisfying her near-insatiable lust for loving. She’d never felt so horny, not even as a teenager.

  “Ready for bed, boys?” she asked.

  “As always, Adam replied. “But I will remind you to take a break for food and drink.”

  “Hah! I don’t need that stuff. I can eat in the morning.” She grinned. “I’d far rather be spit-roasted by you two.” She shivered at the thought of Adam taking her from behind while she used her mouth to pleasure Michael. Sex with vampires was wild, and often rough, but immensely satisfying.

  “Oh, that reminds me, you’ll need to find a more discreet place to bite me. People have noticed my swollen ear lobe, and I can’t keep feeding them the ‘crazy kitten’ story forever.

  “At least your lip’s healing nicely.” Michael stoked her mouth with a finger, setting her shivering as the memory of their first threesome flooded back. She smiled and squirmed as heat flushed her pelvis.

  “Step on it, Adam. Please. I need you both more than ever. I need you both inside me.”

  Michael squeezed her thigh. “We could get started right here—if that’s okay with Adam. Technically, you’re here, right? We wouldn’t be cheating on you.”

  “Damn. Next time, you’re doing the driving, Michael.”

  “Deal.” He leaned in to kiss Nicole again, but she raised a finger, blocking him.

  “Next time, we’re walking. I don’t want that poor cabbie to spend another evening in his trunk.”

  “He’s fine.” Adam watched her in the rear-view mirror. “But, okay. I won’t steal his cab again.”

  “Okay, if that’s settled, and Adam is happy to drive while you fuck me in here…” Nicole rocked her butt from side to side and pulled up her uniform skirt, revealing her thighs and white panties.

  “Come get me, lover.” Michael slid across and lowered his head to her thighs, pressing his lips to her pale skin. Adam adjusted the rear-view mirror so he could watch—and immediately drifted toward the oncoming traffic.

  “This is going to be so hard…” he murmured as he corrected the cab’s path.

  “I hope so,” Nicole said with a grin. She couldn’t reach Michael’s erection, but her body tingled at the thought of his hardness invading her soft, slippery passage.

  “I need to fuck you guys so bad.” Oops, did I say that out loud?

  The cab braked to a halt at the side of a quiet street, and Adam joined his fellow vampire in the back seat. Nicole smiled. It would be less risky having him join them, than have him at the wheel, distracted. Sex in the back of a cab would be awkward, messy and cramped, but memorable.

  And besides, she’d have the rest of her life to enjoy her immortal friend’s bodies in her bed, a life which could very well extend into three figures, now that her body was enhanced with supernatural energy.

  She sighed as two pairs of hands explored her body and peeled away her clothes. Yes, becoming a trove was the best thing she had ever done.

  THE END

  Another bonus story is on the next page.

  Bonus Story 32 of 44

  Hunter in the Flight

  Description

  Scarlet never thought her interview with NBA star Cody Jacobson would turn into what it did.

  But after a fiery interview with the man, she caught a glimpse of him, and not only that she learned that his life wasn’t as pretty as it seemed. In fact, he had his own secrets that he didn’t want to say, but he seemed to feel something for Scarlet that he didn’t with others.

  On their first date, he gets the idea to show her his true form, which is a dragon shifter. For Scarlet, this is shocking, but at the same time morbid curiosity starts to get the best of her, and soon, she wants to be around him. But of course, someone who saw him in that manner caught him on tape, and he plans to use it as blackmail to get Cody to throw the game. Will they be able to work things out? Or is this the end of his championship chances?

  *****

  Scarlet waltzed into the room where she would see Cody Jacobson play, wondering how everything would go. She mused upon this, knowing full well that this would be one of the first ever interviews with him, and Scarlet wanted to make sure that everything would be okay. Sure, this was an article that wouldn’t be published anywhere big, just the college newspaper, but the fact that the NBA star wanted to conduct the interview with her when typically, he refused this sort of ordeal, surprised her. She found out later on it was because her journalism director was actually good friends with him, but it still made her feel good about herself. It made her feel like she could potentially make a career out of it, and she wanted to more than anything.

  Her brunette hair was tied back into a low ponytail, her brown glasses perching on her face. She crossed her legs to appear ladylike, waiting for the man to finally show up. They said he would be here in a few minutes, but she already assumed that he would probably be late. It’s not like he could help it though; in fact, she was surprised he even agreed to this at all.

  When the door opened, she looked over at him and immediately she was surprised. He was a man who was about a foot taller than her, with blue eyes and blonde hair. He looked gorgeous, and she wondered how in the world she got so damn lucky. This man seemed to be even cleaner than the eyes let on, especially since he was perfectly showered and groomed even though it had been only fifteen minutes since the game ended.

  “Hello there Mr. Jacobson. Have a seat,” she mused.

>   “Call me Cody. And I sure will,” he told her.

  His gait was strong, and she could see the prominent leg muscles appear under his pants. It was barely a hint of skin, but it was enough to make her drool. Gosh, why was she all over this man all of a sudden? It wasn’t like her to feel like this.

  He sat down across from her, grinning excitedly as he stared at her.

  “So, will we be getting started? I’m not used to these interviews and such. My manager insists upon me not doing them unless they’re for a small group, especially considering the consequences it can have on people,” he explained.

  “I understand. Don’t worry, it will take only a few minutes. So have you been playing basketball for a long time?” she asked him.

  “Yeah I guess. I mean, when I do short interviews they always ask me that. It’s been about ten years since I started playing on a team, but I have been playing since I was about 10 years old. I’m 24 now and I guess I’m okay,” he told her.

  “Only okay? You’re the star center in the league right now. People clamor over you day and night. Hell, my best friend Courtney practically fainted when I said I was getting an interview with you,” she cried out.

  Okay, she didn’t mean to sound that unprofessional, but it seemed that there was something about him that wasn’t like how she expected it to be. Cody sighed, looking at her with sad eyes.

  “Nobody knows your true face, and typically they only like the side of you that you show off all the time,” he told her.

  She looked at him with a curious glance. What the hell did he mean by that? It made no sense that he was saying this sort of thing.

  “What are you talking about? I mean, I thought that you were a man whowas idolized by other people. I thought you would take pride in the fact that you’ve been slated as one of the most eligible men in the country to date. I thought sports magazines would be flocking to you for an interview,” she told him.

  He looked at her, the same forlorn expression.

  “Well, I’ll tell you right now that the ‘me’ that you see on television, the one that plays basketball and is the apple of so many people’s eyes, is not real ‘me’. I don’t feel that way all the time. In fact, I’m probably a monster,” he told her.

  A monster? This made no sense! Why was he pretending to be something he wasn’t? Why was he so goddamn humble all of a sudden?

  “Why do you think that way about yourself?” she asked him.

  “It’s because of who I really am. Not the side that’s exposed for the world to see, but the more intimate one that hides away. Maybe you might be the one to finally see it. I like you a lot, even though we’ve barely met, and I like that you know so much about me. But let me ask you, do you feel like you truly understand me?” he asked her.

  She looked at him. He had a point, that’s for sure.

  “True. I’m Scarlet by the way, I didn’t know if I told you that,” she said.

  “You already know my name,” he simply stated.

  Even though it was gruff, she did know his name. It would be stupid to ask him because she was doing this interview with him.

  “What do you want me to say? What should I tell the paper,” she told him.

  “Just report the normal shit. Tell everyone that I’m a normal man, living a normal life, and who has nothing wrong with him. I mean, I would rather not get into it here, simply because it will make things weird. But I do want to tell you. I like your style Scarlet, and I like the fact that you haven’t ran away after I said all those weird things. If you want, maybe we can get a bite to eat sometime,” he offered.

  She looked at him, a shocked look on her face. She was just a 22-year old girl who wanted nothing more than to get the journalistic scoop she wanted. She didn’t think she would be getting a date out of this!

  “Are you sure?” she asked.

  “Of course. In fact, I’m free next Fridayif you would like to maybe get something to eat,” he told her.

  He looked at Scarlet, trying to ask for a sheet of paper. She gave him one, and he put his contact information on it. He gave it to her, smiling.

  “Here’s my information,” he said.

  She nodded, looking at the foreboding piece of paper with wonder in her eyes.

  “Hers’s mine,” she said, knowing full well that this could mean bad things for her. She didn’t know if a journalist was ever supposed to do this sort of thing. However, she knew damn well that the best thing for her to do was to give him the information. It made sense in a way, and suddenly, after writing down her address and number, she gave it to the player. He smiled at her, and for a moment, she felt as if time had stopped.

  “Thank you. Now, I’ll see you at your place on Friday. Sound good?” he asked.

  She nodded, feeling like she had struck gold. “That’s fine. Thank you for the interview,” she replied.

  He grinned at her, leaving the small room with a click of the lock. Scarlet sat in there, trying to process all of this.

  Cody asked her out. Cody Jacobson, the man who seemed more interested in basketball games than going out with anyone just asked her out. And she said yes. Holy shit, this was going to be something.

  But there was something within Scarlet that was telling her she was about to find out more about Cody than she expected to. Of course, the best thing she could do was wait and see what he had to offer. Who knows, maybe she’ll understand his mindset at the end of it.

  *****

  For the next week, Scarlet was on the edge. She decided to get an outfit for the date, even though she rarely thought about this sort of thing. Of course, this was the first date she had been on since high school, so she wanted to impress.

  Scarlet never went on dates. It wasn’t because she was unattractive or she had a bad personality, it was more along the lines of the fact that she put school first for the longest time. Now that she had a lighter load and less classes than normal, it seemed almost obvious that she might get into the dating world. Of course, when she thought about what this might mean, she felt nervous. She didn’t know much about Cody other than what the other interviewers gathered from him. The interview she got with him was almost your standard interview, with Scarlet adding some extra details to make it sound like something other than just a copy and paste of other interviews. But even so, it felt like she was lying to herself when she thought in this manner, because she wanted to tell everyone the truth about this man but wasn’t able to.

  Oh well, she would get the information sooner or later, and if it was something that he wanted her to keep secret, then so be it. Friday came around swimmingly, and soon she heard the sound of a knock at the door. She pranced over to it, smiling as she opened it.

  “Hello,” she said with a smile, but then she immediately looked surprised. The man at the door wasn’t Cody, or at least the Cody that she saw.

  “Hey there Scarlet. It’s me,” the man said. Sure enough, it was Cody. However, he didn’t look anything like the Cody she saw during the interview. For one, he had brown hair, and he seemed to be hiding his eyes with some sunglasses even though it was dark out. What was up with that?

  “Is that really you?” she asked with concern.

  “It is. Sorry about this, I just didn’t want anyone to see me when I walked over to your dorm. The last thing I need is for a reporter to be tailing us,” he replied.

  She nodded. “Understandable. So where are we going tonight?” she asked him.

  “Well, I know this little sushi restaurant nearby. It’s tiny and typically not crowded. The people there know who I am as well, so we can get a private booth and we can talk there. How does that sound?” he asked her.

  She paused, looking at him with a bit of a shocked expression. It seemed like it was too good to be true in a sense, that this was going way differently than she thought.

  “Sure. Let’s get out of here,” she replied.

  They went out of the house, heading over to the restaurant after a quick drive. For Scarlet, she
could already tell that the tension between Cody and her was increasing, and she didn’t know what to do with it. In fact, she felt like something was off about all of this, but maybe he would explain it over dinner. When they got in there, Cody raised his glasses up, showing the host who he was.

  “Oh yes! I heard you were coming. Right this way sir,” the man said.

  They were led over to the booth, and after a second of so they were sat down and a waitress came over to get drink orders. They ordered a bottle of wine, and as soon as she left, Cody sighed.

  “You don’t know how hard it is to keep up this front do you?” he said.

  “I don’t. I mean, I’m just a school reporter. I don’t know much about the life you live, but I can tell it’s hard on you. I couldn’t imagine being your age and having to put on a facade all day long,” she admitted.

  “It’s awful. It makes everything hard. From maintaining friendships, to being on a team and working with people. I hate it, but I’m very good at what I do so I keep at it,” he explained.

  That seemed different from what Scarlet assumed. She always thought that Cody was the type of man who didn’t give a damn about anything but others, but here he was saying all of that was a lie.

  “It’s almost mind-blowing hearing you say that. I mean, a lot of people at my school idolize you because of the fact that you do everything that you do, and you work together on a team. I mean, it is your life at the end of the day, it’s just pretty surprising that’s for sure,” she told him.

  “Yeah. I mean, I’m pretty chill if you want the truth of it. I really liked that you didn’t seem worried about being around me. If you want the truth, I have my own secrets that I’m worried about telling others. I do have my own demons to cope with, and I don’t know how to manage them a good chunk of the time. But if I did meet someone who was willing to learn about them, it would be the best thing in the world to me,” he told her.

  She paused, listening to all of this and nodding. “I’m willing to learn, if that means anything,” she said.